Thursday, March 6, 2014

Shots, Ear Flushes and "Metacations"


In March, there are a number of important birthdays – one of them is my dear Papa, who turned 77 at the beginning of this month.  Ever since I was a little girl, my grandfather was an important person in my life; in fact, he was one of my very first “patients.” 
While visiting my medical doctor was a terror for me as a child, I had no problem “playing doctor” with Papa.  I recently came across a notebook that I wrote as an eight-year-old.  Amongst drawings of horses, my friends, and funny-looking faces, were a number of doctor exam results – here is one example:

Docter [Doctor]: Hannah

Asstitant [Assistant]: Gabe [my brother – five years old at the time]

Paisent [Patient]: Manny [I always made Papa sign his own name]

Coughing, pain ears, tierd [tired], knee pains – over night, headacs [headaches]

Work: Reipr [Repair] Cars

Heart: normal

Blood: normal

Temp: 100

Legs: little high [my version of checking the knee reflexes]

Ears: Very waxy [I seemed to find that all my patients had waxy ears]

Metacation [Medication]: Coughing medisine [medicine]

 I’d like to think that my fascination with being an eight-year-old doctor began because I enjoyed helping people, but truthfully, I think it was more the Papa’s hysterical faces while I was “giving him a shot” or telling him that he “needs his ears flushed because there is too much wax” that I found most enjoyable.   

 Today I enjoy being a doctor who doesn’t give shots, flush ears, or prescribe medications.  While we may need doctors to help with those things, I decided to become a doctor who focuses on creating healing from the inside out as opposed to the typical Western medical model of trying to initiate health from the outside in.  Can the body heal itself?  Of course! When a child falls and scraps his knee, is it the band-aid that heals the knee?  No, it is the body itself that does the healing!

But now, can this be applied to other health problems?  Yes!  We know that nerves control every part of our body – proper body balance, function, and healing are a reflection of the status of the nervous system.  The spine should act as a protector of nerves as they exit the brain and travel to deliver information to the organs and other tissues of the body.  However, accidents and injuries tear loose the connective tissues that hold the spine together.  This creates a weakness in the structure of the spine that leads to breakdown of the body as it locks into a stressed position.  Spinal misalignments interfere with nerve signals, resulting in an inability to deliver proper messages to the body.  Organs and tissues fail to respond correctly.  This process is degenerative and worsens over time.

However, we get used to living like this and resolve that our pain and physical limitations are “normal.”  But this is not normal.  Our body has the capacity to heal itself.   NUCCA chiropractic restores correct spinal alignment which creates a whole-body healing effect.  This kind of health is the result of proper body (structure) balance, which allows for proper communication of nerves to help the body function as it should be as well as .   Are you ready to take the 1st Step in healing?  If so, call the office (815.398.4500) and schedule a consultation – and I promise, I won’t be giving you a shot or flushing your ears! 

1 comment:

  1. Over the years I have had my fair share of doctors look at me wih puzzled expressions when I have described my pain to them. Imagine how relieved I was when my first NUCCA pracitioner did not look at me oddly as I described my chronic pain to him. He actually listened to my story and began to help me understand the symptoms I was having in relation to the misalignment of my atlas (the top bone of the spine.) Eventhough the doctor felt I was a good candidate for care at my first visit, he would not do any "adjusting" until he had taken and anaylzed detailed x-rays of my atlas. It was extremely helpful to see those "films" at my next visit and to have my problem explained to me in a way I could understand. Oddly, it was a comfort to see that there indeed was a real problem there...but that it could be addressed with specialized care. While I had been under the care of a traditional chiropractor for many years, I was just being introduced to the gentle, precise and effective approach of NUCCA.

    At each appointment, my input and awareness of my wellness is invited and charted. My NUCCA practioners (I now have benefited fom the skills of 3 very gifted NUCCA docs) have helped bring my pain under control. Each one has focused on delivering the most precise adjustment possible and have taught me how to protect my alignment so that my need for adjustments has become less over time. These professionals actually celebrate when their patients are "holding their adjustments" requiring fewer visits to the office. But when my "off" days come (and they do), I don't have to worry about convincing someone at the front desk to take my pain seriously. The receptionist understands that the sooner a misalignment is diagnosed and correctly - the better for the patient. I'm grateful that I never have to wait one to weeks to receive care because the staff respects the patient's ability to "read' their own bodies. That kind of partnership with a NUCCA team has kept me encouraged about my health even with the ongoing challenges I face.

    Dr. Orem, there was obviously a "Helper/Healer" back in you as a child. Thank you for embracing years of education to invest in the health and wellness of others. Your dedication to your patients gives us all a lot of hope during a time when "traditional" health care has left us with many questions. Those of us who are under NUCCA care will do our best to get the word out there about the positive difference NUCCA has made in our lives. Thank you.

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