June is a great month to listen to your body!

June is a great month to feel good and make new resolutions to listen to your body. I would love to address some of the common questions that come up with my patients and in practice. Often, a patient will ask, " I have this pain right here when I move like this, what is that?". Interestingly, when we answer that question, the answer is not arrived at quickly, but in fact, takes time including investigation into when a symptom or pain began, what we were doing when it began, what makes it better or worse, what relieves it, what kind of pain it is including differentiation of pain being sharp or dull, numb or tingling, weakness etc. Often times, people ignore pain until it gets more frequent or intense. This is not smart as pain, when addressed early can and most of the time does result in early resolution of a condition. In extreme cases we see pain ignored and dire consequences result including progression of conditions beyond the ability to help at all. Pain is our bodies way of communicating with us similar to a text message. By ignoring pain or taking pain medications that simply block pain signals, we are shutting off our bodies automatic alarm systems to alert us to something important going on. No matter what type of doctor your choose to consult, be sure to choose one that will take the time to come to a proper diagnosis and utilize conservative treatments without the use of drugs, injections or surgery first.

CHIROPRACTIC, MY PASSION, NOT JUST MY PROFESSION……

My first experience with chiropractic was after doing gymnastics. I had severe torticollis (neck pain) and my father took me to his chiropractor, Dr. Ronald Nickolich.

After that adjustment, not only was my neck pain-free but I could also hear and see better. Even colors seemed clearer. I told my father immediately, "That's what I want to be - a chiropractor!"

I started working with Dr. Nickolich in Pittsburgh at age 13, developing X-rays and helping with performing therapy on patients. When I was in junior high school, my mother was on strong pain medications because of severe back and neck pain. If the pain didn't keep her in bed, the medications did. She was only 35. The orthopedic surgeons said that she would be in a wheelchair within 10 years.

My father would have none of that. He took her, kicking and screaming, to Dr. Nickolich. After three months of chiropractic care, my mother became totally free of pain and medication. She became involved in life again. She could care for her family again.

Her experience only strengthened my resolve to become a chiropractor. After graduating from high school, at age 17, I entered into one of two pre-chiropractic programs in the United States at California State University of Pennsylvania. I then attended Palmer College of Chiropractic in Davenport, Iowa, graduated in 1987 and have been licensed in three states: Nevada, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts.

And my mother, now 77, walks and moves freely - no wheelchair for her! She does walks her dog, plays bridge and even does yoga.

Chiropractic is my passion and my life. Each day, I look forward to helping everyone who comes through my door. I love to help people discover how much better life is with a spine that's properly aligned.

I promise you, if you come to my office, you won't feel like a number - except maybe number one! Because when you come here, you're my top priority.

Yours in good health,

Dr. Nancy Fallon
Board Certified Chiropractic Physician

Wow, this pleasant young man was pleasantly suprised.

A pleasant young man recently came into our office. Just 28 years old, he has severe chronic knee and foot pain. He was curious about whether chiropractic could help legs and feet. He was under the impression that chiropractors only treat spinal problems. He had come in with a friend who had an appointment for back pain. While he was waiting, he told us he had no idea that we could help knee and foot pain and was very happy to find out that chiropractors work with the whole body, not just the spine.


It turned out that this young man is on his feet all day, every day, at a very successful high-end casino restaurant. He has a family history of heart disease and was worried about the circulation in his legs because of the unrelenting leg ...and foot pain.

He told us that he was afraid that this was a result of poor circulation, so he delayed getting it checked, despite suffering for several years. During a full exam here, he was so concerned about his blood pressure that he didn't even want to open his eyes to look at the numbers.

Happily, we discovered that his lower extremity circulatory testing and blood pressure were normal. We are sending him for an MRI of his knee, ultrasound of his legs and prescribing custom orthotics for foot pain. In addition, we are implementing a series of treatments, including gentle, effective spinal alignments to increase blood and nerve supply to his legs. He will also work with our trained, certified licensed massage therapists to relax and stretch his muscles, thereby reducing pain and increasing his range of motion.

Did you know that your chiropractic physician can refer you for tests, including MRIs, CT scans, ultrasounds, nerve conduction tests, bone scans, dexascans and more as needed?

A chiropractic physician is one of the three main branches of allopathic medicine. Many people choose their chiropractic physician as their primary care physician. Most chiropractors work with general practitioners and other specialty health doctors to provide alternatives to medications and surgery. In fact, most chiropractic physicians and general practitioners not only refer to each other, they also treat each other.

It's so nice to know that there are so many treatment options available, including alternative, drug-free options.See More