If you've looked into Advanced BioStructural Correction (ABC), you may have come across the word "unwinding". It's a term people ask me about often, so here's a plain-English explanation of what I mean by it — and, just as importantly, what I don't.
A quick word on ABC
ABC is the main structural framework I use in practice. It's a chiropractic technique system that pays close attention to posture and structure, and to how the body may be adapting to stresses over time. Alongside it, I draw on other approaches where they're relevant, but ABC shapes how I assess and think about structure.
What "unwinding" refers to
In ABC, "unwinding" is an educational concept. It describes the idea that bodies build up layers of adaptation over many years — from injuries, habits, work and life — and that during a course of care, changes may show up in a different order to the one in which they developed. As one pattern shifts, another area sometimes becomes more noticeable for a while.
I find it a useful way to help people make sense of their experience during care. For example, someone may notice their low back easing while their mid-back feels more noticeable for a time, or find that their posture findings change at a different pace to their symptoms.
What unwinding isn't
Because it's an educational idea, it's important to be clear about its limits:
- It isn't a fixed sequence or pathway that everyone goes through
- It isn't a guarantee that symptoms or posture will change in a particular way
- It isn't a reason to ignore new or worsening symptoms
- It doesn't mean everyone needs long-term care
If something new comes up during care, we don't simply assume it's "unwinding". We assess it properly, and if it needs different care or a referral, I'll tell you.
Want to talk it through?
Book an initial consultation and ask anything you like about how I work.
How it fits into your care
At Restored Living, every plan is reviewed at reassessment. We look at your symptoms, your findings, your function and your goals together, and decide on the next appropriate step — which may mean continuing, changing the approach, reducing visits, moving to self-management, referring on, or concluding care. Unwinding is one idea that can help explain what we see along the way; it doesn't decide the plan on its own.
You can read more about our approach, including ABC and the other methods I use, or see why symptoms and posture don't always change at the same rate.
Dr Adam Williams is a chiropractor in practice since 2007 and founder of Restored Living Chiropractic in Casuarina, NSW. More about Adam
This article is general information only and not a substitute for individual assessment.
