FAQs

Below you'll find answers to the questions we get
asked most about upper cervical care.

Is chiropractic safe?

Yes! Chiropractic is safe and effective. Chiropractors are trained to do what they do in a very specific and conservative manner. The techniques used at Transcend Chiropractic are also very gentle. There is no popping, twisting or cracking involved.

How does an adjustment work?

Adjustments are designed to correct subluxations. A subluxation is a disposition of a bone that is impinging nerves thus decreasing proper function in the body. Once a subluxation is diagnosed through precise and detailed measurements, a specific angle is calculated to properly correct/adjust it’s position. The adjustment when done correctly removes irritation from the nervous system. This allows the nerves to work the way they are suppose to restoring the natural function of the body and promoting healing.

Can children see a chiropractor?

Yes! Children SHOULD see a chiropractor also. In a study done with 1000 newborns, 80% had cervical spine (neck) trauma. Chiropractic has been shown to help improve with feeding, sleeping, crying, and neck motions in infants. Dr. Connor Davis at Transcend Chiropractic is also certified in Pediatrics and is great with kids!

Is chiropractic expensive?

Being under chiropractic care actually saves money on health care cost. According to the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, chiropractic patients have 43% less hospital admissions, 58.4% fewer days in the hospital, 43.2% less outpatient procedures including surgery, and 51.8% reduction in drug cost.
With NUCCA specifically, we adjust our patients less frequently than other methods which also saves on cost.

What health problems can be resolved by restoring Brain to Body Communication?

Since brain to body messages control everything that goes on in the body, any interference in this process explains why so many different health problems respond to the head/neck alignment achieved through a NUCCA adjustment.
Restricted brain to body healing messages may be the direct or indirect cause of most health problems.

What causes someone to "get out of Alignment"?

Thoughts, traumas, and toxins are all stressors that can contribute to subluxation or "being out of alignment".
Thoughts include negativity, emotional stress. Consider the muscle tension built up after a stressful day of work. Those muscles connect and pull on the spine. Traumas can be a more obvious cause to subluxations, but not all traumas are from car accidents or falls. Even daily repetitive poor posture or movement can be an ongoing trauma to the body. Toxins are dietary and/or environmental. Due to the stress they place on the body’s systems, they too play a role in causing subluxations.

Why should i see a chiropractor if i feel fine!?

Symptoms show up later. The body may experience years of altered function before pain is experienced. Preventative and proactive care is better than reactive or distress care.
Our exam is based on objective measures and not the subjective symptoms. Even if you feel "well", we can still check to see if the body is functioning "well". Having your alignment assess and corrected (as necessary) while not experiencing symptoms can prevent spinal deterioration that often involves pain or other complications down the road.

How does a "gentle" adjustment make a dramatic change?!

Gentle corrections work for the same reason why one can move a pile of heavy bricks with a light push of a wheelbarrow: leverage. NUCCA is a gentle technique with a big impact that works because of the science behind it. Even though patients feel only a slight pressure while being adjusted, there is ADEQUATE FORCE put into the spine. The first bone of the neck and the weight of the head are used to gain a biomechanical advantage while the doctor aligns their own body on a calculated angle to ensure the adjustment is specific to the patient’s individual misalignment. The force generated by the doctor is transferred to the patient in such a gentle yet precise manner.

how can one small adjustment help with so many issues?

The body is self-healing. Just as a papercut can heal with out intervention, all aspects of the body have that same ability to heal as well. When you are misaligned, the brain isn't able to communicate clearly with the body and much of your body's energy and attention goes to fighting gravity and trying to keep stable instead of dealing with other issues.
Improving spinal alignment, improves posture, and restores brain and body communication. With better posture, less energy is required to oppose gravity, therefore you will have more energy to think, function, heal and maintain yourself. When your brain is in better communication with your body, these processes happen more efficiently contributing to the many benefits of great chiropractic care.

Why should I see a chiropractor first?

Chiropractic is a safe and non-invasive health care option. There is less RISK with chiropractic than the use of prescriptions or surgery. Chiropractic patients have been shown to spend less money on overall health care COSTS by reducing need for other remedies, hospital visits and various procedures. It has even been shown that chiropractic reduces TIME spent in doctor's offices and time spent away from work. Overall, it is an effective conservative option with less risk! Go see the chiropractor first.

Why do chiropractors check my feet?

Believe it or not, we aren't checking your feet. Though we can adjust feet, the actual purpose of "looking at the feet" is actually checking for a leg length discrepancy. It is a standard test for many chiropractic techniques.
In our office, we look for a functional vs. structural "short leg". If there is a difference in leg length, most the time it is cause by muscle or tonal imbalances and not by the actual bone length or structural differences. A functional leg length discrepancy is one indication that an adjustment is necessary.

How do I know if I should see a chiropractor?

There are many indications for chiropractic care. A few postural indications include: head tilting to the side, uneven hips or if on leg is longer than the other. Some event indications include: any car accidents, bad falls, traumas or major injuries in your life.

Once I see a chiropractor, do I have to continue to go FOREVER?

In short, no. However, most people choose to go to the chiropractor as part of their lifestyle because they find value in all the benefits of chiropractic. Similarly to having a good diet and exercise. It is a personal preference that depends on how you value your health.

What problems can be resolved by restoring brain and body communication?

Since the communication between the brain and body is what controls EVERYTHING that goes on in the body, any interference or disruption in this process explains why a wide variety of health problems, concerns, and conditions respond successfully to the head/neck alignment correction we call NUCCA.
Brain to body healing messages that are restricted may be the cause of many health issues.

What is the purpose of Brain and Body communication?

The brain communicates with the body like a “telephone exchange” sending millions of life giving body functioning messages per second back and forth to every part of the body. This is accomplished by chemical exchanges along the nervous system that includes the brain, spinal cord and peripheral nerves. These messages are crucial for all functions of the body both consciously and subconsciously from our heart pumping blood, to our lungs breathing air, to the stomach digesting food. A misalignment from the top of the spine limits the transmission of these messages from the brain to the body. When the alignment goes uncorrected, degeneration, mild to severe pain, lowered immune function, organ dysfunction, loss of mobility in limbs and ultimately disease may result.
Keeping the brain and body communication open and clear is essential for a health and optimal body function.

How does NUCCA restore Brain and Body communication?

Through thorough examination, the NUCCA practitioner determines if NUCCA is right for you. Following evaluation, advanced and precise imaging is done to evaluate and measure the exact degree of misalignment.
From the analyzed images, an adjusting vector is calculated and used by the practitioner to properly correct the alignment. Since the adjustment is precise, the correction is barely felt by the patient and requires no forceful twisting, pulling or jerking motion of the head and neck.
The normal flow of messages from the brain to the body are restored and the natural self-healing adaptation process begins. Patients gain benefit from care by staying in proper alignment over time.

Should I expect immediate relief from an adjustment?

After being adjusted for the first time, the body immediately starts adapting to the alignment. The healing process is activated, postural changes can be measured, nerves start working differently, blood flow changes. Though some patients do experience immediate relief from these initial changes, it is not uncommon to feel very little to no change right after being adjusted for the first time. True healing, strengthening and correcting is a process that requires time. In most cases, the underlying issue built up in the body over time, so it may take time for the body to correct it. The severity of the symptom and how long the condition has been present can both be factors in "relief" time.

How often must a patient get a NUCCA adjustment?

This is a common question when someone is first introduced to NUCCA. The truth is, it all depends on how often your body needs to be adjusted. With the precision and advancement of the technique we practice, the adjustment is expected to stay in place allowing your body to heal, strengthen and adapt to it. It isn't the adjustment that gets our patients well, it is their body's response to being aligned and sustaining pressure off the nervous system. Ultimately patients under NUCCA can hold their alignment for weeks to months to even years.

What can I do to stay in alignment?

There are a few instructions we give our patients to help keep their body properly aligned. At the initial phase we stress the importance of posture at work, at rest and with general movements. Avoiding strenuous activity right after being adjusted is also encouraged. Longer term here are some key tips:

  1. Stay hydrated: drinking half your body weight in ounces of water daily is a great goal
  2. Getting appropriate exercise: the body is designed to move. Movement helps strengthen muscles and ligaments which support alignment. Prolonged sitting can put more strain on the spine and alignment while also decreasing muscle and nerve activation.
  3. Eating a good diet: What we put into our body, fuels the body. Proper nutrients are crucial all processes in the body including healing. Avoiding inflammatory foods also decreases the stress we put on our bodies.
  4. Limit stress: Developing a good routine to decreases stress in life that builds up in the body will help the body strengthen.
How does a "neck adjustment" align my hips?

Adjusting from the top of the spine can influence the whole body if done properly. NUCCA is an advanced upper cervical technique that we specialize in at Transcend Chiropractic. With the precision of this adjustment that has been individualized for each patient, space is opened around the brainstem area at the top of the neck restoring proper muscle tone by function of the nervous system. As muscles relax, the body returns to a balanced alignment, including the hips.

What should I expect at my first appointment?

The first appointment in our office is a thorough evaluation to make sure we understand what is going on with our patients and also to see if what we do can help them. This appointment will take approximately one hour. The whole visit will be spent with the doctors covering a detailed history and thorough examination. We do not adjust our patients on the first encounter because knowing what we are working with is far too important.

What does an Upper Cervical Chiropractic doctor do?

An upper cervical chiropractor is a doctor who specializes in helping you get the most out of your nervous system.

The nervous system is one of the most important and complex systems in your body that controls everything from how you see to how you breathe, from how you fight off sicknesses and infections to how you walk and talk. To ensure its smooth functioning, your spine must be in its orthogonal alignment to avoid damage and disruption to the nerves and muscles that connect it to your whole body.

Lifestyle and daily activities, however, make it challenging to maintain this. That's where a Knoxville Upper Cervical Chiropractor comes in! They are trained to identify and address subluxations (misalignments) in your spine that cause pain and discomfort through manual and gentle spinal adjustments. Doing so helps your body heal from within, allowing you to feel better overall.

How often do you need to see a chiropractor?

Upper cervical care is based on the concept of restoring proper function and alignment of the spine and pelvis through gentle neck bone adjustments. Because every person's spine is unique in its structure and condition, each patient will require a different approach to achieve desirable results.

For example, some patients might require more frequent adjustments than others due to their condition or the severity of symptoms they are experiencing. This will be clarified to you during your consultation day. Knoxville chiropractors can approximate how many sessions you will need based on the results of your tests and scans.

What can you expect after receiving an upper cervical adjustment?

When Upper Cervical Chiropractors in Knoxville adjust your spine, they adjust your entire body, so you may notice other parts of your body relaxing and not just the area of your initial concern. The body responds to the adjustment by mobilizing fluids into the joints and soft tissues, allowing them to swell and release toxins.

Most people feel better almost immediately, though sometimes, depending on the severity of their misalignment, patients may need to wait a few hours for their symptoms to improve. This process takes anywhere from 24-72 hours to complete. This is normal and expected as your body adjusts to the realignment done to your spine.

Frequently Asked Questions

About Vertigo

How can you curb vertigo episodes?

Vertigo attacks often indicate an underlying health problem. So, if you experience dizzying spells and spinning sensations, it’s a good idea to rule out the possible cause of your symptom. This will help you determine the techniques or remedies for your situation. Some popular vertigo remedies include Upper Cervical Chiropractic in Knoxville, The Epley Maneuver, and vestibular therapy.

What triggers spinning sensations?

Spinning sensations can stem from various problems ranging from vestibular disorders like Meniere’s and benign paroxysmal positional vertigo to nervous system issues like head trauma, spinal tumor, and stroke.

When do you need emergency care for vertigo?

Most vertigo attacks are non-life-threatening. However, it would help to look out for red flags like facial paralysis, limb numbness, thunderclap headaches, and loss of consciousness. If you spot any of these symptoms, call 911 to receive urgent medical attention.

Frequently Asked Questions

About Neck Pain

How can I relieve pain in my neck?

There are many popular ways to get natural relief for neck pain in Knoxville, such as Upper Cervical Chiropractic, massage therapy, hot and cold therapy, acupuncture, and acupressure.

What is the most common cause of neck pain?

Neck pain can stem from osteoarthritis, disc degeneration, muscle inflammation, or arthritis. However, other common reasons that lead to pain in the neck are poor posture and neck injuries.

Who should I see for neck pain?

Dealing with chronic neck pain can significantly diminish your quality of life. However, consulting with an Upper Cervical Chiropractic doctor to assess your head, neck, and spinal alignment can potentially deliver promising results.

Frequently Asked Questions

About Migraine

What is the leading cause or trigger of migraines?

The main cause of migraines is still unknown, but many things can trigger them. These include blood vessel changes, hormonal changes, food, weather, and stress levels. These are mostly related to a chemical imbalance within your brain system.

Another possible reason is miscommunication between your brain and other parts of your body due to cervical subluxation. Notably, postural imbalances in the neck lead to the pinching or compression of the nerves that send signals to your brain and the blood vessels that maintain fluid balance in the head.

What can you do to relieve migraine episodes?

Migraine sufferers should always consult their most trusted Knoxville migraine chiropractor or doctor before starting any new approach to migraine relief. In general, however, there are some things you can do to help ease your symptoms:

  • Drink lots of water!
  • Take an over-the-counter pain reliever like ibuprofen or acetaminophen.
  • Try relaxation techniques.
  • Engage in a healthy physical fitness routine.

These simple tips and tricks can be more effective with the help of Upper Cervical Care. That is because receiving gentle neck bone adjustments can help ensure that all your systems are in good condition and no nerves are compromised due to dislodged C1 and C2 bones.

What happens if you shrug off migraine episodes?

It's easy to ignore a headache, especially if it's not a migraine. But migraines are more than just a headache—they can also cause nausea, vomiting, and sensitivity to light and sound. If you ignore your migraines and don't treat them, they can worsen over time. Eventually, they may become so severe that they interfere with your daily life, making it impossible for you to work or enjoy yourself without pain and discomfort. Avoid this by being proactive about your health and finding the most appropriate source of migraine relief in Knoxville.

Frequently Asked Questions

About TMJ

How do you resolve TMJ pain and symptoms?

People with temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders tap into several techniques to ease their discomfort. The usual remedies that patients swear by include Upper Cervical Chiropractic.

Should you seek a physician or dental doctor for TMJ relief?

While a medical doctor and dentist can help relieve TMJ disorders, an Upper Cervical Chiropractor can also assist you by evaluating your head and neck so you can remove undue pressure on the jaw bones.

Can an Upper Cervical Chiropractor fix TMJ problems?

Yes! While TMJ usually develops from jaw malocclusions, several patients with this condition still seek a chiropractor for TMJ relief in Knoxville. That’s because the neck bone adjustments diminish the mechanical strain on the spine and nearby structures.

Frequently Asked Questions

About Back Pain

What is the most common reason for back pain?

Back pain can come from different things. Some of the most reported reasons are repetitive injuries, working too hard physically, discs between the spine breaking down, and when the bones in your spine are moving out of place.

Can Cervical Chiropractors help with back pain?

Yes. Whether you've experienced chronic discomfort for years or have only been having problems recently, seeing Knoxville Upper Cervical Chiropractors could be just what you need to manage your pain better.

With their knowledge and experience, chiropractors can help you find relief from back pain without resorting to medication or surgery. Instead, through careful assessment of your condition and using advanced imaging scans of the C1 and C2 bones, they can recommend a series of adjustments suitable to your needs.

These adjustments are designed to restore the normal alignment of your spinal column and relieve the tension buildup on your back muscles, joints, and ligaments.

How many Upper Cervical Chiropractic sessions do I need for back pain relief?

There is no exact answer to this question. The number of sessions required will depend on your needs and the severity of your conditions. No spinal cases are equally alike. Some may require less, while others may need more. Consulting with an Upper Cervical chiropractor can help identify your exact needs. Some patients report significant improvement in their back pain after a few sessions of upper cervical adjustments or those that specifically target their head and neck alignment.

Frequently Asked Questions

About Fibromyalgia

What are the typical indicators of fibromyalgia?

The symptoms of fibromyalgia are different for everyone and can vary in severity depending on your overall health condition. Some of the most common signs and symptoms of a fibromyalgia flare-up include:

  • Feeling fatigued, exhausted, or tired constantly
  • Waking up feeling like you didn't get enough sleep
  • Trouble thinking clearly or concentrating on tasks
  • Having stiff or painful muscles
  • Having achy joints that don’t improve with rest
How do you cope when your fibromyalgia symptoms flare up?

A flare-up is a sudden worsening of your symptoms. You may experience additional pain or new areas of pain, and it can be hard to tell if the flare-up is a short-term thing or if it will last for several days or more. It's important to remember that flares are common with fibromyalgia, and they don't mean that your condition is getting worse.

To help manage your flare-ups:

#1 Get rest. You may need to take a few days off work or school so that you can rest and give your body time to recover from the flare-up.

#2 Exercise regularly, but only a little at a time. Try starting with just 10 minutes of walking each day. Work up from there to allow your body to cope and to build your strength, agility and endurance.

#3 Eat healthy foods. Whenever possible, eat fruits, vegetables, and whole grains so that your body has all the nutrients it needs during stressful flare-up times.

What causes fibromyalgia flare-ups?

Fibromyalgia can get worse for several reasons. Some are related to your environment, while others are connected to your body’s overall condition. The most common cause is when you're under stress, and the body releases hormones that cause pain. It's also possible that your body overreacts to pain signals or does not produce enough natural pain relief chemicals in your brain. You should also look out for certain types of injuries or illnesses like rheumatoid arthritis or lupus, as they can trigger fibromyalgia symptoms.

WE CARE. WE LISTEN. WE GET RESULTS.

Break free from pain, so you can get back to doing the things you love. 
Enjoy a brighter future, and be healthier than you ever thought possible!
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Transcend Chiropractic is a chiropractic office in Knoxville, TN that specializes in a specific upper cervical chiropractic technique called NUCCA. The office was founded by Drs. Connor and Leigh Davis who work together to provide exceptional care for the community. Our gentle and specific methods are utilized for correcting the primary cause of dysfunction in the body.

Address

3026 Tazewell Pike Knoxville, TN 37918

Phone

(865) 448-7933

Office Hours

  • Monday
    9:00AM – 12:00PM, 2:00PM – 6:00PM
  • Tuesday 1:00PM – 6:00PM
  • Wednesday - Closed
  • Thursday
    9:00AM – 12:00PM, 2:00PM – 6:00PM
  • Friday 9:00AM – 1:00PM
  • Saturday - Closed
  • Sunday - Closed
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