If you’ve been dealing with chronic pain, vertigo, headaches, or a neurological condition that hasn’t responded to other care, you’ve probably spent time researching chiropractors. And if you’ve done that research, you’ve probably also had a moment of doubt — because the chiropractic profession, like any profession, has practitioners who range from excellent to genuinely harmful.
This isn’t a comfortable thing to write. But it’s true, and patients deserve to know what to look for.
More importantly, they deserve to know what the opposite of a red flag looks like — what a practice that prioritizes precision, honesty, and patient outcomes actually does. That’s the purpose of this article. We’ll walk through the warning signs worth knowing, and alongside each one, explain how care at Keystone Chiropractic is structured differently.
Red Flag #1: Promises of Miracle Cures or Claims Without Evidence
Be cautious of any chiropractor who guarantees outcomes, claims to cure diseases outside the musculoskeletal system, or uses language designed to impress rather than inform. Statements like “we can reverse your MS” or “our adjustments will cure your autoimmune condition” are not only medically inaccurate — they’re a sign that the practitioner is prioritizing persuasion over honesty.
Ethical chiropractic care operates within the bounds of what the evidence actually supports. It acknowledges what it can and can’t do.
What This Looks Like at Keystone
Dr. Schurger is direct about what upper cervical chiropractic is and what it isn’t. For patients with conditions like Multiple Sclerosis or Meniere’s disease, the conversation begins with an honest statement: there is no cure, and chiropractic care is not claiming to be one. What it addresses is a specific structural component — craniocervical junction misalignment — that may be amplifying symptoms and adding neurological burden to an already-stressed system.
That’s a meaningful distinction, and patients who’ve been through high-promise practices before almost always notice the difference immediately.
Red Flag #2: Dismissing Your Medical Team or Other Providers
A chiropractor who tells you to stop trusting your neurologist, stop taking your medication, or avoid seeking second opinions is not putting your health first. Good chiropractic care is complementary to your broader medical picture — not a replacement for it.
The best practitioners actively collaborate with the rest of your care team, refer out when something falls outside their scope, and recognize that a patient’s wellbeing is more important than keeping them in one office.
What This Looks Like at Keystone
Upper cervical chiropractic at Keystone is explicitly positioned as a complementary approach for patients managing complex conditions. Dr. Schurger works alongside neurologists, ENTs, and other specialists — communicating with them directly when authorized. If your condition requires a referral, you’ll hear that clearly. No practice that has your best interests at heart will stand between you and appropriate care from other providers.
Red Flag #3: Long-Term Care Plans Sold on the First Visit
If you walk into a chiropractic office for the first time and leave having signed a contract for 40 sessions, that’s a red flag. A one-visit assessment does not provide sufficient information to determine how long care will take, how your body will respond, or whether this is even the right approach for you. Long-term plans sold before care begins — especially with high upfront payments — are a business model masquerading as a care model.
Responsible chiropractors start with a thorough evaluation, establish a baseline, begin a trial of care, and adjust from there based on how the patient actually responds.
What This Looks Like at Keystone
Your first visit at Keystone is an evaluation — not a sales presentation. Dr. Schurger takes a detailed history, runs thermographic and postural assessments, reviews imaging, and uses the NeckCare System to establish objective functional baselines. He then explains what he found and what he recommends. You leave with information, not a contract. Care plans at Keystone are adjusted based on how your spine responds and what objective progress data shows — not a pre-set schedule sold on day one.
Red Flag #4: The Same Adjustment for Every Patient
Every spine is different. Every patient history is different. A practitioner who gives every patient the same adjustment, in the same sequence, regardless of their symptoms or imaging, is not providing individualized care — they’re running a template. This approach is both clinically irresponsible and a signal that the practitioner either lacks the tools to assess patients individually or simply isn’t bothering to.
What This Looks Like at Keystone
The Blair Upper Cervical Technique that Dr. Schurger uses is built on individual anatomy. Before any correction is made, CBCT cone beam CT imaging reveals the exact position, orientation, and degree of misalignment of the atlas and axis specific to that patient. The adjustment is then calculated and delivered based on those findings. No two corrections are the same because no two spines are the same. This isn’t a marketing claim — it’s a structural requirement of the technique itself.
The NeckCare System adds another layer of individualization: objective measurements of cervical range of motion, proprioception, and sensorimotor coordination that are specific to each patient and tracked over time. There is no template here.
Red Flag #5: Forceful Neck Manipulation Without Proper Assessment
Cervical manipulation — particularly high-velocity neck adjustments — carries known risks when performed without proper screening and assessment, especially in patients who have neurological conditions, vascular risk factors, or structural vulnerabilities. A chiropractor who applies aggressive, forceful manipulation to the neck without thorough assessment of contraindications is not practicing safely.
Patients with conditions like vertigo, post-concussion syndrome, Chiari malformation, or neurological diagnoses are particularly vulnerable to harm from inappropriate cervical manipulation. The practitioner’s job is to know when not to adjust as clearly as when to adjust — and how.
What This Looks Like at Keystone
The Blair Upper Cervical Technique involves no twisting, cracking, or high-velocity manipulation. The correction is gentle, low-force, and specific — designed to be appropriate for patients with significant neurological conditions, spinal sensitivity, and complex presentations. This is one of the primary reasons patients with conditions like Meniere’s disease, trigeminal neuralgia, and MS are able to receive care here when they couldn’t tolerate other chiropractic approaches.
Beyond the technique itself, Dr. Schurger uses CBCT imaging and detailed clinical history to assess each patient’s specific anatomy and contraindications before any correction is made. Assessment precedes treatment —
always.
Red Flag #6: Skipping the Examination
Any chiropractor who begins adjusting on the first visit — before conducting a health history, physical assessment, and appropriate imaging — is skipping the foundation of competent care. An adjustment without a diagnosis isn’t treatment. It’s a guess.
Proper assessment matters especially for patients presenting with complex conditions. A patient with post-concussion symptoms, recurring vertigo, or whiplash injuries needs a practitioner who takes the time to understand what’s actually happening before touching their spine.
What This Looks Like at Keystone
The first visit at Keystone does not include an adjustment. It includes a detailed consultation, thermographic assessment, postural evaluation, and where indicated, CBCT cone beam CT imaging. The NeckCare System assessment adds objective functional measurements. Dr. Schurger reviews every finding with the patient before any recommendation is made. Care doesn’t begin until the picture is clear and both practitioner and patient understand why it makes sense.
Red Flag #7: No Transparency About Credentials or Approach
A chiropractor who is vague about their training, can’t clearly explain what they’re doing or why, or gets defensive when you ask questions is exhibiting a significant red flag. Patients have the right to know exactly who is treating them, what training they have, and what approach they’re using. Evasive answers, pseudo-scientific jargon, or irritation at reasonable questions are signs that something isn’t right.
Credentials in c
hiropractic vary enormously. A Doctor of Chiropractic from a four-year program is a baseline — not a ceiling. Post-doctoral training, specialty certifications, and clinical experience beyond the degree matter significantly for complex cases.
What This Looks Like at Keystone
Dr. Schurger’s credentials are not buried — they’re the foundation of how the practice is described. He is a 2006 Palmer College of Chiropractic graduate, a Blair Upper Cervical Advanced Instructor, the 2011 Blair Chiropractor of the Year, and a Diplomate in Chiropractic Craniocervical Junction Procedures (DCCJP) — a post-doctoral credential involving three years of advanced study, approximately 300 hours of coursework, and a three-day board examination. He holds an engineering degree from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.
He has taught upper cervical anatomy and neurology at Logan University College of Chiropractic and to practitioners in the Gonstead organization, and has presented at the national Blair Chiropractic conference. These aren’t credentials hidden in a sidebar — they’re the clinical foundation of everything that happens in this office.
Patients are encouraged to ask questions. The approach at Keystone is explained clearly at every step — what was found, what it means, what is recommended, and why. If something doesn’t make sense, the conversation continues until it d
oes.
Red Flag #8: No Way to Measure Whether You’re Getting Better
If a chiropractic practice has no objective way to measure whether care is working beyond asking “how do you feel today?” — that’s a problem. Symptoms fluctuate for many reasons. Pain on a given day is influenced by sleep, stress, activity, and other variables that have nothing to do with whether spinal alignment is improving or the nervous system is adapting. A practice built entirely on subjective symptom reports has no reliable feedback loop.
Responsible practitioners use objective measures — imaging, functional assessment, neurological indicators — to track whether what they’re doing is actually producing physiological change.
What This Looks Like at Keystone
Progress at Keystone is tracked with data. Repeat thermography compares nervous system stress patterns over time. CBCT imaging confirms whether the correction is holding. The NeckCare System re-assessment at progress milestones produces objective before-and-after comparisons of cervical range of motion, proprioceptive accuracy, and sensorimotor coordination.
These measurements often change before symptoms fully resolve — which is exactly why they matter. A patient whose range of motion has expanded 15 degrees and whose proprioceptive error has halved is making real neurological progress, even if they had a rough week symptomatically. Without objective tracking, that information is invisible. At Keystone, it isn’t.
Red Flag #9: Pressure to Buy Products or Sign Contracts Today
Healthcare decisions should never be made un
der pressure. A practitioner who implies the price is only good today, who insists you commit to a full care plan before your first adjustment, or who pushes supplements and ancillary products from the first visit is prioritizing revenue over your wellbeing. You should always have time to think, ask questions, and consult with others before making a financial commitment to any care plan.
What This Looks Like at Keystone
There are no high-pressure sales tactics at Keystone Chiropractic. The first visit is an evaluation. Recommendations are made based on findings. You decide whether to proceed. If upper cervical care isn’t the right fit, you’ll hear that — along with honest guidance on what might be a better next step. No contracts. No pressure. No products pushed from the reception desk.
Red Flag #10: Refusing to Refer You Out When Appropriate
A chiropractor who believes they can treat everything — or who resists referring you to a specialist when your condition warrants it — is putting their practice ahead of your health. Chiropractic care has a defined scope. Outside that scope, competent practitioners refer, collaborate, and communicate. A practitioner who feels threatened by the involvement of other healthcare providers is a practitioner to be cautious of.
What This Looks Like at Keystone
Dr. Schurger refers out when it’s appropriate. He will tell you plainly if your condition is better served by a different provider or a different approach. Many of his patients are dealing with serious neurological conditions — MS, Meniere’s disease, Chiari malformation, seizure disorders — and he works alongside their neurologists and other specialists, not in competition with them. If something in your presentation falls outside the scope of what upper cervical chiropractic can appropriately address, you’ll be directed to someone who can help.
What You Deserve From a Chiropractor
You deserve a practitioner who takes the time to understand your history before doing anything. Who uses imaging and objective testing to understand what’s actually happening in your spine — not guesswork. Who explains their findings clearly and answers your questions without irritation. Who is honest about what their approach can and cannot do. Who tracks your progress with data and adjusts when something isn’t working. And who will tell you, without ego, if someone else is better positioned to help you.
Those aren’t high standards. They’re the minimum a patient with a serious health concern should expect.
If you’ve been through chiropractic care before and it didn’t deliver those things — that experience isn’t representative of what care can look like. And if you’re evaluating whether to try chiropractic for the first time, the red flags above are worth keeping in mind as you do your research.
Is Keystone Chiropractic the Right Fit for You?
The practice at Keystone is built for a specific patient: someone dealing with chronic or complex symptoms — migraines, vertigo, neck pain, post-concussion symptoms, Meniere’s disease, whiplash — who wants precision, transparency, and answers grounded in objective data rather than a sales pitch.
The first step is a conversation and a thorough evaluation. You’ll leave knowing exactly what Dr. Schurger found and whether he believes upper cervical care is appropriate for you. If it isn’t, he’ll tell you that too.
Patients travel from Chatham, Rochester, Sherman, Jacksonville, Lincoln, Taylorville, and across Central Illinois to be seen at Keystone. No referral is required.
Schedule your first appointment at Keystone Chiropractic →
Or call us directly: (217) 698-7900
Keystone Chiropractic | 450 S Durkin Drive, Ste B, Springfield, IL 62704 | (217) 698-7900
Dr. Frederick Schurger, DC, DCCJP — Blair Upper Cervical Chiropractor serving Springfield and Central Illinois since 2007.