"Just what is Body Imbalance and how do I know if it has happened to me? "
Body
Imbalance occurs when the C1 or Atlas, and/or the C2 or Axis, the top
two vertebra in the neck, are misaligned and out of their proper
position. This can occur as a result of an accident, emotional trauma,
or chemical toxicity in the body. Childbirth itself can move the atlas
out of position because of the massive amounts of pressure on the head
and neck of the baby as it passes down the birth canal. Or childhood
accidents like falling from a tree, bike or skates can misalign it. In
adulthood, the atlas can be shoved out of position during minor or
major accidents such as sporting accidents, automobile accidents or
slips and falls. Some of the worst cases of atlas misalignment and
resulting pain have been caused by minor car accidents such as being
rear-ended. One indication of body imbalance is having one leg slightly
shorter than the other. You may also notice that when you stand in
front of a mirror one shoulder is slightly higher than another, and one
hip is higher than the other. Another indication your atlas may be out
of position is by having different symptoms in your body that your
medical doctor cannot explain or find the cause for on any tests.
"How can Body Imbalance cause me to have physical problems? "
The
C1 or Atlas is a donut-shaped bone that your skull rests on. Your
spinal cord coming out of your brain and brain stem passes through the
center of the donut shape. Your spinal cord at that point consists of
trillions of nerve fibers (the nervous system) that "bottleneck"
through the small opening in the atlas. These fillers eventually branch
off carrying information to every part of your body. If the C1 is out
of its proper position it can irritate, constrict or disrupt vital
nerve signals to any portion of your body. This can cause muscle or
joint pain. organ dysfunction. lowered immune system and countless
other conditions that you would not ordinarily relate to a problem
originating in your neck.
"Why do you call it Body Imbalance rather than a neck imbalance? "
Because
it effects the entire spine and body. Wherever your atlas moves, your
head moves with it. If this top bone in your neck has shifted out of
position ever so slightly, no more than the thickness of a fingernail,
it can move your head off center of your body. In an effort to keep the
head over the center of the neck, the entire spine and pelvis will
twist, pulling one hip up and one leg with it. You are now walking
around on one leg that is shorter than the other. This places more
weight on one side of your body than another. The wear and tear on your
entire body is exactly like driving a car that is out of alignment The
result can be muscle and joint pain anywhere in the body. Without
correcting the problem, which originated with a single bone (Atlas) at
the top of your neck moving out of position, your entire body is now
imbalanced. When this continues over time, something else starts to
happen. Because nerve flow is disrupted or distorted,
degeneration of cells in organs can occur, causing internal physical problems that may not show up for years.
"Is it painful to correct? "
Fortunately,
no. The Upper Cervical Correction can be described as a slight
predetermined direction of pressure applied to the first bone (Atlas)
or second bone (Axis) in the neck. It can
feel like a brisk thrust or a light tap on the side of the
neck just below the earlobe. That's where the atlas is. There is NO twisting of the neck. This correction is
engineered to reposition the weight of the head (10 to 14 pounds) over
the center of the body in order to restore body balance and restore
brain to body communication. When the correction is made, muscles begin
to relax, blood and oxygen circulation is increased, the brain is able
to communicate with the affected area, and the body's natural healing
process begins. The healing process continues as long as body balance
is maintained and the brain can communicate with all parts of the body.
"Does it have to be corrected often? "
That
depends on your own body. Some people can hold their correction for
several months, even a year at a time. Others have to be corrected once
or twice a week in the beginning, then one or twice a month. Everyone
is different. The Upper Cervical doctor's objective is to make as
precise an Upper Cervical correction as possible. Then he/she must help
you maintain the correction with as few corrections as possible so that
you may live pain free and enjoy a better quality of life. Periodic
Upper Cervical checkups. just like dental checkups and physicals,
should be part of your personal preventive health care program. If you
are maintaining your correction and body balance then your Upper
Cervical chiropractor will not adjust you.
"l am concerned about radiation from the x-rays. Are they completely necessary?
Yes,
they are the cornerstone of the Upper Cervical doctor's practice and
are very specialized. Most chiropractic equipment today along with lead
aprons keeps radiation down to a minimum. Plus, any minimal danger from
radiation, in our opinion, cannot be compared to the destruction that
is going on in your body every minute your atlas obstructs brain to
body communication. Any shift the atlas makes can cause multiple health
problems. But sometimes that shift in position is no greater than the
thickness of a fingernail. The Upper Cervical doctor has to rely on
x-rays to determine the exact position your atlas/axis vertebrae have
misaligned. The specific analysis of the x-rays will allow the doctor
how to reposition your atlas to within a fraction of an inch back to
the correct position it should be. The UC doctor will make the
correction only after an intensive analysis of how far out of position
your atlas is. After correcting the atlas, a series of post examinations will provide evidence that the atlas is back into it's normal range of motion.
"How soon should I get my children under this care?"
As
soon after birth as possible, and then have them checked periodically
as they grow up. You could not possibly give your child a better gift
than to make certain that the one organ of the body that controls all
the other organs and body functions, the brainstem, is doing its job
without interference from the tiny bone just below it.
"How much does it cost?"
A
fraction of what you have probably already spent in your quest to get
well. There will be some expense at the beginning because of the x-rays
that are so necessary. But our organization has asked that each doctor
provide some type of payment plan that enables you and your family to
get under care as soon as possible. Because insurance does not
distinguish between one form of chiropractic or another, if you have
insurance that covers chiropractic, it should cover Upper Cervical as
well. Unfortunately, some HMO's and PPO's only have certain
chiropractors on their list of providers and you have to go to them.
Most of these, though equally well trained in other chiropractic
procedures, may not be trained in precision Upper Cervical
chiropractic. An Upper Cervical Patent, Louella Harris says, "Richard and I had no insurance when
we started Upper Cervical care, but the concept made enough sense to
risk it. Plus, it cost no more than other forms of chiropractic care.
It turned out to be the best investment of our lives."
"If the Upper Cervical procedure is so good, why haven't I heard about it before?"
There
are specific reasons why you have never heard about this before, and
unfortunately, they are political. First, everyone is aware of the war
that has been going on between the medical profession and the
chiropractic profession over the last 100 years. Whenever there is a
war, there is always a black out of information to the public at large.
For example, 6 years ago when we tried to discuss Upper Cervical care
with any medical doctor or nurse, the moment we mentioned the word
"chiropractor", a thick wall went up. We never were given the chance to
describe how advanced chiropractic at large as become and there are
phenomenal procedures like this one available to people today. The
medical prejudice we encountered prevented us from being able to share
this information with doctors and nurses who work with people who
desperately needed this information, the very information that would
have helped their patients avoid surgery in many cases and avoid the
consumption of drugs with dangerous side effects. Because the doctors
and nurses themselves did not know about this type of healthcare, and
in some cases, they chose not to know, their patients have paid a high
price for their medical doctor's ignorance. Fortunately, 6 years later,
more and more medical doctors are discovering how beneficial Upper
Cervical health care is and are referring more and more of their
patients to Upper Cervical doctors. These medical doctors acknowledge
that constantly prescribing medication is ineffective and is actually
creating additional problems. They realize they have found a safe,
scientific alternative that is of extreme benefit to their patients.
Some of these progressive medical doctors are now becoming some of our
greatest allies. One day we sincerely hope that the medical and
chiropractic professions will work side-by-side for the benefit of
public health. We need them both.
The second reason you've never
heard about this procedure before is because certain laws in every
state and in Canada prevent chiropractors of any particular procedure,
whether UC or otherwise, from freely advertising the procedure they
have dedicated their lives to learning. One law in particular forbids
any chiropractor of any procedure to infer that his method is superior
or more advanced than other chiropractic methods. If a chiropractor
does this, he could be severely chastised by his state board of
chiropractic examiners by being heavily fined and/or threatened with
the loss of his license. It is possible that this law was originally
passed to protect the public from chiropractors making unrealistic
claims about their procedure. The unfortunate result of this law,
however, is that it has produced such fear in chiropractors who
practice almost exclusively a specific type of chiropractic, that they
simply are forced to remain silent about the benefits of their
procedure. A law meant to protect the public has actually created a
moratorium on vital information that could be of tremendous benefit and
cost savings to the public.
We
have tried to answer the most common questions visitors to this our Web
site may have. If you find that your question is not answered on this
page, please E-mail us [email protected] or call us at (714) 841-1408.