The Struggle For Expression

Everyone is more or less dedicated to the struggle for existence and expression. Even a baby smiles or coos, kicks and waves its hands, all in a struggle for expression or attention. Failing to get attention, the baby yells or cries, then hesitates to note the effect. If not satisfied it yells again.

When children are at play, each tries to excel. "Now watch me," is what the backward child is inclined to say. And so it is all through life whether it be choosing clothing, in games, in workmanship, in politics, in love. "Watch me, do it my way." There is a degree of competition, a struggle to excel. Perhaps that is as it should be. For without competition, without a degree of competitive struggle, there would tend to be decline. As you sow, so shall you reap.

Even with health problems there is a tendency toward excellence. You want to feel good because you can do better work. If you have a headache, you take something, not only to relive the pain but to enable you to do better work. When your work is inferior, it makes you nervous or irritable. Not a good thing. Children in school compete for better grades, for promotion, and for leadership. So it is in the game of life, there is a struggle to excel. To gain relief from pain and/or discomfort tranquilizers are used or other forms of treatment are employed.

In all forms of salesmanship there is a struggle for expression. Each tries to excel in salesmanship or in quality of product. In the healing arts it is much the same. Different so-called remedies make various claims for their respective product, and the patient is the goat. The competition between different forms of medication is keen. Makers of remedies seek wonder drugs. Chiropractors stress that drugs are superfluous and generally should be avoided. Do you wonder why? This is the explanation: The chiropractic profession maintains that health is a natural state of being that comes from within outward, expressed through the nervous system that stems from the brain and spinal cord, in conjunction with the spinal column.

The spinal column has been called the strength and support of the body. The spine consists of twenty-four movable vertebrae, with the sacrum and ilia supporting the rest of the spine. The spinal column has various functions. It serves for the articulation of all the larger bones and the attachment of the major ligaments and muscles. The vertebrae are separated by discs that enable bending and act as "shock absorbers" for the entire spine.

But this is not all. Between the vertebrae openings spinal nerve bundles emit from the spinal cord. These are a great cable of nerves encased within the spinal column extending downward from the brain to entire length of the spinal column. This make the spine the distributing center for the entire nervous system.

This anatomical arrangement is vital to health because accidents and trauma sometimes shock or strain the spine. When this occurs, one or more vertebrae may become displaced to a degree that nerves are pinched resulting in dis-ease (want of ease) and the symptoms that follow.

The normal expression of health should be restored and a more abundant life is made possible.

Make it happen!

The Stress of Life

"The Stress of Life" is a perennial bestseller by Hans Selye, written in 1956. Selye almost single-handedly introduced the notion of stress into the worldwide consciousness. By doing so, Selye changed the way we think about ourselves, our values, and how we conduct our lives.

As Selye observed, stress is a double-edged sword. Many types of stress are good for people, both physiologically and personally. For example, Wolff's law states that bone will remodel (build more bone) along lines of mechanical stress. In other words, bone becomes stronger when it is subjected to physical loads. The physiological stress of weight-bearing exercise such as walking, running, and strength training helps prevent osteoporosis by making bone denser and more resilient. From a psychological perspective, the great German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, famously stated in "Twilight of the Idols" (1888), "What does not destroy me, makes me stronger." Apparently, Nietzsche (writing in the 19th century) was far ahead of Selye in pointing to the benefits (and dangers) of stress.

Life is filled with "good" stresses. A new love relationship, a new job, or a new baby may all provide great personal happiness and the experience of fulfillment and satisfaction. But each circumstance may also place new demands on us, calling on us to be and do much more than that of which we had previously thought ourselves capable. A person may develop all sorts of adaptive responses in attempts to cope with life's new requirements, but most of these adaptations are themselves stress-producing. Over time the adaptations become habits, stress becomes a day-by-day experience, and a host of physiological and psychological disorders and syndromes may appear.1,2 High blood pressure, diabetes, overweight/obesity, arthritis, insomnia, and depression may all be considered as long-term maladaptive responses to stress.3

Muscular aches and pains, muscle spasms, and headaches are common physiological responses to ongoing stress. A vicious circle develops in which stress leads to muscle tightness, which constricts blood vessels, which leads to headaches, which leads to more muscle tightness, more pain, and even more stress. One's day seems to become filled with stress and stress reactions. The good news is that means of ending these vicious circles of stress are available. Present time consciousness, regular exercise and a healthy diet, sufficient rest, and regular chiropractic care comprise a powerful tool kit for restoring balance in one's life.

1Wu EL, et al: Increased risk of hypertension in patients with major depressive disorder: a population-based study. J Psychosom Res 73(3):169-174, 2012

2Hristova MG: Metabolic syndrome - From the neurotrophic hypothesis to a theory. Med Hypotheses 2013 July 27 [Epub ahead of print]

3Martocchia A, et al: Targets of anti-glucocorticoid therapy for stress-related diseases. Recent Pat CNS Drug Discov 8(1):79-87, 2013