Fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, and more--can chiropractic care help?
Odds are you most likely know someone with a diagnosis of fibromyalgia, IBS, chronic fatigue syndrome, or autoimmune disease (just to name a few) or perhaps you have suffered with one or more of these conditions.
Did you know that they all have something in common? These disorders and others fall under the umbrella of what traditional medical care calls "medically unexplained symptoms" (MUS for short).
MUS describes a range of disorders that have very real symptoms but no measurable end organ dysfunction. A diagnosis of a MUS is often made after extensive testing to rule out other disorders/diseases.
According to a Canadian journal, medically unexplained symptoms make up 15-30% of all office visits to primary care doctor offices. Just to put that in perspective if 100 people go to their family doctor today 15-30 of them will leave the office after being told "it's all in your head".
So, if there is not "anything really wrong" what is causing all these real symptoms?? The truth is it really is in your head (actually it is all in your nervous system). Let me elaborate.....
According to the work of Dr Stephen Porges our nervous system has evolved to allow us to turn off our threat response. It's this evolution that allows us to live in a way where we can socially engage with others and not go through life like a squirrel or a deer, looking terrified and on edge when approached.
This evolution of our nervous system is dependent on how safe we feel in our environment. Think back to the squirrel and deer example. If we observe either animal in nature they are calm and at ease....until they see us as our mere presence is a threat to their well being.
While we don't have the same animal instincts as a squirrel or a deer our nervous system is constantly scanning our environment for potential threats based on our past experiences. These experiences can be conscious or can be the result of conditioning that we inherited from generations past.
All of us are influenced by the experiences and beliefs of those around us, we subconsciously start storing these beliefs and coping mechanisms in our nervous system the day we are born and it becomes how we deal with all that life throws at us.
Sometimes these beliefs and coping skills serve us well however, more often than not, they cause the nervous system to misread the world around us causing us to feel safe when we really aren't or it can cause us to feel threatened when there is no threat.
When our body perceives threat, either real or imagined, it prepares to protect itself at all costs; priority is shifted in our body to focus on survival which leaves other feedback loops not as well regulated. Over time this dysregulation causes symptoms and once enough symptoms are present a diagnosis like fibromyalgia is made.
While there is no "real" damage in the body that can be measured by an x-ray or lab test the symptoms that this dysregulation causes are very real.
There is hope to help relieve the pain and suffering
Regular chiropractic care is one way to help re-tune your nervous system. There is a body of research that shows that restoring proper movement to your spine helps your nervous system to move more towards a state of ease; a state where healing and regeneration can occur.
So, if you or someone you love is suffering with symptoms that traditional medicine has no clear answer for (or if you are just looking for a natural approach to health and well-being) why not give chiropractic a try!
There are some polyvagal exercises based on the work of Dr Porges you can also try, click the links to learn more...
4-7-8 breathing (relaxation breath)
Posted In:
Chiropractic
COMMUNITY HEALTH
Gaffney
chronic pain
