Anyone tried National Upper Cervical Chiropractic Association (NUCCA)?

Last straws for me are when they sell vitamins, or burn incense. Haven't seen the blue laser or heard the mumbo jumbo.
You probably wouldn't stop seeing doctors, if you saw one whose intentions or methods you didn't trust.
You are fun heisenberg, because you've experienced chiropractics and are bored with it (and are funny in your expression). Most who don't like chiropractics are more emotional. So a poster who gets hurt during physical therapy says don't ever go to a chiropractor. But advises physical therapy. Or , another sincere about how dangerous chiropractics is but can't say why, cite a source, or a friend, or an experience.
But if you go to a chiropractor for an assessment, and you ask questions and listen, you'll find out things about your structure that you didn't know. Chiropractors are very good at diagnostic interpretation of movement involving the spinal column.
As for the snap, crackle and pop, that is just gas escaping the joint, no more reflective of need or competency than cracking your knuckles.
I never do maintainence. I wait for the wry neck, or pain after lifting.

The chiropractor wants ice after an adjustment because he has realigned your spine and doesn't want the muscles contracting to pull the spine back out of alignment. The surgeon sees the same problem -- the muscles pulling the spine out of alignment and he hasn't moved your spine so he wants those muscles to relax and solve the problem on their own. Essentially, they are both right.
Some chiropractors are too forceful. I'm always looking for someone trained in the Palmer Method. They seem to have the perfect balance.
Your ortho is right about finding a new chiropractor, he didn't recommend one?

There is a chiro who does Palmer near me but I haven't gone yet. Where do you live?

mikaylar,
maybe call the Palmer guy and talk to the receptionist. They get free adjustments and can relay first hand experience. If you tell a Palmer that you need a gentle adjustment, they will modulate the thrust. I've never felt worse after an adjustment.
I'm in Fresno CA.

He emailed me...$180 first visit plus if he does images another $450. Plus, he is a distance for me. Doesn't take insurance. I can't spend that much money and not be positively certain it would help. I'm in PA.

I saw a chiropractor in PA. He was only40 for the first visit. But he never billed me at all. $180 is outrageous. You'd get better images from a radiology center and your insurance would pay. He probably doesn't adjust on the first visit.
I saw a chiropractor here who adjusted my neck, but refused to adjust my hips. I told him I would only pay him, then, for half an adjustment. He'd taken a class on how to get the most (money) from your practice.
Chiropractors often offer a new patient discount on their websites.

Upper cervical care involving a machine is not NUCCA. It sounds like you are describing Atlas Orthogonal technique. They are within the same family of upper cervical therapies, however NUCCA adjustments are done by hand. This allows for greater force and a variable trajectory over the course of the thrust.

I started with AO and found it helpful but insufficient. Pivoting to NUCCA produced much more dramatic and stable results.

I will affirm the value of myofascial release. I think everyone can benefit from it whether they have pain or not. I've found it to be especially productive in concert with NUCCA. Dehydrated fascia reduces the body's envelope and range of motion, which mitigates the efficacy of other modalities. Myofascial release liberates tissues and enables the body to more fluidly, comfortably incorporate the changes other modalities elicit.

In my opinion, maintenance is a euphemism for keeping symptoms at bay. I've done the traditional chiro thing, and my body invariably falls back into its old ways with 1-2 days at most.

With upper cervical care such as NUCCA, my body can show signs of progress for several months between adjustments. I don't consider subsequent adjustments maintenance, but rather a ratcheting mechanism of incremental improvement in the alignment of the atlas.

With that said, my body's response to NUCCA can be fickle, sometimes requiring weekly adjustments if it's in a particularly unstable/dynamic state of reorganization. Some of the sensations experienced during this reorganization can be quite uncomfortable and even distressing if you aren't aware what you are getting into. I am banking the method will pay off in the long run, however I am still a work in progress with a long way to go.

Thank you.