I made an appointment with a new Chiropractor and, on Friday, October 6, I went to see him. I remember sitting in the waiting room, scared and anxious; if this doesn’t work, what do I do? When he called for me, I gave the same synopsis/story to him as all the other doctors, only he reacted differently — much differently. I asked him if he’d ever heard of Slipping Rib Syndrome and he said that he had. He then physically examined me and, when I directed him to the tender spot on my rib, confirmed that I have costovertebral syndrome, which is basically the same thing as Slipping Rib Syndrome (also called Floating Rib Syndrome, Tietze’s Syndrome and Rib Dysfunction Syndrome). He said that my 12th (last) rib had popped out of it’s facet joint, where it meets the spine and was causing referred pain to my left flank and upper abdomen.
He then took an X-Ray and, I’ll be damned, he showed me on the x-ray, how my 12th rib appeared higher and slightly behind the facet joint, as opposed to the others…How had all these other “doctors” missed this? He then said that because I’ve had this ailment for so long, I was developing additional complications, e.g. scoliosis, scar tissue, etc.
So, he put muscle stimulators on my upper and lower back (along with heat) and then ultrasound (to break up the scar tissue and the calcium deposits that have formed) on the tender spot. He then had me lay down on my stomach and proceeded to manually put my rib back in it’s spot. It didn’t hurt, put when he put it back, I felt an immediate sense of relief — in more ways than I can explain. It seemed my nightmarish journey was coming to an end, all thanks to my Chiropractor. He explained the condition, therapy and what we were looking at time-wise, and said he had his work cut out for him, as the Chiropractor I had been seeing (ironically) only made my condition worse.
So, I’m currently going to my new DC three times a week, and I feel better and better after each session. I know when my rib slips back out, as the pain comes back, and this happens often, but my DC said it will take some time before the rib stays where it’s supposed to. As the days go on, I can feel my rib slowly healing…This is by no means a quick process, but the faster you get started, the faster you can heal.
I urge everyone who has any questions about my ordeal, or theirs, to email me! I want to educate the masses on this issue, so no one has to spend the time and money I did before I was properly diagnosed!
