My view on health and healing is quite different from the traditional, modern approach that has become so widely accepted. In medicine, if something is low, doctors look to add something to the body to raise it. If something is high, they look to add something to lower it. If a body part is not working well enough, for long enough, they often just remove it.
This has led to two very big problems. The first is the over-medicating of America. Our chemical (drug) dependency has gotten out of hand. It is rare for me to see a new patient that isn’t on two to three, or even over a dozen, medications.
The other big problem is that we have become very symptom-oriented in regards to the care and management of our health. This means that we believe that we are healthy if we don’t feel sick. We go to the doctor when things go wrong. Of course, going to the doctor when you feel sick or are having symptoms makes sense, but by the time you feel sick, you are usually late into a health crisis. Symptoms are often the last thing to come on in most disease processes.
Think about cancer or heart disease. By the time you know you have either one of those, the disease process is usually well underway. In fact, one of the most common first symptoms of heart disease is death!
I deal with the spine every day. Back pain, neck pain, headaches, and other spine-related pain is what brings most people into our office. New patients will often struggle, wondering how such pain could come on without any significant injury. It might be a sneeze, bending over to pick up a child, or twisting to get out of the car when pain strikes. How could something so simple cause so much pain?
The x-rays we take in our office tell a much bigger story. We can see approximately when these problems actually started by how much degeneration is present. A detailed analysis of the x-rays allows us to get a much better idea of how, and when, these problems started. And the problem almost always started long before the incident that the patient thought caused the problem.
My point is this… you need to be proactive about your health. And when I say health, most of you think about your heart, your eyes, your teeth, etc. Your spine is super important and needs to be checked. Like those with underlying heart disease, you likely have spinal issues, but are completely unaware of it. It creeps up slowly, with an occasional ache or pain, or slight loss of range of motion, but many are on the verge of a crisis. This crisis can be avoided; but a detailed exam, including an x-ray, is essential to catch this problem before it rears its ugly head.
The spine is so important for many reasons, but the primary one is that it houses and protects your spinal cord. Spinal problems can cause pain and restrict motion, but it’s the damage that occurs to the nerves that is so serious. These nerves influence every organ, tissue, and cell in the human body. This means that spinal problems can affect bowels, bladder, stomach, the reproductive system, and more. Spinal dysfunction can cause numbness, tingling, throbbing, and weakness. Headaches, sinus issues, ear issues, allergies, acid reflux, constipation, menstrual issues, and more can all be affected, or caused by, problems with the spine and nervous system.
Of course, the spine isn’t the only cause of these problems, and I would be silly to say so, but please consider the importance of your spine and its relationship to overall health. Wouldn’t it make sense to have your spine checked to see how it looks, how it is functioning, and if any problems are brewing? You cannot wait for a crisis. And relying on medication is a futile strategy.
You get your eyes checked, you get your teeth checked…it’s time to get your spine checked!
