Are you ON?

This guy down the street from us has the best Christmas light show in town. He puts the movie, “Christmas Vacation” to shame. Here’s the (You Tube) link:

We were all wondering how they synchronize all those lights and all the different types of music. Computers right!

I wanted to link this concept to the body and chiropractic, so here it goes. Think how much communication goes on in the body between the brain and every cell in your body. All of the communication runs through the nervous system or the spinal cord and the nerves of the body. The brain coordinates all of that symphony of messages. What can happen is a nerve can get irritated or the messages can get interference from this nerve irritation. This happens in the spinal joints and other joints of the body. When a nerve gets irritated you generally feel pain first. If the irritation persists you get numbness and then weakness of the muscle groups associated with that nerve. The spinal nerve has a vast amount of functions, whether it be temperature control, touch sensation, nutrition, metabolism, even waste disposal. There are many functions that can be affected by nerve interference. Think of it as a dimmer switch on a light, more interference the more the dimmer switch is turned down for that nerve. Chiropractic adjustments keep the nerve interference away and the dimmer switch turned up. Make sure all your lights are on full blast with regular chiropractic adjustments. Are you ON!

Slipping and Falling

It’s funny when clowns do it, falling down that is. It’s not very funny when you do it. Have you ever been out to get the paper in slippers when there is a little bit of snow on the driveway? Slick, I tell ya. When body meets concrete the body’s integrity can be compromised. So, how can you prevent a fall?

1. Watch your shoes. Leather soles or flat bottoms are slippery. Rubber soles with a tread pattern are best.
2. Watch where you walk. Painted concrete surfaces, driveways where there is a change in slope on the sidewalk, snow or ice over dirt paths, and especially stairs are some of the most hazardous areas for slip and falls.
3. Throw some salt or at least dirt on that ice. If it doesn’t melt it all the way, it will make the surface rougher and better for traction.

What happens if you fall. First, make sure everything is moving in the right spots without pain. Watch for areas that move that shouldn’t. There is usually a lot of pain associated with odd movement especially if there is a broken bone. If there is too much pain to move or bear weight, you better make a visit to the local emergency room, better sooner that later. If there is still some nagging pain or the pain moves to other areas of the body, your body is probably out of alignment. See your chiropractor at the minimum and get your body aligned so you don’t have any problems from the fall in the future. I hope you all only have to think about slipping and falling as a reference to gas prices.

Poof! Pillows

My pillow is too soft, was the first thought I had this morning. It is hard to know what is the best pillow to use. Some like goose down, some like fiber-fill, some like contoured foam. Like I said, there are a lot of choices so it is hard to know what’s best. I’ve tried everything, even the water filled, bean-filled, air-filled, foam-filled, etc. I always gravitate back to the fiber-filled. They come in different thicknesses depending on the way you sleep. The firmer thicker ones usually are for side sleepers. Typically the companies that sell pillows tell you on the outside what type of sleeper the pillow is for. The problem with pillows is they wear out. I replace mine every 2-3 months.

Position-wise, you should always be as symmetric as possible, with your head anyway. So, lying on your side, your nose should line up with the middle of your chest.

Back Sleeper:

Pillows under the knees helps reduce stress in the low-back.

Belly Sleeper:

The same thing, a pillow placed below the abdomen can reduce back stress in this position.

Overall, finding the best position to spend 6-8 hours a night can really help you to feel better throughout the rest of the day. Get chiropractic adjustments, get your sleep position right, and get the right pillow position and POOF! into it.

Ergonomics is Economics

It is amazing how far we have come isn’t it? What’s ergonomic? It is the position you put your body in that puts the least amount of stress on the body while working or doing repetitive tasks. The quote, “He who will not economize will have to agonize.”-sums it up. You have to conserve and minimize the use of certain muscle groups in the body. For example: If you continue to lift things just by bending forward and picking them up, eventually your back muscles will let you know you are doing it wrong. Lifting with your back straight and using your upper legs is much more economical and is less likely to cause injury in the long term.

Another place where people get into trouble is sitting at a desk or work station. Typically, you shouldn’t feel discomfort or strain while sitting or standing without movement. All items should be easily within reach and you shouldn’t have to strain to get to something you use a lot, like the phone or keyboard.

Texting and Phone reading is hard on your neck as well.

So, minimize stresses, economize movement, create health in your life, and get adjusted.

What’s a technique?

                                                                  

There are over 200 chiropractic techniques. I have lost count since they have become obscure. I break them out to structural techniques, reflex techniques, tonal techniques and upper cervical techniques.

What?

Well structural techniques are the poppin-crackin techniques and are what most people have heard of when there is a reference to chiropractic. Examples are: Diversified and Gonstead. Good stuff. Helps to reset joint movement. If every joint is moving properly, life is good.

Sometimes structural techniques are too much for some people. Adjustments can be made without popping and cracking. I use a reflexive technique called Activator Methods. Check out http://www.activator.com if you would like more info. Plug,plug. This reflexive technique uses a measurement of leg length with different head, arm and leg positions to evaluate where adjustments are made. Adjustments are made with the activator instrument which puts a impulse of force into a small area of the joint to correct the misalignment and function of that joint.

Tonal techniques are amazing as well. Tonal means tone or tension of the body. Tonal techniques use the movement of the spine during the breathing process as well as the movement of the sacrum or tailbone to evaluate alignment and direction of force input.

The most complex techniques are the upper cervical techniques, ie. NUCCA, Atlas Orthogonal, and Atlas Specific. They typically only adjust the top bone of the spine, aka atlas or C1. X-rays are usually taken to evaluate the position of the atlas with respect to the head and the rest of the spine. Adjustments are determined mathematically by measurements of the positions of each with respect to each other. Adjustments are administered by hand with light force or with an instrument that taps on the atlas.

This is only a few designations of techniques, but the most common and with brief explanations, so if you feel a gravitation to one technique or method, investigate and research. If in doubt always use the most experienced.

Hello world!

I’m a married-father who practices as a chiropractic physician in Reno, NV. I spend 2-3 hours a day training in multiple sports. The majority of my practice consists of personal injury or car crash victims and athletes. Since I have personal experience with whiplash injuries and sports injuries, I have a lot of empathy to offer my patients. Keeping fit, using natural vitamins and herbs, and being under regular chiropractic care will optimize a persons health.

I got into this job due to personal experience. I was involved in a car crash in 1987 that caused me headaches for 2 years. That is a long time to be experiencing headaches and it interfered in many aspects of my life. I was treated by a local chiropractor and the effects were good for a awhile, but not long lasting and I abandoned treatment from that doctor. I was talked into treatment from a friend who said,”there are many types of chiropractic and you have to try my chiropractor.” I am forever grateful to that friend and to the chiropractor I went to. I was immediately relieved of my headaches after one treatment of the DNFT, Directional non-force technique. The headaches came back, but never as bad as they were. Eventually, I had no headaches at all and I was able to have the awareness to know when I needed an adjustment, so I didn’t get anymore headaches. The technique that I practice is called Activator Method. I use an instrument, The Activator, to tap bones back into place. This technique was developed by two doctors who did DNFT but wanted another way to do it without injuring their hands and arms. The technique basically analyzes the symmetry of your body in certain positions. If there is a difference in the length of your legs while in a position there is an area of your spine that is not moving properly and is making your body compensate. After we eliminate all of these compensations you are said to be adjusted. After training your body to accept these adjustments as a new way of holding your body symmetry throughout life, you have better body function, brain body communication, and physical energy. Chiropractic Works