FAQ

Dr. Devin Young of Intouch Chiropractic has been named among San Diego's top 3 chiropractors by ThreeBestRated® every year since 2019, based on a 50-point evaluation of reviews, reputation, and overall excellence. Intouch Chiropractic also maintains a 5.0 rating across 500+ Google reviews, reflecting consistent, patient-verified results in NUCCA upper cervical care, non-surgical spinal decompression, class 4 laser therapy, and shockwave therapy.

Traditional chiropractic care typically involves adjustments throughout the spine using higher-velocity techniques that can include popping, cracking, or twisting. NUCCA (National Upper Cervical Chiropractic Association) focuses exclusively on the upper cervical spine, where the head and neck connect, using extremely precise, gentle corrections measured in millimeters, with no popping, twisting, or forceful manipulation. Because the upper cervical spine houses the brainstem, even small misalignments here can affect the entire nervous system, which is why NUCCA doctors undergo years of additional specialized training beyond a standard chiropractic degree.

Upper Cervical Care is a broad term for care that focuses on the upper neck. Upper cervical literally means upper neck. A vital part of your nervous system, the brainstem, resides in this delicate area.

NUCCA is a form of upper cervical care that gets to the root of the problem no matter where the symptoms are in your body. Dr. Jeanett Tapia and Dr. Devin Young are both part of a small group of specialized doctors that are active NUCCA members. The NUCCA work focuses on correcting a small misalignment of the bone structure that connects the head and neck. This misalignment can disrupt the communication between your brain and body, causing pain, stress, tension, and physical or emotional dysfunction. A childhood fall, sports or exercise injury, birth trauma, or car accident can be the cause of many common symptoms. NUCCA currently has less than 300 members and is an acronym that stands for National Upper Cervical Chiropractic Association.

Don't listen to those that have told you that nothing else can be done or that you just have to live with your symptoms. It is likely that your nervous system and getting upper cervical care hold the keys to your recovery. You owe it to yourself to come see the Intouch Chiropractic Difference.

Atlas: noun. Anatomy. The first cervical vertebra, which supports the head.

Firstly, the human head contains the brain, which weighs about 3 pounds. Then there is the skull, the eyes, the teeth, the facial muscles, and the skin. Wikipedia reports the head weighs between 5 and 11 pounds. Another source puts the head weight between 9 and 17 pounds! Secondly, our head, whether light or heavy, sits atop the atlas, the first vertebra of our spine, named after the Atlas of Greek mythology because it supports the globe of the head. The atlas itself weighs about two ounces. To imagine the scale, think of a bowling ball sitting on a quarter cup of water! All of our nerves exiting the base of the skull pass through the atlas, making it the most important part of our spine.

An atlas adjustment is an alignment to the first bone in your neck. Atlas, also known as C1, is the 1st cervical vertebra that sits right at the base of the skull. Our doctors practice NUCCA, a special form of upper cervical care that is gentle, precise, and effective. It is a conservative adjustment approach that does not require popping, cracking, or twisting of your spine.

A misalignment of a vertebra causing disturbance and interference to the nervous system is called a subluxation. Most of the time, your body adapts to a subluxation without consequence. When it can't adapt, a subluxation negatively affects your health, body function, and overall wellness. Therefore, a NUCCA atlas adjustment restores normal neurological communication between your brain and body, optimizing your health.

You do not need a referral to be seen in our clinic by our doctors. Simply call our clinic at (619) 756-7510 or click here to make an appointment directly.

We offer treatment plans for every budget, and limited or no insurance coverage shouldn't stand in the way of getting the care you need. Our pricing is upfront and easy to understand, with self-pay, FSA/HSA, and CareCredit options available. Visit our Payment Options page for the full details.

Our practice focuses exclusively on adult upper cervical chiropractic care, and we do not currently treat pediatric or prenatal patients. If you're looking for pediatric or prenatal chiropractic care, we recommend reaching out to a provider who specializes in those areas.

We recommend you wear comfortable clothes to your appointments. Many patients appreciate wearing yoga pants, sweatpants, t-shirts, and light jackets. Please wear shorts for a knee appointment, as this will facilitate your examination and treatment.

Traction can offer temporary relief from some disc-related symptoms, but it typically doesn't address the underlying cause and produces only modest changes in disc pressure.

Spinal decompression works differently. It creates a controlled, negative-pressure environment inside the disc, which is designed to help draw herniated or bulging material back toward the center of the disc. The resulting negative pressure also encourages blood and nutrient flow back into the disc space, supporting the body's own healing response and disc rehydration.

A thorough patient history, evaluation, and imaging are required to qualify for non-surgical spinal decompression. The doctor will look at many factors to determine if you are a candidate.

Many of our patients have been told they need surgery but wish to avoid it and have failed to significantly respond to more conservative options such as medications, injections, physical therapy, traditional chiropractic care, and acupuncture.

Here is a partial list of inclusion and exclusion criteria:

Inclusion Criteria:

• Persistent pain due to degenerated discs that has not responded after four weeks of treatment.


• Pain due to bulging or herniated discs that are more than four weeks old.


• Chronic pain from a failed back surgery that is over six months old.


• Patients available for ten weeks of treatment protocol.


• Patients over 18 years of age.

• Appliances, such as rods or pedicle screws


• Prior lumbar fusion under six months old


• Metastatic cancer


• Spondylolisthesis (unstable)


• Severe osteoporosis


• Severe peripheral neuropathy


• Recent spinal fractures


• Pathologic aortic aneurysm


• Disc space infections


• Pelvic or abdominal cancer


• Hemiplegia and paraplegia


• Cognitive dysfunction


• Pregnancy


• Pars defect

Most patients do not experience side effects, though some report mild, short-term muscle soreness after treatment. NUCCA and spinal decompression are both designed to be gentle and low-impact. Our spinal decompression system also includes emergency stop switches for both the patient and the operator as a built-in safety feature, giving you full control to pause treatment at any time.

Yes. NUCCA is gentle and effective after back surgery. NUCCA care does not crack, twist, or pop your neck or back. The amount of pressure during an adjustment is equal to the amount of pressure used to take your pulse.

Spinal decompression is often still an option after back surgery. Because treatment can target the cervical and lumbar spine independently, a prior fracture or fusion at one level doesn't automatically rule out decompression at another — for example, a previous cervical fusion wouldn't necessarily prevent lumbar decompression, and vice versa. A comprehensive evaluation, including imaging, is used to confirm candidacy on a case-by-case basis before treatment begins.

Laser therapy is red light therapy that is extremely beneficial in the reduction of pain, reduction of inflammation while also increasing blood flow. It is a non-invasive form of care that is effective for faster healing. Most patients experience no side effects; some report mild, temporary warmth or redness at the treatment site.

Shockwave Therapy uses focused acoustic sound waves to stimulate the body's natural healing response in tendons, ligaments, and other soft tissue that hasn't responded to rest, stretching, or other conservative care. It's often used for chronic tendon injuries and stubborn soft-tissue pain that hasn't improved with typical treatment. Most patients tolerate treatment well; some experience temporary soreness, redness, or mild bruising at the treatment site that resolves within a few days.

An amazing self-correcting and self-healing ability exists within us. Science continues to gather evidence of the nervous system's unique and powerful capacities. Research gathered from a variety of disciplines reveals that the most important key to our body's healing abilities is a well-functioning nervous system. These disciplines include, but are not limited to, holistic medical approaches and ancient healing traditions.

Your central nervous system consists of your brain and your spinal cord. The proper function of all other body systems is coordinated by your nervous system – the digestive, cardiovascular, endocrine, and respiratory systems, for instance. Nerve impulses are sent from your brain to your body and from your body to your brain. It is critical that these nerve impulses traveling to and from your brain communicate without glitches for proper function, movement, and sensation. The spinal cord, housed in the spinal bones, connects with the brain, held in the skull.

When your nervous system is clear and flexible, there is a natural flow to your life, growth, and health. However, when there’s interference to its communication, it becomes a threat to your body’s capacity to respond and recover from symptoms such as neck pain, vertigo, allergies, and headaches. Eventually, this interference puts your physical and mental health at risk. Therefore, the primary reason we, as chiropractors, care about spinal decay and arthritis is that having a healthy spinal cord is critical for optimal health.

This depends on several factors, including the complexity of your condition, how long you've had it, how much time, energy, and attention you're willing to devote to treatment, and how well you respond to treatment.

In general, health programs for chronic illnesses last between three to six months, but most patients start seeing improvement within the first month. Patients often feel significant relief after their first treatment. Patients may elect to continue with a maintenance program after their initial treatment plan is finished.

The goal of NUCCA care is for you to come in, get checked, and not need an adjustment. Our care operates on the principle that your body is self-healing and self-regulating. We celebrate with you when you hold your adjustment and do not need to be adjusted on every single visit.

There is only ONE cause for losing your adjustment: Your body's inability to adapt to STRESS. There are 3 forms of stress that we encounter regularly: Physical, chemical, and emotional.

• Physical subluxations are caused by accidents, injuries, slips, and falls.


• Chemical subluxations are caused by too much sugar, alcohol, caffeine, medications, smoking, poor diet, etc.


• Emotional subluxations are caused by family stress, poor relationships, demanding jobs, etc.

You are unique. Your healing capacity is unique. That being said, the majority of our patients have a 60-80% (or more) reduction in symptoms within the first 3 months of care. There are select cases that are more complex, which will extend the healing process. Your lifestyle also plays an important role in the amount of time your body will need to heal and recover.

The short answer is no. Only a chiropractor can adjust your spine in a way that provides long-lasting results.