You’ve probably heard the old myth that “once you go to a chiropractor, you have to go for the rest of your life.” It’s not true. However, we do have many patients who chose to see us on a monthly basis or even more frequently. If you asked those people why they continue to go, they would probably say something like this: “I never want to experience that level of pain again in my life.” “I just feel better and have more energy if I get adjusted regularly.” “I’ve noticed I’m a better person to be around as long as I’m getting adjusted. I just handle the challenges of life better.” “My kids and I really don’t get sick or catch colds anymore since we’ve been getting adjusted.” “My digestion is better and I don’t have stomach problems or heart burn as long as I get adjusted.”
And I’ll bet when you’ve heard them say this, you were thinking, “how could this be?” The answer is actually not that complicated: Your brain, spinal cord, spinal nerves that exit between each vertebrae of your spine, and all of your peripheral nerves make up your nervous system. Your nervous system coordinates all of the hundreds of thousands of functions of your entire body simultaneously and without any conscious control from you. Your spinal column is made up of 24 moveable vertebrae (bones) that surround and protect the central nervous system. If those bones are pushed out of alignment due to accidents or injuries, poor posture, tight muscles and put pressure on your nerves (this is called a subluxation) and interfere with your brain and nervous system’s ability to communicate properly with all the areas of your body. They may result in less than full and optimum function of any body system, sometimes resulting in symptoms right away, and many other times giving you no warning whatsoever.
Patients who have overcome a health problem through Chiropractic understand that you don’t always get a warning that there is a problem…just like the first warning of a heart condition may very well be a heart attack, and so they choose maintenance care to correct subluxations before they become bigger issues like the reflux, heart palpitations, ear infections, back pain or headaches that brought them to my office in the first place. They have learned that their spine was subluxated for weeks, months or years before the proverbial straw sent them seeking Chiropractic intervention for their symptoms.
So, once their health issue is overcome they want to stay well. After all it is much easier to stay well than to get well.
- Avoiding A Relapse –Because longstanding spinal problems can produce weakened areas that are susceptible to repeated problems, regular care may often help strengthen supporting muscles and ligaments and keep segments of the spine mobile and moving properly, thus avoiding flare-ups.
- Prevention – Regular chiropractic adjustments can often detect smaller problems before they become more serious and more difficult to correct.
- Wellness – Being our best starts with an interference-free nervous system. Periodic visits can help reduce the normal wear and tear on spinal joints and keep us in tip-top condition.
Not only this, they also want to minimize how day-to-say stressors affect their body and life.
Some Straight Talk About Stress: Every era has faced its share of threatening situations. Today, the stress of careers, deadlines, conflicts, family, and demands on our time and money, take a huge toll on our health. 60 to 80 percent of industrial accidents are due to stressed out workers, and nearly 80 percent of all healthcare dollars are spent on stress related disorders!
Here’s some straight talk about stress, you may not have heard before: There’s more to stress than just the emotional factors. Foods can be stressors, noise is a stressor, physical traumas are stressors, spinal subluxations are stressors, and lack of physical activity can stress you out, and your body ultimately pays the price.
Just as a chain tends to break at its weakest link, we seem to exhibit stress and strain in the weakest areas of our bodies. Where’s your weak link? Are you a headache sufferer, or do you have trouble with your stomach? Maybe you get nervous twitches, or you suffer from asthma—more so when you’re stressed out. Some people get muscle aches or back pain, while others suffer from reduced immunity resulting in recurrent colds and flu.
Regardless of your particular responses to stress, your nervous system is in charge—it controls every function and reaction the body makes. That’s why chiropractic is so helpful. Since your nervous system is encased by your spinal bones, doesn’t it make sense that alterations in the position and movement in those spinal bones, can put pressure on your nerves, and create an even greater stress response within your body? My Structural Chiropractic Exam and your health history is designed to identify the ‘weak links’ in your health and also identify the stressors in your life that are causing you to break down. Correcting the subluxations in your spine is the easy part and can make a profound difference in your response to stress, so I often start there. But, I also look at your dietary habits, and physical activity and advise my patients on dietary changes, supplementation and exercise in order to reduce as many stressors as possible.
One stressor we can do nothing about is Gravity. Let’s not forget the relentless effects that gravity places on our bod’s structure. We are no different than our automobiles and our homes that require maintenance and upkeep. Regular chiropractic care helps maintain proper spinal curves to accommodate the compression of spinal joints due to gravity.
Remember, how long you choose to benefit from chiropractic care is always up to you. We’re here to serve. How may we help you enjoy life to the fullest?