How to create wellness in your life....

...or at least this is how I help my clients in their quest to healthy living.

It starts with a thorough history. I want to know about your life, starting with any health concerns that you have. Not that you have to have any, mind you, as I do have quite a few clients coming in only seeking to improve on the quality of life that they are presently living.

Like I've talked about before, if you are experiencing symptoms, then your stress levels are high enough, or prolonged enough to not be dealt with by your own natural healing powers. It's important for me to know not only about how your symptoms manifest, like where the pain is, the quality, the referral pattern, what increases it, what decreases it, etc, but your current lifestyle and where the stress may come from, such as what dimension- the physical dimension, the biochemical dimension, and/or the emotional dimension.

It's important to find out what dimension or dimensions contribute the most to the concern, because this is where we start in helping the body to regain or improve it's ability to heal. When we we're in the physical dimension, we are generally talking about muscle imbalances, either brought on by a trauma (either recent or even years ago), or posture or positions that a person is in frequently. If those positions are not balanced, then muscles are being strained, and eventually, they, or the muscles that may compensate will be the ones that are injured. What I mean by compensation is that the body always has a "back up" plan. If a muscle is overly strained or injured, the body utilizes other muscles to help assist the function of the injured muscle. There may be several layers of compensation as there is more than one "back up" system. The key is to identify what created the problem in the first place, as this gives me an idea of what types of compensation may be taking place.

When there is a biochemical concern, I always ask first about the digestive system. This system is the interface between the outside of the body and the inside. Besides injections, this avenue is the only way to alter your internal biochemistry. A major source of stress is always how well this system works, which starts with how well you chew your food. It then depends on how much acid your stomach produces, then to how many enzymes are produced to start to digest the food, then to how much bacteria (and the quality of the bacteria) are present to finish digesting, to how fast or slow food moves through your digestive tract, to lastly, how well you reabsorb the water within the gut. There are a lot of processes to cover, but there are specific symptoms that are present when each of these functions don't work properly. For many of my clients, their biochemical issues start with a poor digestive tract. Even for those who eat the "right" foods and take the "right" supplements, the fact that they can't absorb nutrients is what contributes greatly to their ills.

With regards to the emotional dimension, I concentrate on the emotional state of my client. Are they emotional? Do they seem to be suppressing an emotion, such as anger, or fear. Are they anxious? The beauty of a face to face interaction is that you get exposure to a person in an unfamiliar environment, and see how they handle it. Now I do my best to get a person to relax and feel comfortable, but even the slight stress of being someplace new is often enough to bring other, dominant feelings to the table.

At this point I have a good idea of the nature of your concern, and in what dimension(s) your issues lay within. I now go into a little history of your lifestyle, such as previous illnesses, family history, past medical interventions and surgeries and what, if any, medications you may use. We then go into more subtle lifestyle issues, starting with what levels of stress you perceive you have; I want to know what those levels are in both a work environment, and a home environment. This, of course, prompts questions to why those levels may be high.

At this point the history plays two parts, one to gather information from the client, two, to start to educate the client on what an ideal lifestyle might be like. Lets cover a couple of areas.

Recreational activities- do you have any, such as hobbies, sports, or play? Most of us need at least one avocation as a creative outlet. We are here on earth to create- but for most of us that only means to survive. What are you doing to thrive?

Exercise- what kinds, how often, how intense? These could be your recreation, but we are movement machines, and its vitally important to get the muscles of your body working- all of them, but most importantly, the heart (and not just because it helps to pump the blood, but exercise for the heart effects the whole body by synchronizing the muscles to movement, as well as establishing a rhythmic pattern to all our organ functions- but this is a whole other article). Your exercise should be balanced; that is, not working one muscle group while overworking another. Generally, you should be exercising at least 3 times per week, but an ideal is something everyday. That could be an intense workout every other day, and some stretching on the "off" days. It is acceptable to take a down day once per week, but I like the idea of easily incorporating exercise into a daily routine. Even sitting to stretch while watching TV is more movement and better for you then not moving on the couch all day.

Sleeping is a tough issue for a lot of people. A "normal" expected sleep is 6-8 hours per night, and you feel rested when you awake in the morning. It's important to establish a regular pattern of sleep, and it's best to get to bed before midnight every night (10-11 is an ideal). These "ideal" patterns are based on watching hormonal and neurotransmitter levels, as well as stress hormones, and these suggested sleep times and durations maximize the good hormones, and decrease the bad ones. Interrupted sleep, such as waking with tossing and turning, not feeling rested after awakening, and breathing problems with sleeping are all indications that your body is under stress of some kind.

When going into how a person eats we open a huge area for discussion, generally more than I will cover in the initial visit. There is so much that is important- the kinds of foods you eat, when you eat them, how often, how they are prepared, the amounts, the ratios of the macro ingredients, how well you digest them, etc. We can literally spend an hour going over your diet and how you eat. For the intake, I want to know how you consider how well you eat, how often, if you are on any eating plan presently, if you crave any foods, and if you have any food allergies. Cravings are the bodies way of trying to get the nutrients or compounds it needs, but is lacking. With that statement most people would believe that they are low in chocolate, but chocolate cravings can indicate a deficiency in some neurotransmitters, like serotonin, or a lack of minerals such as magnesium, chromium and/or vanadium. The presence of a food allergies tells me that the digestive system is imbalanced. People can have legitimate food allergies, but most develop these allergies as a result of an imbalanced diet, with poor digestive processes. We can often greatly reduce the symptoms of food allergies by cleaning up the diet, and improving the balance of the digestion.

It's not only important to consider your food intake, but your output as well, which bring us to the number of bowel movements a person has per day. Most people consider 1 BM a day a normal frequency, but our systems are set up to eliminate right around when we eat. Food in = food out. Our systems have what is known as a "gastric-colic" reflex, which means that when we stimulate our stomachs with a decent amount of food, this triggers the colon to push waste out. It is generally within an hour of eating, if not sooner. The importance of having more normal bowel movements is that waste products start to create toxins if our systems hold on to them for prolonged periods of time, and create a whole host of symptoms, such as fatigue, allergies, muscle aches and pains, headaches, irritable bowel, lower back pain, rashes, etc. Lots of issues can be attributed to poor BM's.

Lastly, we cover some general areas of lifestyle, such as how much water you drink- here in the desert, 1/2 your body weight (in pounds) should be the minimum you drink in ounces of water. For a general number, 6-8 twelve ounce glasses of water would work. I'm always surprised how little most people drink, and/or count other liquids, such as coffee and beer, toward their water intake. Both of these are diuretics, which means that it increases your overall loss of water through your urine. I know some new clients that drink nothing but coffee and soda through the day. If you have trouble drinking regular water (a taste which I love), then you can flavor it slightly with juice, or lemon. This often helps those who don't like the taste drink more easily.

I'm never fail to be surprised at those that still smoke. No one lives a perfect lifestyle, but I don't understand why, with so much evidence towards its destructive nature, that people use tobacco. What I've found is that it is their only stress release, but only because they haven't developed other, less injurious ways of releasing stress from their bodies. It is one of the toughest habits to quit, however.

With this information, I have a relatively complete picture of what kinds of stress you may be under, and from what dimension it is coming from. I've already started to get a feeling for any issues you may be having, as well as ideas for helping you to improve your lifestyle. It is now time to start the examination, the "hands on" part of our appointment. We'll cover more of that in the next post.

Yours in health,

Dr. Jeff

How Spirit Moves

We have talked of stress, and how excessive amounts greatly determine our levels of health. As well, we have talked of ways to help deal with excessive amounts, and how to increase our ability to handle more, so that it doesn’t show up in our bodies. From a preventative or wellness standpoint, we have covered a lot of ground. I would like to talk more about the essence of this healing power and understanding it more, instead of how to reduce it or manage it.

Our essence is spirit, or you may know it as life force, or universal intelligence, or you may even call it “God”. It is what we were before we manifested into matter, it is to what we return to when we die. We are energy, and the very first law of energy is that it is constant- you can’t get rid of it; you can only change its form. Our bodies are merely physical anchors for spirit, a matter to change an unseen energy into a “seen” energy.

Within spirit is a limitless power or intelligence that changes energy into form; an incredibly intricate, enmeshed, and resourceful machine called “the body”. We are born with this innate intelligence, the same incomprehensible power that joins two random cells, and from that, billions of cell divisions later, creates our wonderful bodies. It doesn’t leave us when we are born, it stays with us and is the force that helps us grow and age, and most importantly, to heal. An equally important law of energy is the one of conservation; energy seeks the least expenditure for change. That means that a system in balance seeks to stay in balance, conversely, when it is out of balance, it seeks to return to balance. Being healthy is a balanced state, and this is why our bodies are capable of healing itself. When we eat a bad meal, our digestive system recognizes this and throws the food out. When we cut ourselves, the wound heals. When we strain a muscle, the injury repairs itself. When our heart breaks from some grief, it heals over time, and we go on. It is a power that is greater than ourselves, and has the capacity to restore us anytime to our balanced, healthy selves.

We all posses this power, it is on constantly. It wants to express itself, but it is we who suppress the power through many of the choices we make or the attitudes we take. I believe that the ultimate “purpose” for those of us here on this planet is to allow the fullest expression of this power. We are here to live, to thrive, and grow as much as this power will allow. Tapping into that power is not a guarantee of living forever, but it is of living life at its fullest. If there is indeed this power that lives within us, guides us to being balanced and healthy, and wants to “shine” as brightly as possible, why do we all struggle so much with health and wellness? I believe that it is partly because we fail to see the greatness that is within us, and that is all of us. The first step to allowing this power to guide you is to open your heart and mind, and not only see the greatness, but believe that it is working for you.

“Have you more faith in a teaspoon of medicine, than in the power that created our bodies?”

An attitude of change...

So now we know that stress, which is actually change, is the cause of all of our health concerns (actually, excessive stress). We can expand our ability to handle more stress by exercising and eating right. We also know now that our bodies have built in "fuses" to protect large muscles and organs and glands from damage caused by excessive stress. Resetting the fuses, aka correcting a subluxation, is the domain of the chiropractor. They are experts at finding the "blown" fuse, and then resetting it through "adjustments". This allows the nervous system to resume better communication between the brain and the rest of the cells of the body, as well as expanding our ability to handle stress.

It's an impossiblity to lead a stress free life- the only time we don't have stress is when we are dead (and I'm not 100% certain about that, since I haven't died). We all need stress to grow and change. We just don't need excessive stress, the kind that can damage the body. It is important to try and lead a life where excessive stresses aren't a common thing. When we talked of good nutrition and of exercise, these were the key components to making that happen. As important, but much more subtle is the attitude needed for those positive changes to take place.

As I mentioned before, stress is any change that happens in your life, so therefore, we are changing all of the time. However, we are creatures of habit- we learn through repetition. Just look at a baby and how it learns to finally walk upright, and you'll begin to understand that the action of walking is lots of small steps taken over time, repeated, and integrated, until finally.... we are walking. We take walking for granted at this point in our lives, because it has been repeated so many times. Most of the actions that we take daily are established patterns, habits, and are the result of learning and integrating movements, reactions, and feelings. We habitualize our life, which is the nature of the beast. Nature craves efficient actions- we use the least amount of energy possible for changes. This conserves energy and resources, and works as a survival tool.

This is why changing old, sometimes unhealthy habits for new, healthier ones becomes a challenge. It takes energy to form new neural (brain and nervous system) pathways, and faced with using less or more energy, most of us stray toward the easier path. To become masters of our bodies, we need to expend energy, and move past the "survival" instinct, to more of "thriving".

To break a pattern, you must first understand why or how you do the old habit. In my life, one example is running. I have learned through my early life to be slightly bowlegged. It was a lazy habit, and at least partly reinforced by knowing how much it irritated my father. The forces of this posture on my knees caused pain as I got older. I have a goal of participating in triathlons, and running is part of the activity. I had to carefully look at my old pattern of walking which lead me to understanding that I had some key muscles which weren't working as I would walk or run. By using specific exercises, as well as consciously making the weak muscles work as I walked and ran, I started the process of establishing a new, more balanced habit. I'm still in process, but I am now running short distance without any knee discomfort at all.

This is the essential second component of making those changes, the attitude of being fully present and aware. It does take energy, but to thrive, which means to live fully, you will have to push yourself out of the old comfort zones. We don't want to push ourselves to the point of excessive stress, but only enough to expand our "adaptive potential". By doing this, we are able to handle more stress, including the changes we are working on. After time, the "new" patterns become our new, healthier habits. This works not only on physical issues, but emotional patterns and nutritional habits as well.

Sub lux what? What chiropractors are good for...

Subluxation- it's a word that chiropractors use to describe interference within the nervous system.

In the previous posts I talked about stress. The first post, 2 weeks ago, was about stress in general, and how it affects the body. The second post, last week, I offered tactics to help you effectively handle more stress. Today we talk about how chiropractors help with stress.

If you remember from the previous articles we have what is called an "adaptive potential", which is our ability to handle a certain amount of stress. If our stress levels stay within that range, our bodies function well; in regards to health, we can heal ourselves of any health concerns (i.e.- exposure to toxins, muscular fatigue, emotional pain). We can expand the boundaries of our "adaptive potential" by utilizing good stressors, such as exercise and eating well; in this manner, we are able to handle more stressful situations. However, if we exceed our adaptive potential, two issues emerge. One, the excess stress moves into our bodies and can start to interfere with normal, healthy function. Secondly, we actually decrease our adaptive potential, and may have trouble handling other stressful situations, which can then attack the body. This is generally not a problem, as the body is a natural healer, and can correct the effects of the overload. Unfortunately, if the "excessive stress" is huge, such as from trauma like an accident, or prolonged, such as poor posture, this can result in long term damage, as the body gets overwhelmed, and can't repair itself.

Luckily, we have a system which literally works like "circuit breakers", and keeps the stress overloads from damaging muscles, organs or glands. They are called joints, and work via the nervous system.

The nervous system, as scientists and physiologists will agree, is the most important system within the body. It allows communication between the brain and the muscles, organs, and glands. Basically every cell of the body can communicate with every other cell of the body via the nervous system. As long as good communication is present, healing is happening. When the communication system breaks down, so does health.

Joints are highly innervated- meaning that they have lots of nerves wired into them. The same nerves that supply a particular joint also supplies the tissues deep to it, such as the muscles, organs and glands. Obviously, the only joints that have organs and glands deep to them are the spinal joints, which is why they are so important. Joints are also the most accessible points to the nervous system, which is why chiropractors are so concerned with them. It's not the spine, per say, but what the spine represents. A gateway to the nervous system, and a gateway to the body, particularly large muscles, organs and glands.

The spinal joints, and to a lessor extent, every other joint in the body, is designed to "take the hit" when the body is exposed to excessive stresses. Liken this to actual circuit breakers of your house. If for any reason there is an overload to the power of your house, what can happen? The excessive power can damage wiring, destroy appliances and electronics, and even burn the house down. A circuit breaker is designed to "trip" when an excessive current passes through it, literally cutting off the power to the house, wiring or appliances, thus protecting the home and its contents from damage. The spinal joints are no different. Excessive stresses- those that exceed our adaptive potential, are noxious stimuli- think, for one example, really loud sounds, like a car horn right next to you! This obnoxious overload can damage large muscles, organs and glands if it is allowed to enter the body, which it does along the communication system, the "wiring" of our bodies- the nervous system. The spinal joint is the protection for the important deeper tissues, and "trips", or shunts this stimuli into the small muscles around it, which normally control its fine movements. These muscles go into spasm- they tighten- and depending on the amount and duration of the stimulus, will stay tight, and thus prevent the overload from going to the deep tissues.

Any muscle spasm that is excessive, or prolonged will have a tendency to stay in spasm, even after the obnoxious stimuli is removed. The circuit breaker stays off, and isn't reset. The communication of the nerves at this level to the deeper muscles, organs and glands is reduced or removed. Because the nervous system can't coordinate communication between the brain and those deeper tissues, health issues can arise. This is the interference which we are talking about, which we chiropractors call "subluxation".

Luckily, every major muscle, organ and gland has input from nerves from many adjacent spinal joints, so if one joint is "tripped", than the communication can be routed through other nerves. Unfortunately, with this reroute the body is no longer functioning at its full potential, and if stress levels stay high, other joints can "blow", which further lowers the function. If communication is significantly reduced or lost, major health issues can happen. Again, any joint in the body is capable of functioning as a "circuit breaker" and protecting the tissues beneath it, or around it, but the spinal joints are special because of their relationship to the more important organs and glands of the body.

Think again of our one example. Ever sit at a traffic light after work- tired, anxious to get home and relax, and a little zoned out? Then the guy behind you leans on his horn, as you suddenly realize that the light you've been sitting at had turned green and you hadn't noticed. The loud noise is like getting hit. You tense your shoulders in your startled reaction, your head jolts forward, and you "death grip" the wheel. This is a noxious stimuli, an excessive stress. Your joints, particularly your neck and upper back joints, absorb this shock, and subluxate- they work as circuit breakers and "trip", saving the deep muscle and organs and glands from damage. After you resume driving, you notice that you neck and upper back are tight minutes after the horn had blared. If this was just one incident that exceeded your "adaptive potential", you'll notice that after a few minutes, those muscles start to relax- good news- your body has healed itself! If you have been under a lot of prolonged stress, then those muscles may take a long time to relax, if at all. If they don't, they may trigger a migraine, or a sinus attack- your system has lost some of its function, and some of it's ability to heal itself.

Chiropractors are experts at finding and correcting subluxations, which "resets" the circuit breakers- the spinal joints- and restores or improves the communication to the nervous system at that joint. I have equipment and testing that measures the functioning of your body, and tells me is your nervous system is compromised by subluxations- tripped circuits that stay off. Chiropractors use "adjustments"- specific forces applied to only the involved joint that "tripped"- which restores the movement of that joint, as well as reducing or eliminating the spasms of the muscles around it. These forces can be anywhere from the "popping" type techniques to very light force procedures. Its always done to a persons comfort and safety level. By resetting the breaker, we open the lines of communication, and begin again the healing process. As well, correcting the subluxation actually increases the adaptive potential of the body so that it can handle additional stressors.

Remember that if one joint subluxates, there are others around it to continue communication with the deeper tissues- the muscle, organs and glands. Because of that back up system, the body can continue to function, although not at 100%. You may not feel when you have a subluxation; if it occurs at only one or two spinal joints, you may not feel any symptoms at all. However, your function may be compromised. In this day and age, I for one feel that I need all of my resources. It's always a good idea to get checked.

So it seems that this chiropractic thing this isn't just about neck and back pain, is it?

Dealing with that pesky "stress" stuff...

In the last post we talked about "excessive" stress, and how this can lead to what I call the "cascade of poor health". The progression starts with stress- greater than we can handle- which then leads to dis-ease, and then to conditions, to symptoms, and finally to disease and death. We know that if we are already experiencing symptoms, we know our stress loads are too great.

So the answer is to pop a pill, and mask the symptoms, right? Not necessarily. It seems we have forgotten about the incredible healing power of the body.

Contrary to what you might believe, there is much we can do to increase our ability to handle stress in our lives. This is vitally important because we know that the body is capable of healing itself as long as the raw goods for good living are present, and there is no interferences within the nervous system. Overloads of stress cause the interference within the nervous system. The answer, or at least a step in the right direction, is to increase our ability to handle the high levels of stress that most of us live with.

It's pretty simple; Eat right and exercise.

I said simple, not easy. We have a lot of poor choices for living surrounding us; Fast foods, prepared foods, television, bars and other diversions. This is what makes it hard. For those of us who want to tap into the healing power of our bodies, our job is to take small steps towards good living. Add some fresh, organic foods into your daily meals. Start with a salad, if you don't normally eat greens. Try spending just a little more money and buy organic if you already are eating fruits and vegetables with at least one of your meals. Try cooking once per week (and make enough so you have left-overs for the following day or two). If you don't take supplements, buy and start taking a decent multi-vitamin and mineral supplement. Buy minimally processed prepared foods (I like Trader Joe's for some good selections in this area). Visit your local "farmers market"; these are becoming very popular, and there are some great little local farms around the Phoenix area, where I live. If you like to eat out, organic restaurants are becoming more popular, and easier to find. You don't have to change your whole lifestyle at once; a little change instituted here and there adds up over the year.

Exercise can be a challenge for a lot of us. However, you don't have to join a gym to start exercising. Walking is the simplest, easiest and cheapest way to begin an exercise program. You say you have bad knees? Try a ride on a bicycle. Don't like to sweat? Try swimming. You like lifting weights? Start light. Its widely know that its best to exercise a minimum of 20 minutes per day, but start with 5-10, and work your way up. My philosophy has always been to stop exercising at a point where you feel you can do more, and not wait until you feel you've done too much. That way, you always feel like you want to go back, rather than have to recover for a couple of days after because of the weekend warrior approach.

If you do already have health conditions then you will want to talk to a professional before you begin, to make sure that you don't hurt or injure yourself.

Take the first step, however big or small you decide. It generally leads to the next. Keep it simple, and share your journey with others. Do these positive changes get rid of the stress in our lives? Hardly. In fact, it doesn't change your stresses at all. However, it most definitely increases your ability to handle what stresses you are given, and it changes your perception of that stress. This is the biggest part of taking control of our health, by taking responsibility for what we do have control over- what we eat, and what activities we participate in.

Excessive stresses!

Lets talk about stress, because this is what causes all of the problems in someones body. Yes, all of the problems. Actually, it's probably more accurate to say "excessive" stress, as we all experience stress on a daily basis. In a nutshell, stress is merely a change from where you are now. When we move, think, laugh, cry, cough, change positions, eat- these are all examples of stress, because we are changing our thoughts, bodies or biochemistries. These are the three areas where we experience stress, also known as the three dimensions of life; the emotional, physical, and biochemical dimension.

Now most of us think of stress as bad, but the reality is that stress is happening to us at all times. As it is merely a change, those changes can be for the good, which is technically termed "eustress" or for the bad, "distress" (Our attitudes or perceptions really determine whether they are bad or good, but that's a topic for another post). Either way, our bodies are stressed. We need stress to grow and survive, and to thrive. Exercise, for example, is a "eustress", but even difficult situations (distress) are often needed for us to learn, and do things differently and for the better.

Our systems are set up to handle a certain amount of stress, and as long as we stay within the boundaries of those limits, we stay healthy. In my line of work, we call that your "adaptive potential". If we stay within those boundaries, but push at the limits, this actually expands our capacity to handle more stress. Again, think exercise- we might not be very good at a sport, and to push ourselves when we first begin training is often exhausting. But with a little time, we gain strength and can easily do what previously was difficult.

However, if we exceed our "adaptive potential" and go beyond our limits of handling stress, we reduce the boundaries of our "adaptive potential". Have you ever had a day where a lot of distress is happening to you? Say it starts in the morning, where you wake up late, get to work late, get an earful from the boss, have a poor day at the office, and then, when you get home, your partner or friend jokingly gives you a little grief, but you take their head off? You know, in your mind, that the comment from your partner or friend normally wouldn't irritate you, but by this point, your ability to handle that little bit of stress has been reduced, as well as your patience.

Our wonderful bodies are capable of healing from these "over stressed" days. Sleep, good food, and exercise are great ways to increase the adaptive capacity again. But severe overloads, like a trauma, or prolonged excessive stress, don't allow our bodies to recover, which then begin to break down. Hans Selye, for anyone who has ever studied psychology or sociology, wrote extensively about stress, and elaborated about our exposure to excessive stressors in his "General Adaptation Syndrome". He observed three stages; Alarm - where the excessive stress is first identified, Resistance- where the stress continues, and the body uses it's resources to cope, and lastly, Exhaustion- where the body no longer has the resources to deal with it, and starts to break down.

The easiest way to determine if you are under excessive stress is if you are experiencing any health concerns, or any symptoms. You would then be in the "exhaustion" phase. However, you don't have to wait until your body breaks down to determine if you are in overload, like within the "resistance" phase. I utilize some very sensitive equipment that measures the levels of stress you might be experiencing, before health concerns begin.

The big issue is that stress, and even excessive stress, is very present in these times. The key to wellness, and lasting good health, is to not only avoid situations that will overload your capacity to deal with stress, but to constantly expand your adaptive potential. We'll talk a little more about how to increase your ability to handle more stress with the next post.

Where did everyone get the idea that chiropractic was only about back pain?

As a physician who specializes in detecting and correcting interferences within the nervous system, I’m always surprised by the number of new patients of mine who come to me with one form or another of back pain. This could be in the form of neck pain, mid back pain, or lower back pain and sciatica. Believe me, I’m grateful for new patients, as that gives me the opportunity to educate more people in what my profession is truly about- restoring the integrity of the nervous system so the body can fully communicate with all parts, and heal itself.

Sure, a large part of our focus is on the spine, the place where the nerves travel down from the brain out to the body. It acts like a fuse box to absorb any increased stresses the body is under. And yes, when these fuses (the spinal joints) “blow”, the local spasms in the area create situations where other parts of the spine and rest of the body compensate for the resulting lack of movement. Indeed this is frequently the cause of back pain. Working with the spine (and other joints) with adjustments and muscle work “resets the fuses”, but it isn’t the work that heals the body. The “reset” restores the normal movement, and the normal communication, and the body goes back to doing what it does best- healing itself.

What surprises me is when other health issues arise, many people don’t think of a chiropractor as someone to help. Perhaps it’s a digestive issue, or an issue with faltering eyesight, or numbness in their hands. Whatever it is, there may be an issue with the spine or other joints that could contribute to the lack of healing. I’m not saying that every health issue can be solved by a chiropractic adjustment, only that if my body isn’t able to heal itself, perhaps that can be partly due to poor communication of the nervous system. Isn’t it worth a check to see if there is interference within your nervous system, if it’s your body that can’t heal, from any health concern, not just back pain? Getting checked is easy, painless, and relatively inexpensive.

Don’t get me started on how important this is in creating real wellness… oops, too late. Stay tuned.