Being and staying healthy is one of the greatest challenges we face today. We all live in a world filled with toxins and chemicals, some added to our food as preservatives, others taken in the form of pills to cure some ailment, and yet others we simply can't avoid and breath in every day. These toxins and chemicals along with everyday movements in life put incredible stress on our bodies and in particular our spines. I have mentioned before that there are alternatives to going straight to a medical doctor to fix a problem we have with our bodies. There are many holistic and natural methods to heal the body from acupuncture, to yoga, to chiropractic.
Some of you may now be saying, "Here is just another quack pushing chiropractic care as a replacement to a medical doctor." Well, as quacktastic as I may sound, I have done research and I have heard amazing stories about chiropractic. In addition I currently see a chiropractor once to twice a week and the results have been amazing. Let me first start by saying that not all chiropractors are the same. Before I started seeing my current one, I had been to at least 2 others which I didn't care for. The reason I started going back to a chiropractor was due to headaches (you are only supposed to get 2-3 a year) and backpain that were getting worse and worse. Within a few weeks of getting adjusted twice a week, my headaches were gone and backpain diminished greatly.
So what is the deal behind chiropractic? Chiropractic's main purpose is the alignment of a person's spine. Their philosophy (which I agree with) is that the human body is capable of healing itself provided that all neural pathways are functioning. A human body's every function is controlled by the brain which sends signals out via the spinal column through the nerves. These nerves travel to every organ and muscle in the body. If a person's spinal column is moved even slightly (called a subluxation in chiropractic terms), then the nerve traveling through that section of the spine will be negatively impacted and won't be able to communicate fully with the organ or muscle it is traveling to. If you get your spine adjusted so that it is in proper alignment, then the nerve is free to communicate and send signals. The unfortunate part is, out of all the nerves traveling through our body, 90% don't feel pain or react in a way that we know something is wrong. The symptoms usually manifest themselves in the form of some malady that we would normally go to a medical doctor to fix.
I have mentioned before that if medications made you healthy, then it would be reasonable to assume that the person on the most pills would be the healthiest person alive. Most of us know this is never the case. My current chiropractor worked with a woman taking 38 pills a day and unable to move from her wheelchair. To make a long story short, within a few years of treatment, she was down to under 10 pills a day and able to walk with the help of a cane. The only thing that changed in her life was the addition of chiropractic. All the medical doctors who had treated her previously had given up and referred her to a chirpractor to "ease her pain". Well, it ended up doing more than that. The only thing the chiropractor did was adjust this lady's spine so that it was in perfect alignment, nothing more, nothing less. Her body did the rest of the work. For another amazing story involving Dr. Palmer (the son of the founder of chiropractic) and Dr. Mayo (the founder of the Mayo clinic), click here.
Some people may counter all this by saying that chiropractors can cause a stroke or death by adjusting the spine. This is all fabricated in an attempt to discredit the chiropractic industry by the medical profession. If this were actually true, then chiropractors would have to pay hefty malpractice insurance. As it is right now, medical doctors pay tens of thousands of dollars in malpractice insurance. The cost for a chiropractor is around two thousand. Malpractice insurance is based on the probability that the doctor will do harm. If you look at the numbers, chiropractic wins out.
Other people may say that chiropractic is not for everybody. Well, every person's spine is fundamentally the same, therefore, chiropractic is for everyone who makes the choice to explore it. Chiropractors make no claim to a quick and speedy recovery. That is all based on your body's ability to restore itself to health. There is no overnight remedy; it could take weeks or months. People don't have patience, however, and want the quick fix that will get them going immediately. Sometimes it is worth it to wait longer to recover, than damaging your body in the healing process with medications.
There is a lot of info on chiropractic out there. Before going to a regular medical doctor next time, (they only treat the symptoms), check out a chiropractor (treating the cause). I myself have not taken any pills (including advil, tylenol, etc.) in over two years. My wife who had severe seasonal allergies and had inhalers, pills, and allergy shots, is now allergy free after seeing a chiropractor. Ultimately, the decision is yours as to how you take care of your body. Chiropractic is a much healthier option than a regular medical doctor (obviously if you have a broken bone, a chiropractor can't help with that). Do yourself a healthy favor and look into it. There is a plethora of information available on the internet if you take the time to do some research. If you want more direct info without trying that hard, follow this link to my chiropractor's web page.
Stay healthy, stay positive, and most of all be patient. There is no need to rush through life, we all know what lies at the end. Cherish every moment for you never know which moment will be your last.
No comments:
Post a Comment