Have you ever heard someone tell you my back is “out” or told your back is “out” of place? If so, you are not alone. It is unfortunately common for those in the medical community to tell patients that their back is “out”. The words though carry a strong belief and create dependency should a person re-injure their back at a later date (more on this in a moment). If a person’s back was really “OUT” they would not be walking. This individual would have suffered a catastrophic injury and was likely paralyzed.
What does this phrase mean then?
It means the observer views some relative asymmetry in the person’s muscle system. This relative asymmetry of muscle tension of one side vs the other can give the appearance something (back, spine, pelvis) is not in place. The good news though is everything is in place, nothing is out, and it is only a visual trick. 
But why then does an adjustment seem to “fix” the person? Doesn’t that put something back in place?
NOPE. It. Does. Not. Numerous studies have looked at an adjustments ability to “move” bones and it just does not happen. The notion is completely false for the reasons a person says so, BUT…it does not mean an adjustment does or will not help. Because it just may and let me explain more. See…when/if a person’s muscle system is overly tense on one side vs the other, these tense muscles can restrict fluid movement of the underlying spine. This lack of movement in conjunction with the tense muscles may be what hurts.
What the adjustment does is basically hitting the “RESET” button for the muscles and spine. It works to open the window to move in a pain-free or pain lessened state through which the individual can begin to move again. Getting moving again helps the person to be active and since the movement doesn’t hurt, they are able to restore their system.
Unfortunately, what happens in this scenario is the individual is SOLD on the notion that their body is prone to “going out of place”. This sets up a situation of dependency any time that person now feels any kind of back pain again. This professional just has taken the ability of that person to self-manage and put the locus of control in their hands.
What is important to know is that the human back is strong and resilient. Even when it may hurt, nothing is truly out of place. And most individuals with back pain will recover just fine within a few weeks. What research has told us is that back pain responds best to treatment within the 1st 6 wks…meaning it is unwise to wait and see. Quick action with back pain leads to fast recovery.
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