With the latter, force is used to work against the muscles. This inevitably results in micro-tears in the ligamentous apparatus. These are then healed by scar tissue, which is inelastic. As a result, the corresponding joint becomes increasingly unstable and subluxates or blocks more easily. Especially in the cervical spine area and with small joints (e.g. carpus, tarsus) the activator method is far superior.

According to the basic idea of chirotherapy, almost all physical complaints can be traced back to blockages or malpositions of the joints. Chirotherapy is fully recognised as a form of treatment. Chiropractors are exclusively doctors who have acquired this additional title through further training and examination. Chiropractors also offer the treatment procedures of manual medicine. However, these are not exclusively doctors, but also non-medical practitioners or physiotherapists who have acquired a corresponding diploma.

Chiropractic hand movements can be used to solve temporary displacements and misalignments of the spine and joints that cause pain, restricted movement and tension in the muscles. The chirotherapist refers to these dysfunctions as blockages. Complaints caused by wear and tear, inflammation or structural changes may be improved by manual medicine, but cannot be reversed.

In the sections of the spine affected by blockages, nerve roots that normally transmit sensations from the whole body to the brain are often irritated. This creates misinformation that triggers pain sensations and protective reflexes in the brain and spinal cord. Blockages can thus be responsible for a whole range of complaints, some of which occur far away from the spinal column. In addition, the disturbances of vegetative nerves (nerves that control the organs) can also cause a dysesthesia in the corresponding organs without any structural changes or clear malfunctions of the organ being detectable at first.