Gonstead Chiropractor

Dr. Snyder has been a Gonstead Chiropractor since he graduated Chiropractic school in 1992. He went to his first Gonstead Chiropractic Seminar in Palm Springs while in his first term of chiropractic school in 1989. He was so intrigued by the specificity and effectiveness of the Gonstead doctors that he met at that seminar that the next month he flew to Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin to learn more. He later became the president of the Gonstead Club at Los Angeles College of Chiropractic. He purchased his first practice in 1993 from a retiring Gonstead chiropractor in Santa Barbara, CA and is now practicing Gonstead in Newport Beach, CA.

Dr. C. S. Gonstead (1898-1978) the “Miracle Man” of Chiropractic developed the Gonstead System. His technique became the Hall Mark for the entire profession. With a background in mechanical engineering, he saw the human spine as an intricate engineering wonder and he studied it every chance he had. His work with thousands of spinal cases, his constant clinical studies of the spine, and his own innate knowledge of how the spine works, explains his ingenuity in finding, identifying and correcting subluxations no one else could.

Following in the steps of Dr. Gonstead, Dr. Alex and Dr. Doug Cox have maintained his teachings which are now taught in Chiropractic Colleges around the world. The Gonstead system gives rise to a specific, definite approach, to every segment of the spinal column. The detailed analysis includes instrumentation, digital palpation, motion palpation, visualization, x-ray followed by adjusting the articulations of the spine by hand only! Gonstead Doctors are trained exclusively in the Gonstead system. There is a clinical logic to every decision that is made for each and every patient. This ensures that the principles outlined by Dr. Gonstead will be duplicated.

Gonstead Analysis (5 Steps):

1. Visualization – The Gonstead doctor looks for subtle changes in posture, movement and gait. Visualization is a way to cross reference all the other findings. Chiropractors are experts in looking for subtitle changes in your posture and movement which could indicate any problems.

2. Static Palpation – This is simply the process of feeling (or palpating) your spine in a stationary (or static) position. The doctor will feel for the presence of swelling (or edema), tenderness and any abnormal texture or tightness in the muscles and other tissues of your back.

3. Motion Palpation – The doctor guides the patient through their able range of motion while feeling how each individual joint is moving. This process involves feeling the spine while moving and bending it at various angles. This enables the chiropractor to determine how easily or difficult each segment in your spine moves in different directions.

4. Instrumentation – The instrument of choice in the Gonstead System is the Nervoscope. The Nervoscope detects uneven distributions of heat along the spine which can be indicative of inflammation and nerve pressure/irritation. This instrument is guided down the length of your back and feels like two fingers gliding down each side of your spine.

5. X-ray – X-rays are taken weight bearing and are used to look for any disease process, fracture, posture, biomechanics, joint and disc integrity and vertebral misalignment. X-ray films enable the doctor to visualize the entire structure of your spine.

x-ray full spine before and after

6. Gonstead Adjustment – After this thorough analysis, if it is determined that you have a subluxation, the doctor will prescribe specific adjustments. The Gonstead approach is the gold standard for specificity and safety in chiropractic. Only the problem area is adjusted in only the direction needed. These adjustments are precise, effective, gentle and painless. Many who have had negative experiences with other adjusting techniques respond quite favorably to the Gonstead system of chiropractic. Great care is taken to ensure a mechanically correct position and precise thrust to provide the most accurate and painless adjustment possible. It is the goal of your Gonstead doctor to restore and maintain optimal health by locating and correcting any interference to the nervous system caused by vertebral subluxation.

Side Posture 5th Lumbar Adjustment

Gonstead Chiropractor

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