Have you ever been involved in an auto accident – even a minor fender-bender – and whiplashed your neck? Have you ever hit your head or suffered a concussion? Have you engaged in any high-impact sports such as surfing, soccer, football, gymnastics or horseback riding? Have you taken any falls down stairs or slippery sidewalks? Do you spend a lot of time working at a computer or slumped over a desk? If so, you may have sustained a misalignment of your head upon your neck; and without knowing it, you may have been living with, and compensating for, this misalignment for years!

Each person’s head weighs approximately ten pounds and is designed to sit precisely upon the center axis of the neck and spine in order to distribute weight properly. If, due to trauma, the head is misaligned off of its center axis, it will sit “crooked” upon the neck. Then the spine will compensate underneath and will twist, bend and torque in order to cope with the uneven weight distribution above. Additionally, messages from the brain may be compromised, resulting in neurological symptoms.

Symptoms of the head/neck misalignment may include pain in neck, back and joints; TMJ problems; inflammation; migraine and tension headaches; dizziness and vertigo; nerve pain; numbness and tingling; muscle weakness; low energy; depressed mood; spinal curvature; and abnormal posture; to name a few.

In order to determine whether you have sustained a misalignment of your head and neck, you can undergo an evaluation with a chiropractor specializing in the upper cervical (neck) spine. This rare specialty, known as upper cervical care, utilizes two diagnostic tools – thermal imaging and digital X-rays – to accurately assess the alignment of your head and neck.

Each patient’s injured neck is corrected by administering a precise adjustment by hand on a speciallydesigned knee chest table. Many patients notice improvement in symptoms with just a few treatments.

With over 20 years of experience as a specialist in the upper cervical spine, Upper Cervical Chiropractor Dr. Erin Elster, D.C., has maintained a practice on Maui for the past three years. For more information, or to schedule an appointment, contact Dr. Elster in Kahului at (808) 866-6551 or visit www.erinelster.com.