I was reviewing a diagram of the spine and nervous system with a patient recently and he had what I call the ‘Aha moment’. I love when this happens! The Aha moment is when a patient learns about how the human body works for the first time and they say ‘AHA! It’s all so simple!” Or ‘AHA! How come nobody has ever explained this to me before” I absolutely love when this happens. It truly makes my day when people learn about the spine and nervous system for the first time.

In one form or another every cell, tissue and organ is connected to the nervous system. The nervous system is comprised of the brain, spinal cord (which runs down our spine) and the spinal nerves which branch off of the spinal cord. This is the bodies master control system. Nothing can happen in your body without the central nervous system being involved.

The purpose of the spinal bones are to maintain upright posture and to protect the nervous system. Any damage, restriction or subluxation to the spinal bones interferes with how the nerves and the tissues they attach to function.

Think of the electrical panel in your house. This is the master control system of all the power in your house, like your brain is to your body. Each fuse controls a different area of your house just like each spinal level controls a different area or organ in your body. So, for example if you blow the fuse to your kitchen you lose all the power there. If you pinch the nerve in your middle back called T6, this effects your stomach and therefore digestive troubles start…gas, bloating, diarrhea, etc…

Spinal misalignments or subluxations in the neck can lead to allergies, sinus issues, thyroid problems, insomnia, dizziness and much more. It’s frustrating when I see people come in to the office with the conditions mentioned and they are taking medications that temporarily help them feel better, but the underlying problem is still there so they are actually getting worse as time goes on.

Subluxations in the lower back can lead to reproductive or fertility issues, prostate problems for men, painful periods for women, and sciatica to name a few. If a man is suffering from issues with his prostate, I can almost guarantee that if I were to X-ray his lumbar spine that he will have degeneration at L5. The L5 nerve is directly connected to the prostate gland and if the prostate is not receiving 100% of the nerve flow it will become diseased.

Once you realize how the body works and functions, most people start to view their symptoms and the treatment of their symptoms differently. Modern medicine looks for chemical solutions to a patient’s problem, but more time than not what is needed is a physical solution, which is where chiropractic comes into play.

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