Case Study #3

I was injured in a car accident eight years ago and despite a significant amount of treatment, I was still suffering from chronic, daily neck pain, headaches and shoulder pain. I had been through reams of treatment over the years, including chiropractic, physiotherapy, Acupuncture and Massage therapy. My doctor was also suggesting I consider injections into my neck for the pain, which scared me.

My insurance adjuster suggested I contact National Spine Care to see if they had any other treatment to offer. I was quite skeptical because I had been through so much treatment already, but they came highly recommended from my insurance company so I booked an appointment and am I ever glad I did. Right from the first phone call, I got the sense that they understood my problem and were going to take the time to find out what was wrong and why I was still having so much pain this long after the accident.

After the first appointment, rather than just recommending more chiro or physio, they recommended an assessment on the neck machine. This computerized assessment was able to measure and determine any weakness in my neck that may have been responsible for my ongoing problems. I was very surprised to learn that despite doing the exercises that had been recommended to me by other health care providers, my neck was 50% weaker than it was supposed to be. This ongoing weakness made it vulnerable to re-injury from my normal activities, which would explain why I was still experiencing problems.

It took me three months of rehabilitation on the neck machine, supervised by one of the physios at the clinic. I also needed some treatment from one of the chiropractors about half way through the treatment. The convenience of being able to coordinate this treatment under one roof was great. I am happy to say that my strength and mobility has returned to normal and for the most part, my neck pain is gone. I still get some stiffness and achiness if I sit, working at the computer too long, but this goes away if I do my exercises and stretches that they showed me. The best part is I’m no longer limited by my neck pain, so I can now get out with my family, doing the fun things like going for a hike or a bike ride. I wasn’t able to do any of these things for the past eight years so I feel like I have got my life back!