A Brief Account Of Chiropractic

I am no medical doctor or somebody who had medical background. However, I did work in a hospital for 8 years as an administrative secretary working closely with cardiologists. When I decided to leave the country, I became a medical transcriptionist, which broadened my knowledge in medical terminology. From that work, I learned more about the different diseases. Nevertheless, I have not heard of chiropractic at that time except orthopedics for musculoskeletal disorders.

It was when I worked in another country when I had my first encounter with chiropractic. It is a habit of mine to know about things so while undergoing the treatment, I searched on how chiropractic started and here is what I found out...

Chiropractic started in the latter part of 1800. Daniel David Palmer, a Canadian based in the USA, performed the first spinal adjustment. Palmer regarded as a self-learned teacher and healer treated his first patient, Harvey Lillard, a concierge in his own edifice. Almost unable to hear completely, Lillard confessed to Palmer that his hearing impairment started when he sensed a cracking sound on his upper back when he leaned over, which occurred a few years back.

This knowledge aroused the curiosity of Palmer, who at that time is a magnet therapy specialist. His being a magnet therapist made him knowledgeable in human anatomy as well as in the role of the spine in the body's system. The case of Lillard made him think that the occurrences of the cracking sound and hearing impairment are relative to each other.

Suspecting that Lillard has a problem in his vertebra, he decided to check on the latter's spine and proved his initial perception. With the consent of his concierge, he manipulated Lillard's spine and to their amazement, the hearing problem was reinstated. This is where chiropractic started, which is now termed as chiropractic adjustment or chiropractic manipulation.

From the treatment he extended to Lillard, Palmer realized that manipulation of the spine leads to the relief of pain and other symptoms of disease. Thus, the word chiropractic subluxations came into light, which refers to problems with the spine.

With that realization, Palmer started treating various diseases that includes migraines, sciatica, epilepsy, stomach pains and even heart problems via manual manipulations. He started to teach and share his knowledge in chiropractic methods and techniques in his school, Palmer School and Infirmary of Chiropractic, which he opened in 1898 in Davenport, Iowa.

His manner of treatment was completely ignored and scoffed at by medical practitioners and calling him a quack doctor. He was even sent to jail for not possessing a medical license.

It may be true that his teachings may not be presentable as per the 21st century techniques is concerned; nevertheless his notes showed that at the start of the 20th century, he is updated in his understanding and information. This they found out when a search was conducted in his library.

Most modern chiropractors came from the European countries. In fact, my chiropractor is Danish. Others came from the different states of America, Australia, New Zealand and the provinces of Canada. All of these are licensed professionals in the field of chiropractic care. My further research led me to a count of over 50,000 committed chiropractors in the US. More and more chiropractic educational courses are offered outside North America although it was here that chiropractic started. To date, chiropractic is gaining popularity brought about by its good effects to patients although educating people to its benefits is still underway.

If we are to check in history, the relation of wellness and health to the spine even happened a long time ago during the time of the great medical philosopher, Hippocrates. In one of his famous lines and I quote "Get knowledge of the spine, for this is the requisite for many diseases." Expounding on his statement, even a non-medical person can get and understand what he means - the root cause of curing any illness is through the spine. If I remember it right from my biology class, we need to take care of the spine because it is a part of our central nervous system apart from our brain.


Copyright (c) 2011 Michael Martin