Waking Up With Energy
Dr Brady shares some tips on how he wakes up every morning with ENERGY!
Here are some of the tips:
1. Nutrition
2. Water
3. Hold of the coffee
4. Fitness
5. Chiropractic
Know Your Scans: Your Thermography Scan
The first assessment we perform is our Thermography Scan. This is the first in a series of three scans we may perform.
Our nervous system, our “master control system” is the main controller of all heat distribution in the body. By using this infrared thermography we can assess your spine and nervous system for areas where heat distribution has been altered, giving us a much clearer picture of where subluxations may be.
Typically the scan should be all white bars. This tells us that heat is being distributed equally on both sides. If you see bars of green, blue, or red that’s demonstrating areas of mild, moderate, to tremendous stress and inflammation on the spine and nervous system, which is not good.
You may have received a Nervous System Chart showing the areas of spine, what areas of the nervous system is protected in that area, as well as what common effects can be seen if subluxations are present in those areas. Note the correlation between the areas of the spine that show altered colors (green, blue, or red) and the nervous system chart you were given to see if areas correlate to the symptoms you may be having.
It’s important to note that areas with 2 or more consecutive colored bars together indicate significant levels of stress on the spine and nervous system. Areas that have reached levels of red indicate that the subluxation is much more mature and has been there quite awhile.
It’s also very important to note that symptoms do NOT need to be present for the scanning technology to pick up alterations in heat distribution. Most of the time symptoms are the last thing to show up and the first thing to leave. This test gets the root cause of the issue, which is your body’s inability to heal and correct the problem due to subluxations in your nervous system.
The thermal scan is great tool for understanding how subluxations have affected specific areas of stress on the spine and nervous system. Our other assessments can help us achieve a much broader and global understanding how subluxations have been affected your entire body as well as your health.
Know Your Scans: Your SEMG Scan
The second assessment we perform is our Surface ElectroMyoGraphy (SEMG) scans. These scans are completely harmless, pain-free, and radiation free. This scans uses highly sensitive sensors that are placed along the spine to analyze the efficiency of the nervous system.
This scan is an incredible tool for analyzing the nervous system. A spine out of balance puts abnormal tension on your nervous system and will show up on our EMG scan.
We will use the same grading scale as we did on the thermal scan with white bars being most desirable on both sides of the spine. We also want to see a pear shaped pattern to the scan. The reason for this being that as we move down the spine we reach the areas of the core and our vital organs, which need more nerve supply in those areas than others. So when looking at our scans these are important qualities to look for.
Anytime we see bars that are green, blue, or red these indicates areas of mild, moderate, or tremendous levels of stress on the nervous system. The other color we may see is areas of yellow bars. Typically we find this toward the middle of scan. This indicates areas of exhaustion in the nervous system, which tells us that those areas have been working so hard that they can no longer keep up with daily demands. This is very common with patients who suffer with chronic fatigue, who inevitable end up experiencing greater amounts of energy as we restore proper function in those areas.
These are the critical components that we look for when analyzing your SEMG scans. Again, look to your Nerve Chart to see where areas of stress or fatigue may correlate to chart.
It’s important to know that every scan is different and our care for each of our practice members is different.
During your restoration care phase your scans may appear “worse” or you might see more colors than before. This is normal and can be a very good thing. You see the goal of these scans is to truly understand how your body has been able to cope and adapt to the stresses of life, whether they be physical, chemical, or emotional. As we go through our restoration phase, we may “unpack” stress and the spine and nervous system start to change and adapt. This can lead to increased amounts of energy in the system.
You will also see 3 numbers on the right side of your scans. These are some quantitative values to help us monitor your progress as well. Pattern and Symmetry scores tell us how is the balance and symmetry of the nervous system. The more balance we have the better. We don’t want to drive our car on just one side and our body is no different. For both these values we want to see 70 and above.
The other value you will see is Total Energy. Total energy tells us how efficient your nervous system is. This value we want to see as close as we can get to 100. Imagine you are driving on the free at 65 mph but your RPMs are close to 9000. Your car is wasting tons of energy to get the job done and working much harder than normal to do the job. You want your car running at 1-2000 RPMs so your car can run more efficiently.
The higher your total energy is, the more energy your body is having to use to get the job done. The more energy your body is wasting the less energy your body has to do everyday activities. This can lead to increased fatigue and more overall stress.
When the body feels this increased stress it drives your nervous system toward increased sympathetic activity. Sympathetic activity is the “fight or flight” or stress side of your central nervous system. This side is only intended for short periods of time as needed. When the sympathetic nervous system is engaged it can lower immune system activity, decrease adaptability, decrease adequate sleep, increase blood pressure, and wreak havoc on your health.
Chiropractic and Ear Infections: A Closer Look at One of Our Cases
DISCLAIMER: Names have been changed to protect the privacy of our patients.
I want to share an ear infection case we had with one of our little ones here in the office. For the purpose of this case study his name will be “Billy.”
Billy’s mom brought him into our office with ear infections in both ears. He had previously had 4 ear infections with antibiotics used after each subsequent ear infection. This was his fifth ear infection and his primary care physician had recommended that tubes be put in to prevent any further ear infections. Since his first ear infection, he could not go one month without getting the next ear infection.
As I start to dive deeper into the history, we discuss some of the other symptoms Billy is dealing with, mainly sinus congestion, but also swollen tonsils and mild chest congestion.
The birth history revealed that little Billy had a prolonged labor and delivery with pitocin and had suffered a few falls here and there as he was little. No colic or latching challenges but was otherwise fairly healthy.
I preceded to go through our exam on Billy, who was very nervous and crying, but I made sure to let him know that NOTHING ever hurts in our office and that Dr Brady is a certified “Tickled Doctor.” That calmed him down enough to get a good look at him, where I found a subluxation in his upper neck. A subluxation is a misalignment of one of the vertebrae in the spine that gets “stuck” in that position and starts to place stress on the nervous system, the master control system of our body. I also found one additional subluxation in his upper thoracic spine.
We confirmed our findings with our infrared thermal scans, which revealed higher levels of inflammation in his upper neck and upper back. Indicating his a subluxation in the very first bone in his spine.
When we look at our nerve chart or our “fuse box” chart, we can see that the upper cervical spine plays a large role in ear infections. For the brevity of this post will save the mire detailed science for ear infection page. Take a look at our ear infection page for a more in depth look at ear infections.
The upper thoracic or upper back contains centers for the upper respiratory system, which plays heavily into chronic ear infections.
We began our adjustments on Billy and used very gentle and specific adjustments using a tool that helps get the adjustment without having to hear a click or pop. It’s a gentle way to introduce kids to Chiropractic.
We also teach parents an easy lymphatic massage technique as well. Typically when the inner ears become filled with fluid it backs up into the lymph nodes and tonsils. This massage helps keep that fluid moving and gives the fluid from the inner ear a place to drain.
After the first series of adjustments I always tell parents to expect some sort of drainage or mucus build up. Sure enough for the first two weeks there was a LOT of drainage and mucus and he ended up getting sick towards the end. This is a really great sign. Here’s why…
When children are exposed to multiple rounds of antibiotics, there immune system is likely depleted and slow to respond, hence multiple ear infections. So to get an immune response from the body so quick is a great response!
After about a month of care the drainage finally ceased and what do you know, ears were clear. No fluid at all. After a few more weeks he got another ear infection. I know, seems counterproductive, but here’s what happened.
This was the first time he had gone over a month with an ear infection. Also because he had been exposed to multiple rounds of antibiotics, his immune system needs to rebuild, so recurrence can happen. However this time the fluid stayed for a couple days and was gone with no antibiotics.
Needless to say, the tube surgery is cancelled and he now can return to being a healthy boy.
Chiropractic and ADHD: Is ADHD Like A Ferrari?
Is ADHD really such a bad thing? I find that children with ADHD have incredibly powerful brains but lack the proper stopping power. Similar to a Ferrari engine with bicycle brakes. Learn
Chiropractic Mybuster: Once You Go To A Chiropractor…
“I’ve heard once you go to a Chiropractor, you always have to go to a Chiropractor.” This is one of largest myths propelled through society regarding Chiropractic. This really stems from a lack of communication and education about what Chiropractic does.
Many people assume that because they see their friends or family going to a Chiropractor regularly they assume either 1) the adjustments aren’t doing the job 2) the Chiropractor says they need to be seen “or else.”
It’s Your Health
Here’s the truth. You are always in control of your own health. You are the one solely responsible for what activities you do to contribute to your health.
Here’s something to think about. Do you need to workout? Does the gym make you workout? No. You workout because it is a requirement for health. You don’t workout regularly because the gym says you have to.
How about your dentist? Do you get your checkups because your dentists says you have to? No. You get checkups and cleanings because it’s important to prevent tooth decay from happening and to keep teeth healthy.
It’s no different for your spine and nervous system. We are all constantly bombarded by physical, chemical, and emotional stress. It’s inevitable. This stress takes a toll on our body and our body needs to adapt to that stress. When we can no longer adapt to that stress, it creates subluxations on our spine and nervous system.
Your nervous system is a pillar for health. If a nerve gets cut to your bicep, it no longer works. If a nerve gets cut going to the heart, it no longer beats.
Your spine and nervous system is like the control panel to the rest of your body. It is the master control system. Having a healthy nervous system is a requirement for optimal health.
You will only have a healthy nervous system as long as you maintain it. You will only maintain your fitness as long as you go to the gym.