With Manhattan temperatures yo-yoing from the 60's to the 30's, I wasn't surprised when I started to develop a nasty chest cold last week.  And being that bronchitis kept me out of work for over two weeks a few years ago, I wasn't taking any chances and went right to the doctor.

The office was packed (seems like everyone had the same cough as me), and I had to wait over an hour to see the doctor.  When I finally made it into the examination room, he did the usuals - listened to my chest, checked my glands, throat and nose, etc.  Nothing abnormal until he asked me to lay down on my back and relax.  In my state, I didn't even have the energy to question him why, and before I knew it, he put my arms into a strange position and proceeded to CRACK my back.  Once on each side.  I screamed bloody murder, and 5 seconds later, he did the same to my neck!  Of course, I screamed again and can only imagine what the patients out in the waiting room were thinking.

After I got over the initial shock and horror of having my neck snapped like a chicken's (I had NEVER been to a chiropractor nor been adjusted in my 26 years), I asked him why he did it.  His answer? Tension built up in my upper body wasn't allowing the mucous to break up properly, hence my chest cold.   Apparently, the adjustment was supposed to help.  I did feel a little better afterwards, but maybe it was mental (or the antibiotics!)

Has anyone else had a similar experience?

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• #4 Comment from k8animals 
  1/29/07 12:07 PM | Permalink

  Im going to say this once, I have been in alternative medicine for 12 years i have not taken cough syrup in 12 years nor do i give it to my children! take vicks vapor rub and put a very gererous amount on the botton of your feet and rub it all  over them and put your socks back on and repeat till your cough goes away. Laugh if you want but it works. let me know. And just for the record chiropractors do work to a certain degree and it was not the antibiotics!
• #3 Comment from drdavidkleindc 
  1/21/07 5:11 AM | Permalink

  I may have some insights. First off the nerves in your back control all of your body, including your lungs, throat and all the other parts. This serves as an excellent tutorial of the subject, http://www.bodyabcs.com/WYNTK/WYNTKHTML/01.html
  If you ended up in the guys office without your realizing he was a chiropractor, I predict he was actually an Osteopath. Osteopaths used to be a lot like chiropractors 100 years ago, but around 50 years ago they bought into the M.D. drug world, and now are virtually the same as M.D.'s If the guy offered drugs or prescriptions of drugs he  was not a chiropractor.
  
  Now as to adjusting your neck or back without your permission? I would consider that as entirely inappropriate, and probably illegal. At best it is very bad manners. In our office we spend an hour or more with patients helping them to understand what we are going to do before we do it.
  
  Most chiropractors are very caring people who would do a fair amount of explanation before working on you.
  
  Take a look at my site to understand it a little better, and I suggest you find a good caring chiropractor to take care of you.
  
  Much Love,
  Dr. David Klein
• #2 Comment from comfyrest 
  1/17/07 6:23 AM | Permalink

  At the risk of sounding like a spammer I wanted to let you know of a new remedy for that may help you. I had gone to a chiropractor once and the neck cracking episode kept me away from future visits. My problem was a herniated neck disk, however when I have a chest cold I find that my remedy for the herniation also helps me breathe at night. I invented and patented the SquidFace and ComfyRest pillows to relieve my pain from a herniated neck disk that also stops my snoring and opens my airway. It would work best on your back though it also helps facedown or face up. www.SquidFace.com
• #1 Comment from ramzi1234 
  1/16/07 10:08 PM | Permalink

  What? I don't understand. Were you at an MD's office? or, were you at a chiropractor's office?
  
  I am as shocked as you are that the procedure occurred in that way. If it was a chiropractor, then this chiropractor definitely needs further education in patient management. Chiropractic manipulations should never occur without the patient being aware. And, to say that the adjustment will help your chest cold, well, there is a great deal of clinical experience (as well as numerous studies) that correlate spinal adjustments with a healthier immune system but it is not definitive yet. There still is a great deal of research needing to be done in this arena.
  
  Having been involved in the chiropractic profession for several years, it is experiences like these that I hear that are upsetting. Individuals who have had experiences like this think that this in fact is chiropractic and leave with a very bad and/or confusing impression.
  
  Please know that this is NOT typical. Chiropractor doctors will do a thorough examination of the spine, consult on the findings and then explain what an adjustment is, how it feels, etc. BEFORE giving you the adjustment. I'm sorry you had this experience, and hope that this doctor gets feedback about how shocked you were. Chiropractic adjustments are not meant to be shocking and invasive. On the contrary, they are meant to provide relief from pain, tension and discomfort. This doctor doesn't sound like she has all her ducks in a row when it comes to education and understanding.