Chiropractic, Subluxation and a Pain Free Body
We recently had a 60-year-old nurse with low back pain, neck pain and fatigue. She was also on anti-depressants and Panadeine Forte and overall feeling pretty rotten. She had tried seeing other health professionals, Neurofen and hot baths all to no avail. This had been ongoing for over 20 years. She was left feeling frustrated and totally over it.
Subluxation, a spinal mis-alignment can be caused from major or minor traumas. For most people though we find subluxations are from an accumulation of traumas such as car accidents, sporting falls, farming injuries, poor sleeping positions and even from the birthing process itself... or things like nursing for years. Really, any stress that your body can't adapt to - physical, chemical or even emotional stressors. Commonly it's the repeated movements that gradually wear down your body parts. Things like bad posture, emotional stresses, poor diet, and chemical exposures all of which can cause chronic tension and lead to subluxation.
So, what really is this subluxation thing? ...We're glad you asked.
A vertebral subluxation is a misaligned vertebra, spinal bone, causing nervous system interference.
Impulses delivered through the nerve system between the brain and the body’s trillions of cells to coordinate all bodily functions should happen free and unimpeded. Unfortunately, these nerve messages can become compromised when the spinal bones are misaligned, called Vertebral Subluxation.
This nerve interference can cause a whole range of health issues ... the cool things is your body is smart and gives us all these body signals for a reason. These body signals may surface in the form of symptoms such as neck or back pain or fatigue. Even other things like frequent headaches, difficultly sleeping or sciatica just to name a few. Often, we don’t even realize we are subluxated but are already experiencing the symptoms of restricted nerve flow. EVEN THOUGH WE MAY NOT BE IN PAIN. Pain is often the last thing to come and the first thing to go.
The Safety Pin and Chiropractic Explained
If you think of your body's communication system as a safety pin, it’s a simple way to explain how Chiropractic Care works.
When the safety pin is closed the communication system is happening correctly and your body is at ease. Your brain sends messages via the nerves to your body uninterrupted. Whether it's a muscle or organ or sensory information. Our body responds by sending impulses back to the brain with help from our nerve network to notify the brain of our body's wellbeing.
When the saftey pin is open the communication system is failing and your body is in a state of dis-ease, a lack of ease. This is analogous to when you are subluxated. The correct information doesn't get back to the brain. This can result in ill health and be displayed in many different ways.
Can Subluxation, Nerve Interference and Degeneration be Helped?
The simple answer is yes. It's what we deal with all day every day. Obviously the longer the problem is left to deteriorate, the more difficult it is to fix. (In saying that, we still get great results with people of all ages including 90-year-olds. The body is smart, even at 90!)
How long does healing take?
If Chiropractic can help you, then honestly the majority of our patients notice even after having just a few adjustments they begin to see improvement in their symptoms. The exciting thing is as your spine begins to move better and nerve pressure is reduced, you begin to release the correct nerve information throughout your entire body, so it can begin healing again, like it was designed to.
Back to our nurse.
She was so sick of all these problems as it was interfering with her life and stopping her from gardening. We performed a thorough consultation, examination, digital posture assessment and even took spinal and pelvic x-rays. We found she had subluxation. Multiples subluxations. We also found extensive degeneration and an increased lumbar lordosis (back curve). If subluxation isn't corrected the spinal bones can degenerate, disintegrate or break down. This should not happen. Even though it's common, it is not healthy or normal. Like we said though, the body is smart...
A combination of spinal alignments (we call them adjustments) and corrective exercises freed up the nerve interference at the spinal level for our nurse and got her back to doing what she loves. We love changing people's lives, just like this.
Many people start chiropractic care to get their life back from pain, however it can help with so many other aspects of your life too. If you feel stuck with how to move forward with your health, why not just make a small step and book an initial appointment.
Give us a call on (02) 60090999 to book your initial consult or click book now to make an appointment online. We look forward to meeting you!
Science Sources: Enhanced phagocytic cell respiratory burst induced by spinal manipulation: potential role of substance P. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics. September 1991
