Just what is Body Imbalance and how do I know if it has happened to me?
Body Imbalance occurs when the C1 or atlas, and/or the C2 or
axis, the top two vertebrae in the neck, are misaligned and out of their
proper position. This can occur as a result of an accident, emotional
trauma, or chemical toxicity in the body. Childbirth itself can move the
atlas out of position because of the massive amounts of pressure on the
head and neck of the baby as it passes down the birth canal. Or
childhood accidents like falling from a tree, bike or skates can
misalign it. In adulthood, the atlas can be shoved out of position
during minor or major accidents such as sporting accidents, automobile
accidents or slips and falls. Some of the worst cases of atlas
misalignment and resulting pain have been caused by minor car accidents
such as being rear-ended. One indication of body imbalance is having one
leg slightly shorter than the other. You may also notice that when you
stand in front of a mirror one shoulder is slightly higher than another,
and one hip is higher than the other. Another indication your atlas may
be out of position is by having different symptoms in your body that
your medical doctor cannot explain or find the cause for on any tests.
How can Body Imbalance cause me to have physical problems?
The C1 or atlas is a donut-shaped bone that your skull rests on.
Your spinal cord coming out of your brain and brain stem passes through
the center of the donut shape. Your spinal cord at that point consists
of trillions of nerve fibers (the nervous system) that "bottle-neck"
through the small opening in the atlas. These fibers eventually branch
off carrying information to every part of your body. If the C1 is out of
its proper position it can irritate, constrict or disrupt vital nerve
signals to any portion of your body. This can cause muscle or joint
pain, organ dysfunction, lowered immune system and countless other
conditions that you would not ordinarily relate to a problem originating
in your neck.
Why do you call it Body Imbalance rather than a neck imbalance?
Because it effects the entire spine and body. Wherever your
atlas moves, your head moves with it. If this top bone in your neck has
shifted out of position ever so slightly, no more than the thickness of a
fingernail, it can move your head off center of your body. In an effort
to keep the head over the center of the neck, the entire spine and
pelvis will twist, pulling one hip up and one leg with it. You are now
walking around on one leg that is shorter than the other. This places
more weight on one side of your body than the other. The wear and tear
on your entire body is exactly like driving a car that is out of
alignment. The result can be muscle and joint pain anywhere in the body.
Without correcting the problem, which originated with a single bone
(atlas) at the top of your neck moving out of position, your entire body
is now imbalanced. When this continues over time, something else starts
to happen. Because nerve flow is disrupted or distorted, degeneration
of cells in organs can occur, causing internal physical problems that
may not show up for years.
Is it painful to correct?
Fortunately, no. The Upper Cervical Correction can be described
as a slight pre-determined direction of pressure applied to the first
bone (atlas) or second bone (axis) in the neck. Depending on the
technique, it can feel like a brisk thrust, a light tap, or a massage on
the side of the neck just below the earlobe. That's where the atlas is.
Sometimes this is accompanied by a loud pop or series of tiny ticks as
the bone moves back into place. There is NO twisting of the neck. This
correction is engineered to reposition the weight of the head (10 to 14
pounds) over the center of the body in order to restore body balance and
restore brain to body communication. When the correction is made,
muscles begin to relax, blood and oxygen circulation is increased, the
brain is able to communicate with the affected area, and the body's
natural healing process begins. The healing process continues as long as
body balance is maintained and the brain can communicate with all parts
of the body.
Does it have to be corrected often?
That depends on your own body. Some people can hold their
correction for several months, even a year at a time. Others have to be
corrected once or twice a week in the beginning, then one or twice a
month. Everyone is different. The Upper Cervical Chiropractic doctor's
objective is to make as precise an Upper Cervical Chiropractic
correction as possible. Then he/she must help you maintain the
correction with as few corrections as possible so that you may live pain
free and enjoy a better quality of life. Periodic Upper Cervical
Chiropractic checkups, just like dental checkups and physicals, should
be part of your personal preventive health care program. If you are
maintaining your correction and body balance then your chiropractor will
not adjust you.
I am concerned about radiation from the x-rays. Are they completely necessary?
Yes, they are the cornerstone of the Upper Cervical Chiropractic
doctor's practice and are very specialized. Most chiropractic equipment
today along with lead aprons keeps radiation down to a minimum. Plus,
any minimal danger from radiation, in our opinion, cannot be compared to
the destruction that is going on in your body every minute your atlas
obstructs brain to body communication. Any shift the atlas makes can
cause multiple health problems. But sometimes that shift in position is
no greater than the thickness of a fingernail. The Upper Cervical
Chiropractic doctor has to rely on x-rays to determine the exact
position your atlas/axis vertebrae have misaligned. The specific
analysis of the x-rays will allow the doctor how to reposition your
atlas to within a fraction of an inch back to the correct position it
should be.
The United Cervical Chiropractic doctor will make the correction
only after an intensive analysis of how far out of position your atlas
is. After correcting the atlas, either a second series of x-rays are
taken or a post heat reading is utilized to determine if the adjustment
was done correctly. These are referred to as pre and post x-rays and pre
and post heat readings. The doctor will show you these "before and
after" x-rays and/or heat readings so that you can see the difference
the correction has made.
How soon should I get my children under this care?
As soon after birth as possible, and then have them checked
periodically as they grow up. You could not possibly give your child a
better gift than to make certain that the one organ of the body that
controls all the other organs and body functions, the brainstem, is
doing its job without interference from the tiny bone just below it.
If the Upper Cervical Chiropractic procedure is so good, why haven't I heard about it before?
There are specific reasons why you have never heard about this
before, and unfortunately, they are political. First, everyone is aware
of the war that has been going on between the medical profession and the
chiropractic profession over the last 100 years. Whenever there is a
war, there is always a black out of information to the public at large.
For example, 6 years ago when we tried to discuss Upper Cervical
Chiropractic care with any medical doctor or nurse, the moment we
mentioned the word "chiropractor", a thick wall went up. We never were
given the chance to describe how advanced chiropractic at large as
become and there are phenomenal procedures like this one available to
people today. The medical prejudice we encountered prevented us from
being able to share this information with doctors and nurses who work
with people who desperately needed this information, the very
information that would have helped their patients avoid surgery in many
cases and avoid the consumption of drugs with dangerous side effects.
Because the doctors and nurses themselves did not know about this type
of healthcare, and in some cases, they chose not to know, their patients
have paid a high price for their medical doctor's ignorance.
Fortunately, 6 years later, more and more medical doctors are
discovering how beneficial Upper Cervical Chiropractic health care is
and are referring more and more of their patients to Upper Cervical
Chiropractic doctors. These medical doctors acknowledge that constantly
prescribing medication is ineffective and is actually creating
additional problems. They realize they have found a safe, scientific
alternative that is of extreme benefit to their patients. Some of these
progressive medical doctors are now becoming some of our greatest
allies. One day we sincerely hope that the medical and chiropractic
professions will work side-by-side for the benefit of public health. We
need them both.
The second reason you've never heard about this procedure before
is because certain laws in every state and in Canada prevent
chiropractors of any particular procedure, whether United Cervical
Chiropractic or otherwise, from freely advertising the procedure they
have dedicated their lives to learning. One law in particular forbids
any chiropractor of any procedure to infer that his method is superior
or more advanced than other chiropractic methods. If a chiropractor does
this, he could be severely chastised by his state board of chiropractic
examiners by being heavily fined and/or threatened with the loss of his
license.
It is possible that this law was originally passed to protect
the public from chiropractors making unrealistic claims about their
procedure. The unfortunate result of this law, however, is that it has
produced such fear in chiropractors who practice almost exclusively a
specific type of chiropractic, that they simply are forced to remain
silent about the benefits of their procedure. A law meant to protect the
public has actually created a moratorium on vital information that
could be of tremendous benefit and cost savings to the public.
Source
National Awareness Campaign for Upper Cervical Care, Inc. Web site. Available at:
http://www.uppercervical.org. Accessed on April 6, 2005.
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