Q: How often should I get a massage?

A: As often as you would like to! The ideal amount of massage is different for every individual. If you are recovering from an injury or accident it’s especially beneficial to get massage often. Also, if your goal is preventative care to avoid injuries, stress or muscle pain, the more massage the better for your body. For some people this means once or twice per week, for others it may be once or twice per year.

--Jill Rothenberger, Massage Therapist

Q: What is acupuncture used for?

A: Acupuncture is effective in the treatment of almost every ailment. Most commonly acupuncture is used for the treatment of infertility, menstrual problems, menopause, seasonal allergies, common colds and flus, headaches, other body aches and pains, recovery from surgery and side effects of chemotherapy. Acupuncture is also very effective in supporting a mother through childbirth.

--Lauren Fehr, Licensed Acupuncturist

Q: Do the relaxation groups involve meditation?

A: Yes, sometimes there is a time for meditation. During the relaxation groups, I might do some guided imagery, which involves describing relaxing scenes or healing images. After the guided imagery I often allow for some quiet time, which could be called meditation. This meditative quiet time can be spiritually uplifting or just peaceful and calming. It depends on what each person wants out of the session. The relaxation groups will vary each week, and may include gentle stretching, muscle relaxation techniques, biofeedback, guided imagery, music, deep breathing, and other techniques that promote relaxation and a sense of well-being.

Q: Is acupuncture painful?

A: While receiving an acupuncture treatment, the recipient should feel a tingling or dull aching sensation at the needle insertion points. This sensation is not painful, but it is noticeable.

--Lauren Fehr, Licensed Acupuncturist

Q: A friend told me that having a Chiropractor adjust your spine is very unsafe. Is that true?

A: Absolutely Not!! This is a question I get very often and I am amazed by the amount of misinformation circulating about the risks of spinal adjusting. The risk of being seriously injured by a chiropractic adjustment is between 1 in a million and 1 in 100 million depending upon whose research you read, and what part of the spine we are talking about. That makes having your neck adjusted about 500 times safer than taking an aspirin. In fact aspirin and ibuprophen, taken properly, are responsible for approximately 16,000 American deaths each year. And no one died from going to their chiropractor. Believe me; if they had it would have been all over the news for months. Furthermore according to the National Institute of Health (NIH), adverse drug reactions (i.e. side effects of properly prescribed, properly taken drugs) account for 2.2 Million hospitalizations every year…That equivalent to the entire population of Arkansas – every year. So, in a nutshell, yes there is a risk, but compared to the risk of other treatments, it is incredibly small.

--Dr. Brian Malzer, D.C.

Q: Should I schedule my massage therapy appointment before or after my chiropractic treatment.

A: Many people find the combination very beneficial and they can be done in either order, but many people find that their adjustments are easier if they get a massage before their chiropractic appointment.

--Jill Rothenberger, Massage Therapist

Q: What can I expect from going to see an acupuncturist for the first time?

A: At the first acupuncture appointment, I will ask you what condition you would like to have treated and do a thorough intake and interview. Then, I will look at your tongue and feel your pulse to help formulate a Chinese medical diagnosis of your condition. Next, while lying down, I will insert very fine needles at certain chosen acupuncture points that will help you feel better. You may lay with needles in those points for up to 30 minutes, and then the needles will be removed.

--Lauren Fehr, Licensed Acupuncturist.

Q: I've heard about Life Coaches, but I'm not sure what they do.

A: A Life Coach is there to motivate you and help you set goals relating to work, relationships, personal growth, organization, etc. Personal coaching is not therapy--it does not deal with past trauma or mental illness. Instead, a Life Coach focuses on your present and future, helping you to visualize what you want out of life and how to achieve it.

Q: I’ve heard that once you start seeing a chiropractor, you have to keep coming back forever.

A: Yes, it is more addictive than crack and once you start it is almost impossible to quit…NO, NO, I’M JUST KIDDING. To the best of my knowledge Chiropractic care has no addictive properties. However, once people realize how much better they feel when their spine is moving properly, they often choose to maintain that with regular chiropractic care. For example, I’ve worked with many people who have suffered from daily headaches. We begin a trial of therapy including physiotherapy to relax their neck muscles, spinal adjusting to improve the motion of their cervical vertebra, and then begin home stretching and exercise programs. Within a couple weeks, most people are feeling much better and realize how lousy they were feeling before. So we keep reducing the frequency of care, down to once per week, then every other week, maybe once per month. Usually we find a frequency that keeps them from experiencing any headaches at all. So, NO, no one in this office is ever under any obligation to continue care, but many people realize that they feel better if they do.

–Dr. Brain Malzer, D.C.

For questions, please e-mail Dr. Brian Malzer at DrMalzer@LauderdaleWellnessCenter.com.