How Upper Cervical Chiropractic Helps Lower Back Pain & Sciatica

Upper cervical chiropractic is a specific practice that involves gentle adjustments of the top two bones of your neck. So how can this be just what you need to get long-term relief from lower back pain or sciatica? Here is a quick explanation of how lower back pain and sciatica treatment may actually begin at the base of your skull.

Spinal Health Flows from the Top Down

The atlas balances your skull. That makes it a pivotal part of the spine. Since the head weighs about 12 pounds, the spine holds it up fairly easily. However, once you throw in a misalignment at the atlas, the balance shifts. The body begins to compensate through shifts along the spine and the surrounding soft tissue. The head stays on straight, but this is when other issues begin to occur.

One shoulder raises up higher than the other. Next, one of the hips will drop lower than the other. Finally, the legs will be slightly different lengths, or perhaps even more than slightly different depending on the degree of the misalignment and how long it has been there. Before you know it, pain sets in where the biggest changes have taken place. This is often in the lower back, and if it irritates the sciatic nerve, sciatica can be the result.

A general chiropractor may provide temporary relief by pushing the lower back into proper position. However, until the upper cervical misalignment is corrected with great precision, the pain will recur.

Lower Back Pain and Sciatica Treatment in San Diego – We Are in Rancho Bernardo

If you want long-term relief from lower back pain, you have to get to the source of the problem, which is often in the neck. At Family First Chiropractic in Ranch Bernardo, San Diego, we strive to provide genuine relief from lower back problems like sciatica by means of precise and gentle adjustments of the top two bones of the neck. Once these bones are in place, the body has the opportunity to heal, and this can correct lower back issues as well. Call to request your new patient exam & learn more.