Chiropractic therapy diagnoses and treats problems involving nerves, bones, muscles, and joints. Chiropractors believe that manipulation of muscles, the spine, and other joints helps the body heal itself and relieve chronic pain. Chiropractic medicine is the third largest health profession in the Western world. More than twenty million people are treated each year. Manipulation is the primary treatment for chronic pain offered by chiropractors, although there are other therapies offered including massage and prescribed exercises. Chiropractors sometimes use various tests to help with their diagnoses such as X-rays, blood tests, and blood pressure readings. Although chiropractic medicine has a lot in common with other health professions, it is unique in its belief that spinal misalignment is the cause of most forms of illness. Many people visit a chiropractor for a specific problem; however, chiropractors report that their manipulations benefit the person’s health in a general way. There are hundreds of different techniques and methods of manipulation used by chiropractors to treat as many conditions. Research has shown that chiropractic medicine is effective in many cases to reduce and treat acute and chronic back pain. It also has been shown to help many painful conditions including frozen shoulder, muscle spasms, and carpal tunnel syndrome. This blog post is an excerpt from Pain Recovery – How to Find Balance and Reduce Suffering from Chronic Pain by Mel Pohl, MD, FASAM, Frank Szabo, LADC, Daniel Shiode, PhD, Robert Hunter, PhD; Published by Central Recovery Press (CRP).