Massage Therapy & Chiropractic Care

Since 2017, I’ve been an advocate for chiropractic adjustments and my story of injuries may help you understand why.

First, back in 2011, I was hit by a car crossing a highway (too long of an embarrassing story to get into, but I landed on my shoulder which caused a build-up of adhesions, aka knots, over time. Thankfully that was the worst of it and the car wasn’t going that fast). In 2013 I had torn my meniscus, leading to a meniscus repair surgery six months prior to entering massage school. At this point, I was already facing some chronic pains in both my shoulder and around my knee. Then, in 2015, I was in a motor vehicle accident with a drunk driver that led to me being unconscious for 24 hours, left with a concussion, a broken (?) rib, impaired cognitive functioning, a lacerated liver, a hell load of pain in my extremities (especially my previously injured knee and shoulder), and much more physical and mental trauma. (How I survived all of this, my 9 lives and I'm strong like a bull lol).

From the summer of 2015 to the spring of 2016, I could not massage because my physical body and mental health were healing. To be honest, that whole 365 days is a blur so I am not too sure, but I do believe I got back to massage therapy part-time in the spring of 2016. I was in college (a straight-A student now receiving B’s and C’s), worked part-time at restaurants, and took on seasonal massage jobs.

A year or more after the accident, I missed massage therapy far too much to keep myself away from it. Truthfully, the physical requirements of the job are what made me stay away, but I was feeling physically and mentally ready to get back into it. I started with part-time work at local spas and eventually took up a full-time job at a Spa in 2017 while finishing my bachelor's degree at Rutgers. (Mostly online courses, as with the PTSD I was not a fan of in-person classes, which made full-time work a somewhat easy commitment).

Unfortunately, after a few months back into working, my worst nightmare came true. I had shooting pains in my arms and sciatica-like pains in my legs. My head constantly throbbed, I threw up from migraines regularly. I was 110-115 pounds (my lowest bodyweight since I was a young teen) and everything made me nauseous or vomit. I was suffering from situational depression, PTSD, and anxiety. I figured this was life from now on. Massages helped but the relief was so temporary and I had a hard time finding a therapist to truly meet my needs and college-student budget.

I actually don’t remember if it was a suggestion by a client, friend, or an idea from my intuition, but I found myself looking up chiropractors around me. I was willing to try anything besides prescription pain medication. I was afraid of my first adjustment, but she went super slow and talked me through everything. She began with a full assessment of my body before jumping straight into my spinal adjustments. Then, she put me on a plan of three times a week (thankfully I was on my father's health insurance at the time still, so copayments were super affordable), which I followed that from October 2017 to December of 2017. After that, I switched to 1-2 times a week (and now, three years after my first adjustment and now on my own health insurance plan, I go 2-3 times a month for maintenance). All the while, I ensured returning for monthly massages and sometimes bimonthly!

After the first week of adjustments back in October of 2017, I noticed pain relief in my arms, legs, and shoulders. My chiropractor suggested that even though the pain is being relieved so quickly, to keep myself on this schedule three times a week, which I am glad I listened to her. After the first month, I started noticing the depression symptoms relieving, I was able to enjoy food, and keep it down. The PTSD symptoms simmered from daily, to weekly, to monthly, to checking off 1 year without an attack.

In one year I was relieved of pain, depression, anxiety, and the debilitating stress of never feeling ‘normal’ again. It took about 3 years from my first adjustment, 5 years since the accident, for me to fully recover from the physical and mental trauma from the accident (and my triggers have almost completely disappeared)!

To this day, chiropractic adjustments and massage therapy are the go-to self-care treatments that I receive a minimum of once a month. Investing in the health of my body has been the greatest thing I could have ever done. The two holistic modalities saved my physical and mental body and I am forever grateful for that. When I felt ready to open Soul Well LLC, I knew I wanted to be within a chiropractor's office so that, in the event my client needs more help than I can provide, I have a fantastic recommendation for them.

If you’re in New Jersey and seeking a Chiropractor, Dr. Rallo Chiropractic Center is a wonderful place to seek chiropractic care in. I get monthly adjustments with him, and I have my massage and health coaching room in his office. Are you wondering if it's better to get a massage or see a chiropractor? Many of my clients, and many of his patients, have made it part of their regular visits to schedule a massage before or after their adjustments!

Read on to learn some benefits of massage therapy and chiropractic benefits:

Massages are effective in managing:

Low back pain (chronic or subacute)

Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS)

Anxiety and stress

Soft tissue injuries

High blood pressure

Insomnia

Benefits of massage include:

Reduced muscle tension

Improved circulation

Stimulates the lymphatic system

Reduces stress hormones

Relaxation

Increases joint mobility and flexibility

Improves skin tone

Improves recovery of soft tissue injuries