The Upper Cervical Blog

How To Misalign Your Head And Neck...Let Me Count The Ways

2012-02-10T13:12:00.000-06:00

(Editor's Note: Fifty to be exact and this is far from a complete list but it gets you thinking about why it is important to be checked periodically.)

by Dr. Deborah Sesker

In a perfect world, none of us would have been born byforceps, or by Cesarean, or with the doctor pulling with too much force on ourheads.

In a perfect world, none of us would have fallen off theside of the bed when we were two, tripped down the stairs at age eight, or rolledour car in the ditch at eighteen.

But these things happen. And when they do they often stressthe muscles and ligaments of the upper neck to the point where the bones misalign and lock-down, placing stress on the spinal column and the delicatenervous system inside.

If we were lucky enough to have our parents take us to anupper cervical doctor at a young age, we might have only lived with ourneck misalignment for days, weeks, or maybe a few years before having itproperly corrected.

But most of us aren’t, which means many of us live one, two,or six decades before we ever have our atlas unlocked by our upper cervical doctor. By this time ligaments are tightened, muscles have developedamnesia, and we have patterns of movements which place stress on the top of ourspine without us even knowing.

All of this is to say, that even a really good upper cervical correction may not hold very well, especially in the beginning of ourcare. And if we want to make the most of our upper cervical care,we’re going to need to be careful what we do on a day to day basis. Here are 50 simple ways you could lose your upper cervical alignment.

Sleeping on yourstomach.

Sleeping on yourside without proper neck support.

Reading in bedwith a book on your chest.

Watchingtelevision in bed with your chin on your chest.

Falling asleep onthe arm of the couch.

Falling asleepupright in a chair.

Falling asleepupright in a chair and waking up with an ear resting on one shoulder.

Falling asleepanywhere other than your bed.

Propping your headup on your hands, fist or palm under your jaw, for more than a few seconds at atime.

Looking up formore than a minute at a a time, be it stargazing, birdwatching, or painting aceiling.

Stretching yourneck by pushing it forward, backward, or pulling it to the the side with yourhands.

Having anyone elsepush or pull your head to stretch your neck.

Stretching yourneck by rolling your head in big circles.

Staring down at aSmart Phone screen or tablet for hours everyday.

Gripping a phonebetween your ear and your shoulder, instead of using headset or speaker phone.

Having a smallchild hang from your neck.

Having a smallchild jump on your head while wrestling in the living room.

Having anyone hangfrom your neck or jump on your head.

Whipping your headto the left or right or up and down while dancing, head-banging, or whatever itis you might be doing.

Flipping your hairrepeatedly to remove it from your face.

Shaking your hairout to help dry it after a shower.

Turning your headwithout moving your shoulder to look behind you while driving.

Driving andhitting anything going more than five miles per hour.

Driving andgetting hit by anyone else going more than five miles per hour, for thatmatter.

Getting into yoursmall sedan by craning your neck to one side to sit down over and over again,instead of sitting down facing outward, and then rotating your body inward.

Getting elbowed inthe face while playing basketball, volleyball, tag, or any other amateur sport.

Standing on yourhead.

Heading a soccerball.

Smacking your ownforehead.

Falling on anoutstretched hand.

Doing a somersaultimproperly.

Doing a cartwheelimproperly.

Doing certain yogapositions improperly.

Doing ab cruncheswith your hands behind your head.

Landing on yourhead from any height.

Boxing.

Martial arts withbad form.

Bench pressing andwatching your biceps, not the bar.

Squatting andlifting your chin as you fatigue.

Lifting withouttucking your chin at work, at home, or anywhere.

Getting dentalwork.

Popping your ownneck.

Having someoneelse pop your neck.

Chewing gum allday.

Cracking a tooth.

Deep tissuemassage in the neck.

Getting your hairwashed, dyed, or dried backward in a salon sink.

Getting into apillow fight.

Getting placed ina head-lock

Getting up,turning over, or moving your body by leading with the head and neck, and notwith the pelvis.

Does doing any one of these 50 things mean you’re going toneed another adjustment? Not necessarily. Everyone is a little bit different.(Some kids have played high school football without losing their alignment.)

But they are common ways that you can set yourupper cervical care backwards, and they’re worth considering if you’re having ahard time holding your alignment.

What Does Upper Cervical Care Cure?

2012-02-03T16:26:00.000-06:00

Adapted from "Chiropractors Do Not Cure Anything!" by Dr. Jason Watts

Upper cervical care doesn't cure anything; notheadaches, not asthma, not stomach disorders or even back pain. Then what does upper cervical care do?

Upper cervical care is based on a very basic scientific fact. Your brain is responsible for every bodilyfunction you ever perform from before you were born until the time youdie. Your brain sends those instructionsthrough a vast telephone network (known as the nervous system) to every cell,tissue and organ in your body. If thosetelephone lines are interfered with in any way, those instructions coming fromthe brain can get distorted and the result is lost function.

Your spine is designed to protect the telephone lines. If the spine has been injured (even veryslightly and especially where the head and neck come together) it can become a major irritant to the nerve system, this is what upper cervical doctors call head/neck misalignment (vertebral subluxation). Howserious is this problem?

“Vertebral subluxation changes the entire health of the bodyby causing structural dysfunction of the spine and causing nerveinterference. The weight of a dime on aspinal nerve will reduce nerve impulse transmission by as much as60%.” - Chang H. Suh, Spinal Biomechanics Specialist, University of Colorado

“Nerve dysfunction is stressful to the visceral nerve andother body structures and the lowered tissue resistance modifies the immuneresponse and lessens the overall capability of the immune system.” - The JournalScience, 1981

“The quality of healing is directly proportional to thefunctional capability of the nerve system to send and receive nerve messages.” - J Edwards, MD, PhD., Journal of Neurological Science

Knowing how important the role of the nerve system is, itshould become clear how vital the job of the upper cervical doctor is. The objective of upper cervical care isto correct head/neck misalignment that is interfering with proper brain to bodycommunication. Considering another medicalstudy which states that 80% of newborns receive their first spinal traumaduring the birth process, when do you think is a good time to begin checkingthe spine for head/neck misalignment? Perhaps at birth, just a thought.

And at what point in life does it become acceptable to have head/neck misalignment distorting your nerve system? Hopefully never.

This is why periodic care throughout life makes so muchsense. Not to treat or cure any diseaseor disorder, but to maintain your nervous system function at optimallevels. Allowing your brain and yourbody to communicate with maximum efficiency every moment of your life, that isthe real definition of wellness and that is what upper cervical care seeks to provide,not a cure for a specific disease.

When people have head/neck misalignment reduced or correctedand their nervous system is able to function better, do some diseases anddisorders and other symptoms go away? Frequently, but in every case their body is able to function at a higherlevel.

Diabetes, Brain Stem and Upper Cervical Care

2012-01-23T16:20:00.000-06:00

by restorationspecific at Health Restored Blog

How can Upper Cervical Care help with Diabetes?

“The medulla oblongata is the lowermost portion of thebrain, continuous with the spinal cord, that is responsible for respiration,circulation and the body’s autonomic reflexes, including function of thepancreas.”

Recent studies done by Dr. Peter Jannetta, MD the leadingadvocate and developer of microvascular decompression surgery has discovered apossible link between the vascular compression of the Medulla Oblongata (aportion of the brain stem) to metabolic disease such as Diabetes. Dr. Jannetta,MD has performed more than 6,000 microvascular decompression operations and hebelieves that inadequate blood flow to the brain stem is vital to insulinresistance and poor autonomic nervous system function. 7 out of 10 patients inDr. Peter Jannetta’s latest study had improved glucose control withoutadditional lifestyle changes.

When there is a misalignment in the upper cervical (neck) area,vascular compromise of the Brain stem is one of the most devastatingpossible consequences. Unlike most tissue that would die without proper blood flow,tissues in the central nervous system lie dormant until blood flow can be restored.With upper cervical care, the correction releases the torque on the Brain stemwhich decompress the vascular network that Dr. Jannetta’s believes contributesto metabolic diseases including Diabetes. In essence, the upper cervical correction reawakens the dormant tissues in the Brain stem area withoutexpensive and invasive surgery.

Do you know anyone with Diabetes? Please share thisinformation with your friends and family.

(Editor's note: Remember the objective of upper cervical care is to correct head neck misalignment that is interfering with proper brain to body communication. When this is corrected the body functions at a higher level and can often correct other problems more efficiently on its own. Please do not confuse upper cervical care as a treatment for diabetes or any other condition, disease or symptom.)

A Free Digital Copy Of "Sickness 2 Health" For You

2012-01-12T13:56:00.000-06:00

(Editors Note: I have decided to offer the digital copy of my book for free. Please email me at drtravisrobertson@gmail.com to request your free copy. I only ask that once you have read it that you please email me back with what you thought of it. Below is the synopsis for you. Thanks.)

Update: If you want to purchase the paperback version click on any of the links below but make sure to enter coupon code PRICETHAW305 at checkout and receive 20% off your order. The maximum savings for this offer is $100. Sorry, but this offer is only valid in US Dollars and cannot be applied to previous orders. You can only use this code once per account, and unfortunately you can't use this coupon in combination with other coupon codes. This great offer expires on January 20, 2012 at 11:59 PM PST, so don't miss out!

What is "Sickness 2 Health" about?

Sickness 2 Health is about regaining and maintaining your health by turning common health knowledge upside down and inside out. There is a paradigm shift happening and people are looking to “do it yourself” healthcare more all the time for better health and, especially in today’s current economy, to save money. There are many books out there of course that address this and try to provide ideas and suggestions about what one should do to regain and maintain their health. This is not what Sickness 2 Health is about. Sickness 2 Health, while giving some action steps, has the primary intention of rattling and shattering your current world view in regards to health. From the smoldering ashes of these old outdated views we lift up a new perspective and premise to make health decisions from, like a phoenix rising from its own ashes.

Why is Sickness 2 Health different?

After reviewing many of the books in this genre it was found that even some of the big names in books on health, such as Deepak Chopra and Andrew Weil, fail to fully address the underlying issue that prevents people from achieving abundant health. To give them credit where credit is due, they do a marvelous job painting a picture of the path that we would like to be on and their information is extremely helpful and motivational even maybe empowering and inspirational. Where they fall short is addressing the underlying worldview most people have been programmed to accept that can easily sabotage their efforts to help others. If a reader’s general perspective or fundamental views on health and life have not been rattled and reset their chances of failure go up. It needs admitting that “Sickness 2 Health” will, by no means, guarantee a person’s success, but make the point that by addressing the foundational thought process and world viewpoint in regards to life and health their odds of success will be greatly enhanced by comparison.

Chopra and Weil do touch on this concept in many of their books but never really come right out and address it head on. They tend to fall into the trap of “telling people what to do” to be healthy, giving them a step by step program, focusing on natural remedies to particular conditions or giving recipes for better meals. All of these things are great to include in any health book but again it draws attention away from the more basic issue that leads people to most of their health issues. Most people make their choices, health related included, based on their understanding of the world and how it and their bodies work. If this general worldview is less accurate than it could be they will most likely not achieve the level of health and the results they wish to. Finally while Chopra and Weil’s books are full of great information they include too much, once again, because they end up telling them the right “program” to follow and this results in a book that is long and potentially intimidating.

It would be hard to say for sure but it is likely that there are quite a few people that thought one of their books would be helpful but once they saw it they had second thoughts due to the length of the book. The reader’s hand certainly should not be held and everything made easy for them because people need to really want to get better in order to achieve it. Basically, if the point can get put across to the reader in fewer pages do it. It will increase the likelihood of more people picking up the book and purchasing it and actually reading it, maybe even reading all of it.

Sickness 2 Health (S2H) has been purposely kept short (under 190 pages) because there are plenty of books out there that go into great detail about “the things” that you can do to help your health. Many of these books by less well known authors do a great job and are shorter but these fail to even graze, even for a moment, on the subject that S2H address; the readers worldview and basis for their thought process and hence their choices. So S2H is not intended to replace these great works or any other health book that gives people a program to follow to get healthy and stay that way. S2H is intended to aid the reader, in a short power packed book, to reshape their own world lens and gain their health back in the process. In the long run this refined worldview of theirs will help any other book they may pick up regarding health to be that much more effective.

S2H is different from other books because of the three goals that Dr Robertson set out to accomplish. First of all, the goal to reach a wide audience, particularly those suffering from ill health and looking for a way out. Second, to reach them in a short enough format that will give them the most information with the least amount of reading. Finally, to shake the very foundation of their thought process because if that is successful the reader’s life can’t help but be changed in the process, and thus their choices and of course their health. If the source of a river is changed everything downstream will change, that is what S2H is set to accomplish and the world is in need of it now more than ever and they are looking, the timing is perfect.

Available as a paperback here

Have Hope, Get Well

2012-01-09T09:46:00.001-06:00

Adapted from

Is there any Hope of getting well?

by Dr. Bill Davis

Hope is a very powerful emotion. John Maxwell once said “when there is hope inthe future, there is power in the present.” Many patients come into my office as a last hope. They may have tried the medical approach,alternative approaches and even other chiropractic approaches. But when they hear about NUCCA upper cervical care, a sliver ofhope is born. NUCCA is a form of carethat is focused on restoring the heavy head to a centered and balanced position top of the neck. The rehabilitativeprocess that ensues once this underlying problem is identified is trulyamazing. As the brain can begin to sendproper messages to all areas of the body, hundreds of different conditions haveresponded to properly aligning the head and the neck.

Typically accidents or injuries will tear loose theconnective tissue that holds the spine in place which will lead to a weaknessin the spine at the level of the atlas the top bone in the spine. This weakness will allow the weight of thehead to shift from center and begin a cascade of compensations throughout thebody potentially leading to pain and poor health.

A great example of this is a recent patient of ours who wasstruggling with a chronic mid-back pain. He had a series of dirt bike accidents that had led to the instabilityand misalignment in his spine. At 20years old he had already tried many different treatments including physicaltherapy, stretching, exercises and medications. T.J.was losing hope that he would ever be free from this pain and able to work andexercise like a 20-year-old should. Hereis his story…

When I first cameto Breath of Life, I was suffering from extreme back pain that was resultingfrom motorcycle crashes and weight lifting injuries. I had been to otherdoctors and took medication all in hopes of finding relief, but nothing worked.I looked to NUCCA upper cervical care as a last attempt to find relief.

I have seen manyimprovements in my health since starting NUCCA care. Not just in my back, butin my energy level, mood and overall well-being.

I am now able tolift weights without worrying about starting another flare up. At work I am somuch better now, that I am pain-free and I am even nicer more of the time. Inever realized how much being misaligned affected my moods.

If I see someonewho is suffering from any kind of pain that they don’t know how to alleviate, Itell them to try NUCCA, because it worked wonders for me when I had no hope.

I nowlook forward to every adjustment. Knowing that when my body is in alignment Iwill always leave feeling so relaxed and in the best mood!

Health, Gravity And Upper Cervical

2012-01-06T13:20:00.000-06:00

adapted from: Health and Gravity

by Dr. Michael D. Thomas, NUCCA doctor

Years ago I had found a quote from Roger Sperry,who won the Nobel Prize in Medicine/Physiology in 1981. Sperrynoted that 90% of the brain’s energy is used in relating the physical body togravity. Only 10% has to do withthinking, metabolism, and healing. -Didyou have any idea it was such a big percentage?

This means that when we are out of upper cervical alignment and ourposture has become disordered, we are using valuable energy to just holdourselves upright that ideally goes into thinking, metabolism and immunefunction.

How many of us feel fuzzy headed, or brain fog when we areout of adjustment?

Does your digestion change?

How about sleep patterns?

Most of us already know about the multitude of aches andpains that can be associated with being out of upper cervical alignment. What you may not realize though, are the realproblems that will eventually accumulate when we must chronically use ourprecious energy to adapt to being out of line. Upper cervical misalignment can be a progressiveand degenerative problem.

Fortunately, many of you also realize the incrediblechange that can take place when the upper cervical misalignment iscorrected. So many folks who come in forcare have told me over the years about the incredible turn around that occurredwhen they got corrected and made the commitment to stay in alignment. There are many who tell me they would not bewalking if not for upper cervical care.

I find that upper cervical care is truly primary health care. What I mean by this is that removing nervous system interference at theupper cervical area (top of the neck) is a critical step in the improvement ofhealth. Many of my patients have beenable to wean themselves off not just pain medications, but many other medications thatthey’d had to take on a long term basis because of the troubling symptoms thatmay have developed due to long term upper cervical misalignment. They just didn’t have the debilitatingproblems anymore. They could begin torefocus back on their life. And, themoney they were spending on these suppressive drugs could be better spent inother areas of their life!

Some folks use the upper cervical correction like they dothe emergency room. They only come in when they are in terribletrouble and want a quick and miraculous ‘fix’. The upper cervical correction can often give them this ‘fix’ but the effects of livingout of alignment for weeks and months takes it toll. The upper cervical misalignmentis a problem even more so the longer that it is there. Once you are out of alignment, problems will slowly or not so slowly, beginto pile up. Arthritis could be one part of themany attempts by your body to adapt to being twisted and unlevel. Poor posture is another possibility and tends to wear down the joints andcreate inflammation and pain.

The upper cervical correction is our Health’s bestfriend. Getting checked periodicallythrough out the year is a wonderful and cost effective way to stay healthy and allow your inner wisdom the chance to work to its fullest.

Where Each One of Us Truly Lives

2011-12-30T15:06:00.000-06:00

Where Do You REALLY Live?

From the Weekly Sticky

What do you use to see with? If you said your eyes… you're wrong. How about hearing? If you saidears… wrong again! You don't see orhear with your eyes or ears. Those arejust end organs for collecting light and sound waves. To actually see and hear you have tointerpret those waves with your nerves and brain (Nerve System) first.

In reality, you LIVE in your Nerve System. EVERYTHING you experience in life isprocessed through it… what you see, what you hear, what you feel. That's why upper cervical doctors care so much about it keeping it free of interference. If your Nerve System is stressed, there goesyour ability to interpret your world, and there goes your ability tosuccessfully navigate life.

periodic corrections keep your Nerve System clear so you canrespond to life's challenges in a positive way. If you're feeling a little foggy, or just disconnected from the world,maybe it's time for some Nerve System house cleaning. Give your upper cervical doctor a call today and getreconnected to Life.

The Christmas Request

2011-12-23T17:25:00.000-06:00

Another Unreasonable Request for Christmas

Michael D. Thomas, D.C.

It is the Holiday time of year. The weather is cooling off and there is an air of festivities and perhaps a hint of goodwill in theair. Challenging times demand more of usjust to stay where we are. It isperhaps, more important than ever to find the spirit of this time of year andexamine the past year in anticipation of the coming one. To begin, we might examine what we arethankful for. If this last year was astough for you as it was for me, you might think there is little to be gratefulfor, but you would be wrong.

A bit of perspective goes a long way. There are now seven billion of us on ourplanet Earth. 80% of us live inpoverty. That means most of us can’ttake care of our basic needs. 70% areilliterate. That means that the vastdatabases and the accumulated knowledge that lives in the written word isunavailable to us and our lives. Half ofus suffer from hunger and malnutrition every day. 500 million of us are in prison, beingtortured or close to dying from starvation. 3 billion of us cannot go to our house of worship without riskingassault or death. If you have a fullrefrigerator, clothes to wear, a roof over your head and a place to sleep youare wealthier than 75% of us on this planet. If you have money in the bank and also some in your wallet, you areamong the 8% of people who do. Onepercent of people on the Earth own a computer. One percent has a college degree. 6% of us own 59% of the wealth and statistically they all come from theUSA. If you fall on thefortunate side of these numbers you can certainly be grateful. If not, you don’t need me to tell you aboutit.

Gratitude isn’t about how much you have, it’s about yourperspective. Being grateful connects youto something much bigger than yourself. It changes the way you see everything that unfolds in front of you. We are all interconnected. What we do, the choices we make, the thingswe buy, the food we eat, the people we associate with, all make a difference inthe world. Being grateful is a willfulact of perspective. We can be irritatedthat things aren’t going the way we planned or we can be grateful that wesimply woke up this morning. Our armsand legs worked (If they did. If not, weare grateful for the ones that do!) Ourbrains work. We can see and hear. We can move about. We may have others who care about us. We may have family that pulls together everyday. We may have a job that allows us topay our bills and to live the life we choose. We may have love in our life. Wecertainly have the love that we can give. Love’s origin is inside each of us. And given the reciprocal nature of love, if you give love out daily itreturns in spades. This is one time thatthe more you give the more you receive. This is Love’s secret.

I know from my own journey that living in fear, constantlyworrying about survival, struggling to take and hold onto what you want is alonely and unsatisfying life. Fear andcreativity are mutually incompatible. Even if you have others around you, survival consciousness is a lonelyprison. Everything that occurs isregistered as either more or less for and about you. “What’s in it for me” is the mantra of greedthat has made this planet so inequitable. On the other hand, there is another perspective. This perspective comes from an appreciationof the ‘pattern that connects’. You maybe religious, you may not. This isn’tabout theology but it does have a central spiritual component. We are not just ‘meat machines’. We are not just selfish clots ofdesires. We are not actually independentat all. We may imagine that we areself-sufficient, but no one is. We arepart of an unimaginable pattern bigger than anything our brains can come upwith. Our lives are connected toeverything around us from the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food weeat to the people we interact with. Morethan this realization of connection is the realization that we can trust Life. In the upper cervical work I do it is calledthe ‘non-interference paradigm’. Itmeans that we can trust the life inside of us and that our best medicine isremoving any interference to it and trusting that the life that created you,that made what would one day become you grow into a cell and from there intotrillions of cells (that you are now!). The life that built and grew your tissues and bones and the nervoussystem that connects you to all of life will manifest in the optimal way, if itcan. There is always enough. There is even abundance.

You won’t read this much in the medical literature. It doesn’t get airplay on the news. There is no profit inself-sustainability. There is nothing tobuy. Our health is our greatesttreasure. Without it, nothing muchmatters. With it, everything ispossible. The real true and only healeris inside each one of us. We are nothere by accident. In fact incrediblethings had to occur for you to be walking the planet at this time. We have somehow come to see the world as coldand cruel and indifferent but it is us who have those qualities, not life.

Once gratitude has washed its way through our hearts andlives, we find the end of the year to be a moment when we ponder what comesnext? We generally move in the directionwe are headed. What is ourdirection? How can we be betterpeople? As we serve our communities, weourselves are served in a manifold of ways that we could never predict. As we are generous with others, generosity isunleashed in our own lives. As we rejectfear and worry, it is replaced by the peace of a kind word, a selfless act, anunlikely courtesy. And with these sweetmoments comes the health we have despaired over. The friends we wished we had, perhaps eventhe money we desperately need to keep afloat. Not because we took it from others who don’t have enough for themselves,but because we allowed it to occur. Wecan’t see the big picture. This is whatfaith means.

It is in the present moment that this gift comes, and onlyin the present moment. If we are lostlamenting the past or agonizing over an imagined future, we miss the possibilitythat is engendered in the moment. Eachmoment that we miss is lost forever. Butthe good news is that a new one occurs in the present that is equally pregnantwith possibilities and hope and power and satisfaction. This universe appears to be a well ofever-new creativity. To drink from thiswell we must be present now. We can’tdrink the water of yesterday or tomorrow.

Roughly two thousand years ago, a man named Jesus ofNazareth postulated a doctrine of love. In a most unreasonable fashion, he told those who listened to him thatthey had no need to fear the future or be tortured by the past. He said that if one is met with violence thatone should return love. All thesecenturies later we still can’t quite get our heads around that one. We come from many millennia of ‘an eye for aneye and a tooth for a tooth’. Gandhi,who many centuries after Jesus, noted that this idea, carried out to thelogical conclusion would leave the world blind and edentulous. He met violence with non-violence as did Kingand many others who have talked of returning love for hate, but the idea didn’tdie with them. It never dies because itsprings full formed over and over in each of our hearts. What we do with this gift is up to each oneof us. We make this choice every momentof our lives.

As useful as our rational mind is, it cannot conceive of theinfinite possibilities that await us each moment. This mind can only compare our memories ofwhat happened in the past and then give us a ‘best guess’. This guess is laden with our neuroses and ourfeelings and of course our ‘rationalizations’. Our memories are often inaccurate and substantially incomplete. In this way we are blind to our presentbecause of the baggage from the past. Healing is always about changing our consciousness. In upper cervical care we remove neurologicalinterference at the junction between the head and neck and find that when thisLife within us can flow without impediment it sings a much happier song! In the same way that this work can transformour physical lives, gratitude and love can transform our inner and outerlives. We are not made to be victims ofour mind. Our minds are instruments weuse in this life. We must be present inthe moment to use and not be used by our minds. Our choices make our lives, one moment at a time.

Merry Christmas!

Want Optimal Health? Check out Upper Cervical Care

2011-12-18T17:40:00.000-06:00

If you are looking for optimum health, look into upper cervical chiropractic.

From painfreechristina.com

If you are wanting to enhance your well being ask yourself this question, Is your body in balance? If you suffer from backaches, headaches, acid reflux, digestive issues, rheumatoid arthritis, bronchial asthma, depression symptoms, vertigo, or also regular joint pain, possibilities are, you are out of alignment and struggling from an imbalance in your system. Upper cervical care is a highly specialized form of chiropractic care that focuses only on the top two vertebrate in the neck, the atlas and the axis. If these turn out to be misaligned due to stress, an incident, or also simply as a outcome of your lifestyle itself, your body can turn out to be misaligned and out of balance. One shoulder may sit higher than another, or your legs may be somewhat different lengths.

This misalignment commences to put pressure on the nerves in the craniocervical junction, the one element of the body in which the backbone and the crucial nervous system are attached. This pressure can lead to a variety of physical symptoms, which includes backaches, headaches, and joint pain. More significant difficulties can additionally develop, which includes fibromyalgia, sciatica pain, irritable bowel affliction, and migraines.

Upper cervical care seeks to re-establish your body’s natural communication system and allow your body to tap into its innate potential to heal by itself. An upper cervical doctor will not twist or power the neck back into alignment, but will strive to lightly correct a misalignment. The adjustment will likely need to be repeated on a number of occasions over the subsequent weeks and months till the particular person’s body is capable of keeping the realignment on its own.

Upper cervical care alone does not heal the body; the upper cervical realignment simply allows the body’s nervous system to talk effectively in between mind and body. This allows the body to perform as it was effortlessly meant to do, in the end healing itself.

(Editor's note: Remember the objective of upper cervical care is to correct head neck misalignment that is interfering with proper brain to body communication. When this is corrected the body functions at a higher level and can often correct other problems more efficiently on its own. Please do not confuse upper cervical care as a treatment for any condition, disease or symptom.)

The Inner Light in All of Us

2011-12-15T16:08:00.000-06:00

(Editor's Note: I thought this was very fitting for this time of year especially. Enjoy what Dr. Frank Bowling has to say. His words always seem to resonate with me, so I hope they do with you also.)

Inner Beauty, Inner Light

by Dr. Frank Bowling

Emerson wrote, “There is no object so foul that intenselight will not make beautiful.” Though he was a philosopher, when Emerson wrotethose words he was simply describing the natural world. His appreciation ofnature was so great, he marveled at everything in it, and the more clearlyilluminated by sun or moon or stars, the more fantastic he thought each animalor insect or blade of grass or grain of sand became.

Certainly, Emerson’s words are true in the context in whichhe wrote them, but being an incorrigible armchair philosopher myself, readingthem instantly sent my mind spinning off into an interpretation that perhaps henever intended, though one of which I feel certain he would approve.

I am, generally speaking, a positive thinker. I mostly see theglass half full. I expect that things are eventually going to work out for thebest, and am fond of saying, “There’s a reason for everything,” though oftentimes we may have great difficulty discerning what in the world that reasonmight be.

And so, when I read the words “intense light” in Emerson’sessay, I could not help thinking about the clarity that can come from focusedattention in the present moment. So often, we find ourselves functioning onautopilot, and when faced with difficult people or situations, our initial oreven sustained response may be to classify them as negative, or ugly, or inEmerson’s word, “foul.”

Yet, there is in this vast universe of ours an organizationso complex, and so perfectly orchestrated and synchronized, any cognizant andcoherent person must surely see behind, beneath and within it a universal intelligence. Surely, there may be a Master Plan, and if there is, surelyeverything that happens to us must be a part of that Grand Design.

It would seem to behoove us, then, to the best of ourability, to judge nothing that occurs, to accept people and events as they are,and to look inside our own hearts for the courage and wisdom to learn from themwhatever we are meant to learn. We’re here to grow, and everything that happensto us is an opportunity to further that growth. If we can develop the abilityand the habit of seeing the world and everything in it from that perspective,perhaps we can spark within ourselves that intense light of which Emersonwrote, so that all things may become for us truly beautiful, and we ourselvestruly beautiful in return.

Wishing you health, happiness and peace this holiday season.

(Make sure you are shining bright this holiday season [and all year long] with periodic upper cervical care.)

More Energy for Healing?

2011-12-13T16:14:00.000-06:00

How to Get More Energy for Healing, Digestion, and Thinking

by Dr. Brandon Harshe

“Better than 90% of the brain’s output is directed towardsmaintaining your body in its gravitational field. Therefore, the less energy one spends onone’s posture, the more energy is available for healing, digestion andthinking.” -Roger Sperry, 1981 NobelPrize winner for brain research

The first cervical vertebra, Atlas or C1, is the most freelymovable vertebra in the spine, and the one most likely to cause irritation ortension to the spinal cord. It pivots around the second cervical vertebra, Axisor C2, connected only by ligaments and tendons, but no disc as in the rest ofthe spine. This is what allows the majority of spinal rotation to occur, but atthe price of instability. In most cases, you will not feel the problem in your upper cervical spine.

When the head and neck misalign, you won’t feel it in most cases, but it will have a number of negativeeffects on the body. Because it is causing irritation and/or tension near thebrain stem, vital organ function can be negatively impacted. Conditions such ashigh blood pressure, asthma, allergies, and digestive problems can arise.Because of a high number of sensory nerves in the upper neck calledmechanoreceptors, head/neck misalignment can manifest itself in variousconditions such as neck pain or stiffness, or tension headaches. You could evenexperience other conditions like migraines or vertigo as a result of having head/neck misalignment. Or you may have no obvious symptoms at all. (see editor's note below)

Head/neck misalignment can also cause an overall bodyimbalance that can result in overall spinal compensation. This will be characterizedby spinal curvature, contracted or tight muscles on one side of the spine, posturalimbalances such as a tilted head, high shoulder, and high hip, and an imbalancein leg lengths. Over time this could lead to forms of degeneration likebone spurs and fusion of the vertebrae, as well as back and shoulder pain, andeven herniated discs.

So restoring proper position to the Atlas and Axis vertebraehave more of an effect on your overall well being than you have ever imagined.If you haven’t had your nervous system and upper neck checked, it’stime you did.

Clark Griswold Needs The Power Turned On!

2011-12-12T13:26:00.002-06:00

Adapted from "The Weekly Sticky"

It's a classic holiday movie scene. Clark Griswold standswith bated breath and extension cords in hand as a childlike giddinessovertakes him. The family drum rollcommences, he makes the much anticipated electrical connection and VOILA…nothing happens.

Clark has a power problem. Although the extension cords are all connected and each individualChristmas light has been inspected with precision, he's still not connected tothe source. It isn't until his wife'adjusts' an obscure switch in the garage, and turns the main POWER back onthat the light show begins. She'dactually make a good upper cervical doctor!

If your wiring (nerve system) is connected andyour body parts have all been dutifully inspected by the best doctor in theworld, you still won't function to your potential if you're not connected 100%to your source… the Life creating power that flows from above, down, inside,out. Make sure you and your family stayconnected to it with upper cervical care during this bustling holidayseason. You glow brighter when yourpower switch is on.

The Pain of Life

2011-12-09T16:01:00.001-06:00

Adapted from the mama birth blog titled Painful Birth-Loving it, Embracing It, Accepting It

I live at the top of a hill. I try to stay in shape by running. The easy part is getting DOWN the hill. But, inevitably I must come home at somepoint and that includes going UP hill.

Sometimes, since I am tired and at the end of my run, I tryto avoid the hills. I see one coming upand so I turn before I get there. Butthen I find something awful. ANOTHER hill. Then I try to turn again. Surely, I can get home without going up ahill, right?

As it turns out, NO. I live on the top of a hill and to get back home I must go up ahill. Trying to avoid the hill is simplygoing to drag out the inevitable and possibly get me lost.

When it comes to life, I think all of us have done ourselves adisservice. We havetold ourselves over and over that life doesn't have to be painful. It can be painless and easy. You don't have to sweat! You don't have to suffer!

Different groups go about this in different ways. Medical doctors give you drugs and Chiropractors often feel adjustments should solve your pain.

I am not advocating that we all should expect life to be excruciating and scared to death about the prospect.

But over and over again I see people who are actually ashamed to admitthat they feel pain of all types in life. It is like it is some kind of badge of honor to have a pain free life.

Guess what. I thinkthat is lame. I think we have sold peoplea bill of goods and we are not adequately preparing them for the realities of life when we act like they can have a life without pain if they just "doeverything right" and "have their mind free of fear", etc.

There. I just saidit. I think the idea of pain free life is a little lame.

Let me explain.

The most beautiful thing about life to me is what it canteach us about real life. I think thatis why the journey of life is so intense and beautiful and multifaceted- it isteaching us lessons that will serve us for the rest of our life if we listen and learn from them.

That lesson is this- Real joy requires some pain.

I don't know how much of my life I have spent avoiding thehard stuff, but I can tell you that it was far to much.

Too many a year was spent waiting for things to get easierand hoping that THEN I could really enjoy life. I missed out on enjoying the hard times and learning from them. I dragged out the misery and I didn'tappreciate what I could have been learning at the time. I told the universe to keep trying like madto teach me the same lesson, over and over again, because I didn't want tolearn it.

I don't believe life is supposed to be easy. I don't believe it is supposed to bepain free.

What should you love, embrace, and accept about the pain of life?

Embrace that it is teaching you that you are strong and theonly way that it can teach you this is by having you go through something thatyou didn't think you were capable of.

Love that when it is over you will feel joy andsatisfaction.

Embrace that life makes you a person that knows they arecapable and willing to do what they must.

Accept that it is something you must, no- are BLESSED- to gothrough. It isn't a punishment, it is ajourney and it is great one.

When we try to avoid the hills of life we short changeourselves, we fight what was meant to be and make longer a journey that, thoughit includes difficulties, gives us an amazing ride throughout. When we fight this, avoid this, or aresurprised by this it simply makes that hill harder to climb.

We need to stop avoiding the pain of life andwe need to love what it teaches us, what it does for us, and what it means tous when we have gone through it. Thepain of life is your teacher, your lover and your friend. It is not something to be feared. It is what makes life so magnificent.

Healthy for the Holidays for $10?

2011-11-25T13:57:00.001-06:00

(I know this is a shameless plug for my book but I wanted to pass along the chance to save money)

Not sure what to get a friend or loved one this holiday season? Use coupon code BUYMYBOOK305 at checkout on lulu.com and receive an additional 25% off the already discounted price of my book. This puts the price for the paperback around $10.12 and the digital version around $3.37. (And in typical advertising style)...this great offer ends on December 14, 2011 at 11:59 PM PST so don't delay, get yours today.

Click on any of the links in the synopsis below to purchase.

Available as paperback or download here

What is "Sickness 2 Health" about?

Sickness 2 Health is about regaining and maintaining your health by turning common health knowledge upside down and inside out. There is a paradigm shift happening and people are looking to “do it yourself” health care more all the time for better health and, especially in today’s current economy, to save money. There are many books out there of course that address this and try to provide ideas and suggestions about what one should do to regain and maintain their health. This is not what Sickness 2 Health is about. Sickness 2 Health, while giving some action steps, has the primary intention of rattling and shattering your current world view in regards to health. From the smoldering ashes of these old outdated views we lift up a new perspective and premise to make health decisions from, like a phoenix rising from its own ashes.

Available as paperback or download here

Why is Sickness 2 Health different?

After reviewing many of the books in this genre it was found that even some of the big names in books on health, such as Deepak Chopra and Andrew Weil, fail to fully address the underlying issue that prevents people from achieving abundant health. To give them credit where credit is due, they do a marvelous job painting a picture of the path that we would like to be on and their information is extremely helpful and motivational even maybe empowering and inspirational. Where they fall short is addressing the underlying worldview most people have been programmed to accept that can easily sabotage their efforts to help others. If a reader’s general perspective or fundamental views on health and life have not been rattled and reset their chances of failure go up. It needs admitting that “Sickness 2 Health” will, by no means, guarantee a person’s success, but make the point that by addressing the foundational thought process and world viewpoint in regards to life and health their odds of success will be greatly enhanced by comparison.

Chopra and Weil do touch on this concept in many of their books but never really come right out and address it head on. They tend to fall into the trap of “telling people what to do” to be healthy, giving them a step by step program, focusing on natural remedies to particular conditions or giving recipes for better meals. All of these things are great to include in any health book but again it draws attention away from the more basic issue that leads people to most of their health issues. Most people make their choices, health related included, based on their understanding of the world and how it and their bodies work. If this general worldview is less accurate than it could be they will most likely not achieve the level of health and the results they wish to. Finally while Chopra and Weil’s books are full of great information they include too much, once again, because they end up telling them the right “program” to follow and this results in a book that is long and potentially intimidating.

It would be hard to say for sure but it is likely that there are quite a few people that thought one of their books would be helpful but once they saw it they had second thoughts due to the length of the book. The reader’s hand certainly should not be held and everything made easy for them because people need to really want to get better in order to achieve it. Basically, if the point can get put across to the reader in fewer pages do it. It will increase the likelihood of more people picking up the book and purchasing it and actually reading it, maybe even reading all of it.

Sickness 2 Health (S2H) has been purposely kept short (under 190 pages) because there are plenty of books out there that go into great detail about “the things” that you can do to help your health. Many of these books by less well known authors do a great job and are shorter but these fail to even graze, even for a moment, on the subject that S2H address; the readers worldview and basis for their thought process and hence their choices. So S2H is not intended to replace these great works or any other health book that gives people a program to follow to get healthy and stay that way. S2H is intended to aid the reader, in a short power packed book, to reshape their own world lens and gain their health back in the process. In the long run this refined worldview of theirs will help any other book they may pick up regarding health to be that much more effective.

S2H is different from other books because of the three goals that Dr Robertson set out to accomplish. First of all, the goal to reach a wide audience, particularly those suffering from ill health and looking for a way out. Second, to reach them in a short enough format that will give them the most information with the least amount of reading. Finally, to shake the very foundation of their thought process because if that is successful the reader’s life can’t help but be changed in the process, and thus their choices and of course their health. If the source of a river is changed everything downstream will change, that is what S2H is set to accomplish and the world is in need of it now more than ever and they are looking, the timing is perfect.

Available as a paperback or download here

Medical Doctor and Upper Cervical Doctors Agree!

2011-11-22T10:34:00.001-06:00

Harvard Agrees with Upper Cervical Care

Adapted from "The Weekly Sticky"

At first glance you'd think an upper cervical doctor was responsiblefor these words. But they were actuallywritten by a Harvard medical school instructor in the late 1800's. While this belief is trivialized by themedical and pharmaceutical community today, it remains the core foundation ofthe practice of upper cervical care.

Upper cervical doctors humbly acknowledge that "the ONLY thingthat can heal the body is the Power that created it." The wisdom Dr. Cabot refers to in his quoteis called innate intelligence by upper cervical doctors. It is the genius of Life that animates ourcells, tissues and organs. It is thecoordinating force that maintains our body's intricate chemical balance. It silently and knowingly orchestrates allsteps involved in the healing process from mending a broken bone to puttingcancer in remission. It is in favor ofyou living, rather than you dying.

The most important job of an upper cervical doctor is to teach youabout this great force and keep you connected to it. If you want to meet the REAL doctorresponsible for healing you, take a look in the mirror. It’s the one staring right back at you.

The History of Upper Cervical Illustrations

2011-11-20T13:44:00.001-06:00

by Daniel O. Clark, D.C. Palmer 1947

HIO, the first Upper Cervical Corrective procedure was conceived, developed and perfected by Dr. B. J. Palmer during the late 1930’s and early 1940’s.

In 1946, Dr. John F. Grostic of Ann Arbor, Michigan introduced the second Upper Cervical Corrective procedure to the profession.

Other Upper Cervical Corrective procedures were developed during the following years. With each new Upper Cervical Corrective procedure, the developer thought it was better and more effective than any previous procedure. As a result, each Upper Cervical procedure became an “Island of its own” which prevented unity in the Upper Cervical profession.

During World War ll, I saw extensive combat duty during the Battle of Hurtgen Forest in Germany and the Battle of the Bulge at Bastogne. During my combat duty, both my feet were frozen and severely impaired. As a result, I was medically discharged from the Army.

Upon discharge, using the free college education opportunities of the G.I. Bill, I enrolled at Palmer School of Chiropractic in Davenport, Iowa. During my coursework at Palmer, I attended Dr. John F. Grostic’s second seminar at his office in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Present were about ten doctors/students in attendance. I sat next to and made friends with Dr. Ralph Gregory, founder of NUCCA.

After graduation, I had no working capital for an office, so I began my practice in my parent’s home in Anniston, Alabama. I made house calls to build my client base. My first house call was a neighbor who had been treated by three different medical doctors. Her condition was grave and she was not expected to live through the night. I made a single atlas correction, which triggered a miraculous recovery. News of this spread through my hometown (population 35,000) and my practice grew exponentially. Within three years I was able to purchase, equip and staff a 13 bed clinic with two associates on the main street of Anniston, Alabama. Our practice averaged 100 patients a day, five days a week.

Despite my success, my war injuries still plagued me. The strain of standing day after day was debilitating, until finally I was forced to retire from active practice.

In the early ‘90s, all doctors using the various Upper Cervical procedures were referred to as “Chiropractors”. In most cases, doctors mixed their Upper Cervical work with regular Chiropractic adjustments.

Then in 1993, I attended an Upper Cervical doctor’s monthly patient education talk. I realized the doctor was struggling to explain Upper Cervical Chiropractic using regular Chiropractic terminology. His patients, while listening attentively, were missing his important message.

As a result of that monthly patient talk, I was inspired to create my first Patient Education Illustration, which depicts head tilt and a cross section view of the spinal cord at the top of the neck. My wife and I gave this illustration to the doctor for use during his monthly talks in order to simplify his Upper Cervical explanation.

Wide acceptance and strong demand from Upper Cervical doctors for the next sixteen years has resulted in the creation of 11 Upper Cervical Illustrations including new Simplified Upper Cervical Terminology. I’ve created all the educational materials to promote a simple message that helps patients understand all Upper Cervical Corrective procedures were designed and perfected to accomplish the same objective; correct head/neck misalignment to restore efficient brain to body communication.

Just a few short years ago, each Upper Cervical doctor was referred to by the name of his corrective procedure, for example, NUCCA doctor, Grostic doctor, Blair doctor, HIO doctor, etc. In the course of my work, I have come to simplify how we address each other, moving away from uniquely labeling each doctor and instead referring to them as Upper Cervical doctors. This practice has now become common in the profession as Upper Cervical Care and the term has gained wide acceptance. Thanks to all of our hard work, the public now realizes there is a difference between Upper Cervical Care and regular Chiropractic Care.

This public recognition and acceptance has provided more awareness for Upper Cervical during the last five years than all the years prior to the development of the first corrective procedure in the 1930’s.

Today, the Upper Cervical Illustrations and the Upper Cervical Terminology we share is gaining world wide acceptance and our profession is evolving into a prominent and well respected way for people to reach their potential in health but also in life.

(Editor's note: Remember the objective of upper cervical care is to correct head neck misalignment that is interfering with proper brain to body communication. When this is corrected the body functions at a higher level and can often correct other problems more efficiently on its own. Please do not confuse upper cervical care as a treatment for any condition, disease or symptom.)

The Big Idea and Upper Cervical Care

2011-11-11T13:24:00.001-06:00

The Big Idea

Michael Thomas, D.C.

What I wanted to write about today is an idea. In (Upper Cervical Care) we have called it “The BigIdea”! This big idea is present not onlyin (Upper Cervical Care), but we have certainly based our work upon it. The idea is that life is sufficient untoitself. Most often, it does not need anyhelp. What it needs is the freedom toexpress itself. The life inside of us isconnected to all of Life. While this hasalways been a spiritual concept, it is now also becoming a scientific one. We are not separate little clots moving abouton a dot of dirt in an empty universe. The picture of us, the Earth and the whole Universe is looking much morelike aspects of one immense integrated whole.

The same mathematical equations that can chart fluctuationsin the stock market, map out the path of blood vessels in our tissues, anddescribe the shape of snowflakes, can also chart the distribution of stars inthe galaxy. We are learning that thereis communication between molecules, cells, tissues, and within the whole personwe had never dreamed existed. It extendsout beyond us to others and perhaps to the farthest reaches of theuniverse. Electromagnetic fields extendto infinity. The matter of this realityseem to be composed of standing waveforms of immense numbers of frequencies allcoordinated together. The better we canlook at matter as our microscopes and methods become more sophisticated showthat what we thought was solid is not. It is vibrations that maintain themselves! Immense amounts of information can be (andare!) contained within the frequencies that create the matter of ourinterconnected universe. There arepossibilities for our lives and for all of us that we haven’t even begun todream about yet.

Within this new understanding is (Upper Cervical Care) which hasclaimed for (almost) a hundred years that this is true. How we take care of our infirmities isdependent upon how we see ourselves. In medicinewe have based our understanding from a study of what goes wrong. All of medicine is based in impeding orstopping the process of dis-ease. To usea big word, it is a pathogenic orientation. (Upper Cervical Care) is based in the opposite approach. To use another big word, it is a salutogenicapproach. By this we mean what createshealth? How can we support Life? What sustains and improves our health? In (Upper Cervical Care) we find that removing theinterference to the power of Life will allow optimal health to return. We really can trust Life. One approach chooses to stifle, to palliate,to suppress the symptoms of dis-ease. The other removes interference and trusts life to find its own way, tounfold as it has for untold millennia.

At this point I want to note that when events occur thatcause significant disruption of our health, medicine can be an incrediblelifesaver. When symptoms are going tokill us, suppression or palliation of symptoms is welcomed by everyone. This is where medicine shines, in the acutecare of critically ill people. Thissuppressive treatment can save lives and give the innate power of life withineach of us the time to rally. However,as a lifestyle, it leaves much to be desired. Turning off the symptoms with toxic drugs simply leaves the body withfewer possibilities. Killing the‘messenger’ (the symptoms) doesn’t change the reality it just means you are nowunaware of it. Most cardiac medicationsare suppressive and palliative. Theyactually do very little to help any of us regain health. They just shut the message off. This isn’t a hopeless statement. It is a statement that this path does notlead where most people would choose to go if they had a choice. What choices do we have?

First, we have to choose to be the driver of our ownlives. How many people just passivelyaccept the pills and procedures medicine (and our doctors) demand? How many of us ask questions? How many of us do the due diligence toinvestigate the possibilities for ourselves? Do you really think that a five minute visit with a doctor is enough forhim/her to understand the complexities of how life is breaking down foryou? If we take on the responsibilityfor our own lives and have sought out answers on our own, then we are in avastly better position to ask the right questions and make informed choicesabout our lives and our healthcare. Wehave to make the choice to be present in our own lives. What is more important?

Yes, this means you must make efforts. It means you must be willing make changes inthe way you live your life. It means youmust be patient as the changes you make remake you. It means you must pay attention to your ownlife. Your healthcare should be apartnership between you and your doctors. I will reiterate, you are the one in charge. If you are asleep at the wheel then no one isdriving the bus. If you don’t take onthis primary responsibility then you can’t complain when life leaves you brokendown on the side of the road.

What is the goal of your healthcare? Do you just want the symptoms to goaway? That is one choice. It does lead to certain consequences. In the example of cardiac (heart ) problems,lifestyle, nutritional and stress management can completely turn your healtharound. You can regain your health. Turning life off is not the answer to turninglife on.

The Upper Cervical Care you receive in thisoffice is based on removing interference at the base of the brain. This area is filled with centers that controlevery aspect of your life. Restoringnormal, balanced function to your brain and nervous system is one magnificentand powerful way to restore health and the life you live. This is much more than just turning off thepain of sciatica or headaches. Relief isgreat but there is more to life than being numb. This world needs every one of us operating atfull capacity. You have chosen a roadless traveled by coming here for care. Ibelieve that the balance created by the upper cervical adjustment is primaryhealth care. This is the Big Idea.

Spread the word.

Upper Cervical Care?...What is that?

2011-11-04T14:42:00.000-05:00

What is Upper Cervical Care?

By Dr. Eddie Weller

Upper cervical care is a strict discipline of Chiropracticthat focuses on the upper most portion of the spine called the cervical spine.This vital area is where the brain and spinal cord meet forming the brain stem. The brain stem is protected bya vertebra called the ATLAS or cervical vertebrae #1. This small, 2 ozring-like vertebra is not only responsible for keeping your head on top of yourspine, but more importantly, it protects the brain stem at the base of yourskull. Upper Cervical doctors focus on this area because just about every nervein our spine originates at the base of the skull. Most of us would agree thatour body was divinely created, and our brain was programmed to send life to thebody via the nerve system. If the top vertebra in your spine misaligns, healthynerve signals from your brain get distorted by compromising your nerve system.This compromised nerve system is the precursor to the body malfunctioning. Intime, sickness or disease will ensue.

“What types of conditions are seen?”

There are thousands of titles that man has given the bodydue to the symptoms that it presents when not functioning properly. I have seenconditions from Headaches to Herniated discs, Colic to Cancers, Reflux toRespiratory issues, Spinal fusions to Scoliosis, and from ADHD to IBS.Regardless of the condition, how long, or the severity of the condition,everyone benefits by having an optimum functioning nerve system.

“What is a good age to begin having my spine checked forupper cervical subluxation?”

Clients range froma few hours old to the elderly. Infants frequently experience birth trauma,toddlers are constantly falling and bumping their head, children play sportsand fall off their bicycles, swings, etc. Just about everything we do in lifecauses some form of stress to our body. Physical, chemical or emotionalstressors compromise our nerve system and cause our body to begin to breakdown. Regardless of one’s age or health condition, everyone benefits from having their nervous system functioning optimally. The upper cervical spinalcorrection is gentle, precise and tailor-made per each particular spine. At notime will your spine be twisted, popped or snapped, thus making it safe foryour entire family.

“Is Upper Cervical Care compatible with my existinghealthcare?”

Yes! Restoring nerve and spinal function is consistent withall healthcare options. We encourageyou to continue to consult with any of your other healthcare providers tocoordinate with your upper cervical doctor for optimum recovery andmaintenance. At no time will upper cervical care interfere with any of yourhealthcare choices. In fact, upper cervical care will only enhance your healingabilities.

Six Big Differences With Upper Cervical Care

2011-10-31T14:03:00.000-05:00

Six things upper cervical doctors do differently than other chiropractors

by Anthony Rumsey, DC

Upper cervical doctors are different than otherchiropractors. To help you understand the differences, here are the top sixways your upper cervical doctor will be different than any other doctor ofchiropractic that you will see.

1. Won’t adjust you without x-rays.

Your upper cervical doctor uses x-rays to create a uniqueformula to adjust you based on your body’s unique anatomy.

There are many areas of the spine whose motion can helpguide a chiropractic adjustment. The low back and the mid-back, for example,have built in motion pathways created by the shape of their joints. But thereis a lot more room for movement and error in the upper neck. So it is theperspective of upper cervical doctors that the junction of the head and theneck cannot be accurately adjusted without measuring and noting your uniqueanatomy on an accurate x-ray.

2. Measure your body’s posture and/or nervous systemfunction every time you come into the office.

As much as possible, upper cervical doctors use objectivemeasures of your body’s function to help guide the clinical decision makingprocess. Your upper cervical doctor may indirectly measure nerve functionusing paraspinal thermography (heat reading). Or he or she may visualize yourin-alignment versus your out-of-alignment posture with a number of differenttools that help measure hip height or rotation, shoulder height, and the lean(or list) of the spine.

3. Won’t adjust you at every single visit.

Upper cervical doctors think differently about the purposeof the adjustment than many other chiropractors. In other chiropractic systems,multiple adjustments over many visits are expected, and are helpful. The uppercervical doctor, however, believes that “holding” the adjustment is moreimportant than just receiving it. Healing comes from holding your newalignment. Therefore, the upper cervical doctor will only adjust your uppercervical spine when your body shows objective signs of needing an adjustment.

If your upper cervical doctor is adjusting at every visitfor many visits in a row, it is a sign that things are not going as well asthey should be.

4. Measure the effectiveness of the adjustment after it isdelivered.

Your upper cervical doctor will conduct one or morepost-adjustment checks every time you get an upper cervical adjustmentaccording to your adjustment formula. In some cases this may include one or twopost-adjustment x-rays. This may be another thermographic scan, a measure ofyour posture, or some other functional test. Unlike other areas of the spinethat snap, twist, and pop when the joint moves, the upper cervical adjustmentintends to restore balance to a very delicate area of the body. The uppercervical doctor expects immediate changes in some parts of the body’sfunctions, and verifies it with a post-adjustment check.

If your upper cervical doctor is adjusting you and justsending you on your way, then he or she might not be an upper cervical doctor.

5. Always deliver a gentle adjustment.

The upper neck is a delicate area of the body. It’s naturalfor the body to lock up when you sense that someone is going to push, pull,poke or prod this area of neck. Because your body will resist an adjustmentthat is too strong, upper cervical doctors use gentle re-alignment proceduresto bring the head and neck into better balance. Your upper cervical doctor willalways deliver a gentle adjustment.

6. Almost always concentrates on head-to-neck balance.

There are many reasons upper cervical doctors startedcalling themselves upper cervical doctors, in addition to using the word“chiropractor.” One major reason is how few chiropractors there really areusing a specific adjusting protocol to re-align the head-to-neck area of thespine. Another reason is because the name fits: upper cervical doctors willspend 99% of their time helping your head-to-neck alignment because of howimportant it is to your body’s expression of life, health, and longevity…andbecause of how vulnerable the area is to injury.

Unlike the stronger areas of the spine whichhave an inter-vertebral disc, there are weaker interlocking joints at the topof the neck. The whole thing mostly stays in balance from strong muscles andligaments. Like any other muscles and ligaments, these upper cervical musclesand ligaments are subject to accidents and injuries which can threaten thenormal balance of the head-to-neck area, and disrupt the body’s normalfunctions.

Ten Reasons To Try Upper Cervical Care

2011-10-24T14:07:00.001-05:00

Ten reasons to try NUCCA upper cervical care

By Dr. Deb Sesker

In the united states, upper cervical care hashelped hundreds of thousands of people overcome health challenges and livefuller, more enjoyable lives—even when other health strategies have not helped.

While upper cervical care is not a treatmentfor any one particular condition, a new alignment of the head and neck canremove subtle pressure from the nervous system that results in greater bodyhealing. Over 100 different human conditions have responded to upper cervicalcare. You can read about some of them on the patient created site calledUpCSpine.

Upper cervical doctors work with a powerful area ofthe body, where the head and neck come into balance with each other. Unlike thestronger areas of the spine which have an inter-vertebral disc, there areweaker interlocking joints at the top of the neck. The whole thing mostly staysin balance from strong muscles and ligaments. Like any other muscles andligaments, these upper cervical muscles and ligaments are subject to accidentsand injuries which can threaten the normal balance of the head-to-neck area,and disrupt the body’s normal functions.

Upper cervical care is gentle, and does not yank,pull, or twist the head and the neck.

Most upper cervical doctors use anon-invasive technique for improving health, which does notinclude any drugs, surgery, or repeated manipulations of the spine.

Your upper cervical care works with other health careoptions, so you can continue with your prescribed medications, your physicaltherapy, your nutritional supplementation, acupuncture, or other body work—justso long as your other practitioners do not manipulate the head,neck, or joints of the spine. If there are any questions about whether yourother health care will interfere with the upper cervical protocol,just ask us.

Upper cervical care has been featured on TheDoctors, ABC’s Good Morning America, Discovery Health, and PBS’ Chicago tonightfor its ability to help with multiple sclerosis symptoms, head injuries, andhigh blood pressure.

Upper cervical doctors and research organizations areinvolved in some of the most interesting studies on the importance of the spineto human health. For a sample of these projects, which look at more than justback pain, visit the Upper Cervical Research Foundation.

Upper cervical doctors are often dedicated to advancededucation in caring for the upper cervical spine, and will pursue certificationin their upper cervical protocol.

10.

Upper cervical doctors are passionate about their work, and care deeply about helping people get well. With only a fewpercent of practicing chiropractors using a specific protocol for head-to-neckbalance, upper cervical doctors are dedicated to technical excellence, and patientsatisfaction with their care.

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(Editor's note: Remember the objective of upper cervical care is to correct head neck misalignment that is interfering with proper brain to body communication. When this is corrected the body functions at a higher level and can often correct other problems more efficiently on its own. Please do not confuse upper cervical care as a treatment for any condition, disease or symptom.)

The Master Builder In Us All...Amazing!

2011-10-18T13:28:00.000-05:00

By Rose Panico / Bill Remling

DID YOU KNOW THAT...

* One cubic inch of the brain's cortex contains 10,000 miles of connecting tissue.

* Your brain gets signals from 137 million light receptors in your eyes, 100,000 hearing receptors in your ears, 3,000 taste buds in your mouth, 30,000 hot spots, 250,000 cold spots, and 500,000 touch spots on your skin.

* Electrical impulses flash along your nerves at 393 feet per second, or about 270 miles per hour.

* In nine months, 6,000 billion cells form an average baby.

* Your heart pumps about 2 1/2 gallons of blood per minute. If you could loan your heart to pump donor blood into pint bottles, it would fill so may bottles in one year that they could stretch from New York City to Cleveland, Ohio.

* If your blood cells were put in a single row, it would extend around the world four times at the equator. Every second between 2-3 million red blood cells are launched into the blood stream.

* There are more than 600 muscles in your body. Many muscles work in a team.

* Your lungs contain a half billion tiny air sacs with a surface area of 40 to 60 square miles.

* In 70 years, your stomach will produce about 60,000 quarts of digestive juice, it will digest about 40 tons or 80,000 pounds of food.

* Each kidney contains one million functional units that filter your blood.

* Your brain regulates, stimulates, creates and controls all these body functions and millions of others. When the body is functioning normal, we tend to forget about the very complex activities that are constantly going on. Nonetheless, the cells keep functioning and reproducing themselves.

* The organs and the glands keep regulating such diverse activities as digestion and growth, and the nerve system keeps receiving, reterpreting and sending messages. Without this continuing harmony and coordinating activities, this could be no psychological life as we know it.

* There are more than 100 billion nerve cells or neurons in the brain of an average human being. That is more more than 14 times the amount of people living on earth, and their are billions more in other parts of the nerve system.

We are quite literally amazing. Be in awe of yourself and all the things you do every second of the day.

Can Upper Cervical Care Help Patients With Dizziness?

2011-10-07T16:07:00.000-05:00

Can Neck Problems Cause Dizziness?

by Dr. Bill Davis

Vertigo, dizziness, disequilibrium and many other of thesetypes of conditions can be directly related to old head and neck injuries thathave never been properly addressed and the underlying damage to the upper neckhas led to dysfunction in the ears, the balancing system of the body or both.

When the head or neck is injured the upper neck (Atlas &Axis) frequently become twisted and misaligned leading to a slight displacementof the head…sometimes by as little as 3/4 of a degree. Once the heavy head (10-14 lbs) is tilting tothe side the brain has to compensate for that change through the rightingreflex to keep the eyes and ears level with the horizon at all times.

The entire structure of the body will twist and tilt inorder to compensate for those upper neck misalignments and head tilt. Eventually leading to pressure building upinto the nerve system. The area that isfirst impacted by these problems is the brain stem area, which is justbasically a part of the brain that extends down into the spine and connects thethe spinal cord.

The brain stem area is a key to the balance of ourbodies. This upper neck area has morepressure sensors the anywhere else in the body that feed information into thebrain stem and the brain. Also the brainstem send messages via the cranial nerves to the ears for balance as well. Blood flow is also effected when the brainstem function is altered.

When someone is suffering from vertigo, dizziness, ordisequilibrium, the brain stem is frequently involved. Upper neck misalignments alter the brain stemfunction and lead to these types of problems. When these old injuries are dealt with by the correction of the headposition by a precise upper cervical corrective procedure such as NUCCA, thehealing process can begin.

Holding the corrections is the key to healing, not havingyour spine adjusted 1000′s of times!

Now here is an example…Terry is in property management andis also an avid Bicyclist, riding up to 100 miles per week. When he began to develop vertigo it was about2 years after he had taken a pretty significant fall from his bike and had amotorcycle accident that seemed to make the dizziness and vertigo attacks muchworse. To the point that he wasconcerned even about going up on a ladder at one of his rentals. Here is his story…

I have beensuffering from vertigo (dizziness) for 6-7 years, getting more constant as theyears progressed. I triedeverything…Every doctor that I could think of, EENT, general doc, vertigo specialistand finally my last hope, a NUCCA (upper cervical) doctor. Dr. Davis helped me almost instantly. I have not been dizzy for 8 weeks! Thanks Breath of Life for giving me my health back!!!

Now not all dizziness, vertigo and disequilibrium is relatedto head and neck traumas. But if youhave a history of those types of accidents then an evaluation with a qualifiedupper cervical specialist is very important. If the underlying cause can be identified, what a difference it can makefor your life!

(Editor's note: Remember the objective of upper cervical care is to correct head neck misalignment that is interfering with proper brain to body communication. When this is corrected the body functions at a higher level and can often correct other problems more efficiently on its own. Please do not confuse upper cervical care as a treatment for dizziness or any other condition, disease or symptom.)

What Can Upper Cervical Care Do For You?

2011-09-29T15:35:00.000-05:00

NUCCA OUR TECHNIQUE

Health sciences agree that every single bodyfunction, regardless of how large or small, is controlled by electrical andchemical messages that travel back and forth from the brain to all parts of thebody at the rate of thousands of messages per second. These messages pass through the brain stem,which is an extension of the brain and is located at the top of the neck wherethe brain and spinal cord meet. Dr.Roger Sperry, PhD., won the Nobel Prize by discovering that 90% of the brain’sactivity is used to balance your body within the gravitational field of earth.He stated that if your body is mechanically distorted (off balance), it beginsto effect the other 10% of the brain’s activity, which controls all the otherbody functions.

Body Imbalance can put stress, tension and/or pressure onthe brain stem and block or impede the flow of these vital messages to thebody.

This interference can cause pain, sickness and suffering.

When Head Tilt develops and the body becomes imbalanced,"The Brain Stem" can be compressed, restricting the flow of healthand healing messages from the brain to that part of the body serviced by thesecompressed nerves. This can cause pain andsuffering and decrease the quality of your life.

The NUCCA Spinal Correction, which is painless and barelyfelt by the patient, is a specialty in the field of chiropractic, designed torestore body balance and normalize the flow of healing messages from the brainto all parts of the body so it can reactivate it’s natural self-healingprocess. The NUCCA spinal correctionrequires NO CRACKING, TWISTING OR POPPING OF THE NECK OR BACK. This is possible because of the precise X-rayanalysis using physics and mechanics to calculate the exact formula used foreach spinal correction. No two formulasare the same, each one is developed for the individual person.

Published research studies have shown that when body balanceis restored, the body enters a healing cycle that alleviates pain and symptoms,elevates the immune system, increases blood and oxygen circulation, normalizesnervous system communication and creates more optimum body performance.

The Upper Cervical Spinal Correction procedure is designedto re-position the weight of the head (10 - 14 pounds) over the center of theneck to restore the body balance.

Thisprocedure removes interference and reactivates the normal transmission of thebrain messages to the affected part of the body, so the natural self-healingprocess can begin.

(Editor's note: Remember the objective of upper cervical care is to correct head neck misalignment that is interfering with proper brain to body communication. When this is corrected the body functions at a higher level and can often correct other problems more efficiently on its own. Please do not confuse upper cervical care as a treatment for any condition, disease or symptom.)

Ear Pain And The NUCCA Correction?

2011-09-22T14:00:00.000-05:00

(Editor's Note: Today's post comes to us from Dr. Zachary Ward and Nucca News, enjoy!)

NUCCA Patient Spotlight

The ear bone's connected to the jaw bone? A surprising change after one NUCCA correction.

Usually ear pain in a child makes doctors think ear infection--but 10 year old Lauren's pain was different. After Lauren began complaining of ear pain, her mother, Renee, took her to the pediatrician who investigated the source of the earache, but found nothing wrong. "Since she had already been on antibiotics, and there was nothing wrong inside the ear, the doctor told me to give her Ibuprofen," said Renee. In spite of the doctor's diagnosis, the pain continued, and in fact, got worse.

Lauren described the pain as sharp stabbing deep in her right ear, which would quickly come and go, happening as often as four to five times per hour. The pediatrician said that a trip to ENT might be in order. Filing that in the back of her mind, Renee took her daughter to a NUCCA doctor instead.

When Dr. Zachary Ward heard Lauren's story, he suggested that the pain might be nerve related and might respond to a NUCCA correction. Dr. Ward evaluated Lauren and found tight musculature in her neck and shoulder, as well as a heat reading that showed an increased temperature around the atlas vertebrae on her left side. Lauren received a NUCCA correction on Friday morning, and by the end of that weekend, the pain subsided completely.

Something surprising also happened after the correction: the left side of Lauren's left jaw began to relax. "I asked Lauren, 'How come you never told me that your jaw was so tight on your left side'" Renee told the NUCCA News. "Lauren said, 'Mom I didn't know my jaw was that tight. It's been like that my whole life. I thought that was normal!'"

To make matters more interesting, Lauren has received orthodontia care since she was three years to correct jaw and teeth alignment issues related to a cleft palate. Until her NUCCA correction, Lauren and Renee had no idea that Lauren's ear and jaw health could be related to her neck.

"I was surprised how quickly things improved for Lauren, without using any kind of drugs or surgery." said Renee.

(Editor's note: Remember the objective of any type of upper cervical care is to correct head neck misalignment that is interfering with proper brain to body communication. When this is corrected the body functions at a higher level and can often correct other problems more efficiently on its own. Please do not confuse upper cervical care as a treatment for ear pain or any other condition, disease or symptom.)

Sickness, Health and Amazon.com

2011-09-15T15:33:00.000-05:00

"Sickness 2 Health" is now available on Amazon.com! Please check it out and browse through some of the pages. Let me know what you think and maybe even get your copy today!

The book is also still available on lulu.com. Click here to check it out!

"Sickness 2 Health: From The Inside Out" synopsis:

Regaining and maintaining your health by turning common health knowledge upside down and inside out. There is a paradigm shift happening and people are looking to “do it yourself” health care more all the time for better health and, especially in today’s current economy, to save money. There are many books out there of course that address this and try to provide ideas and suggestions about what one should do to regain and maintain their health. This is not what Sickness 2 Health is about. Sickness 2 Health, while giving some action steps, has the primary intention of rattling and shattering your current world view in regards to health. From the smoldering ashes of these old outdated views we lift up a new perspective and premise to make health decisions from, like a phoenix rising from its own ashes.

The Gentleness of Upper Cervical Care

2011-09-13T11:31:00.001-05:00

The NUCCA Procedure is a Gentle Correction

A gentle touch and controlled contact on the first vertebraein the neck is designed to restore balance to the spine. Even though theprimary focus is the neck, the effects of the correction influences the wholespine and all body systems. This is because the NUCCA procedure influences oneof the highest control centers over body balance, the brain stem and centralnervous system. The C-1 vertebrae, also known as the Atlas, is a smalldonut-like bone located at the top of the spine and the base of the skull thatsurrounds the brain stem. When the spine is subjected to stress it can becomemisaligned. This head/neck misalignment is also known as the Atlas Subluxation Complex or ASC .

The Balancing Act

The nerves in our spinal column are very sensitive topressure and stress. When the spine becomes misaligned sufficiently it stressesthe nerves, compromises their normal impulses, and changes function throughoutthe body. Nerves are responsible for four primary functions:

Control andregulate all vital functions including circulation, breathing and digestion.

Activate musclesallowing us to move.

Allow us to sense,perceive and feel.

Relate us to the worldoutside ourselves including learning, experiencing and behavior.

Evaluation, Evaluation, Evaluation

Once you have decided to be examined for a spinalmisalignment, an extensive evaluation process begins. The process begins bylooking at your detailed health history including any past traumas, motorvehicle accidents, surgeries, other treatment programs and other diagnostictests including other x-rays. Your chief complaints, including location, onset,and duration must all be evaluated and assessed. After concluding this initialprocess, the doctor will begin the steps necessary to determine if you are acandidate for NUCCA care.

Finding the Problem

The NUCCA Doctor will focus attention on the relationship ofthe head to the neck. The top bone of the neck, known as the atlas, must be inline with the head, as well as the vertebrae below. Spinal injury or damage canmisalign these structures resulting in:

Postural imbalance.

Pelvic distortion.

Leg length disparity also known as the "short leg" phenomenon.

As you lay on your back, measurement of the leg lengthequality will be made. Additional evaluation of posture may include shoulderheight, hip height and deviation of the head to either side. Ranges of motionmay also be measured. Specific instrumentation may also be used to evaluatebody weight distribution, pelvic rotation and normal nerve function. If aspinal misalignment is indicated by history and examination, a series of x-raysare taken. It is important to know you would only be accepted as a patient ifthe consultation and exam results indicate that you could benefit from NUCCA care. The X-rays are only taken if care is to be initiated.

Table Time

Each correction is determined from x-ray measurement. Patients lay on their right orleft side on the upper cervical table. By gently contacting the side of your neck,the doctor will direct your head and neck back toward a balanced, healthyposition.

Precise, Accurate and Small Corrections

The upper cervical correction depends upon precisemathematical calculations, physics, and biomechanics. X-rays are a criticalpart of ensuring the spinal correction is accurate and successful. The doctorwill take pre-correction x-rays from different angles focusing on the atlas.These x-rays determine the direction and degree of spinal misalignment and howto properly restore the spine to normal.

Continuous Monitoring

Because each correction experience and healing response isunique to the individual, you will be monitored closely for any changes thatyou might experience which are linked to the healing process. We have stressedthe importance of receiving the best possible correction during the firstvisit. The doctor will take x-rays after your correction to confirm results.This is typically done only after the initial correction. What we know is"The better the correction, the better the chance of recovery."