Athletes should see a chiropractor with extensive experience in the treatment and rehabilitation of a sports injury. Active people are physically and emotionally different from sedentary ones.  Dr. Awender has treated hundreds of serious athletes including race car drivers, gymnasts, marathon runners, triathletes, ballet dancers, tennis players, volley ball players, basketball and football players as well as many others.  

Our mission is to get you back out an enjoying your active lifestyle.

There are good reasons why the athlete should seek a sports chiropractor for the treatment and rehabilitation of a sports injury. Active people are physically and emotionally different from sedentary ones. Most physicians have not had special training in sports medicine or rehabilitation. Consequently, even outstanding physicians who don’t treat athletes regularly often make mistakes in the diagnosis and treatment of athletes’ neuromusculoskeletal problems.

Young athletes are often in the peak of physical condition and motivation, which accounts for a rapid rate of recovery.

It is also observed that the cumulative effects of constant athletic small stresses over a long duration can give rise to the same difficulties as severe sudden stress. Spinal injuries in sports constitute only about three percent of all athletic injuries. Thus, the chiropractor must be well prepared to manage the various musculoskeletal injuries that occur away from the spine.

While conditioning is emphasized in athletics, the motivation is frequently on winning, rather than on prevention of injury. While this seems illogical, chiropractors handling athletic injuries must understand this if they are to properly evaluate and provide service. The development of cooperation between team physician, family physician and chiropractor helps to reduce the problem of conflicting opinions, often delivered to an already confused athlete. The typical family doctor has little knowledge of the practicalities involved in specialized sports injury management, and should accept logical procedures and recommendations when explained by the chiropractor.

The chiropractic approach toward athletic injuries has demonstrated that everyone is better served by having the injured player promptly and ably treated, thereby obtaining recovery before irreparable damage is done. The chiropractor with a special interest in athletes must be prepared to handle their injuries, and must in turn pass this information on to other physicians. It must be recognized that in the management of athletic injuries, the patient must get complete recovery, or he or she is no longer an athlete.

Sports chiropractic and chiropractic rehabilitation have received a considerable amount of attention in recent years. Some of the reasons for the increased awareness and interest are the publicity afforded the injuries of professional athletes; the injuries resulting from the increased participation by individuals in physical fitness and recreational athletics; and the government’s role in encouraging physical fitness through the president’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. Sports chiropractic and chiropractic rehabilitation have developed at a considerable pace over the last decade.   Dr. Awender is active in sports and enjoys helping his patients enjoy a complete recovery and return to the sports they love.