Trauma, Thoughts, and Toxins = Vertebral Subluxations Part 2: Emotional Stress
Last week, we covered the five components of a vertebral subluxation, as defined by B.J. Palmer in Volume XVIII published in 1934. They are:1.) Malposition – This simply means misalignment of a vertebra
2.) Occlusion – This refers to the closing off of an opening that a nerve passes through. In our case, we are referring to the neural canal where the spinal cord travels down.
3.) Pressure – When C1 or C2 is misaligned, this can occlude the neural canal near the brain stem. This can cause pressure or tension on the cord at this level.
4.) Interference to flow of nervous system transmission – With a misalignment, an occlusion, and pressure, there is zero chance for the nervous system to properly communicate to the rest of the body.
5.) Three-directional torqued vertebra – To achieve these four components of vertebral subluxation, the C1 and C2 vertebrae has to shift up or down, left or right, and rotated front or back.
We also covered how physical stressors are one of three components that cause vertebral subluxations. Let’s move on to the second cause of a vertebral subluxation.
Thoughts aka Emotional Stress
Emotional stress is an unavoidable part of life. Loved ones will pass away. Downsizing at the workplace will continue to happen as companies merge, fail, and outsource. Family trouble, marital troubles, routine work deadlines, bills, student loan debt… the list goes on and on and on.
Learning how to deal with these day-to-day stressors is paramount. Here’s why.
Fight or Flight
Our
bodies have something called the “fight or flight” mechanism. This is
an automatic response by your body in cases of extreme stress.Some examples would be coming across a bear in the middle of the woods, getting mugged in a dark alley, or nearly getting hit by an oncoming car.
Your body responds in such a way that you are literally, in a split second’s time, equipped to fight or flee your way out of a perceived deadly situation.
Your body responds by instantly releasing adrenaline and cortisol throughout your body. These hormones cause your heart to pump faster and your breathing to increase. This allows more oxygen and blood to the muscles used for fighting or fleeing. It keeps them ready to react at the blink of an eye. Your liver releases sugar into the blood so your muscles can have that instant energy. You begin to sweat more, cooling down your body. Your metabolism speeds up, your tolerance to pain increases, and your senses are keener.
While these responses are great in a deadly situation, they are not great over long periods of time. A day to day continual fight or flight response over days, months, or years will cause your nervous system to write checks the body eventually won’t be able to cash. This will open the door for any number of disease processes to begin.
This is what chiropractors mean when they speak of a body being in dis-ease before it develops into disease.
Wearing Down
These reactions are carried out through the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system is one of two parts to your autonomic nervous system. The other is the parasympathetic nervous system, which carries out bodily functions while at rest. Ideally, we always want to be in a parasympathetic state. This allows our bodily functions like digestion and peristalsis to carry on without hindrance.
When we are always in a state of stress, our sympathetic nervous system runs the show. Constant secretion of adrenaline and cortisol, tension in the muscles, increased heart rate and blood pressure, and increased sugar release into the blood wears the body down over a long period of time. Because we are in this stressed state, we don’t sleep as well. With less sleep, out bodies can’t heal properly, and our immune system can’t bear the load. We then become more susceptible to lingering effects from bacteria and viruses.
With our body in a weakened state, our Innate Intelligence can only do so much. When the matter that is your body is limited to much less than its potential, true healing and health can never be experienced. Normal external forces that our body’s Innate Intelligence usually deals with (i.e. gravity, bumpy car rides, coughing, and sneezing) become too much for our bodies to handle.
The end result? A vertebral subluxation that interferes with the nervous system’s already depleted communication to the body.
As I said last week, we can’t afford to go through life without getting our nervous systems checked on a regular basis. That takes care of the physical part, but what about the emotional?
Coping With Stress
A positive mental attitude is a good place to start. Keeping yourself from getting down about your circumstances can be difficult at times, but it is necessary. We all go through rocky times, but life is sometimes about enduring through the hardships.
Exercise is one way to keep your spirits up. It is impossible for you to feel depressed once you start moving. The body releases endorphins (natural opiates) that naturally help you feel good. Yoga is another great way to release tension brought on by emotional stress. Deep breathing, meditation, and prayer are also other good ways to settle down mentally and allow your parasympathetic nervous system to take over.
Next week, we will cover the effects of chemical stress on the body and how that can result in a vertebral subluxation.
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