Because of the large proportion of time we spend sitting, our lack of understanding of what our core really is, and advice that many doctors give to rest for unnecessarily long periods, we are losing our ability to move our bodies optimally. In today’s episode, Dr. Chelsey Fricker, a chiropractor operating from Optimum Wellness in Toronto, joins us to share her approach to treating her patients, which involves teaching them the art of movement! You’ll also learn about some of the most common causes of the injuries that Chelsey sees in her practice, symptoms that require immediate attention, analogies that she provides to her patients to get them to do their homework, why we should all be visiting a chiropractor once a month, and lots more!
Key Points From This Episode:
- Chelsey shares what led her to become a chiropractor.
- Differences between the American and Canadian chiropractic teachings.
- An overview of Chelsey’s university experience.
- Why Chelsey chose to return to Canada after studying in the US.
- Failure rates of the Canadian chiropractic board exams.
- Chelsey’s first job as a licensed chiropractor and how her career evolved from there.
- How often Chelsey recommends everyone visits a chiropractor.
- Examples of neurologic symptoms and why they require immediate attention.
- Actions that commonly cause injuries.
- Why your body reacts differently to an injury in your back and an injury in your extremities.
- The process that Chelsey goes through when treating a patient.
- An analogy that explains how scar tissue affects our bodies.
- Why rest isn’t always the answer.
- Understanding the difference between core muscles and abdominal muscles.
- Why most disc herniations occur in L4, L5, and S1.
- Chelsey’s approach to getting her patients to adhere to the homework she gives them.
- Words of reassurance for anyone struggling with pain.
- Why surgery should always be your last resort.
Tweetables:
“I firmly believe when you’re drawn to something, there’s a magnetism there that you shouldn’t ignore.” — Dr. Chelsey Fricker [0:06:23]
“I encourage people to do one massage treatment and one chiro treatment a month. It works so well. I’ve been doing this for 8, 9, 10 years now. And the patients that I see once a month, they stay pain free.” — Dr. Chelsey Fricker [0:12:30]
“The body is always going to protect the spinal cord at all costs. You can stub your toe or you can accidentally slam the door on your hand and your whole arm isn’t going to seize up. If you do something to threaten the spinal cord, your whole back is going to seize up.” — Dr. Chelsey Fricker [0:16:20]
“If you don’t do the work, you are not going to get better. It’s just that simple.” — Dr. Chelsey Fricker [0:29:31]
