trigger points

The Cervical Spine

dr.randy — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 11:44:23 +0000

The cervical spine–that is, the upper seven of our vertebrae–must surely rank among the most under appreciated yet most vital parts of our body. Its 37 separate joints allow the head and neck to move atop the torso, all the while obeying constant commands from the special senses and reflex mechanisms.

Look at it this way: The cervical spine holds up our 9-16 pound heads for between 14-16 hours a day. This is hardly easy.

The head’s weight can become unbearable over time. If you’d like to get a clearer picture, try this: hold a 12-14 pound bowling ball in your hand with your elbow on a table for as long as you can. (Few poeple can keep this up longer than an hour.)

That means the cervical spine is a vital part of nearly all our everyday activities. Speaking, gesturing, sitting, standing, lying down, and breathing involve the cervical spine. Most of what our head can do is thanks to the cervical spine.

That’s why many of the injuries to this are are serious, resulting in paralysis or death. For example, hitting your head on the bottom of the pool can compress the cervical spine and cause grave injury.

You’ll be happy to know that we chiropractors have led the way in recognizing the cervical spine’s uniqueness and careing for it accordingly.

Chiropractic doesn’t cure backaches!

dr.randy — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 11:49:32 +0000

It may surprise you to read that chiropractic doesn’t cure backaches. It doesn’t cure neck pain, headaches, sprained joints or pulled muscles either. It doesn’t treat spinal degeneration, spinal curvature, asthma, allergies, colic, sciatica, carpal tunnel, TMJ, shoulder pain, hip pain, poor posture, ear infections, or any of the countless things many chiropractors claim to treat or cure!

If it does none of these, what does chiropractic do?

Unlike medicine, which attempts to cure disease, chiropractic removes interference so that your body can heal and cure itself. This may sound like mere semantics, but our way of speaking reveals and determines our understanding, which dictates action. For you to make intelligent choices regarding your health care, you need an accurate understanding of how your body works, what can cause disease, and how removing interference promotes health.

Nothing New.

The chiropractic profession has only been around for a little more than a hundred years, but the principles on which it is based are ancient. Hippocrates once said, “Look first to the spine for the cause of disease.” We find spinal manipulation being used in traditional cultures many hundreds and even thousands of years ago.

Today, science confirms the importance of the spine: The vital energy for life travels from the brain to every part of the body via a system of nerves that exit at the base of the skull and travel through the center of the spine. The nerve system also provides! the mea ns for communication from the various parts of the body back to the brain. These nerves connect to every organ, tissue and cell of the body through the bones of the spine. To be healthy, 100 percent of the brain’s energy and communication must reach every part of the body.

The bones of the spine fit closely together in a compact stack that allows freedom of movement as well as firm structure. Over time, gravity and other stresses cause the bones of the spine become misaligned with one another. This alters the spaces through which the nerve system travels causing pressure on and irritation to the nerves. Studies show that pressure merely equivalent to the weight of a quarter can decrease the conductivity of energy through a nerve by as much as 60 percent.

The most common spinal interference is called a vertebral subluxation. A chiropractic adjustment moves the misaligned vertebrae in the direction of proper alignment allowing the body to reposition the bone and restore the energy flow from the brain to the body’s compromised tissues, organs and systems. The result is a return to health. It’s as simple as that — and no other health professional can accomplish what the body can do for itself!

Myth: Chiropractors think they “can cure anything”

dr.randy — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 21:19:51 +0000

You’ve probably heard this before: “Chiropractors think they can cure anything“. The truth is, we offer chiropractic care, not a cure. Only your body can heal a cut, mend a broken bone, or know exactly how much insulin you need. Your nervous system orchestrates every bodily function. That’s why a restored nerve supply from chiropractic care can produce profound effects throughout your body, not just for aches and pains associated with the spine. A chiropractor’s main focus is the integrity of the nervous system–therefore affecting every function of the body. If your nervous system is working properly, YOUR BODY can cure anything!

Children and Low Back Pain

dr.randy — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 00:47:01 +0000

Frequently, I am called upon to treat children with lower back pain. The precipitating incident is typically a sports injury, a schoolyard trauma, or, most frustratingly, an insidious onset, one not recognized by the child or parent. Invariably, the parent asks, somewhat desperately, why her child has this problem. “She is just too young to be starting with back pain,” the parent pleads. The assumption is that children simply do not have sore backs, and yet, I see lots of kids and adolescents suffering from lower back trouble. A recent article in The Back Letter (Vol. 17, No.3) sheds much light on this problem. I found it quite informative and hope that you, my readers, will as well.

It seems that numerous studies have been conducted in North America, several European countries and Australia. The consensus is that childhood and adolescent low back pain is much more prevalent than previously thought. The odds of a child having at least one bout of lumbar pain are between 30% and 51%, depending on the study. A Danish researcher found 30% of kids in grade 3 had back pain, while 50% of adolescents suffered some degree of back pain. In Britain, it was found that the annual incidence of back pain rose from 11.8% at the age of 12 to 21.5% at age 15.

The precipitating incident or “cause” of the pain was usually identified in these studies as “activities of daily living”. This term covers pain experienced while playing sports, falls and other traumas, and carrying backpacks. A European study found that various factors tended to increase the likelihood of a child suffering from low back pain. These factors were age (the older the child, the greater the tendency), a history of trauma, a family history, playing competitive sports or higher levels of activity, stress, depression, increased physical height, smoking, and being female.

It appears that in the great majority of cases, no treatment is sought or required. The pain is either self-limiting or ignored in that only 15-26% of children from various studies ever visited a doctor. When they do seek medical help, parents and children alike often find the effort frustrating. For example, a study of 217 consecutive cases of disabling back pain that underwent bone scans found that almost 80% of children (averaging 13 years old) defied medical diagnosis. This trend is true in adults as well. The most common back problems are biomechanical in nature or functional; therefore, tests looking for structural changes are simply wasting the patient’s time and money and only serve to delay proper treatment. Proper treatment in these cases is one that offers functional solutions. A biomechanical approach to low back pain has been well proven in scientific literature to be the best method of treatment. Spinal manipulation, chiropractic adjustive procedures, therapeutic exercises and deep tissue massage all fit this approach to one degree or another.

Many medical doctors and pediatricians take a dim view of chiropractic care for children. There is a rising negative voice arising from this sector, often unduly influencing health care policy makers. This attitude is grossly unfair to the suffering child. Nothing can resolve a lumbar spine problem as fast nor as effectively as chiropractic adjustive therapy; both for adults and for children. Many times spending weeks and months pursuing fruitless medical tests and x-rays only serves to delay proper treatment of functional spinal troubles.

(Dr. David L. Phillips, National Directory of Chiropractic)

History of Chiropractic

dr.randy — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 11:02:06 +0000

Many chiropractic patients ask, “How did chiropractic get started?” Well, Chiropractic got started in Davenport, Iowa over 100 years ago. In 1895 a “magnetic healer” (as he was called) by the name of DD Palmer operated an office on the corner of Second and Brady street in downtown Davenport. Dr. Palmer, as he was known, noticed on that day the janitor who worked in his building was nearly totally deaf.

This janitor was a black gentleman by the name of Harvey Lillard. Upon questioning (probably very loud questioning), Harvey explained to Dr. Palmer that he had lost most of his hearing 17 years earlier when he was bending over and felt a “pop” in his upper back. Dr. Palmer examined the area and noticed a bump which he determined to be a spinal vertebrae out of position. It seemed that Harvey noticed this bump right after he lost his hearing. Having a knowledge of anatomy, Dr. Palmer convinced Harvey to allow him to try to fix it by pushing the bone back into place.

History is uncertain as to whether it was one visit or several, but the result was Harvey got his hearing back! From that point DD Palmer changed his practice over to this new method of replacing bones that were out of position and allowing people to heal. His practice grew and the profession of chiropractic was born.

Within two years Dr. Palmer opened the first school of Chiropractic on Brady Street in Davenport. It was his son Dr. BJ Palmer, who continued the school after the death of DD. It is the son BJ, who is given credit today for growing and developing the profession into what it has become today.

LifExuberant

dr.randy — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 14:04:43 +0000

All professions strive for excellence.

In our office this is not our wish–this is our promise. Of course we can relieve your pain, but we want to be there for the entire journey, ensuring a lifestyle of emerging wellness that leads you through restoration to peak performance, or what we term LifExuberant, the state of being there, where your present image of yourself reflects your “ideal self” perfectly. Chiropractic has consistently produced this LifExuberant effect for iconic celebrities in the world of sports and entertainment.

After his last Tour de France victory, Lance Armstrong stated, “I could not have won without my chiropractor’s help.” Pro Football’s famed Emmitt Smith had this to say regarding chiropractic. “I started doing this [chiropractic] on a regular basis 4 or 5 years ago. I believe what I’m doing is helping me go on. I’ve become a big believer…in making sure [my body] is functioning the way it’s supposed to on Sundays.”

Chiropractic, in our view, has always been more than pain relief, it’s been performance enhancing. We are not in the business of single service offerings; we are in the profession of a multiple wellness regime for enhanced health. Therefore, we offer an uncompromising pledge throughout your life, to personally aid you in achieving total vitality. You’ll call it remarkable. We call it LifExuberant.

Smoke Detector…

dr.randy — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 14:13:43 +0000

The smoke detector–a common item in most homes, with usually 2-4 per house. If your smoke detector went off in the middle of the night, what would you do? The obvious answer: GET EVERYONE OUT OF THE HOUSE! But why wouldn’t you just remove the batteries and go back to sleep? O.K….so you all have a strange look on your face. Of course, that would be ridiculous! But let’s put this in the perspective our our body: If your “smoke detector” were to go off, such as a headache, heartburn, asthma attack, muscle spasm (insert your symptom here), what would you do? Would you cover up the symptoms by taking a medication just like taking the batteries out of the smoke detector? Wouldn’t it be better to correct the cause of the problem? Pain is an indication that something is wrong–you need to correct the problem, not hope it will go away. Nerve interference (caused by a bone out of place in your spine putting pressure on a nerve) is usually the cause of these symptoms–yes, even heartburn and asthma! So, the next time you are having some discomfort, think about your smoke detector and be glad it has fresh batteries–IT’S TIME FOR AN ADJUSTMENT!

Why do you need chiropractic when you’re not in pain?

dr.randy — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 18:57:25 +0000

A wellness approach to better health means adopting a variety of healthy habits for optimum function on all levels–physical, mental, social, and spiritual.

Because of its focus on the nervous system, chiropractic care can be an important part of a wellness lifestyle. The nervous system controls the function of virtually every aspect of our lives. Maintaining a properly functioning nervous system is essential if you want to be your very best.

Few things as complicated as your body can be “fixed” and then ignored. That’s why we recommend a schedule of regular chiropractic checkups. Like maintaining your teeth, your car, your family, or your faith, maintaining the integrity of your nervous system requires an ongoing investment.

Those who want to be their very best add regular chiropractic care to their other health practices. The pleasant result is often more vitality, endurance, and the capacity to enjoy life to its fullest.

Real Health

dr.randy — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 22:22:24 +0000

The key to real health is to have every organ, tissue, and system of your body functioning exactly as it was designed.

Health has little to do with how you feel, your temperature, or whether symptoms are present. Those who die of heart attacks, cancer, or dozens of other health problems suffer ill health long before their first symptom!

Real health allows us to adapt to the environment, cooling us when we’re hot, fighting a virus, healing a cut, digesting our food, and milliions of other vital activities. When there is interference to this complex orchestra of controlling nerve impulses, the resulting symptoms are simply warning signs that things are not right.

The chiropractic approach to real health is to locate any part of the nervous system that has lost proper control of the organs and tissues of your body. A common culprit is when the spinal column “chokes” or “irritates” the spinal cord or nerve roots. Locaing, reducing, and preventing these “vertebral subluxations” is the primary interest of chiropractic health care.

Real health is not how you feel–it’s how you function!!

( Reference: Back Talk Systems, Inc.)

The truth about VACCINATIONS

dr.randy — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 21:53:35 +0000

If artificial immunization always worked, vaccinated children wouldn’t get measles or other diseases–but they do.

Realize that there is little proof that vaccines work. Many link the decline of certain diseases with the use of its vaccine. Yet, they ignore the improved sanitation, nutrition, and hygiene that vaccinated populations have enjoyed as widespread immunization was introduced.

In addition, vaccines can be dangerous. It’s hard to predict how anyone, especially an infant, will react when injected with serums made from barnyard animal blood, cultured monkey tissue, aluminum, and formaldehyde. Reactions can range from the disease itself, to disability and even death!

The fact that children survive inoculation is a powerful testament to the very immune system that is being tampered with by these substances!

Before you agree to vaccinations or any other procedure, get the facts. Read books. Ask questions. Explore your choices. Maximize your child’s natural immunity by breastfeeding and assuring the proper diet, rest, and exercise. Include regular chiropractic checkups to optimize the nervous system, which controls the immune system and every other cell, tissue, organ, and system of the body.

Reference: Back Talk Systems, Inc.