Expert: Dr. Paul Newhart - 12/27/2007

Question
Hello.  I am new to the chiropractic world.  I am very active in sports and go to the gym regularly.  About a month ago, I had a pain in my back that would not go away.  I decided to go to a recommended chiropractor.  Turns out that I have a Phase II neck probably due to numerous car accidents in my teenage years.  I have been seeing this doctor for two weeks/3x's a week.  The pain in my back is gone but now I've had chronic pain in my neck ever since my first adjustment.  Just from bringing in groceries, kept me on the couch icing my neck for two hours.  My doctor is holistic.  I have gone as far as taking a couple muscle relaxers (from a friend) just to ease the pain/strain I feel.  It is really affecting my every day life especially since I've never experienced any neck pain before.  I am wondering if this is normal due to the trauma that was probably caused from car accidents/sports injuries? or  should I find another doctor?  Almost all my pain comes from using forward posture positions.  I also have a desk job that aggravates my neck all day.  My doctor is on vacation at the moment.  I normally would have directed the questions toward him but he is unavailable.  Thank you for your help!

Answer
Some amount of "pain" is normal with the body restoring itself to more normal function.  Does your chiropractor use any therapies of any sort, ie. electric. stim., ultrasound, etc?  these may be able to help the muscle issues.  If after a few more visits you are still having pain, you will need to discuss it with your chiropractor, or he should at that point reevaluate to see if a different course of treatment would be warranted.