What is NUCCA, anyway?

How it works

1. 01

   Searching for the root cause

   Where is your pain coming from? Is your low back pain really coming from your low back? Is the dizziness truly coming from the inner ear? Or is it the nerves which control those areas?

   Those nerves all pass through the most critical junction of your spine, your brainstem, located at the craniocervical junction, where the base of your skull meets your neck. With NUCCA, we search for the root cause of chronic pain and neurological dysfunction. If a misalignment is your root cause, many other treatments only help temporarily, we often see patients who have “tried everything” with specialists who are fantastic at what they do, but are still not getting results.

2. 02

   Assessment

   NUCCA care is only appropriate if and when a patient has a misalignment at their craniocervical junction. The initial process determines whether you do, and whether we think it is influencing your ability to feel great.

   If the head and neck aren't straight, the rest of the body will be crooked underneath. You may not look or feel imbalanced, but a trained NUCCA doctor can assess micro-imbalances affecting you on a macro scale. Misalignments cause global changes in muscle tone, which is measurable through specific testing; additional neurological and orthopedic tests may be performed as needed.

3. 03

   Measurement

   Precision imaging of the craniocervical junction allows your NUCCA doctor to assess the severity and complexity of your case, and to determine the best biomechanical approach to correct your spine. A detailed analysis of your spine informs exactly how your care moves forward.

4. 04

   Precision correction

   Correction of your spine is incredibly gentle, there is no twisting, cracking, or popping. Though it will almost feel like “nothing,” the correction is powerful: the spine moves into a position it can actually stabilize in, and pressure is removed from the craniocervical junction.

   An immediate change in muscle tone occurs from reduced neurological interference. Blood flow and cerebrospinal fluid flow patterns change between the brain and the body, and neurological signaling becomes balanced between the left and right sides. This sets in motion your body's own ability to heal.

5. 05

   Verify results

   Several measurements are taken after the initial correction to confirm structural and neurological improvements. Post imaging is then used to further assess, verify, and improve upon the initial biomechanics.

   NUCCA is one of the only chiropractic techniques that utilizes post-adjustment imaging to confirm results. Most importantly, it helps maximize the reduction of the misalignment, putting your body in the best possible state to heal.

6. 06

   Stabilization & healing

   Healing takes time: when you break your arm and it's put in a cast, it isn't healed the next day. Most conditions we see are more complex and chronic than a broken arm, but your body is far better suited to heal when it's in the correct position.

   Once you begin to “hold” and stabilize the NUCCA correction, your body can truly begin to heal from the effects of your specific misalignment. Because of the precision of the correction, most patients hold their alignment significantly longer than with traditional chiropractic methods, so we often see patients less often, with long-lasting results.