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How Well Do You Adapt?
Have you ever thought about the difference between something living and something dead? What changes the moment that we, or our pet or a tree stops living?
Scientists know that one of the things that distinguishes something that is alive from something that isn't, is its ability to adapt to its environment. A rock doesn't adapt. Nor does a fence post. But we do if we're alive.
We generally take it for granted, but moving out of the path of an approaching vehicle, perspiring when it's hot or squinting in the bright sun are all adaptations. These and the many other ways we adapt to our environment are governed by the integrity of our nervous systems - the focus of your chiropractic care.
While many see chiropractic care as a source of neck and back pain relief, our interest in your spine is because it's the most vulnerable part of your nervous system. Nerve interference along your spine can wreak havoc with your ability to adapt, accommodate and respond to your environment.
If chiropractic helps you with an ache or a pain, we're delighted. Sometimes less obvious is its ability to help you adapt and optimally perform mentally, physically and socially... which is the true definition of being healthy!
Bones or Nerves?
We live our lives through our nervous systems. Whether it's enjoying a sunset, digesting dinner or warding off an infection, our nervous systems control everything. Better nervous system = better life.
Our culture is focused on blood, such as pulse, blood pressure and cholesterol. Yet these largely result from nervous system directions. So even the smallest nervous system disturbance can dramatically affect the way your whole body works.
Since the moving bones of the spinal column are in such close proximity to the spinal cord, and the 31 pairs of nerve roots that branch out from it, many people think chiropractic is all about bones.
But I see myself as a nerve doctor, not a bone doctor. The spinal column is merely where we find the subluxations that are often the source of nerve disturbances between the brain and body. Reducing nervous system tension allows your body to work normally so health can return. Simple, really.
The Healing Power of the Mind
Question: What do the spells cast by voodoo practitioners and researchers testing the effectiveness of the latest drug concoction have in common?
Answer: The placebo effect. The placebo effect means the more you believe you'll benefit from a drug or procedure, the more likely it is that you will experience a benefit.
From time to time we encounter skeptics who dismiss the sometimes amazing results our patients receive. Writing them off as merely the placebo effect, these cynics virtually ignore the mind/body connection that most forward-thinking health care experts are finally starting to recognize.
Placebo (from the Latin "I will please") is often a sugar pill or some type of sham treatment designed to specifically invoke the beliefs of the patient, and in double blind studies, the beliefs of the doctor. Some studies show that placebos are 30% to 40% effective.
And don't overlook the "nocebo" effect!
Nocebo (from the Latin "I will harm") is based on the effects of negative beliefs. Telling someone to get their affairs in order because they have two months to live is almost a death sentence! Being "scared to death" or "worried sick" can be equally powerful expressions of our self-talk.
Is the success that chiropractic patients enjoy merely the placebo effect? Hardly. Chiropractic helps newborns, infants and even pets, for which the power of the believing mind is difficult to explain.
As you know from personal experience, chiropractic results are real. If you know someone you think could benefit, would you direct them our way? We'd love to help!
In This Issue
Accepting New Patients
If you've experienced great results from safe and natural chiropractic care, we hope you'll share your experience with friends. You see, we don't benefit from the billions spent by the pharmaceutical industry.
Instead, we depend upon delighted patients like you to spread the word. That's how it's worked for over a century! In fact, it's how chiropractic has thrived in the shadow of the mainstream drug culture we live in. If you know someone you think we could help, we offer many ways of finding out more about chiropractic:
In person. Bring your friend or family member along on your next visit. The "buddy system" works well when swimming - and when checking out an unfamiliar setting such as a chiropractic practice! Or encourage them to schedule a complimentary consultation. We welcome people to come in and discuss their health issues. We'll listen, ask questions and see if they're a good candidate for chiropractic care.
By mail. Let us know, and we can send a "care package" of helpful information about specific health complaints and details about our practice to answer questions and address apprehensions.
By phone. Have them give us a call (or email us). There's no obligation and they can remain anonymous if they wish. Informed patients, with their expectations clarified, get the best results!
Online. Easiest of all, forward a link to our website so they can learn what we're all about. We know that people you like will be people we'll like too.
More than likely, someone told you about chiropractic. Pass it on! Introduce someone you love to chiropractic care. It will feel great!