I BELIEVE!

I am always amused when someone, upon finding out I am a chiropractor, proceeds to tell me they “believe in chiropractic.” I wonder if they also claim to “believe” in medicine or dentistry. I doubt it.

Why does this happen? What is it about this profession that leads a person to ask “Do you believe in chiropractic?”

Well, as you may have heard, we back crackers have not always enjoyed the greatest respect from the medical profession, which, especially several years ago, affected the way the general public felt about us. We were considered quacks and charlatans, practicing medicine without a license to do so. Ignorance bred a lot of contempt through the early practices of this profession.

After several years of legal wrangling, the medical profession was finally told by a judge to cease and desist their efforts to destroy the chiropractic profession. After that, the negative talk quieted down some, and today you will find many enlightened medical professionals that actually refer to chiropractors. Perhaps this change in attitude has been picked up on by patients of medical doctors, so they, too, feel less inclined to denigrate chiropractors. People’s skepticism has now been replaced by “belief.”

Folks who have actually received chiropractic treatment are less likely to say they “believe” in it, because they know it is scientifically legitimate and provides wonderful results for them. It is not some strange concept that they assume is okay, but a branch of the healing sciences that provides a viable alternative to drugs and surgery. They rely on it to help them. People who ask “do you believe in chiropractic?” have usually never tried chiropractic, but that is their way of validating it, not realizing how silly it sounds.

SO WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BELIEVE IN CHIROPRACTIC?

If you believe in chiropractic but have never tried it, in spite of having chronic back or neck or head pain, perhaps you should act on that belief and let a chiropractor help you. You have nothing to lose, except the problem that is bothering you. Plus you’ll gain an understanding and respect for what chiropractic has to offer. It’s pretty great stuff, believe me.