Degenerative Disc Disease. Misleading the Masses.

Mountain View, Missouri (West Plains / Willow Springs / Winona / Cabool / Summersville / Thayer) ---- Spinal Decompression Doctor, Russell Schierling, presents another blog article on Spinal Decompression Therapy.

DJD

DEGENERATIVE DISC
??? DISEASE ???

Hey Doc; they fiiiiiiiiinally figured out what's wrong with me!  I got a "Disease" in my spine!

Yep.  I'll never forget the first time I hard this.  Now it's an almost daily occurrence.  About a decade ago, the medical community struck a blow of marketing genius, when they changed the name of this problem from Degenerative Arthritis of the Spine to Degenerative Disc ---- Disease.  Instead of simply having a DEGENERATIVE DISC, you now have a "Disease".  Brilliant!  Just convince people that they have a "disease" in their spine, and that nothing they do except DRUGS & INJECTIONS will help.  Their only hope is to take various medications and pray that someone dreams up a new-fangled surgery to help them.  The only problem is that SPINAL SURGERIES simply don't work, and medication covers symptoms without addressing underlying cause.

Discs degenerate because they have abnormal motion over time.  The longer the time, the more degeneration you will see.  This degeneration is in the form of loss of disc height, thin discs, bone spurs, and calcification (calcium deposits).  And while there are certainly things that contribute to Spinal Disc Degeneration (smoking, sedentary lifestyles, poor diets, etc), the truth is that Disc Degeneration is largely a mechanical problem caused by abnormal joint motion over time.  Let's take a look.

   LUMBAR (Low Back) DEGENERATION              CERVICAL SPINE (Neck) DEGENERATION

Photos by Nevit Dilman

In both of these x-rays, you can see a substantial amount of Spinal Degeneration.  In the picture on the right, we have a side view of a neck.  Compare the disc height at the top to the disc height at the bottom.  Notice the thin discs, calcium deposits, and bone spurs.  The x-ray on the left is a low back.  The person is facing to the left.  Notice the extremely thin L5 disc at the bottom --- just above the tailbone (sacrum).  Compare it to the discs above. 

Although blaming disc degeneration on "Normal Aging Processes" is an absurdly common ploy, this cannot be the case.  How old is the thin disc compared to the non-degenerative discs above?  Let's be honest with each other.  Hey; by now you should realize that diseases are marketable.  Diseases sell products and services ---- including all sorts of really profitable drugs.  Diseases scare people into doing things they would not otherwise do.  Stop.  You do not have a disease!  But if you hope to ever slow down the progression of this problem, you are going to have to step outside of the medical box.  Treatment that does not address the "compressed " nature of these thin and progressively degenerative discs, is never going to make a long-term difference!

Call Tracy at (417) 934-6337 to set up a free, no-obligation consult with Dr. Schierling concerning Spinal Decompression Therapy for your Degenerative Discs.  Check out our TESTIMONIALS.  Look at the RESEARCH.   Schierling Chiropractic, LLC is centrally located in Mountain View, MO (South Highway 17 between the Kingdom Hall & Christian Church --- across from A-1 Storage).  Why drive to Springfield for Spinal Decompression Therapy when you can have it done locally?  Driving times from area towns include....

• WEST PLAINS: (30 minutes)
• WILLOW SPRINGS: (15 minutes)
• SUMMERSVILLE: (15 minutes)
• THAYER / MAMMOTH SPRINGS: (one hour)
• BIRCH TREE: (15 minutes)
• CABOOL: (30 minutes)
• MOUNTAIN GROVE: (40-45 minutes)
• WINONA: (30 minutes)
• EMINENCE: (40-45 minutes)
• VAN BUREN, MO: (45 minutes)