Chiropractic Care in Macomb, MI
Pain can be the reason someone first walks into a chiropractor’s office, but Dr. Bence believes good chiropractic care should look beyond where it hurts.
At Bence Chiropractic Wellness Center in Macomb, Dr. Pavel Bence, DC, CCWP takes a whole-person approach to chiropractic care. He looks at how your spine and joints are moving, how those changes affect surrounding muscles and nerves, what stresses are contributing to the problem, and what needs to be done to help you move and function better.
With more than 40 years of experience and advanced training as a Certified Chiropractic Wellness Practitioner, Dr. Bence cares for patients of all ages, from infants and children to adults, expectant mothers, and seniors. Treatment begins with an evaluation and a plan built around the person in front of him.
“I became a chiropractor to enrich people’s lives through wellness, the natural way, the way I did and continue to do. As a Certified Chiropractic Wellness Practitioner, I will give you the best: a total health solution.” Dr. Pavel Bence, DC, CCWP
Whether you’re dealing with pain, recovering from an injury, noticing changes in mobility, or looking for a more proactive approach to your health, the first step is understanding what’s happening and whether chiropractic care is appropriate for you.
Frequently Asked Questions About Chiropractic Care
What Does a Chiropractor Do?
A chiropractor evaluates and treats problems involving the spine, joints, muscles, and related nervous-system function, with particular attention to how well the body moves and functions. Chiropractic care commonly includes hands-on or instrument-assisted adjustments, but Dr. Bence’s approach begins with understanding your symptoms, health history, movement, and goals.
Depending on the patient’s needs, treatment also includes exercises, lifestyle recommendations, nutrition, massage therapy, or other supportive care.
What Conditions Can Chiropractic Care Help?
People commonly seek chiropractic care for lower back pain, neck pain, headaches, sciatica, joint pain, stiffness, muscle tension, sports injuries and injuries associated with auto accidents or everyday activities.
The same symptom can have different causes, which is why the examination matters. If Dr. Bence determines that your condition is not appropriate for chiropractic care, he’ll explain what he found and recommend the appropriate next step.
Is Chiropractic Care Safe?
Yes. Chiropractic care is a safe, natural approach to care when provided by a properly trained and licensed chiropractor. Dr. Bence has been caring for patients for more than 40 years and begins by learning about your health history, examining you, and determining the type of chiropractic care appropriate for your individual needs.
Adjustments are adapted for children, older adults, pregnant women, patients recovering from injuries, and others who require a gentler or different approach. Some patients experience temporary soreness after an adjustment, much like they might after exercise, but this typically passes quickly. If the examination identifies something that requires a different type of evaluation or care, Dr. Bence will discuss that with you before proceeding.
Do Chiropractic Adjustments Hurt?
Most chiropractic adjustments cause little or no discomfort. Some patients experience mild soreness afterward, similar to what they might feel after exercise. Most mild soreness comes from joints that haven’t moved in a while and muscles that are suddenly being asked to move differently.
Dr. Bence uses several chiropractic techniques, allowing him to select the amount of force and type of treatment according to your age, condition, comfort level, and individual needs. Chiropractic adjustments do not need to be forceful to be effective.
How Many Chiropractic Visits Will I Need?
Your care plan depends on what Dr. Bence finds during your examination, how long you’ve been dealing with the problem, and what you want to accomplish with chiropractic care. Some patients begin feeling better quickly, while conditions that have developed over months or years generally take more time to correct.
Progress is evaluated throughout care and treatment is adjusted accordingly. The goal isn’t to get you through a predetermined number of visits. It is to restore better movement and function, address the problem that brought you in, and help you maintain the progress you’ve made.
Many patients also choose periodic chiropractic care as part of their ongoing wellness routine. Think about your teeth: they need regular care because you use them every day. Dr. Bence believes the same principle applies to your spine and joints. The structures you rely on every day also benefit from regular care to maintain healthy movement and function.
How Do I Know If Chiropractic Care Is Right for Me?
The best way to know is to be evaluated. If you’re experiencing pain, stiffness, reduced mobility, recurring discomfort, headaches, or symptoms involving your back, neck, joints, or muscles, a chiropractic examination helps determine whether the problem falls within the scope of chiropractic care.
Knowing when not to adjust someone is just as important as knowing how to treat them. When examination findings indicate that imaging, medical evaluation, or another healthcare provider is needed, Dr. Bence will recommend the appropriate next step.
Dr. Bence Explains: Chiropractic Is About More Than Pain
Pain gets your attention because it tells you something isn’t right. But where you feel pain isn’t always the whole story, and simply feeling better doesn’t necessarily explain why the problem developed in the first place.
Your spine is made up of joints designed to move while protecting the spinal cord and allowing nerves to travel throughout the body. Muscles, ligaments, discs, joints, and nerves work together to support movement. When normal joint movement becomes restricted or surrounding tissues become irritated, the result is pain, stiffness, reduced range of motion, and changes in how you move.
A chiropractic adjustment uses controlled force applied by hand or an instrument to a joint with the goal of improving joint motion and function. The adjustment addresses the areas Dr. Bence identifies during the examination, while the broader approach considers the factors that contributed to the problem.
“My goal isn’t simply to find where it hurts. I want to understand why you’re having the problem, what may be contributing to it, and what we can do to help you function better.” Dr. Pavel Bence, DC, CCWP
What Happens During a Chiropractic Adjustment?
A chiropractic adjustment is a controlled movement applied to a joint to improve mobility and function. Depending on your needs, Dr. Bence performs an adjustment by hand or uses a specialized chiropractic instrument or table.
Some adjustments produce the familiar popping sound people associate with chiropractic care. That sound isn’t bones rubbing together or being forced back into place. It is associated with changes in pressure and gas within the joint. An adjustment doesn’t need to make a sound to be effective.
The technique and amount of force are selected for the individual patient. A healthy 30-year-old athlete does not require the same approach as an infant, an expectant mother, someone recovering from an auto accident, or an older adult with limited mobility. Dr. Bence’s training in multiple chiropractic techniques gives him different ways to address those needs.
Chiropractic Techniques Dr. Bence Uses
Over more than four decades in practice, Dr. Bence has trained in a variety of hands-on and instrument-assisted techniques. The technique is selected according to the patient, examination findings, and treatment goals rather than using the same type of adjustment for everyone.
Diversified Technique
Diversified is a widely used hands-on chiropractic technique involving a controlled adjustment intended to improve motion in a restricted joint.
Activator Methods®
A specialized handheld instrument delivers a quick, controlled, low-force impulse. It provides another option when a lighter or more targeted approach is appropriate.
Sacro Occipital Technique® (SOT)
Sacro Occipital Technique is a chiropractic system that considers the relationship between the pelvis, spine, and skull. Treatment incorporates specialized positioning, blocks, and low-force procedures according to the patient’s needs.
Thompson Technique
The Thompson Technique uses a specialized chiropractic table with sections designed to drop slightly during an adjustment. This allows Dr. Bence to use controlled force while addressing joint movement.
Cox Flexion-Distraction
Cox Flexion-Distraction is a gentle, non-thrusting technique using a specialized table to produce controlled flexion and distraction of the spine. Dr. Bence uses this technique for appropriate lower back and disc-related conditions, especially sciatica.
Webster Technique
Dr. Bence uses the Webster Technique as part of his prenatal chiropractic care, with adjustments and procedures adapted to the needs and comfort of expectant mothers.
The technique itself is never the goal. What matters is choosing the approach that fits the patient and accomplishes what the adjustment is intended to do.
What to Expect at Your First Chiropractic Visit
Your first visit starts with a conversation about what you’re experiencing, when it began, what makes it better or worse, your health history, previous injuries, lifestyle, and what you hope to accomplish through care.
The examination is based on your individual complaint and history and includes the chiropractic, orthopedic, neurological, postural, movement, or other assessments appropriate to your condition. X-rays aren’t automatically necessary for every chiropractic patient. If your history or examination indicates that imaging or additional evaluation is needed before treatment, Dr. Bence will explain why.
Whether you receive an adjustment during that first visit also depends on the examination findings. Once Dr. Bence understands what’s happening, he’ll explain what he found and recommend a plan appropriate for you.
Chiropractic for Wellness: Get Well. Live Well. Stay Well.
Dr. Bence’s education extends beyond treating a painful joint. He earned the designation of Certified Chiropractic Wellness Practitioner (CCWP) through the International Chiropractors Association’s Council on Wellness Science, and that training supports a philosophy he has emphasized throughout his career: help patients get well, live well, and stay well.
For some patients, the immediate goal is straightforward: I hurt and I want to feel better. Relieving that immediate problem is important. As the patient improves, the conversation becomes broader: What habits are contributing to recurring problems? What will help you move better? How do you protect the progress you’ve made? What changes outside the chiropractic office support better overall health?
Depending on the patient, this wellness approach includes guidance involving:
- Spinal health and healthy movement
- Nutrition and natural health
- Exercise and physical fitness
- Stress and emotional well-being
- Lifestyle changes and healthier habits
- Therapeutic massage
Wellness isn’t a predetermined program every patient has to follow. It is about understanding the factors you have the ability to influence and making better decisions about your health.
Chiropractic Care for Every Stage of Life
One of the things Dr. Bence enjoys most about family practice is caring for people through different stages of their lives. A child doesn’t need the same approach as an adult. An expectant mother’s body is changing rapidly. An athlete may be concerned with mobility and performance. Someone recovering from an auto accident has very different needs from an older patient who wants to remain active and independent.
Bence Chiropractic Wellness Center provides care for infants, children and teens, adults, pregnant women, seniors, and families who want one chiropractic office they can rely on through changing stages of life.
That includes specialized pediatric and prenatal chiropractic care along with treatment for many of the musculoskeletal conditions that affect adults throughout life. The techniques, examination, and goals of care reflect the needs of the person receiving treatment.
Dr. Bence’s Approach to Your Care
After more than 40 years as a chiropractor, Dr. Bence still believes good care starts with listening. Where you hurt matters, but what the problem keeps you from doing, and how it affects your quality of life, matters just as much.
Maybe you want to sleep without waking because your back hurts, turn your head comfortably while driving, pick up your grandchild, return to work after an injury, get back on the golf course, or simply move through the day without constantly thinking about pain. Those goals matter because they’re ultimately what treatment is for.
Chiropractic care at Bence Chiropractic Wellness Center is built around helping you move and function better while giving you the knowledge and support to take a more active role in your own health.
“Every patient comes in with a different story and a different goal. My job is to listen, figure out what I can help with, and give that person the best care I can.” Dr. Pavel Bence, DC, CCWP
Chiropractic Care in Macomb, MI
You don’t need to understand chiropractic terminology or know which technique you need before making an appointment. If something isn’t working the way you want it to, Dr. Bence will take the time to listen, evaluate what’s happening, explain what he finds, and determine the appropriate next step.
Bence Chiropractic Wellness Center provides chiropractic care in Macomb, MI, welcoming patients from Sterling Heights, Shelby Township, Clinton Township, Utica, and surrounding communities.
Call (586) 978-9900 to schedule your chiropractic evaluation with Dr. Bence. Walk-in appointments are always welcome.
Related Conditions
Pediatric Chiropractic
Gentle chiropractic care for infants, children, and teens, built around each child’s stage of growth and development.
Learn morePrenatal Chiropractic
Safe, gentle chiropractic care, including the Webster Technique, to help expectant mothers stay comfortable throughout pregnancy.
Learn moreMassage Therapy
Therapeutic massage designed to ease muscle tension and complement your chiropractic care.
Learn moreWhat Our Patients Are Saying
Nothing is more rewarding than knowing we’ve helped our patients live healthier, happier lives. We invite you to read what individuals and families throughout Macomb and the surrounding communities have shared about their experience at Bence Chiropractic Wellness Center.