It’s inevitable, when I meet someone new either at a party or while traveling and mention that I’m a chiropractor, often I get the reaction “Oh, I’ve got this crick in my neck” or “My low back hurts” as they point to their area of pain. I’ve heard people say “I’m afraid of getting my neck snapped” or just the opposite, “I Love my chiropractor, he/she really helped me with my headaches or my back pain. Although this last remark is better It does seem that the public’s perception of chiropractic is predominantly about back pain in one form or another and how chiropractors can Snap, Crackle & Pop you out of it. There are even some perceptions that chiropractic might be dangerous which could not be further from the truth. YES, it is true that back pain in almost all forms respond very well to chiropractic care and NO, chiropractic is one of the healthiest, safest non-invasive treatment methods out there to help in this arena, but it’s still a very limited concept. The Chiropractic profession began in 1895 with a focus on improving a person’s functional capacity and health. Back and neck pain was secondary if considered at all.
 
So how does Chiropractic work to improve functional capacity and health? The chiropractic adjustment-entrainment reduces interference in the spine (subluxation) and enhances nerve flow communication between the brain
and body cells so that all body systems can function at their best: Immune system, Cardiac, Respiratory, Digestive and Hormonal thus optimizing the potential for good health. We all know that appliances in a house need a power source to work. In our body, the nervous system IS our only power source. What do you think would happen if you purchased a brand new flat screen TV and there was no electricity? Would it work? What if there was only partial electricity like we have with a brown-out, poor house wiring or a faulty socket, how well will this new TV work? Not well if at all. So if instead there was interference in the power lines (nerves) from our spine to our heart for instance, would the heart be able to pump or respond correctly?
​The answer is no; poor nerve flow will create stress to the heart. Prolonged stress can even damage the heart and create heart disease which usually sends a person to their doctor to manage with medications and/or surgery. In this particular situation the only real “fix” would be to reduce nerve interference (subluxation) and improve energy flow between the spine and heart so that it can function properly, repair damage and regenerate. This premise holds true for all organs and systems in our body.
 
A research experiment was performed and published in 1921 by Dr. Henry Winsor, a medical doctor from Pennsylvania who dissected 75 human and 22 cat cadavers with a total of 221 diseased organs. While performing each autopsy he traced the nerves from the diseased organs back to the spine and found nearly 100% correlation between minor curvatures of the vertebrae (subluxations) and diseases of their corresponding internal organs. In this experiment 95 years ago, Dr. Winsor proved the relationship between having an unhealthy spine and having unhealthy organs.
 
I have been a holistic chiropractor for 27 years and every day I see miracles; practice members resolving stubborn health challenges, reducing and getting off medications, improved health year after year, increased levels of wellness, feeling younger and more vital. This is what naturally happens when nerve flow communication is optimized in a human being and, you are never too young to start.
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References: Winsor, 11. Sympathetic segmental disturbances-11. The evidence association, in dissected cadavers, of visceral disease with vertebrae deformities of the same sympathetic segments. Medical times. Nov 1921, 49 pp 267-271

Have you ever walked on hot coals? It’s called Fire-walking and self-improvement Guru Tony Robbins begins each of his empowerment seminars this way. He uses it as a metaphor that you can do or create anything in your life when in the right state of mind. To date, I have strolled across those 1000 degree heated coals four times now. Each seminar we spend hours preparing for the “walk” by shifting our focus our attention, deciding on our goals, dancing, shouting, and raising our energy state to a very high level. You are with thousands of people working together for the same goal so the energy is very high and you feel like your at an amazing party which will end that evening with a stroll across the coals. The majority of people who walk do not burn their feet at all. And, there are some that do. For three of my Firewalks, I did not burn at all. On one of them I had a tiny coal stuck to my big toe and when I got to the end, someone shouts “stop and wipe your feet” in the water, I broke my state a bit too soon and the coal burned my toe before I could wash it off. Well, that had me puzzled as to how it was even possible to walk on fire and not burn? The art of Firewalking is not new, has been done in many cultures since 1200 BCE. All the current research states that since wood is a lousy conductor and by walking at a brisk pace across the ashes, your feet will not have enough contact with the heat to actually burn or char. Tolly Burkan, the founder of the Firewalking Institute of Research and Education in Twain Harte, California says that “circulating blood likewise keeps the flesh on a fire walker's feet from reaching its burning point—as long as the walker is relaxed enough to allow strong blood flow and as long as the walker keeps walking. What controls [the ability to fire walk] is more than physics, it's your state of mind.” 
 
What needs to be added to this conversation is how our own human energy field can either magnetize things toward us or repel things from us depending on our state of mind and our habituation.  One therapist I knew told a group of us that children of alcoholic parents will likely attract an alcoholic person to them without even trying. They could walk into a party and would be attracted to the only alcoholic in the room. It’s not that they even want to do this but something in their energy field magnetizes this reality to them. In a Firewalk, I believe we are conditioning our “state of mind” a group hypnosis that moves our energy in such a way to protect our feet from burning. As long as we are in this relaxed, focussed state of mind, we do not burn but should we break “state” we can. I believe that is why my toe burned. I broke “state” before I washed off the coals. Taking this train of thought a bit further, I believe we can apply it to our lives and the things that happen or don’t happen to us. Why is it that when we are genuinely happy on the inside, we don’t get sick, we don’t tend to have accidents, we attract great people to us and sometimes even serendipitous situations? When we are in a more disgruntled  state, just the opposite occurs. We attract illness, accidents and other disgruntled people to us. There is a bit more to it but basically we attract “Who We Are Being” to us. This means we have an opportunity to see what we are experiencing in our world as a Mirror of who we are being in the world. The law of attraction is the name given to the maxim "like attracts like”. Our personal growth comes when we acknowledge this and strive to become a better version of our current self. As we look into the mirror of all the people and situations we attract to us, we can then redirect our personal sails in a new direction if we choose to create a new reality and new experiences for ourselves. 
 
So when accidents do occur, who’s fault is it anyway? Is it ours? Have we attracted this situation or event to us somehow? What is that event mirror telling us about what is going on inside, our “state of mind”?  This level of personal responsibly can be very empowering. It means we have to power to change our life circumstances but we Must become someone different, an improved version of ourselves. We have to shift our thoughts and feelings. This is easily accomplished by reading empowering books and watching movies with new ideas that evoke feelings in a new way. We need to shift our habits by doing new activities, and having new experiences and especially changing our habits and routines. Turn off the TV,  drive a different route to work, park in a different place and walk, get lost on purpose, read an inspirational book, try a new workout, meditate, try a different cuisine, just experience something different and on a regular basis.  We must move out of our comfort zone and try on a new experience in order to evoke new feelings within. Then watching the mirror of life we can adjust our sails to continue to move in the direction of our dreams. 
 
In addition, it is important to keep your energy level high. You can’t jumpstart a new you with a tired body. Fuel yourself with good quality “real” food. They contain energy that will naturally fuel you. Avoid anything with chemicals, additives and added sugars. These are draining. If you eat something and feel tired after, it was probably the wrong fuel for you. Get moving in a way that feels great; Yoga, walking, jogging, hiking. Physical activity will generate natural energy and help bust stress. For an amazing energy booster, see a chiropractor. Chiropractic helps restore flow to your personal energy system, your nervous system so your body can function optimally. Lastly, seek out nature. Sunlight, dirt and plants are powerful energy sources that you can pull from.

I want to talk about something nobody wants yet everyone has from time to time. This experience can motivate you to do things you wouldn’t normally do, make changes in your behavior and it brings people closer together. In one expression this experience has been the inspiration for every great change we have seen in the world. Can you guess what it is?
 
It’s pain. Physical pain is the motivator that brings people out of their comfort zone to consult with a doctor, holistic practitioner or chiropractor. Psychological pain will motivate a person to consult with a psychologist, counselor, seek out support groups or start new ones. Spiritual pain will usually inspire you to change your life or help others change theirs.
 
So, let’s talk about pain for a moment.
 
For a short time, physical pain is a normal symptom when you have injured a part of your body. A muscle pull or strain typically lasts about 1-2 weeks and the intensity should continually decrease. If muscle pain goes on longer than that, it might be something else; ligament sprain, nerve irritation, a disc problem which may take much longer to heal. Since spinal nerves control all the muscles in the body, a spinal nerve problem can create muscle spasms that don’t let up.
 
Pain can also be referred by a problem in a seemingly unrelated area. For instance, most low back pain is typically referred from a spinal disturbance in the upper neck region and, many types of headaches show up when there is a pelvic misalignment. In these cases, treating the area of pain gives little relief.
 
 A few months ago I had braces put on and soon after, I started having calf cramps lasting a couple of weeks that wouldn’t release with either continued stretching or taking extra magnesium. After I received a Network entrainment, a.k.a. adjustment, all the calf spasm released. The braces were creating constant pressure and movement of my teeth and since everything is attached, my head and neck bones were also moving. Misalignments occurred in my upper neck along with some spinal cord pressure resulting in calf cramping.
 
The most important thing to know about pain in any form is that it is “a Call for Change”. Your body can only communicate with you through pain signals to tell you something needs attention or that something might be wrong. Think of it as your own personal smoke detector. Instead of turning it off by taking pain relievers or muscle relaxers, drinking, eating, distracting and trying to forget about it, investigate what might not be working for you or your body and make those changes. Some examples might be a stressful event occurring that you might need to take action on, something in your diet that doesn't agree with you and needs to be removed, physical activities you do that are actually hurting you and should be modified. By finding out what is not working for you and changing it allows real healing to begin and your quality of life to skyrocket.