She explained, “His birthing process was long. I was induced, and after twenty-four hours at an eight centimeter dilation, they decided to perform an emergency c-section. When he was born, the right side of his head was caved-in, and remained that way for the past eight years.” She paused, and then added, “He complains of having stomach aches almost every day; it’s been several years now. ”
We performed an sEMG and thermography, revealing significant lesions in the upper cervical and thoracic spine. The severity of his condition displayed in the imaging helped to communicate the significance of its affects on the child’s life. When I told the family of his prognosis and the recommended approach to his care, the boy listened and a glow of hope illuminated in his eyes with the realization that his life was about to improve.
A week and a half into the treatment he showed-up at my office with a Christmas stocking he made for me. He smiled and handed it to me, and it hung on my door for the three weeks leading up to Christmas.
After being adjusted, he is a very different person. He and I became very close since his first visit; all along he sensed I understood.
As an added bonus improvement for him, his stomachaches (that most thought were psychosomatic) were gone. I believe his body was compensating at T5-T6, the segmentally related area of the spine that supplies the stomach. His presentation was somatovisceral. Though most of his ailments are improved, he still has his moments of behavioral difficulty, particularly during a growth spurt. We make sure he is checked a little more frequently during those times.
Why Do We Check And Adjust Our Own Children,
Yet Not Always Offer The Same Service To Others?
I did not intend to write entirely on Chiropractic and children, but this area of practice has always tugged at my heartstrings. In 1997, with the help of the most amazing midwife, I gave birth at home to my beautiful daughter Mckenna. My midwife’s experience spans the delivery of over 2,000 babies.
Unlucky for us, during delivery Mckenna had the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck three times. Until that moment, I had never seen anybody work so fast in my entire life; the midwife unraveled the cord from around Mckenna’s neck faster than the speed of love. A very dear colleague and friend adjusted Mckenna less than an hour after her birth.
I know I was given this child so I could take great care of her. I remember one day when she was about six weeks old, she was crying uncontrollably – way more intensely than any baby normally cries. I looked at my Mom and told her I was scared and I felt like I lost my confidence to check and adjust my own baby. What if it didn’t work?
My Mom so gently guided me and said, “Dear, close your eyes and pretend this is just another baby in your clinic, one that you have adjusted many times.”
I closed my eyes and adjusted Mckenna, and within minutes she started to settle down. Not a day passes without thinking about the truth of her being born to me, a Chiropractor. I often wonder what her life would be like if she was without a skillful midwife to deliver her, or if she was not checked for subluxation soon after birth. I know I am not only here to love and support her in life, but she is here for me to gain wisdom from. Adjusting a child throughout their stages of life helps knowing with certainty an adjustment corrects the body’s function. Additionally, watching them grow as they are being adjusted provides a passionate understanding and acknowledgement of the effectiveness an adjustment has on maintaining their body’s systems. If birth traumas remain untreated, it is difficult to predict the ramifications they may have on a child’s life.
Whether my young friend’s development of leukemia was due to a stress at birth, or a reaction to a medication or vaccine, I thoughtfully consider how Chiropractic might have influenced his outcome. What if he was adjusted at birth, or during the stages when leukemia took over his life? I don’t know Chiropractic would have undoubtedly changed his situation, yet I cannot say it would not have, either. I know of many people whose lives have been changed for the better because of just one adjustment. As for those that went without: maybe they could have lived a little longer; maybe they would not have developed cancer; maybe they would have been strong enough to treat their spouse a little nicer; or maybe they felt in harmony within themselves, reflecting a smile to brighten someone else’s day? We can only wonder.
Once upon a time, there was a wise man that used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work. One day he was walking along the shore. As he looked down the beach, he saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself to think of someone who would dance to the day. So he began to walk faster to catch up. As he got closer, he saw that it was a young man and the young man wasn't dancing, but instead he was reaching down to the shore, picking up something and very gently throwing it into the ocean.
As he got closer, he called out, "Good morning! What are you doing?"
The young man paused, looked up and replied, "Throwing starfish into the ocean."
"I guess I should have asked, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?"
"The sun is up and the tide is going out. And if I don't throw them in they'll die."
"But young man, don't you realize that there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it. You can't possibly make a difference!"
The young man listened politely. Then bent-down, picked up another starfish and threw it into the sea, past the breaking waves. "It made a difference for that one!"
All day long as he wrote, the image of the young man haunted him. He tried to ignore it, but the vision persisted. Finally, late in the afternoon he realized that he the scientist, he the poet, had missed out on the essential nature of the young man's actions. Because he realized that what the young man was doing was choosing not to be an observer in the universe and make a difference. He was embarrassed.
That night he went to bed troubled. When the morning came he awoke knowing that he had to do something. So he got up, put on his clothes, went to the beach and found the young man. And with him he spent the rest of the morning throwing starfish into the ocean. You see, what that young man's actions represent is something that is special in each and every one of us. We have all been gifted with the ability to make a difference. And if we can, like that young man, become aware of that gift, we gain through the strength of our vision the power to shape the future.
~ Re-told by Joel Barker, The Power of Vision, 1990. Originally written by Loren Eiseley (1907-1977), Unexpected Universe, 1969.
This story has lived inside of me for years – realizing that doing just one thing can make an amazing difference, and we will never truly understand the full impact of that one thing. Knowing there is a gift inside each of us, and finding it is part of our purpose on this earth. Honouring that gift is being truthful to one’s self.
So, what drives a person with an inner quest? What motivates a person to rise at 5:15 AM to take a newborn to the office after only four hours sleep? What causes a person to miss family dinners and their child’s dance recitals? My drive is sparked to answer the real question, “WHY?” For me, my passion to help children and people keeps my drive alive, and has for many years. I seek for the answers to why they might not be at their best in the first place, and create a path for betterment. This drive within helped me to be a better Mom, a better Chiropractor, a better coach, a better daughter, and hopefully a better person in general. I hope that this helps you find your why, or in the very least helps you to identify that you have one, and to search tirelessly for it within you.
Chiropractic is the best-kept secret, although keeping it secret is a sin! I am so thankful for the chance to share a little of my life’s journey.
One cannot lead a life that is truly excellent without feeling that one belongs to something greater and more permanent than oneself.
~ Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
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