Why Does My Back Pain Keep Coming Back?
If you live in Johnston, Iowa and your back pain keeps returning, you’re not alone.
Many longevity-minded adults in the Des Moines metro ask:
“Why does my back pain keep coming back?”
You may have:
Seen a chiropractor
Tried massage therapy
Stretched more
Rested from workouts
Foam rolled daily
And yet, weeks or months later — it’s back.
The reason isn’t that your body is broken.
The reason is usually that the underlying movement problem hasn’t been solved.
That’s where combining rehab with chiropractic changes everything.
Why Back Pain Keeps Coming Back
Back pain often returns because mobility improves — but stability doesn’t.
A joint can move better after an adjustment.
Pain can decrease.
But if your brain doesn’t feel stable in that new range of motion, it will often tighten the area back up.
That tightening isn’t dysfunction.
It’s protection.
For adults in Johnston who want to stay active long-term — lifting, golfing, running, staying fit — this distinction matters.
Pain relief is not the same thing as movement retraining.
What a Chiropractic Adjustment Actually Does
A chiropractic adjustment:
Improves joint range of motion
Changes neurological input to the brain
Often reduces pain quickly
When a joint isn’t moving well, the nervous system can interpret that as a threat. Improving motion often decreases that threat signal.
Adjustments are extremely effective at restoring access to movement.
But here’s the key:
An adjustment does not automatically teach your body how to stabilize that new motion.
That requires rehab.
What Happens When You Only Get Adjustments?
In my experience working with adults in Johnston and the greater Des Moines area, adjustment-only care often leads to:
5 minutes of relief
5 hours
5 days
Sometimes longer, but that is rare.
But if strength, motor control, and tissue capacity aren’t addressed, symptoms can return.
Not because the adjustment failed.
But because the brain hasn’t learned how to own that range.
Mobility without stability rarely lasts.
What Happens If You Only Do Rehab?
On the other hand, if you skip mobility work and only perform exercises, progress can be slower.
If your low back or hips are stiff, it’s hard to access the positions needed to strengthen effectively.
This is why combining chiropractic care with rehab is powerful:
The adjustment improves access.
Rehab reinforces and stabilizes that access.
Together, they create resilience.
What Rehab Means at Our Johnston Chiropractic Clinic
Rehab isn’t random exercises.
In our clinic serving Johnston, Iowa, rehab is:
Exercise used to correct movement dysfunction
A way to retrain the brain to move efficiently
A method to adapt tissue to become more resilient
Rehab is how we address root causes — not just symptoms.
It also gives you ownership.
You’re not dependent on passive care.
You build strength and durability outside the office.
For longevity-minded adults, that independence matters.
Case Study: The Runner with Recurring Low Back Pain
A runner came in saying:
“My back always aches after long runs.”
An adjustment immediately improved motion.
But assessment revealed:
Poor hip mobility
Inadequate core stabilization
Excess load through the low back
Without mobility work and core strengthening, the pain would likely have returned.
So we combined:
Chiropractic adjustments
Hip mobility drills
Core stability training
Movement retraining
The result?
Pain stopped recurring — because the movement problem was addressed.
Case Study: The Johnston Truck Driver with Chronic Back Pain
A truck driver sitting for long hours had persistent low back pain.
They had tried:
Stretching
Massage
Rest
Nothing stuck.
Assessment revealed:
Limited low back and hip mobility
Poor load tolerance
Weak stabilizers
We restored motion with adjustments, then reinforced it with mobility and strengthening work.
Once the body felt stable in the new range, the pain resolved — and stayed away.
Why Longevity-Minded Adults in Johnston Should Combine Rehab with Chiropractic
If your goal is long-term health — not just temporary relief — you need both:
Mobility
Stability
Strength
Load tolerance
Chiropractic adjustments restore motion.
Rehab builds resilience.
Together, they help you:
Stay active
Prevent recurrence
Improve performance
Maintain independence
Age with strength
The Real Answer to “Why Does My Back Pain Keep Coming Back?”
Because pain relief and movement retraining are not the same thing.
Mobility can improve before stability improves.
Pain can decrease before strength is restored.
If your back pain keeps returning in Johnston, Iowa, it’s likely that:
The joint motion improved
But the underlying movement dysfunction did not
Lasting change requires both.
Looking for Chiropractic and Rehab in Johnston, Iowa?
If you’re tired of temporary fixes and want to address the root cause of recurring back pain, a thorough movement assessment is the first step.
During an assessment, we identify:
Where you lack mobility
Where you lack stability
Where tissue capacity is insufficient
What is driving recurring symptoms
If you’re in Johnston, Iowa or the Des Moines metro, and you want long-term solutions — not short-term relief — it may be time to combine chiropractic care with targeted rehab.
Relief is good.
Resilience is better.
