Fixing Up and Tearing Down

You may have noticed this with objects. Over time your closet gets cluttered, your lawn becomes infested with weeds and car parts wear out. With neglect, this happens to our bodies as well.

Various forces such as gravity, poor diet, lack of rest and exercise, negative attitudes and countless other stresses, cause our bodies to break down. Fortunately, we have an internal force that constantly works to counteract these external forces. (Our ability to heal is related to this internal force.)

Turns out, this inborn intelligence of our body is the nervous system—the focus of chiropractic care.

Avoiding  Short Circuits

Your quality of life is directly related to the quality of your nervous system. Your spinal cord is like the information superhighway with the “circuitry” necessary to run your body:

Sensory Nervous SystemTaste, touch, sight, sound and smell are examples of your nervous system sending information from sensory organs and tissues to your brain.

Motor Nervous SystemMotor nerves control how your muscles work. Compromise here might prevent you from standing or walking, or it could mean a lack of coordination, poor balance or wasting away.

Autonomic Nervous SystemThe autonomic nervous system controls cardiovascular, digestive and respiratory functions as well as salivation, perspiration, diameter of the pupils and many essential involuntary functions.

Sympathetic Nervous SystemThe sympathetic nervous system is probably best known for mediating the fight or flight response to stress. It has a deep connection with your hormonal system to secrete adrenaline, alert your cardiovascular system and the rest of the body of impending danger, real or imagined.

Like an electrician, we’re interested in the circuitry of your body. The moving bones of the spine are often the source of “brown outs,” short circuits and blown fuses. If you think chiropractic is only about your back, think again!

Does Your Body Make Mistakes?

Ever forget the name of someone when making an introduction? Ever say one thing, but mean another?

These are functions of our conscious mind. Self-help books reveal how to improve our memory, increase our vocabulary or sharpen our mental acuity.

But there’s no book filled with tips about how to improve your heart’s response to adrenalin or how to enhance your lung’s ability to oxygenate blood! Why? Because these are just two examples of millions of functions your body controls and regulates with no conscious thought from you.

How does this relate to a headache, back pain or the crick in your neck?

Your body is programmed to survive. Virtually every sign or symptom that we traditionally think of as an illness is merely your body’s best attempt at survival. No errors. Zero mistakes. When your body feels threatened, it responds in a variety of ways to get your attention. To encourage you to change. To teach a lesson. To tell you its capacity to accommodate or adapt has been exhausted.

That’s amazing. Even radical. And to think, all of this is controlled and regulated by your nervous system—the focus of your chiropractic care!

In This Issue

• Are You Just a Mechanism?
• Do Kids Have Bad Backs?
• Coasting
• The Squeaky Wheel Gets the Grease

Are You Just a Mechanism?

In school you learned that human body was divided into different parts. The mouth, esophagus, stomach and intestines made up the digestive system. The bones made up the skeletal system. And so on.  This has contributed to the widely-held belief that you and I are merely a collection of parts, a belief that stands in the way of better health. It’s responsible for:

Isolation: Incorrectly thinking that organs and tissues operate independently of each other rather than together as part of an integrated whole.

Mechanism: The belief that we’re simply a collection of parts in which identical inputs (drugs) should produce identical results in all subjects.

We chiropractors go beyond mechanism to embrace what’s called vitalism:

Wholism: Each “part” has a purpose that contributes to the whole.

Intelligence: You and I can learn, create and adapt to our environment.

Self-healing: Cut your finger and your body can heal it. Mechanisms can’t.

Since the nervous system regulates these vital processes, chiropractic care is the centerpiece of the growing interest in vitalism.

Do Kids Have Bad Backs?

“I couldn’t help but notice there was a child out in your reception room. Why would a child need to see a chiropractor?” The idea that children, even newborns, would see us to get adjusted is a stretch for some. How would a child benefit?

Birth trauma. All childbirth methods can take a toll on a baby’s spine.

Colic. Many babies experience extraordinary relief with chiropractic care.

Ear infections. Tension in the upper spine can affect the inner ear.

Children enjoy adjustments, and most respond quickly. They rarely have the scar tissue that we often see in adults with long-standing problems. And resolving problems early can avoid problems later on.

Coasting

When it comes to your health, do you keep on top of it or are you just coasting?

After recovering your health, it’s tempting to coast. But that’s a surefire way to invite a relapse of your original problem. Why?

Imagine that your goal is to participate in a 10K run. To get in shape, you run every day. When race day arrives, you’re able to run the full 10K without stopping. If you were to stop training, would your ability to successfully run a 10K race remain with you the rest of your life? Of course not.

Spinal health is like that. Discontinuing your care once you feel better (coasting) interrupts the healing process. In fact, the most lasting changes occur with continued care after symptoms subside.

Are you coasting? Do you know someone who is? No problem. Just remember, we’ll be here to help when you’re ready to start pedaling again!

How Much Is Your Health Worth?

It’s hard to put a price tag on something as important as our health, but we all do by the choices we make and the priorities we set.

It’s no surprise that those of us who work in health care place a high value on our health. Since we want everyone to benefit from better health, when we find out someone has discontinued their chiropractic care because they can’t afford it, we’re concerned. Are our fees out of line?

Turns out, it’s usually a matter of priorities and finances are a convenient excuse. Each of us has the free will to prioritize our health in the way we see fit. True, most of us take our health for granted until we lose it, but that may be just human nature.

If other issues in your life require more attention than your health, we understand. No need to make excuses or feel self-conscious. You won’t get a scolding, a sermon or even a raised eyebrow.

It’s your body, your health and your future. You’re the boss. We’re servants. Simply put, our job is to offer you the finest chiropractic care possible. Your job is to decide how much of it you want. No guilt. No shame. No problem.

Do You Know a Complainer?

A common refrain we hear from patients is that they know someone who complains about their health but won’t take any action. These health issues often respond well to chiropractic care, but the suggestion to try chiropractic is rebuffed. And the complaining continues…

I know of three reasons people reject chiropractic and complain instead:

Fear. Trying something that doesn’t involve medication can be a stretch for some. Ask, and we can supply you with brochures that explain chiropractic to reduce their fear. Or invite them to accompany you on your next visit so they can see for themselves.

Ignorance. With little knowledge of chiropractic, many see it as merely a treatment for the spine. But because the focus of chiropractic care is the integrity of the nervous system (which controls everything), many other health issues resolve as well. Ask for a handout that shows the relationships among the spine, nervous system and all the tissues of the body.

Secondary gain. Some folks actually enjoy being sick! They may like the attention they receive or the reduced workload or expectations extended them due to their health. Remind them of the things they used to love. Paint a picture of the possibilities that await them by taking action.

You may need to make the call to arrange an appointment for them. If they’re not interested, consider getting a good set of headphones!

Just the Cost of Doing Business?

Drug makers use TV and other media to encourage folks to “Ask your doctor if (drug name) is right for you.” Yet you rarely hear the thousands of people who permanently pay the “cost of doing business” as a result. Consider some of the terms used to minimize the resulting death toll:

Adverse reaction: Reaction to a drug that is detrimental to the recipient.

Side effect: An unwanted effect of a drug that is not part of the intended activity.

Drug interaction: The result of drugs reacting with each other, often in ways that are unexpected or potentially harmful.

Medical error: An inappropriate treatment, or the right treatment that was performed incorrectly.

Iatrogenic: A state of ill health or an adverse effect caused by a treatment, usually due to mistakes made in treatment.

Chiropractic is so safe that no “warning label” or fine-print disclaimers are necessary. Chiropractic is so safe that even newborns and the elderly can benefit. Chiropractic is so safe that the side effects are positive effects!