Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Rockford Chiropractor: How to Adjust NUCCA Style

One of the most common questions in my office is, "How does this work? I cannot feel the adjustment?" Vocab for today - complex lever mechanism, adjusting vector, Laws of physics, atlas, Long Head of the Triceps muscle. And does the doctor have a back ache by the end of the day? Yes, but not from bending over, it's from the pulling of the shoulder muscles. No problem! Lots of people hold their adjustment (that's the goal) and the doctor has learned how to exercise and rehab the shoulders well.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Foot Problems in Rockford


I had an elderly patient mention as an aside that her feet hurt all the time. Now, I like to know things, especially about my patients. She had never told me that before, so I was surprised! I suggested that we take a close look at them.

I found that there were a number of bones out of position in her feet. Her mother had experienced painful feet, as had her grandmother, so it seemed to be hereditary. But we decided to give the feet four weeks of special attention. Since everything else had cleared up, it seemed appropriate.

Sure enough, by the end of the second week, things were beginning to feel better, and by the fourth week, feet were stable and there was no more problem. So for three generations, there were sore feet waiting for the right person to come along and recognize the problem.

Interestingly enough, that's one foot case that didn't respond directly to the spinal correction. Sometimes, when we correct the balance of the spine, the foot bones move right back into position. When they do not, chiropractic has the right tools for finishing the work.

So, next time you see someone with foot pain, ask, "What's the status of your atlas?"

Monday, February 8, 2010

Shoulder Problems in Rockford


Some health care practitioners specialize in particular body parts, like feet, knees, shoulders. I like to look at how the painful body part fits into the whole body. When you look at the whole body as a complete unit, you can see how dependent one part is on another to feel good.

Look at this artist's rendering of some of the 'ropes' and 'pulleys' that support and move the shoulder.

Can you see how dependent the shoulder is on the neck and the ribs? What would happen to the shoulder if the system that supports it is out of alignment? Do you think the shoulder would suffer abnormal tensions and starts hurting?

One remedy for shoulder pain is simply bringing balance back to the head/neck/back. One of the most efficient ways to do this is through correcting what is called the atlas subluxation complex. That means the relation between the head, the atlas, and the neck below has gone off, so it's called a subluxation complex. When we correct that, the entire body will balance better. Can you see that once the body is balanced, the shoulders will move back into position?

One patient had a car accident that, among other things, shoved the entire shoulder down the back, so that it was about two inches below the other. When we corrected the atlas subluxation complex, the shoulder moved itself right back into position, even with the other.

Next time you see someone with shoulder pain, ask them the question, "What's the status of your atlas?"

Monday, February 1, 2010

Vocal Problems in Rockford


Aside from the usual speech impediments brought on by a 6 A.M. alarm clock, or the trouble one feels when the child asks, "Where do babies come from?", there are some causes of voice problems that are simply structural.

Look at this picture of some of the muscles that suspend the vocal apparatus! Can you see that some of these muscles begin up in the head, and some of them attach to the ribs below? What would happen if the bones in the head are not balanced and in position? What would happen if the ribs have been pushed out of alignment? Do you think it could affect the voice?

It sure can, and I have an interesting story to tell about how this happened to one person and how we got it fixed.

For the past ten years, her voice was getting worse. All the medical treatments were exhausted, including vocal therapy. But from the perspective of the upper cervical chiropractic world, we had a serious problem affecting not only the neck, but the entire body musculature.

We call it the atlas subluxation complex, and it involves the head and neck being off line - in short, the head isn't on straight. It is measurable and in most cases, correctible.

Which is what we did. The muscles relaxed, everything went back into position, and now the voice is returning.

Next time something is found to be wrong, ask the question, "What's the status of the atlas?" It might shed some light on the problem!