Club Member Dr Jefri Metheany, DC, was the speaker at the Wednesday, September 7, meeting of the Pattaya City Expats Club (PCEC). His topic was “Spinal Health is Necessary for People of All Ages”. Dr Jefri is the only Thai Ministry of Public Health licensed Chiropractor in Chonburi Province (includes Pattaya) and practices at Tara Physical Therapy Clinic, located across the road from the Outlet Mall on Thepprasit Road. He has over 20 years of experience and is a member of the Thailand Chiropractic Association.
A chiropractor is a health care professional focused on the diagnosis and treatment of neuromuscular disorders, with an emphasis on treatment through manual adjustment and/or manipulation of the spine. Most chiropractors seek to reduce pain and improve the functionality of patients as well as to educate them on how they can account for their own health via exercise, ergonomics and other therapies to treat back pain.
He began by saying, “It is said, when we are young, we squander our health in search of wealth and when we are older, we spend our wealth in search of health. Where is the balance? Health is wealth.” He emphasized that care of oneself is necessary throughout one’s life. Me mentioned that many people have lost faith in medicine and surgery which basically treat the effects rather than the cause because of the many side effects. He believes that medicines such as antibiotics have their place, but noted they are often overprescribed or misused.
In describing spinal care, he said that stretching, if done daily, with gradual progression improves flexibility over the years and will gain a greater range of motion. Flexibility is more important than brute strength. In this regard, he noted that physical therapy has been gaining in popularity over the past 80 years. It initially began with massage and hot and cold therapies and has progressed to use electro therapies.
Likewise, Chiropractic has been around for about the past 125 years. A Chiropractor will have attained an undergraduate degree followed by 4 years of Chiropractic study obtaining the degree of Doctor of Chiropractic (DC). Many will continue on with other specialization. He chose to continue on with advanced studies to specialize in orthopedics.
He then mentioned the differences between Osteopathy and Chiropractic. Traditionally Osteopathy considers the arteries as supreme and that inadequate blood supply to parts of the body can result in degeneration and death. Whereas Chiropractic considers the nerves to be supreme and any impingement can lead to degeneration of parts of the body further away from the spine than just the spine itself. He said Chiropractic care is first involved in relief from pain then proceeds on to correcting and restoring normal function and nerve supply.
There are different approaches to treatment. In his case, he prefers a gentle rather than an aggressive approach. He prefers to give 3 initial treatments and then determine it the patient’s condition has improved. This evaluation will then lead to additional types of treatment including any physical therapy that is needed.
After his presentation, he answered many questions from the audience including the need for stretching exercises. Although many such exercises can be found online, he cautioned against using an aggressive approach as this can be a turn off and lead to discontinuance. He also noted that he as well as the physical therapist he works with can recommend specific stretching and other exercises that benefit different parts of the body. To view the presentation, visit the PCEC’s YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1kf7mgPycU.
After Dr Jefri’s presentation, MC Ren Lexander brought everyone up to date on upcoming events which was followed by George Wilson conducting the PCEC’s Open Forum where questions are asked and answered about Expat living in Thailand. For more information about the PCEC, visit their website at https://pcec.club.
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