"My back is tweaked, out of whack, twisted,"....we've all said it.  Doctors of Chiropractic refer to this condition as spinal misalignments, or subluxation of the spine.  Chiropractic locates and removes these spinal misalignments, thereby relieving stress from the spine.  Sometimes, spinal misalignments cause pressure on nerves leading to nerve interference, which in turn can negatively affect organs, muscles,and other parts of the body function.

Spinal misalignments result from things such as injuries, accidents, stress and cumulative trauma disorders.  Often it is not just the spine that is affected by these injuries, but also the surrounding soft tissue (muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia).  Injuries can cause your body to produce adhesions and/or tough, dense scar tissue in the affected area.  The scar tissue binds up and ties down tissues that need to move freely. These musculoskeletal issues can cause pain, discomfort, and as mentioned before, may lead to nerve interference affecting organs, muscles, and other parts of the body function.

The doctor of chiropractic examines your body and assesses your condition using his hands, and other analysis tools.  He then corrects or removes the spinal misalignments and stress using various highly specialized spinal adjustment techniques.  Because muscles, tendons, and fascia may also be injured, adding to, or causing the spinal misalignment, Dr. Mirabella may also use Active Release Technique (ART) to address the soft tissue adhesions and scar tissue.  For more information on ART please see the answer to the next question, What is ART?

Overuse of a muscle can occur from sporting activities, work related
activities, accidents and other kinds of trauma.

Over-used muscles (and other soft tissues) change in three important ways:

1. acute conditions (pulls, tears, collisions, etc.)
2. accumulation of small tears (micro-trauma)
3. not getting enough oxygen (hypoxia)

Each of these factors can cause your body to produce tough, dense scar tissue in the affected area.  This scar tissue binds up and ties down tissues that need to move freely.  As scar tissue builds up, muscles become shorter and weaker, tension on tendons causes tendonitis, and nerves can become trapped.  This can cause reduced range of motion, loss of strength, and pain. 
If a nerve is trapped, you may also feel tingling, numbness, and weakness.

Every ART session is actually a combination of examination and treatment.  Dr. Mirabella uses his hands to evaluate the texture, tightness and movement of muscles, fascia, tendons, ligaments and nerves.  Abnormal tissues are treated by combining precisely directed tension with very specific patient movements.