Martha's Mother

Several years ago, I was taking care of a family who had been under regular chiropractic care for many years. By this time, the focus was almost entirely on maintenance care. Symptoms were rare, and usually resolved very quickly after the subluxation had been located and a specific chiropractic adjustment delivered.

One day the mother – let’s call her Martha – came in complaining about a sudden and unexplained onset of low back pain. If there is anything that the medical literature is in agreement on, it is that chiropractic gets great results with low back pain. So, I checked and adjusted her. She felt better, as usual and returned home. In two days she returned with the same complaint, and added that she really needed to see it resolve because Grandma (her mom) was coming to stay with her family for several months and she had to get the house ready in the next two weeks. If I said that this was a strained relationship, it would be an understatement.

This sudden-onset affliction persisted in ebbs and flows for several months even with a more intense chiropractic schedule. It turns out that the pain began the very day the grandmother called to announce her visit and it ended just as abruptly on the day she left. Afterwards, we were able to put her back on her previous maintenance schedule without recurrence. Coincidence?

To me, this clearly supports the idea that emotional stress has an impact on our ability to adapt and thrive. It’s not usually as obvious as this, but we are more prone to get sick, be injured, and simply feel bad when we are under stress. Stress is a major factor in weight gain and many lifestyle diseases. And yes, there are some people who can literally be pains, whether in our necks or lower.

Making changes in your life to include more alone time, to meditate or pray more, to play and laugh more often are important. We need to manage our stress, just like we manage our diet and exercise. All of this is interrelated. And of course, chiropractic plays a big role in making sure we live up to our potential. Leave me a comment, or visit my website to learn more.

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