Managing Your Symptoms

Most of us are procrastinators. We let things go until the last minute. Papers, magazines, and books pile up on the desk until the process of finding what we're looking for resembles an archeological dig. Our garages look like our desks. Stuff fills the garage just like stuff covers the desk. Eventually, finding things resembles exploring for treasure in a dark, long-abandoned cave. We're motivated to clean our desks and garages only by the impossibility of adding any more stuff to the clutter and the piles.

Sometimes it seems as if procrastinating is hard-wired into our DNA. This is particularly true when it comes to our health. No one wants to go to the doctor, so it becomes even easier to put off the needed checkup. Whether it's our chiropractor, our dentist, or our family physician, nobody seems to want to pick up the phone, go to the office, and take care of business. Of course, procrastination in relation to our health can lead to some big problems. Tooth pain that comes and goes doesn't seem like such a big deal. But if the coming and going is fairly consistent, then there's probably a cavity that needs filling. You keep putting it off and when you finally get around to going to our dentist, you learn you need an expensive root canal and a crown. That's not good.

Or you're playing pickup basketball on the weekend. You go up for a rebound and get shoved in the back. The next day you have lower back pain. You keep thinking it'll go away, but it's now four weeks later and your back is still stiff and sore. Had you seen your chiropractor the first week, after the pain had persisted for four or five days, treatment might have been pretty straightforward. Now you learn it's going to take at least several weeks of treatment before you can play ball again. Not good. Diabetes is the same thing. 1High blood pressure is the same thing.2 Overweight is the same thing. 3Procrastination with your health always costs more time and more money in the end. Prevention and, if necessary, early detection, are the keys.

When it comes to your health, the opposite of procrastination is managing your symptoms. It's not necessary to run to your chiropractor for every ache and pain or to run to your family physician for every sniffle or low-grade fever. It is important and necessary to pay attention to what's going on with you. Symptoms that linger mean something is wrong and your body needs help in getting better. Once you begin paying attention a learning curve will kick in. You'll develop skill in identifying problems that need attention. The next step, of course, is to pick up the phone, make an appointment, and arrive at the appointment on time. Your chiropractor or family physician will be glad to be of service in identifying the problem and providing appropriate treatment.


1Bo S, et al: Prevalence of undiagnosed metabolic syndrome in a population of adult asymptomatic subjects. Diabetes Res Clin Pract 75(3):362-365, 2007
2Guyomard V, Myint PK: Optimum control of blood glucose for prevention and treatment of ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. Curr Treat Options Cardiovasc Med 11(3):201-211, 2009
3Anderson AS, Caswell S: Obesity management--an opportunity for cancer prevention. Surgeon 7(5):282-285, 2009

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Our Regular Schedule

Monday:

KENNESAW: 9:00am - 1:00pm

3:00pm - 6:00 pm

Tuesday:

SMYRNA 9:00am - 3:00pm Walk-Ins

3:00 - 5:00 by appointment

Wednesday:

KENNESAW: 9:00am - 1:00pm

Closed

Thursday:

SMYRNA 9:00am - 3:00pm Walk-Ins

3:00 - 5:00 by appointment

Friday:

KENNESAW: 9:00am - 1:00pm

Saturday:

SMYRNA 9:00am - 11:30am

By Appointment Only

Sunday:

Closed

Testimonial

Review By Our Satisfied Patient

  • "Four years ago I fell and badly injured my shoulder resulting in a massive total rotator cuff tear and other various injuries. After more than a year of rehabilitation for my injuries, my orthopedist approved my return to chiropractic treatments with the admonition the my permanent rotator cuff injury be treated with care. As a result, I searched for a new chiropractor who would be able to help my injured shoulder as well as any other problems that developed.

    In 2009 I was blessed to find Dr. Erick Burke, DC, who has been able to help me with all the physical and medical problems that affect me from time to time. Dr. Burke is very knowledgeable and always willing to listen to my complaints and problems, ensures that I understand his instructions and provides me with any treatments that I need.

    I've been to seven or eight chiropractors during my life, Dr. Burke is by far the best chiropractor I've ever been to, and I am so blessed to have found him. I highly recommend Dr. Burke."
    NEC