Pain Relief Frequently Asked Questions

1. What makes Renew HealthNet different from a traditional chiropractic visit?
Unlike a typical adjustment-only approach, Renew HealthNet combines Chiropractic Care with Targeted Muscle Release, Red Light Therapy, Spinal Traction and Corrective Exercise in every Open Visit. Most patients report substantial pain relief within the first 2 weeks.

2. What types of pain do you help with?
We help people with many common pain conditions, including back pain, neck pain, headaches, shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips knees. ankles, muscle injuries, and pain related to movement restrictions, gut issues or physical stress.

3. What kind of chiropractic adjusting will I receive?
We offer three types of adjustments based on your preference:

• Manual Diversified: Moderate-to-heavy force. Manual adjusting often with the traditional “pop.”
• Drop Table: Moderate force using a specialized table to assist the adjustment.
• Activator: Gentle, light-force adjusting using a handheld instrument suitable for the whole spine.

If you don’t have a preference, we typically use the drop table for the back and Activator for the neck for a gentler approach.

4. Do you only treat symptoms, or do you look for the cause of my pain?
Our goal is to identify the causes of your pain and treat causes to improve function, mobility, and long-term health.

5. What happens during my first visit?
Your first visit includes a health history, examination, conversation about your goals and concerns, and treatment with Targeted Muscle Release massage and Chiropractic Care.

6. Will I receive treatment during my first visit?
Yes. Targeted Muscle Release massage and Chiropractic Care is included in the first visit.

7. How many visits will I need before I feel better?
Every person is different. Some people experience improvement quickly, while others with chronic or complex issues may require a more intensive approach to restore function and improve underlying factors. Most people report substantial pain reduction after 4 visits.

8. What if my pain has been going on for years?
Our unique pain treatments are often effective when other approaches have fallen short. Our patients often report rapid relief from long-standing pain after other treatments have failed.

Why Muscle Injuries Often Stay Painful For Years

When a muscle-tendon complex is injured, the damage is typically more than simple soreness or inflammation. A tear can disrupt the normal structures that keep muscle fibers properly positioned during recovery.

When the connecting fibers are torn, the injured muscle fibers often contract and shorten as a result of the trauma and the loss of normal tension through movement. This shortening can prevent the injured tissues from returning to an optimal position for reattachment during the natural healing process, limiting recovery and leaving the muscle sensitive, restricted, and painful.

Severe muscle-tendon tears can often be identified with imaging such as MRI and, in the most severe cases, may require surgical repair. Smaller tears, however, can be difficult to detect and may not appear clearly on imaging.

Because these injuries can be difficult to identify, many patients are treated with conventional stretching and strengthening approaches in physical therapy. However, strengthening the muscle through exercise does not restore the muscle’s normal length at the site of injury, which is necessary for the injured tissues to return to proper alignment for reattachment. Likewise, stretching through limb movement does not adequately lengthen the muscle because the injured muscle fibers are no longer properly connected and therefore cannot exert the force needed to lengthen the muscle. As a result, conventional strengthening and stretching programs fail to address the underlying structural problem and, in some cases, may delay recovery by aggravating the injury.

Why This Approach Is Not Widely Available

One reason this approach is not widely available is that identifying the true source of pain requires a different level of examination. Pain is often felt in one area while the underlying dysfunction may involve another structure that requires specialized examination to identify.

After an injury, muscles surrounding the affected area may tighten as a protective response. This is why many whiplash patients experience persistent neck stiffness even when the original accident occurred years earlier. Similar patterns can occur in other areas of the body. For example, injuries involving the muscles of the hip and gluteal region may cause surrounding muscles to stiffen compressing the sciatic nerve with symptoms that are often experienced as pain traveling down the leg.

Many healthcare approaches to pain are designed around reducing symptoms and improving function, but they often focus on the area where pain and tightness are experienced rather than identifying the specific injured tissues responsible for the problem. Targeted Muscle Release Therapy requires a different level of assessment and hands-on skill. It identifies specific muscle-tendon injuries and applies precise techniques to address them.

To the best of my knowledge, this technique is known to only a small group of chiropractors in the United States. In my experience, most medical doctors and physical therapists are not familiar with this technique.

Because this type of treatment has limited exposure and requires specialized training and extensive clinical experience, it is not commonly available. For patients with unresolved muscle injuries, finding a practitioner with this specific expertise can make the difference between continuing to manage pain and finally addressing the potential underlying cause.

Renew HealthNet combines Targeted Muscle Release Therapy with chiropractic care to address both muscle-related injuries and the spinal, joint, and nervous system factors that influence movement and function.