The Tin Man Gets an Adjustment

Lately, I’ve been waking up like the Tin Man.
Not sore from a great workout. Just creaky. Like I need to be oiled before I can get out of bed.

Which makes no sense. I work out seven days a week. Strength, cycling, yoga, walking. I’m doing everything right. So why do I feel like a folding chair?

I went down the medical rabbit hole.
Do I need a rheumatoid arthritis specialist? A hip doctor? A spine guy?
One office literally told me, “We only do knees.”
Great. My knees are fine.

Then, a chiropractor walked into my life.

Not my first time. But the first time I didn’t treat it like a one-off. He took X-rays, explained my body better than I ever have, and put me on a very unglamorous plan: quick adjustments, three times a week.

Nothing dramatic. Just small corrections.

Apparently, I’ve been slightly out of alignment, compensating when I walk, standing wrong, moving wrong. He said in about three weeks I’d feel normal again.

After two 10-minute sessions I already do.

Also, I jokingly asked him if he could make me taller.
He said, “Actually, creating more space between your discs can make you a little taller.” Promises were made.

Is it real? Is it placebo? Is it the stretches he gave me as homework?

I don’t care.

Because sometimes the fix isn’t a diagnosis, a medication, or a dramatic plan. Sometimes it’s a small, boring adjustment you didn’t know you needed.