We’ve all known of someone who clicks their own knuckles throughout the day.  But what about when someone tries to click, or self-adjust, their spine?  Let’s look at why that’s not a good idea.

Firstly, the driving factor, the reason WHY you have the feeling to want to self-adjust, is all because of a stiff joint. It’s the same whether it’s your knuckles or your neck.

The 24 vertebrae in your spine have up to 6 joints each, that connect them to the area of your spine above and below. Typically, when we feel restriction or stiffness, it is because one of these joints in one or multiple vertebrae, isn’t moving well. When you get this sensation in your neck or back, you may try to bend your head to the side and rotate it. Or you may sit on a chair and twist your body round until you get a pop.

This is not going to target the one dysfunctional joint that has caused the feeling of stiffness.  It will, however, likely move the joints which are already free and moving. You then create a situation where you are clicking joints above and or below the one that is actually stuck and in need of help.  This creates hyper-mobility (too much movement) either side of an already restricted joint. Meaning that after about 30 minutes, when the good feeling has worn off, you’ll likely want to do it again. Even more so because now the joint that is still restricted will feel even more tight… as above and below now move too much!

This creates a cycle of wanting to self-adjust repeatedly throughout the day, whilst not addressing the underlying issue!

The chiropractic adjustment specifically adjusts the joints which are not moving correctly, meaning you will have lasting change, and not create more issues along the way.

Heal > Adapt > Evolve