Your First Chiropractic Visit: Exactly What Happens, Step by Step

The short answer

The first visit takes about 60 minutes, split between your health history, some postural testing, and a first chiropractic adjustment on the same day.

Yes, you get adjusted at the first visit. You are not coming in for an hour only to be sent home with an appointment for another day.

You do not need to bring anything or arrive on an empty stomach. Clothes you can move comfortably in, and that is it.

Before you come: the only things worth preparing

None of this is essential, but it helps if you have it to hand:

• Any scans or reports you already have: X-rays, MRIs, orthopaedic reports. They are not needed to start, but if they exist they save time.
• A list of any medication you take regularly.
• Comfortable clothes. Nothing technical — just something you can lie down, twist and bend in without thinking about it. Avoid tight skirts and stiff belts.

And one thing more useful than any document: come with the story clear in your head. When it started, what makes it worse, what eases it, whether it has happened before. That is worth more than a five-year-old X-ray.

First: what we ask in order to rule things out

Part of the history is not about your pain at all — it is about ruling out things that are not our territory. We ask about fever, unexplained weight loss, loss of strength in an arm or leg, changes in bladder or bowel control, and any recent fall or blow.

If any of those come up, the right response is to send you to a doctor, not to adjust you. It is uncommon, but it is the reason the history comes first and the adjustment second, rather than the other way round.

What happens, start to finish

1. Health history. The longest part, and the one most people underestimate. It is not a form to get through: it is working out what brought you in, how long it has been going on, what you have already tried, how you sleep, how you work, and what you want to get back to doing. Much of the plan comes from here, not from the table.

2. Postural testing. Done at the start for a specific reason: to record a starting point, so that weeks later you can compare rather than rely on memory. Pain is an unreliable memory; a measurement is not.

3. First chiropractic adjustment. With Léa, in a private room used only for you. Later adjustments are shorter — 15 to 20 minutes — because the history and testing do not need repeating.

You can see the full structure of care, stage by stage, if you want to know what follows this first hour.

Do you get adjusted on the same day?

Yes. And it is worth explaining why, because not every clinic works this way.

Some practices make the first visit assessment-only, with the first adjustment at a second appointment. That is a legitimate way to do it. Here, unless the examination finds something that rules it out, the first adjustment happens in the same session. If the examination does find something, we say so and do not adjust — that is the only reason you would go home without one.

How it feels, and the following 24 hours

This is the question almost nobody asks out loud, so here it is answered plainly. After a first adjustment, one of three things tends to happen, and all three are normal:

• Fairly immediate relief of tension. It is the most striking outcome, but it is not universal.
• No immediate change at all. This is normal and does not mean it has not worked. The process can take time to show.
• Tiredness or mild soreness over the first 24 hours. Also normal — a sign the body is settling into the change.

What you should not expect is sharp new pain, or something that worsens over the following days. That is worth calling us about.

On the noise: the "crack" you sometimes hear is not a bone going back into place. It is a joint phenomenon, and whether it happens or not is no measure of whether the adjustment worked. Plenty of silent adjustments are perfectly effective.

The second visit: your report

Worth knowing from the outset, because the first visit does not end at the first visit.

At the next session we give you the findings: what the testing shows, what explains what you are feeling, and what plan we propose — with a number of sessions and a frequency. That is the moment to ask anything you want before committing to anything. The adjustment follows after.

Put differently: the first visit gathers information and starts the work; the second explains what we found and where it is going. If anyone asks you to commit to a long plan before that report, being sceptical is reasonable.

Practical details

Where. Carrer dels Vivons, 29, l'Eixample, 46006 València. You can see the clinic beforehand if arriving with less uncertainty helps.

When. We see patients Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, 09:00–13:00 and 15:00–20:00. The clinic is closed Mondays, Fridays and weekends, which is worth factoring in — particularly if you are working around a standard week.

Appointment always required. For first visits and for adjustments. It is not bureaucracy: it is what lets us hold the room and the full hour for you rather than fitting you between two other people.

How to book. Message us on WhatsApp, call 744 73 53 63, or book online.

If you cannot make it, let us know in advance. Because the clinic runs by appointment, an empty hour is an hour someone else could have used.

Frequently asked questions

How long does the first visit actually take? Around 60 minutes, covering history, testing and the first adjustment. Later adjustments run 15 to 20 minutes.

Do I need an X-ray for the first visit? No. Bring imaging if you already have it, but it is not a requirement to start: in most mechanical cases a clinical assessment is enough to guide care.

Will my neck be adjusted without warning? No. You are told what is about to happen before it happens, and you can decline any specific part. If your neck makes you nervous, say so at the start — there are lower-force ways to work the area.

What should I wear? Comfortable clothes you can move in. No sportswear needed, and no changing at the clinic.

Can I come if I am not in pain right now? Yes. Plenty of people come for stiffness, for an old injury that left something behind, or for a check. The history and testing are the same.

Will I leave the first visit knowing the price and number of sessions? The full plan is explained at the second session, with the findings report in hand. You can check the terms of the first visit before booking.