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We don’t work with just anyone at Thomas Chiropractic. Our doctors are people that share our values and ethics, people that we work with and trust. It’s not about hiring a Chiropractor, but building a family.
The Cost of Waiting
Abraham Lincoln once said, “You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.” The same is true for addressing your health concerns. Several times each day I have patients come in who tell me they have been hurting for days, weeks, months, or even years. The story is usually that they just thought it would get better on its own but it never did. Inevitably, they express their remorse at waiting to come in.
The truth is that with any injury, the body starts the healing process immediately. The concern is whether you will heal correctly. The body will compensate in whichever way it can to stabilize. If muscles are tight or ligaments are overstretched, it will alter the proper movement of joints. Such improper movement causes the nervous system to become confused and ultimately desensitized. Consequently, the body will lay down scar tissue that will promote the new and improper movement patterns which leaves the body susceptible to reinjury or to injury of surrounding tissue.
As a chiropractor, if I can help move the joints in a proper manner before inflammation and scar tissue sets in, then the healing process is a much easier ordeal. If you wait until scar tissue repair has set in when you come in to see me, the first step will be for me to tear down most of that process so the healing can start over. As with remodeling kitchens, the demolition can be ugly. The old adage of getting worse before it gets better is often in play and can lead to a few days of discomfort.
Meet Eric Wagnon, DC!
If you have been in the office over the last three weeks, you may have seen a tall gentleman in passing or treating patients. We are happy to welcome Dr. Eric Wagnon!
Dr. Wagnon has relocated his practice from Rocklin to be with us. He brings with him nearly seven years of experience in helping others improve their health through chiropractic care. Dr. Wagnon and his wife, Jackie, are residents of Rocklin along with their children Tucker, Taylor, Tessa, Tyce, and twins, Trey and Talia. Dr. Wagnon was raised in the Sacramento area. His father has been practicing as a successful chiropractor for 30 years. Dr. Wagnon’s undergraduate studies in Biology were completed at Brigham Young University, and his Doctor of Chiropractic degree was attained from Life Chiropractic College West. He is also fluent in Spanish.
Dr. Wagnon plays an active role in the community involved with the Rocklin Chamber of Commerce and speaks regularly to different clubs, groups, schools, and organizations on different Wellness topics to help change the health of our community.
Consistency and Persistency in Chiropractic
First off, I know that persistency is not a real word. It is a joke to get your attention. Even if Charles Barkley, or any other athlete turned commentator, might use such a faux word to great effect, the true word is persistence. Now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about why this is the topic of this article.
We live in an instant gratification society. People want to see results immediately and there is very little patience if they do not. This is true in healthcare, as well. The only problem is that it does not work. Healing is a process that takes time, effort and energy. The more consistent the effort and energy put into healing over time, the better the results.
In addition, there is significantly more value in going through the process. All too often, I am sitting across from a patient explaining the healing process and how it takes time and consistency when I see the glaze fall over their eyes. From there, they either just ignore what I explained or they honestly believe they are the exception. Very few people are the exception, that is why they are the exception!
Keeping It Simple
I love being a chiropractor. I feel blessed to get to know so many great people and help them improve their health. I love discovering new things about the human body and the microcosm it is. I have seen thousands of patients come in hurting and dysfunctional and after a relatively short amount of time, they are feeling and functioning better. I love the simplicity of what I do.
In my profession, there are many ways to practice. I choose to keep my practice focused on the joints. There are hundreds of joints in the body and each one feeds the brain with information. When the joints work properly, the nervous system has a better chance at working properly, and if the nervous system works well, the body will be healthier. Simple! Right?
My success comes by improving joint movement. I do it well and I am fortunate enough to adjust around 400 patients a week. I get asked all the time how is it possible to adjust that many people? The truth is, I could do more. The fact that I am writing this article during office hours proves I could. I do my best to never rush but it does not take a lot of time to adjust someone and I am typically pretty quick at understanding where the dysfunction is. I do spend more time with new patients but a regular adjustment takes anywhere from two to three minutes.
How Do I Know If My Chiropractic Treatments Are Helping?
One of the most fulfilling yet difficult aspects of my career is helping people navigate their journey to better health. Healing is a process that can take a lot of time. We tend to think of that process as a straight road from disease or injury to health but that is the exception rather than the rule. Often, things feel worse before they feel better and there are always plateaus and valleys. Helping patients to have faith in the process and continue care inspite of bumps in the road is a worthy challenge.
Everyone comes into the office with disfunction. Not all disfunction is symptomatic but it all has potential to become so. Sometimes people come in with symptoms that are just starting to show but during further examination, I discover that those symptoms are just the tip of a very large disfunctional iceberg. I know that when I start chipping away at the disfuntion below the surface it is going to make those symtoms much more obvious. This can be very alarming. In addition, symptoms can change or move locations. People who are more prone to worry, often need a lot of reassurance to stay the course. There are several signs and symptoms that may cause concern but are actually indicative of progress. Most of these happen in early stages of care.
Insurance and Chiropractic
I frequently get emails asking if I take such and such insurance. I wish my response could be as easy as yes or no but it never is. The insurance/provider arrangement is as complicated as a Kardashian relationship. I will try to explain but if you do not understand it is probably not because I am not saying it clearly enough but because it is so stupid you will be left wondering why in the world it is like this.
There are several Health Insurance companies in the US. They are typically large companies that have regional or statewide sub companies. For example. Blue Cross Blue Shield has corporate headquarters in Missouri (I think), but there is also Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield which is headquartered in Indiana. Then there is Blue Cross of California, Blue Shield of California, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, Minnesota, Illinois, North Carolina, Arizona, Federal Employees, Exchange (for Obama Care) and the list goes on. The same can be said of the all of the rest, too. They are massive entities with more subsidiaries with either identical names plus the region or completely different names altogether depending on merger agreements and who has subcontracted with whom.
If You Are In An Auto Accident That is Not Your Fault, It Should Not Cost You Anything.
Statistically speaking, you will probably be in an auto accident at some point in your life. I believe that injuries happen in most accidents, even the small ones, and that you are doing yourself a disservice by not healing correctly after. One of the barriers that keep people from getting the care they need is the potential cost. Let me be very clear, if you are in an auto accident and it is not your fault, your care should be covered 100% either by the responsible person’s insurance company, through your insurance company, or by the responsible person. This article explores the most common ways to have healthcare bills paid.
The simplest way to make sure your bills are covered is to hire an experienced personal injury attorney. I understand that there is a stigma with hiring a personal injury attorney and there are definitely some shady characters out there. However, there are some good guys, too, and they can make life so much easier. A good attorney will make it so you do not have to talk to the insurance company again which means no more harrassing phone calls or bullying you into believing you are not really hurt or that you are milking the system. Personal Injury attorneys work on a contingency so they get a percentage of the settlement they get for you. Usually, that is 33%. A good attorney, provided it is a decent case, will usually get a larger settlement which means more money for you in the form of pain and suffering. It can take a while for everyone to get paid using this method but most doctors will treat you on a lien backed by the attorney because they know the attorney will pay them wihen the case settle. I highly reccomend this option for most of my patients.
You Can Adjust the Bones in Your Skull?
There are 22 bones in the skull connected by a type of joint called a suture. In the old days, doctors thought these bones fused together in adulthood. Now, we know that they can and do move with some regularity. The suture as a joint is only found in the skull. It...
Even If I Want to, I Cannot Help Everyone. Neither Can Chiropractic.
The great Aristotle once wrote that "The more you know, the more you know you do not know." For me, the more experience I gain, the more I realize my limitations. People who know me well, know that I do not lack confidence. I try not to be arrogant but I do my best to...
To X-ray or not to X-ray?
It is the trend these days for chiropractors not to have x-ray machines in their office . Some docs would never dream of adjusting a patient without x-rays and "proof". For them the cost of x-rays and the radiation exposure is completely justified by their style of...
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