"I am glad I haven't been told to take any pain meds. I am not a meds kind of guy usually."

Used to be thought that, partly because all medications have side effects, toughing it out had many advantages. It may still have some but now we know there is also a down side. A lack of pain relief can greatly slow recovery, delay restoration of function and can, in some cases, can lead to much more pain much in the very long term.

It has been shown to a fair degree of certainty that early administration of effective analgesia reduces the chances of, or extent of, phantom pain after a limb is amputated. The science shows that to some extent trauma and intense pain reprograms the brain and how it perceives pain in the future.

One might assume that exposure to pain would increase the tolerance and increase the threshold for pain but the long term effect seems to be exactly the opposite. The trauma of intense pain very much increases both the physical and psychological effects long term.

While your certainly free to decline medications you may not be doing yourself any favors.

Generally speaking chiropractic treatments do not involve any significant amount of pain if done properly. While I do favor chiropractic treatments for simple back pain, where he offers quick and effective relief, I am careful to reign in the enthusiasm of my chiropractor for the rest of the ailments he claims to be able to treat.

Given free run of my health-care, and checkbook, he would treat everything from ingrown toenails to dandruff. There are no limits to what he claims to be able to effect with his combination of manipulations, dietary supplements (Sold in the office naturally) and homeopathic potions. IMO most of these are effective largely to the extent the patient is suggestible or subject to the placebo effect. We have developed an understanding.

I also make sure he curbs his tendency to get me on an open ended program. When I go in I tell him up front to do what he can in three visits. After three visits I reevaluate his progress. The longest series was six visits after a fairly serious accident. Over thirty years I have gone to several chiropractors for about a half dozen issues.