Massage has been practiced for thousands of years.   According to the Massage Therapy Association more than 25% of American adults had a massage within the last year.

There are many styles and techniques practiced by therapists.

There are a few techniques that we utilize in Bellevue PrimeSpine to assist in healing of our patients and promoting overall wellness.

The first technique is deep tissue massage treatment.  This is a technique that is often employed to work out muscle adhesion, trigger points and assist in postural correction.  The benefits from deep tissue massage are wide, reduction in tension and correction of poor posture are at the top of the list.

Medical massage is also a technique of massage therapy that our Bellevue massage therapists are expects at.  This technique is utilized to help correct the damage one receives from a sports injury, whiplash, a car accident or a slip or fall.

Swedish massage is a more gentle and relaxing style of massage.  This is helpful for stress reduction which has a myriad of health benefits.  Our bodies can not function properly and up to their potential when we are under stress.  A relaxing therapeutic massage treatment is another one of the focuses our Bellevue massage therapy team is very familiar with.

Prenatal massage is a specialty that helps pregnant women through their months leading up to delivery.  The benefits range from relaxation to pelvic balancing.

Due to the everyday stresses of sitting at a desk, working on a computer or manual labor nearly everyone is a candidate for some form of therapeutic massage treatments.  Massage is often covered through medical insurance and can be essential for living up to ones potential.

Many of us are plagued with low back flare-ups, sharp lumbar pain or chronic aching low back pain. Finding daily activities to help feel better is essential. This article describes healthy activities to combat a chronic aching back.

Going for a walk: Movement is key to feeling healthy, alert and it can lower pain levels. One of the worst things we can do is be stagnant. We were designed to be active, mobile people. You don’t have to be an ultra-marathoner or run 5ks to get out and get a great workout. Studies have shown that walking 30 minutes per day has a dramatic improvement on almost all body chemistry levels.

Your attitude matters: New research shows that a hands-off educational and behavioral approach to pain management is effective.
Researchers say people in a study who suffered from short-duration low back pain responded well to counseling programs that explored their attitudes toward pain and urged them to exercise and resume routine activities despite their discomfort.

Stretching : Doing 5 minutes of low back stretches daily can make a considerable amount of low back pain disappear. A very common pattern many develop from sitting throughout the day is called lower cross syndrome. Refer to the link below for tips on a 5 minute stretching routine that will help restore balance to the muscles surrounding the low back.
http://www.primespines.com/crossed-syndrome-pain-kirkland/

Swimming: What a great activity, swimming is very low impact and puts gentle movement into the lumbar spine and pelvis. Those who are in too much pain to walk often find great relief by either walking or swimming in a pool.

Getting mobile is the key to improving low back aches. Get out there and get moving today!

Did you know chiropractic care is covered through most major medical plans.  This includes: major health insurance carrier, workers’ compensation, Medicare, personal injury, and Blue Cross Blue Shield plans for federal employees.

Many people are unaware that there are so many ways to get chiropractic care covered. What about your chiropractic care atPrimeSpine in Bellevue & Kirkland locations? I’m so glad you asked. We accept:

·      Aetna

·      LifeWise

·      Cigna

·      First Choice Health

·      Premera Blue Cross

·      Regence

·      United Healthcare

& Many More

If you don’t see your provider listed, refer to our website for more that are also included.

How does the process work?
As far as insurance companies are concerned, visiting PrimeSpine Chiropractic Centers is just like visiting your primary care doc, dentist, or physical therapist.

Some health care clinics and offices will leave the insurance paperwork up to you to submit and complete, At PrimeSpine, we bill your insurance directly. All you have to do is bring your insurance card into the office on your first appointment and we will take it from there.

Is there a copay?
Many plans do have co-pays which are usually the same or similar to visiting your other medical providers. A co-pay is a small fee some patients are required to pay when visiting a medical provider.  Each plan is different in regards to the amount that is due.

What if I lack health insurance or know my insurance has a large deductible?
We are aware that many people who are desperately in need of our services are in the situation.  Dr. Baker and his staff will work with anyone to find a plan and fee structure that is possible.

Hopefully this has cleared up any questions one may have regarding health insurance and how to process works when visiting a chiropractic clinic.

As a chiropractor, I routinely get asked the question “is cracking my back good for me”.  This is a topic that is very important to discuss.  We all know someone who habitually cracks his or her neck.   You may have a co-worker who is infamous for filling the office with loud crunches, cracks and pops throughout the day.  I am here to set the record straight about cracking your own back.

There are a few important facts regarding the health concerns with cracking your back:

• Compressing joints until they crack without proper training can be dangerous.  People have been known to cause injuries from forcing joints to move. Soft tissue injuries and actual joint problems can arise.
• The ligaments that hold our joints together can be deformed, stretched and damaged from long term self cracking.  By deforming the ligaments which hold us together we have no chance at having good posture or proper joint health.
• A general movement or twist is not the same thing as an adjustment.  A chiropractic adjustment requires specific angles and contacts with a high force, low amplitude movement applied.  This is not something an amateur can do.
• If “self-adjusting” was effective it would eliminate problems as opposed to be a very temporary.  Most people who routinely self adjust themselves are always doing it.  If it was working correctly, wouldn’t the problems go away?  Not to mention, if self adjusting worked, I would be out of a job.
• It’s dangerous to violently twist your neck- the spinal cord and nerves can be damaged by doing this.
• You look silly reeming on your joints in public.

Have you ever noticed that people who crack their backs or necks constantly do it?  This point should be noted.  If self adjusting was good for someone why would they have to continually keep doing it, sometimes dozens of times a day?

A chiropractic doctor has been trained to be an expert at adjusting regions that need to be moved.  They deliver precise and specific movements that should give long lasting corrections to the joints.  As tempting as it may be to try and “be your own chiropractor”, think again and seek help from a professional.

What is sciatica?

Sciatica is a condition that many people experience. They feel sharp radiating pain or sensation going down the back of their leg. It usually starts in the pelvis. They feel it down the back the back of their butt. It goes into the back of their leg and sometimes all the way down into the foot. Now, sciatica is a very painful condition, and it is often treated through chiropractic, massage therapy and stretching. The
mechanism of what is going on with sciatica comes from two things.

One, it comes from improper bio-mechanics and improper balance of the pelvic section and lumbar spine. When you have an imbalance, misalignment, torquing of the Pelvis, it’s common to put more pressure on all the soft tissue around the Sciatic nerve.

Now, the sciatic nerve usually gets inflamed and tightened in the muscle area called the pisiforms which is right below the PSIS part of the pelvis, or the ilium. Through chiropractic treatment, with realignment Improving the balanced pelvis, and improving the proper range of motion and proper bio-mechanics  we can often take the pressure off of the piriformis muscle and ultimately eliminate sciatic pain completely. This is a great way to naturally treat sciatica. We’re not medicating it. We’re not hiding from the pain of it. We’re looking at why it’s going on, what factors are causing this, and aiming to correct this so that it does not come back.

Kyphosis is a curving of the spine that causes the back or neck to become bowed or rounded. People with kyphosis experience chronic spinal pain, headaches and reduced mobility. Kyphosis can occur at any age and is equally common among men and women.

For adults, kyphosis can be caused by:

• Injury or trauma such as serious falls, sports injury or car accidents.
•  Osteoporosis
•  Infection, such as tuberculosis
•  Polio

Postural and Structural Kyphosis

There are in fact two distinct types of kyphosis and knowing the difference can help you get the treatment you need.

• Postural Kyphosis – As suggested by the name, postural kyphosis is caused by poor posture. Slouching and extended hours in a seated position can lead to postural kyphosis.
• Structural Kyphosis – Injury and osteoporosis can lead to lasting damage to the spine which can cause an abnormal curvature. The best known example of structural kyphosis is Scheuermann’s kyphosis, which occurs in juveniles and causes the vertebrae to become wedge shaped and fused.

Kyphosis and Chiropractic Care

Chiropractic care is an effective non-surgical way to treat kyphosis. Spinal manipulation, also known as spinal adjustment is used to improve joint motion. Spinal manipulation is an active, hands-on treatment, and there are multiple variations of this technique.

•  Specific spinal manipulation helps your chiropractor target restricted joints or those that show abnormal motion. This technique can help stretch and strengthen soft tissue.
•  Flexion-distraction technique is a gentle spinal manipulation used for people with kyphosis that is associated with degenerative disc disease and/or motion restrictions in the mid-back.
•  Instrument-assisted manipulation is another non-thrusting spinal manipulation. Your chiropractor uses a hand-held instrument to apply force without thrusting into the spine.

In addition, your chiropractor may prescribe therapeutic exercises to help restore normal spinal motion. Don’t let something like kyphosis slow you down. Contact Dr. Ben Baker today! Dr. Baker has experience in a number of techniques which are both safe and effective.