Don’t Wait

Have you seen the photo of the naked man climbing down a ladder from the second floor as his house was on fire?  Placed on the photo was a memo saying “Note To Self:  wear pajamas!”  It is funny and we all laugh, but so often we are caught unaware.  Over time, I teach my patients if you fall or  minimally hurt yourself and come in right away, it is often a one visit treatment.  But if you keep thinking, “it SHOULD go away because it isn’t that bad,” we could write a note on the refrigerator:  “Note to Self:  When you first hurt, go see Dr. E.”  We live and learn.  The tricky part is, sometimes it does go away.  If it hasn’t after a day or two, do yourself a favor and come see me.  The problem finds roots when it stays without correction.  I remember a woman came in and said, “I started to wait until after I went skiing this weekend to come in.”  My response was, “I’m glad you came in now because your coordination will be better after an adjustment and poor coordination could cause you an injury while skiing.  The moral of the story is simply, “Note to Self:  Don’t Wait.”