I have often told patients that it would be nice if we
could isolate them from the rest of the world when they began their time under
Upper Cervical Care, so as not to have other issues arise independent of what
their bodies need to do to get them back on an even keel.
Everyone can relate to that. If you’re an expecting mother and your
toddler decides that they don’t want to go to bed at night anymore, forcing you
to remove the afternoon nap from his/her schedule – the same nap used as “mommy
time” – then it would be wonderful if stressors were not accumulating
throughout the rest of your life during the transition. If you’re planning to retire and you need to
work just one more year to reach that point, then the last thing you want is a
knee replacement that forces you to take time away that could have been spent
inching one step closer to your career finish line. If you’re starting a new business and your primary
focus should be on letting people know what you offer, then weeks at a time
trying to get a bank to loan you money gets in the way. The bottom line is that the ideal scenario
for anyone who needs to commit to one major thing is not to have several other
extraneous things getting in the way.
Unfortunately, we are rarely afforded the ideal
circumstance, as true for a healing process as it is for anything else. If we could lock ourselves in a bubble for
one month and focus only on the things that we need to do in order to get well,
then we would regain our health much faster.
So, how do we navigate the waters of our respective paths toward
wellness when, odds are, there are going to be a few things that pile up on our
plates while we’re on that journey?
There is a basic framework that we can operate within to
give ourselves the best chance to succeed – to lay a solid foundation to build
ourselves into our best possible versions while life’s challenges are being
thrown at us.
It starts with the right attitude. Resilience is defined as battling back from
adversity to become stronger than you were before adversity struck. One of the characteristic traits of resilient
people is their positive outlooks on life.
Napoleon Hill, who worked with some of the most successful people of the
early 20th century to discover their commonalities, wrote that “Your
mind has a secret invisible talisman [lucky charm]. On one side is emblazoned
the letters PMA (positive mental attitude) and on the other the letters NMA
(negative mental attitude). A positive attitude will naturally attract the good
and the beautiful. The negative attitude will rob you of all that makes life
worth living.”
We cannot let challenges defeat us. We’re going to be tested, but what defeats us
is not the challenges, themselves, but our attitude toward them. People who are genuinely grounded in their
faith offer us templates for to make perception work in our favor. When they encounter a rough patch, notice how
they accept it as part of their journey and move strongly forward to the next
phase.
Consider, also, that it is much easier to maintain a good
attitude if we take the time to gain perspective of our situations. Famous French philosopher, Pascal, once wrote
that “All of man’s problems could be solved if he could just learn to sit alone
in a room with himself for an hour.” Amen
to that. We are bombarded daily with so
much information, but rarely do we take the time necessary to process and
assimilate it. That extends to health,
especially to our patients, who can vouch for the fact that we do not go easy
on the education. We try to counteract
the barrage of allopathic/pharmaceutical information with a steady dose of the
holistic mindset. So, it is wise to find
quiet moments to relax your mind.
“When you connect to the silence within you, that is when
you can make sense of the disturbance going on around you,” says Stephen
Richards, who has written many books on the power of the mind. Meditation is the common practice suggested
by the natural health community to quiet the mind, but I know from speaking
with many of you that said term has a negative connotation. Well, really meditation is just
contemplation; a fancy way of saying “sit down and think.” We could all benefit from sitting down to
think. People of faith have a natural
outlet for it (prayer), again offering us a pattern to follow.
I get it. I’ve
always been open and honest with you about my own life and the challenges that
I have, partly in hopes that you can see that just because you know
the path doesn’t mean that you won’t find a winding road to travel while walking
the path. We have another baby on the
way in two months and our 2 ½ year old daughter has been as challenging as she
has ever been. She was the inspiration
for the nap time comment made in the second paragraph. Her developing immune system was exposed to some
sort of virus that she got over in a day, but which knocked me down hard for
most of a week, thanks in large part to my being run down because the snow days
knocked my office schedule into chaos.
The week before the snow storms began, my front office computer went
down on the same day that my garage door wouldn’t lift. Sometimes, it seems like it’s just one thing
after another.
Each of the five essentials of healthy living – normal
function, proper nutrition, structural balance, stress management, and physical
activity – are important aspects of going with life’s flow (especially while
trying to regain your health once you’ve lost it); they all work together to
shape what your road to well-being actually looks like. Body chemistry and hormonal balance is
governed by the quality of your food, the basic activity that produces hormones
is governed by your brainstem and nerve system, structural balance is largely
responsible for physical well-being, and exercise keeps your structural frame
durable and strong. However, your
attitude is arguably the most pertinent to today’s topic. Thinking well makes it easier for you to be
well. Taking time to think better allows
you to think well.
Thinking good things for all of you,
Dr. Chad
Friday, March 20, 2015
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
Putting Your Mind at Ease About the Measles
Disclaimer - The information in this newsletter should
not be interpreted as medical advice for any condition. Dr. McIntyre is a licensed healthcare
professional, but this column is intended only to make you aware and to make
you think. The primary sources cited in
this article are the websites for the Center for Disease Control, the Institute
of Medicine, and the National Vaccine Information Center.
Last December, a family visited Disneyland. According to officials, one of them had the Measles virus. Over one hundred others received the same diagnosis in the months that followed and ongoing media frenzy has ensued.
Television has a way of dramatizing even the most objective story. Stripping away the sensationalism, the real question is: should we be concerned about the Measles?
There are 319 million people in the United States. 150 people have had the Measles, thus far, in 2015 and 644 people had the Measles last year; an infinitesimally small percentage of the American population. To put that into perspective, between 16 and 64 million people (5-20% of US residents) are diagnosed with seasonal Flu viruses each year. The number of new Measles cases has been waning since the first week in February and, of those already reported, none led to deaths. In fact, there have been no deaths from Measles in the United States in 15 years.
The symptoms of the Measles are of the variety comparable to a bad cold, with a characteristic rash being the defining characteristic that separates it from other viral infections. Basically, it makes you feel really lousy for several days, much like with the Flu, and then you get over it.
Considering that it is a virus that primarily attacks the developing immune systems of younger children, it is perfectly reasonable for parents to be alarmed by what they are seeing on the news. However, the situation has been over exaggerated. One California Pediatrician was even quoted as saying that “Our nightmare would be for someone to show up at our door with the measles.” Such an attitude has helped create unwarranted fear throughout the public and suggests a fundamental misunderstanding of the virus. Even at its height over five decades ago, the Measles was responsible for just 500 deaths in 500,000 diagnosed cases per year (0.001%). Can the Measles be dangerous? Yes, but not to the degree that should elicit widespread panic. If you evaluate what the Measles does rather than what it can do, you will find very little reason to worry.
A simple evaluation of the situation reasonably leads to the conclusion that we can breathe easy.
Perhaps of greater concern is of how the Measles coverage has fanned the flames of a larger issue. Inevitably, when there are numerous cases reported about conditions for which the general population receives a vaccination, the story shifts to the modern argument between those who vaccinate and those who do not. A recent CNN poll revealed that 80% of American parents believe that vaccinations should be mandatory and that 60% believe that unvaccinated children should be banned from public school and daycare. This article is not intended to draw a line in the sand and pick a side. Contrary to popular opinion, the vaccine debate is not that black and white and, as such, is a broader topic for another day. This article does, however, support the parental right to choose whether or not to vaccinate. It also supports the ethical ideal of informed consent between patients and their doctors, meaning that patients get to choose what treatments are administered based on verbal and written facts about the risks and benefits.
Many a debate should be had in regards to vaccines, but emotions often run too high (thanks in no small part to the media) for this debate not to devolve into a knockdown, drag out argument. Hopefully, a little bit of perspective on the matter will ease the minds of anxious readers and allow cooler heads to prevail. We have the capacity to rise above and have genuine discussions on such pressing matters.
It might help if the two opposing sides better understood the other’s choices. It would also be beneficial for both sides to recognize that there are more than two views. Since much of the fervor surrounding the Measles cases has centered on the so-called “anti-vaccine movement,” though, it is important to point out to the pro-vaccine group that there are still very real concerns about the safety of vaccines.
Thousands of severe reactions are reported to the CDC each year which have resulted in prolonged hospitalization, permanent disability, or death. Many reactions never get reported, with some sources stating that they are “grossly underreported.” The fact, though, is that adverse reactions happen. $3 billion have been paid out to victims of adverse reactions to vaccines. Yahoo Parenting published an article in February that detailed the stories of some of these victims. The daughter of Dr. Susan Lawson, for instance, was left with permanent brain damage after receiving the MMR vaccine. She had previously had the utmost faith in medicine, but after seeing her child become a toddler for life “felt shocked, bewildered, and guilty” by her vaccine experience. “Like any medication, vaccines can cause side effects,” said a CDC spokesperson to the author of the article. The MMR vaccine, in addition to adverse reactions, has been responsible for over 100 deaths since 2000.
Scientists are unable to prove that a definitive connection exists between vaccines and so many of the potential adverse effects, but rarely are they also able to prove that a connection does not exist. The fine print states that “the evidence is inadequate to accept or reject a causal relationship.” No two people are exactly the same, so we may never know with 100% certainty that vaccines are or are not safe. Thus, there may always be a debate.
As you can see, this current Measles situation is not as extreme as it may seem, which means that our response to it does not need to be extreme either. Using the recent Measles scare as a platform to condemn parents who choose not to vaccinate is without merit. It certainly should not be used as a way to lobby for stripping patients of informed consent under the guise of “public health” needs.
Upper Cervical Perspective: No matter your position on vaccines, the true issue at hand is immunity. If you are concerned about infection, in general, there are things that you can do to build a strong immune system on your own. Upper Cervical Care ensures the basic, neurologic component, connecting the brainstem to the brain and glands that govern immune response. Eating your fruits and vegetables, of course, is extremely important, too. Being active helps; keeping your body moving. The less stress the better, as well, so if you need support in this area then make sure that you get it. On that note, surround yourself with positive people, places, and things; it will help you keep stress manageable. Essential oils offer a natural alternative to symptom depressing drugs and is actually a true "preventative medicine."
Thinking good things for you, as always,
Dr. Chad
Last December, a family visited Disneyland. According to officials, one of them had the Measles virus. Over one hundred others received the same diagnosis in the months that followed and ongoing media frenzy has ensued.
Television has a way of dramatizing even the most objective story. Stripping away the sensationalism, the real question is: should we be concerned about the Measles?
There are 319 million people in the United States. 150 people have had the Measles, thus far, in 2015 and 644 people had the Measles last year; an infinitesimally small percentage of the American population. To put that into perspective, between 16 and 64 million people (5-20% of US residents) are diagnosed with seasonal Flu viruses each year. The number of new Measles cases has been waning since the first week in February and, of those already reported, none led to deaths. In fact, there have been no deaths from Measles in the United States in 15 years.
The symptoms of the Measles are of the variety comparable to a bad cold, with a characteristic rash being the defining characteristic that separates it from other viral infections. Basically, it makes you feel really lousy for several days, much like with the Flu, and then you get over it.
Considering that it is a virus that primarily attacks the developing immune systems of younger children, it is perfectly reasonable for parents to be alarmed by what they are seeing on the news. However, the situation has been over exaggerated. One California Pediatrician was even quoted as saying that “Our nightmare would be for someone to show up at our door with the measles.” Such an attitude has helped create unwarranted fear throughout the public and suggests a fundamental misunderstanding of the virus. Even at its height over five decades ago, the Measles was responsible for just 500 deaths in 500,000 diagnosed cases per year (0.001%). Can the Measles be dangerous? Yes, but not to the degree that should elicit widespread panic. If you evaluate what the Measles does rather than what it can do, you will find very little reason to worry.
A simple evaluation of the situation reasonably leads to the conclusion that we can breathe easy.
Perhaps of greater concern is of how the Measles coverage has fanned the flames of a larger issue. Inevitably, when there are numerous cases reported about conditions for which the general population receives a vaccination, the story shifts to the modern argument between those who vaccinate and those who do not. A recent CNN poll revealed that 80% of American parents believe that vaccinations should be mandatory and that 60% believe that unvaccinated children should be banned from public school and daycare. This article is not intended to draw a line in the sand and pick a side. Contrary to popular opinion, the vaccine debate is not that black and white and, as such, is a broader topic for another day. This article does, however, support the parental right to choose whether or not to vaccinate. It also supports the ethical ideal of informed consent between patients and their doctors, meaning that patients get to choose what treatments are administered based on verbal and written facts about the risks and benefits.
Many a debate should be had in regards to vaccines, but emotions often run too high (thanks in no small part to the media) for this debate not to devolve into a knockdown, drag out argument. Hopefully, a little bit of perspective on the matter will ease the minds of anxious readers and allow cooler heads to prevail. We have the capacity to rise above and have genuine discussions on such pressing matters.
It might help if the two opposing sides better understood the other’s choices. It would also be beneficial for both sides to recognize that there are more than two views. Since much of the fervor surrounding the Measles cases has centered on the so-called “anti-vaccine movement,” though, it is important to point out to the pro-vaccine group that there are still very real concerns about the safety of vaccines.
Thousands of severe reactions are reported to the CDC each year which have resulted in prolonged hospitalization, permanent disability, or death. Many reactions never get reported, with some sources stating that they are “grossly underreported.” The fact, though, is that adverse reactions happen. $3 billion have been paid out to victims of adverse reactions to vaccines. Yahoo Parenting published an article in February that detailed the stories of some of these victims. The daughter of Dr. Susan Lawson, for instance, was left with permanent brain damage after receiving the MMR vaccine. She had previously had the utmost faith in medicine, but after seeing her child become a toddler for life “felt shocked, bewildered, and guilty” by her vaccine experience. “Like any medication, vaccines can cause side effects,” said a CDC spokesperson to the author of the article. The MMR vaccine, in addition to adverse reactions, has been responsible for over 100 deaths since 2000.
Scientists are unable to prove that a definitive connection exists between vaccines and so many of the potential adverse effects, but rarely are they also able to prove that a connection does not exist. The fine print states that “the evidence is inadequate to accept or reject a causal relationship.” No two people are exactly the same, so we may never know with 100% certainty that vaccines are or are not safe. Thus, there may always be a debate.
As you can see, this current Measles situation is not as extreme as it may seem, which means that our response to it does not need to be extreme either. Using the recent Measles scare as a platform to condemn parents who choose not to vaccinate is without merit. It certainly should not be used as a way to lobby for stripping patients of informed consent under the guise of “public health” needs.
Upper Cervical Perspective: No matter your position on vaccines, the true issue at hand is immunity. If you are concerned about infection, in general, there are things that you can do to build a strong immune system on your own. Upper Cervical Care ensures the basic, neurologic component, connecting the brainstem to the brain and glands that govern immune response. Eating your fruits and vegetables, of course, is extremely important, too. Being active helps; keeping your body moving. The less stress the better, as well, so if you need support in this area then make sure that you get it. On that note, surround yourself with positive people, places, and things; it will help you keep stress manageable. Essential oils offer a natural alternative to symptom depressing drugs and is actually a true "preventative medicine."
Thinking good things for you, as always,
Dr. Chad
Thursday, January 29, 2015
"At Today’s Rate, by 2025, One in Two Children Will Be Autistic"
Disclaimer - The information in this newsletter should
not be interpreted as medical advice for any condition. Dr. McIntyre is a licensed healthcare
professional, but this column is intended only to make you aware and to make
you think.
Dr. Stephanie Seneff made a bold prediction last year, claiming that the number of children with the clinical signs for autism will not just continue to rise, but will skyrocket to astronomically high levels in the next decade. Seneff, a widely published author in the research world, was alarmingly confident in her assessment, the tone of her words chilling. Her reasoning stemmed from the “remarkably consistent correlation” found between the rising use of the weed killer, Roundup, on food crops and the rising rates of autism.
When a leading researcher at MIT says, “At today’s rate, by 2025, one in two children will be autistic,” you take notice.
Seneff’s work echoes the long held belief that autism is more a chemically and/or neurologically-based condition and less a condition of directly genetic origin (so deeply ingrained within the genetic code, like eye color, that we should stop looking elsewhere for causes). Her focus is on strengthening the chemical argument, specifically citing the main active ingredient in Roundup called glyphosate and its heavy use since 1990, coinciding with the strongest spike in cases of autism occurring during the same span. Seneff notes in her presentation that symptoms of autism are strikingly similar to symptoms of glyphosate toxicity. Thirty plus years ago, autism was diagnosed once in 5,000 kids. Today, it’s one in 68 by the most conservative estimates and as high as one in 20 by others. Either number is staggering and is in need of some logical explanation. Seneff’s findings are, at the very least, logical.
This topic is incredibly frustrating. Scientists have not found a direct relationship between Roundup use and autism diagnoses. Seneff counters that “most studies are too short to show Roundup’s oft-studied effects as a cumulative toxin, one that builds up both in the environment and in our bodies over time.” Something is causing the increased incidence of autism and it may be time that we acknowledge that the scientific process should not trump what makes sense. Much like the vaccine debate, the science is not conclusive, which is often misconstrued and mistranslated to suggest that there’s no link. Inconclusive means that it can neither be scientifically proven nor scientifically denied. However, it can be logically deduced.
In Europe, they pay very close attention to such chemical hazards as glyphosate because it can destroy healthy bacteria in our digestive systems allowing disease to grow inside our bodies and can also interfere with our nervous systems. According to Seneff, glyphosate is found in the breast milk of American mothers at levels that are a 760 to 1600 times higher than allowable limits in European drinking water. Testing has also shown that Americans have 10 times the glyphosate accumulation in their urine than Europeans. Logically, if you introduce a chemical with negative capabilities galore into food and water, then it’s reasonable to assume its potential, toxic side effects. Every chemical has toxic side effects. No exceptions. To scientifically deny the harm is to deny logic. Glyphosate is an herbicide, after all. By its very meaning, it is toxic.
Far too often, those in favor of holding these chemically based compounds (of all sorts of varieties) and the companies that produce them accountable for their ill-health effects are put on their heels, forced to prove that the compounds are dangerous. It should be the other way around. If you’re going to spray a chemical on our food then, dear chemical compound company, it is YOU that must prove to US that it IS NOT dangerous. Are we to sit back for another decade and do nothing as the rates of so many diseases reset their record levels while, logically, there seem to be rather plausible causes but, scientifically, such reason is refuted through arguably flawed methods?
A logical argument could also be made that the number of increases has spiked so greatly because of changes in the diagnostic criteria. Generally, I have long been a supporter of this camp, as I feel strongly that we overdiagnose in our society across the board in modern medicine’s constant quest to label each symptom set. Yet, I’ve seen autism and its sister syndrome, Asperger’s (a higher-functioning form), in our clinical setting. I believe that, in this case, the condition is on our radar more than ever before mostly because its prevalence has so dramatically increased. And we have to find out why.
The Upper Cervical Perspective: I’ve been studying autism since before I graduated from school. Autism was given its name from the Greek word “autos,” meaning “self,” as in consumed with their world. It presents as a neurologic disorder, hence the language and information processing issues. I believe it to be a combination of multiple causes, the two most likely being chemical insults (triggering the neurologic deficits) and developmental inhibition, either in utero or after birth. To address the chemical insults, parents must be better informed about the things that they put into their children’s bodies (and their own, during pregnancy) and we, collectively, must hold chemical companies accountable. “Neither confirm nor deny” is not a good enough answer.
As for the developmental issue, there are two primary areas that need to be addressed: pregnancy and infancy. A few years ago, much of the attention in research began focusing on the manner in which the brain develops, in utero. Expecting mothers need to be aware of this. We’re expecting again in May and our progressive thinking birthing team has stated it clearly: eat well and stay well adjusted. Indeed, ensuring that your body functions well ensures that the baby can develop normally. Then, once the baby is born, it’s important to ensure that the child’s delicate structural-neurological balance is not thrown off, as it can impede important developmental processes.
To conclude, the aim for many of these articles is to put the information in your hands and stimulate you to think more about it. The battle within the scientific community, as you can see, rages on. Meanwhile, the autism rate just increased again. So, be well and think freely.
Thinking good things for you, as always,
Dr. Chad
Dr. Stephanie Seneff made a bold prediction last year, claiming that the number of children with the clinical signs for autism will not just continue to rise, but will skyrocket to astronomically high levels in the next decade. Seneff, a widely published author in the research world, was alarmingly confident in her assessment, the tone of her words chilling. Her reasoning stemmed from the “remarkably consistent correlation” found between the rising use of the weed killer, Roundup, on food crops and the rising rates of autism.
When a leading researcher at MIT says, “At today’s rate, by 2025, one in two children will be autistic,” you take notice.
Seneff’s work echoes the long held belief that autism is more a chemically and/or neurologically-based condition and less a condition of directly genetic origin (so deeply ingrained within the genetic code, like eye color, that we should stop looking elsewhere for causes). Her focus is on strengthening the chemical argument, specifically citing the main active ingredient in Roundup called glyphosate and its heavy use since 1990, coinciding with the strongest spike in cases of autism occurring during the same span. Seneff notes in her presentation that symptoms of autism are strikingly similar to symptoms of glyphosate toxicity. Thirty plus years ago, autism was diagnosed once in 5,000 kids. Today, it’s one in 68 by the most conservative estimates and as high as one in 20 by others. Either number is staggering and is in need of some logical explanation. Seneff’s findings are, at the very least, logical.
This topic is incredibly frustrating. Scientists have not found a direct relationship between Roundup use and autism diagnoses. Seneff counters that “most studies are too short to show Roundup’s oft-studied effects as a cumulative toxin, one that builds up both in the environment and in our bodies over time.” Something is causing the increased incidence of autism and it may be time that we acknowledge that the scientific process should not trump what makes sense. Much like the vaccine debate, the science is not conclusive, which is often misconstrued and mistranslated to suggest that there’s no link. Inconclusive means that it can neither be scientifically proven nor scientifically denied. However, it can be logically deduced.
In Europe, they pay very close attention to such chemical hazards as glyphosate because it can destroy healthy bacteria in our digestive systems allowing disease to grow inside our bodies and can also interfere with our nervous systems. According to Seneff, glyphosate is found in the breast milk of American mothers at levels that are a 760 to 1600 times higher than allowable limits in European drinking water. Testing has also shown that Americans have 10 times the glyphosate accumulation in their urine than Europeans. Logically, if you introduce a chemical with negative capabilities galore into food and water, then it’s reasonable to assume its potential, toxic side effects. Every chemical has toxic side effects. No exceptions. To scientifically deny the harm is to deny logic. Glyphosate is an herbicide, after all. By its very meaning, it is toxic.
Far too often, those in favor of holding these chemically based compounds (of all sorts of varieties) and the companies that produce them accountable for their ill-health effects are put on their heels, forced to prove that the compounds are dangerous. It should be the other way around. If you’re going to spray a chemical on our food then, dear chemical compound company, it is YOU that must prove to US that it IS NOT dangerous. Are we to sit back for another decade and do nothing as the rates of so many diseases reset their record levels while, logically, there seem to be rather plausible causes but, scientifically, such reason is refuted through arguably flawed methods?
A logical argument could also be made that the number of increases has spiked so greatly because of changes in the diagnostic criteria. Generally, I have long been a supporter of this camp, as I feel strongly that we overdiagnose in our society across the board in modern medicine’s constant quest to label each symptom set. Yet, I’ve seen autism and its sister syndrome, Asperger’s (a higher-functioning form), in our clinical setting. I believe that, in this case, the condition is on our radar more than ever before mostly because its prevalence has so dramatically increased. And we have to find out why.
The Upper Cervical Perspective: I’ve been studying autism since before I graduated from school. Autism was given its name from the Greek word “autos,” meaning “self,” as in consumed with their world. It presents as a neurologic disorder, hence the language and information processing issues. I believe it to be a combination of multiple causes, the two most likely being chemical insults (triggering the neurologic deficits) and developmental inhibition, either in utero or after birth. To address the chemical insults, parents must be better informed about the things that they put into their children’s bodies (and their own, during pregnancy) and we, collectively, must hold chemical companies accountable. “Neither confirm nor deny” is not a good enough answer.
As for the developmental issue, there are two primary areas that need to be addressed: pregnancy and infancy. A few years ago, much of the attention in research began focusing on the manner in which the brain develops, in utero. Expecting mothers need to be aware of this. We’re expecting again in May and our progressive thinking birthing team has stated it clearly: eat well and stay well adjusted. Indeed, ensuring that your body functions well ensures that the baby can develop normally. Then, once the baby is born, it’s important to ensure that the child’s delicate structural-neurological balance is not thrown off, as it can impede important developmental processes.
To conclude, the aim for many of these articles is to put the information in your hands and stimulate you to think more about it. The battle within the scientific community, as you can see, rages on. Meanwhile, the autism rate just increased again. So, be well and think freely.
Thinking good things for you, as always,
Dr. Chad
Monday, December 29, 2014
A Message to the Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired
Two weeks ago, I was sitting in a coffee shop (drinking organic green
tea), when I overheard a couple of college students talking about
biochemistry, and then physiology. I assumed that they were studying
for careers in the healing arts. Later, the buzzword “chiropractic”
came up and, being just a few feet away, I could not help but
eavesdrop. What I heard was disappointing. It was the same old
gobbledygook started by the American Medical Association (not stirring
things up; just a fact) that permeated throughout the public in the old
days. Despite an anti-trust lawsuit won by the chiropractic profession
25 years ago to stop the libelous, slanderous perpetuation of negativity
by the AMA, you can still see the lines drawn in the sand between
medicine and chiropractic today.
I suppose it makes sense, to a degree. The two paradigms are, after all, based on fundamentally different philosophies. It’s just a shame that, in order for one to be right, the other has to be wrong. Earlier in my career, in trying to find a balance between sharing the unfortunate truths about the allopathic/medical model of healthcare and condemning it, I veered far too strongly toward admonishment. I hope that time has mellowed my approach and is reflective in the education that I provide both verbally and through the written word. After hearing the students bash my profession as “unscientific,” I made it a point to walk by their table before I left, introduce myself, and hand them my card and a scrap piece of paper with some suggested reading. Such little gestures can be powerful agents of change to the uninitiated.
However, to those of us that have been initiated and that have been trying to help our families, friends, and peers to make changes, we have a responsibility to increase our efforts. I recall, a year ago, when Mollie and I were watching my former protégé turned colleague, Dr. Josh D’Allasandro, give us a dry run of the New Patient Orientation Class that he would go onto use when he opened his office in February 2014. At the end, after he had explained the offer that he would make to people learning about Upper Cervical Care for the first time, he said something that I’ve said a hundred times before in our office: “…if you don’t want to make an appointment, then that’s OKAY.” I highlighted the last two words because something struck me that night, which prompted me to ask myself, “Is it really OK?”
Of course, I remain adamant to the idealization that making decisions about your health should not be driven by fear. I don’t want somebody to become a patient at Triad Upper Cervical Clinic because they’re afraid of what will happen if they don’t. That’s a lousy foundation upon which to build a doctor-patient relationship. All the same, Upper Cervical Care is not a luxury; it’s an essential. Remember my story? I wouldn’t be who I am today without Upper Cervical Care. It was the missing piece of the puzzle to me getting my life back. It has played the same role for so many of you. So, again, I posit and slightly rephrase the previous question: “Is it really OK for us to stand idly by and watch people suffer for another moment longer than they should, solutionless and without guidance?”
Throughout the year, I’ve written in many a newsletter about how we need to modify black and white thought processes about health-related matters. Let’s do that one more time for 2014. There is a gray area, here, that I believe we’ve been neglecting. In regards to Upper Cervical Care, we either spread the word or keep it a secret; we tell someone a thousand times with as many rejections or just once and leave it be (if we say anything at all). Why don’t we, moving forward, push a little harder when the person we’re telling is in dire straits? It would be wonderful if everyone were completely ready for something different before walking a non-medical path, but sometimes, the best way to get the truth out there is just to clearly and definitively state it without reservation of how someone else might feel about it or react to it. Those students at the coffee shop? They need to be spoon fed new information. The chronically ill recipient of half a dozen diagnoses on several medications per day? Maybe it’s time we not so easily concede, constantly giving them the ball instead.
I met a woman at our Dinner w/ Doc recently that clearly needed help in the present and not several months or years into the future (she might not have that long at this rate). She said, “I’m not ready, yet,” when we prompted her to come get evaluated. I asked, “With all due respect and with genuine concern, why aren’t you ready yet?” She didn’t have an answer. But the ball is in her court. I decided to no longer be “OK” with everyone who wanted to wait until the perfect time (if any time) to explore their vast array of “other” options in healthcare beyond medicine. Our system is, arguably, broken beyond repair. To sit back and watch people go down with a sinking ship? I’ve reached a point in my life and career where that’s no longer “OK” with me.
Many of my patients will vouch that “Dr. Chad listens.” I am always listening. I’m hyperaware. Just as I hear the students try to piece together their understanding of complicated body chemistry and spew false rhetoric about chiropractic, I hear such statements as “I’ll give Upper Cervical Care a try” or “my friends just don’t get it” or “I just want to think about it for a little while” or “getting adjusted won’t help you get over that cold.” I thoroughly observe. I see the kids that visit the office with their parents and don’t follow through with getting them checked, the reluctance to stop bombarding their children with medications despite the statistics that we offer, and the hesitancy to fully embrace a different model of healthcare.
I want each and every one of you that personally remains skeptical to read this message clearly – and pass it along to the skeptics that you encounter: if you give your body the chance to be well, then I promise that you will regain your health. It may take time, but you’ll get there. Remember that the biggest difference between Upper Cervical Care and the other holistic approaches is that we aren’t aiming to treat the body; we are helping the body heal. People don’t get truly well by being treated; they do so by healing. As we exit 2014 and enter 2015, I am personally enhancing my goal to practice as I preach, to lead by example, and to make lasting change in this community.
Are you ready?
Thinking good things for you, as always,
Dr. Chad
I suppose it makes sense, to a degree. The two paradigms are, after all, based on fundamentally different philosophies. It’s just a shame that, in order for one to be right, the other has to be wrong. Earlier in my career, in trying to find a balance between sharing the unfortunate truths about the allopathic/medical model of healthcare and condemning it, I veered far too strongly toward admonishment. I hope that time has mellowed my approach and is reflective in the education that I provide both verbally and through the written word. After hearing the students bash my profession as “unscientific,” I made it a point to walk by their table before I left, introduce myself, and hand them my card and a scrap piece of paper with some suggested reading. Such little gestures can be powerful agents of change to the uninitiated.
However, to those of us that have been initiated and that have been trying to help our families, friends, and peers to make changes, we have a responsibility to increase our efforts. I recall, a year ago, when Mollie and I were watching my former protégé turned colleague, Dr. Josh D’Allasandro, give us a dry run of the New Patient Orientation Class that he would go onto use when he opened his office in February 2014. At the end, after he had explained the offer that he would make to people learning about Upper Cervical Care for the first time, he said something that I’ve said a hundred times before in our office: “…if you don’t want to make an appointment, then that’s OKAY.” I highlighted the last two words because something struck me that night, which prompted me to ask myself, “Is it really OK?”
Of course, I remain adamant to the idealization that making decisions about your health should not be driven by fear. I don’t want somebody to become a patient at Triad Upper Cervical Clinic because they’re afraid of what will happen if they don’t. That’s a lousy foundation upon which to build a doctor-patient relationship. All the same, Upper Cervical Care is not a luxury; it’s an essential. Remember my story? I wouldn’t be who I am today without Upper Cervical Care. It was the missing piece of the puzzle to me getting my life back. It has played the same role for so many of you. So, again, I posit and slightly rephrase the previous question: “Is it really OK for us to stand idly by and watch people suffer for another moment longer than they should, solutionless and without guidance?”
Throughout the year, I’ve written in many a newsletter about how we need to modify black and white thought processes about health-related matters. Let’s do that one more time for 2014. There is a gray area, here, that I believe we’ve been neglecting. In regards to Upper Cervical Care, we either spread the word or keep it a secret; we tell someone a thousand times with as many rejections or just once and leave it be (if we say anything at all). Why don’t we, moving forward, push a little harder when the person we’re telling is in dire straits? It would be wonderful if everyone were completely ready for something different before walking a non-medical path, but sometimes, the best way to get the truth out there is just to clearly and definitively state it without reservation of how someone else might feel about it or react to it. Those students at the coffee shop? They need to be spoon fed new information. The chronically ill recipient of half a dozen diagnoses on several medications per day? Maybe it’s time we not so easily concede, constantly giving them the ball instead.
I met a woman at our Dinner w/ Doc recently that clearly needed help in the present and not several months or years into the future (she might not have that long at this rate). She said, “I’m not ready, yet,” when we prompted her to come get evaluated. I asked, “With all due respect and with genuine concern, why aren’t you ready yet?” She didn’t have an answer. But the ball is in her court. I decided to no longer be “OK” with everyone who wanted to wait until the perfect time (if any time) to explore their vast array of “other” options in healthcare beyond medicine. Our system is, arguably, broken beyond repair. To sit back and watch people go down with a sinking ship? I’ve reached a point in my life and career where that’s no longer “OK” with me.
Many of my patients will vouch that “Dr. Chad listens.” I am always listening. I’m hyperaware. Just as I hear the students try to piece together their understanding of complicated body chemistry and spew false rhetoric about chiropractic, I hear such statements as “I’ll give Upper Cervical Care a try” or “my friends just don’t get it” or “I just want to think about it for a little while” or “getting adjusted won’t help you get over that cold.” I thoroughly observe. I see the kids that visit the office with their parents and don’t follow through with getting them checked, the reluctance to stop bombarding their children with medications despite the statistics that we offer, and the hesitancy to fully embrace a different model of healthcare.
I want each and every one of you that personally remains skeptical to read this message clearly – and pass it along to the skeptics that you encounter: if you give your body the chance to be well, then I promise that you will regain your health. It may take time, but you’ll get there. Remember that the biggest difference between Upper Cervical Care and the other holistic approaches is that we aren’t aiming to treat the body; we are helping the body heal. People don’t get truly well by being treated; they do so by healing. As we exit 2014 and enter 2015, I am personally enhancing my goal to practice as I preach, to lead by example, and to make lasting change in this community.
Are you ready?
Thinking good things for you, as always,
Dr. Chad
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
How Does Healing Work?
Mollie and I wrote an article together for the November edition of
the Natural Triad Magazine. As not all of you are in a position to read
it, we thought we would reprint it here for you as this month's
e-newsletter, as its message is powerful. Thinking good things for all
of you!
How Does Healing Work?
By M. Chad McIntyre, D.C., and Mollie Gordon, HHC
Do you know how your body heals? Do you know what you
need to heal and be healthy? Much of traditional medicine is symptom-based, and
our society has gotten caught in a "Take a Pill" mentality. But what
about the body? What about the healing process? What about our active role in
our own healing?
There are five primary areas of healing:
• Normal function
• Structural integrity
• Positive attitude
• Nutrition
• Exercise
Normal
function
The body knows how to heal. For example, when your
skin is cut, the body naturally performs functions to clot the blood and repair
the tissues. If normal functions are disrupted or are not working properly, though,
the healing process will be delayed or weakened. What can cause a disruption?
Most commonly, it occurs when the brainstem is impeded or compromised. Since
the brainstem is the control center for the nervous system, which controls each
organ system, any interference disrupts bodily processes. Healing and remaining
in good health are largely dependent upon your brainstem properly regulating basic
functions from digestion to heart rate to immunity.
So what can someone do if they suspect that they are
not healing normally or optimally maintaining their health? Visit an upper cervical practitioner for
analysis of the brainstem. Upper Cervical Care specializes in this specific
area of the body, safely identifying and removing potential interference with
gentle corrections. Through supported health practices, the body can repair
itself and health can be improved.
Structural
integrity
A body that is lacking in structural balance is a
body under constant strain. The body is so smart that if the structural
integrity is compromised through trauma (car accidents, falls, childhood
injuries, etc.), it will compensate. The body’s foundation, located where the
head and neck meet, must be level to maintain equilibrium. If the head is not
level due to a structural imbalance, the body will naturally adjust. For
example, a shoulder will raise, a hip will drop, and a leg will appear to be
longer than the other. If left unchecked and uncorrected, other parts of the
body will also work to compensate for the basic structural imbalance, forcing
the body into a constant state of repair instead of performing daily, routine
maintenance. This will ultimately result in structural breakdown and coinciding
symptoms such as pain, numbness, tingling, etc.
So what can someone do if their structural integrity
is compromised? Visit an upper cervical
practitioner or massage therapist to regain and
maintain structural integrity.
Positive
Attitude
Do you know of anyone who is negative all the time
yet still has an abundance of good things happening to them? A positive mental
attitude has long been considered a key to being a successful, contributing
member of society, but it has also been found to have a profound impact on
healing. People who strongly believe that they will get well despite the
occurrence of a dire circumstance recover faster than their pessimistic
counterparts. Developing a genuinely positive attitude, not just deflecting all
negative thoughts, allows us to move through life with less stress and more
constructive energy. As it is known that stress is the #1 cause of disease, one
of the best ways to decrease stress is to improve how we deal with it in the
first place. Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you respond to it.
Mental, emotional, and energetic road blocks can decrease your ability to heal.
So how can you improve your attitude, even when
surrounded by negativity? Cultivate positive relationships, including with
yourself. Develop a hobby. Read and watch positive media. Participate in workshops,
seminars, or health coaching programs that help you identify your roadblocks
and provide tangible solutions to overcoming them. Health coaching can really
help you transform longstanding health issues and support your healing process.
Nutrition
Do you know how quickly your body regenerates parts
of your body? Your stomach lining regenerates every 6-8 minutes; your liver
cells regenerate every 4-6 weeks; every 4 months, you have fresh blood; every
12 months, your bones regenerate to a certain extent. In a nutshell, you are
not who you were last year. Each organ, muscle, and tissue in the body is in a
perpetual state of regeneration and healing through the production of new
cells. We make new cells through what we consume. Would you prefer that your
body make new cells for your heart, lungs, intestines, and reproductive organs
with fast food or with quality, nutrient-packed food? The more chemicals that
are in the food you eat, the more difficult it is for your body to properly
process and use that food. You really are what you eat.
So how can you improve your nutrition? Make dietary
changes, learn new recipes, work with a registered dietician or a holistic
health coach. There are a lot of options in the marketplace, so keep looking
until you find what works for you. And if you need help, be sure to seek out a professional
who can help translate all that data into information you can use.
Exercise
Your body is meant to be active and mobile. There are
several hundred muscles in the human body, and they are meant for movement. To
remain sedentary for much of the day is to go against the very nature of the
human frame. A person with a job that involves mostly sitting must find ways to
get their body moving each day. Continued health and healing cannot be achieved
without some degree of physical activity. There are so many ways that you can
get exercise these days, so be sure to choose some and keep moving. Take
advantage of the options that exist. Motion is vital to structural health and
healing.
So how can you improve your body's movement? Walk
around the block and extra time, take the stairs instead of the elevator, or
join the gym. If you need more guidance, work with a personal trainer, purchase
a quality exercise DVD, or take yoga classes with instructors that will help
you learn. There are lots of options, so keep looking until you find what works
for you.
A body that functions properly can take the
constructive foods put into it and create an abundance of normal cells. A workout can be immeasurably more effective
if the body is structurally balanced. A
positive attitude helps us manage stress.
By taking an honest inventory of these five primary areas of healing,
you can identify how you can take an active role in your healing process. Then,
you can expect health. Be well!!!
Friday, October 17, 2014
Tackling the Topic of Safety and Football
Dr. Alex Powers is a neurosurgeon who works for Wake
Forest University. He's also an avid
football fan. His research and his
passion for the sport are often at odds because Powers is one of the leading
physicians exploring the topic of brain trauma as it relates to his favorite
sport. Labor Day weekend 2014 was a
classic example of his plight. He was in
the lab, examining the charts of high school football players the week prior
and then flew out with his two sons - both youth players - for a family vacation
on the west coast to see the Oregon Ducks play on Saturday and the Seattle
Seahawks on Sunday.
I can appreciate that. As many of you know, I am a huge football fan. Saturdays during the fall are dedicated to the game. My daughter, just two years old, already proudly states on a daily basis, “GO IRISH!” (in reference to my long-time favorite team, Notre Dame). I even have a yearly tradition of attending college games. All the while, I’ve read a lot of the research about head injuries and their long-term implications on football players. Much like Powers, I just have to flip the switch on game days. At times, it feels similar to knowing all of the ill-effects of smoking and still advocating the use of cigarettes. It’s a contradiction that leaves me feeling uneasy.
According to Dr. Powers’ data, a single season of high school football does potentially irreversible damage to the brain in proportion to the severity and number of hits taken. Basically, he concludes that the brain changes shape and the white matter, which allows for the intercommunication between parts of the brain, is what is specifically damaged. His stance has created widespread panic. Shawn Springs, a former Pro Bowl NFL player and the co-founder of a company that designs football helmets with greater safety measures, has told Powers that his research is going "to scare everyone to death...and kill football." Doctors and researchers have told Powers, “You have to kill the game. There's no way, as a physician, that you can condone the data."
All of us that have any interest in the game – parents, coaches, players, doctors, researchers, etc. – are being forced to evaluate our position and form an updated opinion based on the data that has become available. "I was totally naive about it,” Dr. Powers said. “I thought people would see the data and say, ‘This is awesome. No one has ever looked at it this way.’” The fact of the matter is that people should be looking at the data like never before. We have to.
From the Upper Cervical perspective, any repetitive trauma to the head and neck is bad. The body was built to be well-protected against trauma, but not repetitive trauma. My problem with the sport has more to do with the impact that the hits, the tackles, and the falls have on the upper neck, particularly the top bone in the neck because it’s not designed so much for stability as it is for mobility. Being held in place only by muscle puts the top bone at a fundamental disadvantage to withstanding the impact of traumas. Without the stability of an interlocking joint or bony lock, the top bone is very vulnerable to misalignment. Remember that the brainstem – the part of your body responsible for regulating your organs, muscles, and tissues (even intercommunication between the brain) – rests in the ring of that bone. The head and neck protect your life line. Helmets can’t protect that vital head-neck junction.
Dr. Powers is hoping to make the game safer by directing his studies toward the high school level, thus creating a safer game in college and the pros as a by-product. I plan on reaching out to Dr. Powers and trying to add a new wrinkle to his research. What if we ensured that the kids enduring the trauma were strong enough to withstand it without the adverse effects? A body that is balanced/structurally sound from an early age would be more capable of absorbing the same traumas than an out-of-balance counterpart. I suggest we keep in-check the structural integrity and balance of these young athletes and see if that changes the outcomes. As of now, given the sheer number of traumas that occur between birth and the fifth year of life, plus the other traumas that occur at school ages, we don’t know for sure that the kids in the study aren’t already weaker. We ought to know.
Frankly, this is a scary topic. There is not a time in your life when your body is more vulnerable to the effects of trauma than during youth, yet that is the time that kids start playing football. We have to look beyond the obvious, here. The effects of trauma from football include more than just hospital visits, broken bones, dislocations, and concussions. This entire discussion is based not on black and white injuries, but on the shades of gray effects that often do not become noticeable until much later – headaches, pain, degeneration/arthritis, memory loss, lack of focus/concentration on the surface layer; and, bearing in mind what the brain and brainstem do for your body, the connection to heart disease, cancer, and autoimmune disorders.
As much as I love football, if you asked me – as a parent – “Would I be OK with my child playing,” my answer would probably be “No.” Imagine building a home on a tiny island in the middle of the most common area in the world to be affected by hurricanes. Even if you constructed the sturdiest little house on the planet, why would you voluntarily build it in a place where you knew – for a fact – that it was going to be subject to high winds and flying debris for four months per year? Why would I let my kid do the equivalent? I’m not sure I could overcome that thought.
Thinking good things for you, as always,
Dr. Chad
I can appreciate that. As many of you know, I am a huge football fan. Saturdays during the fall are dedicated to the game. My daughter, just two years old, already proudly states on a daily basis, “GO IRISH!” (in reference to my long-time favorite team, Notre Dame). I even have a yearly tradition of attending college games. All the while, I’ve read a lot of the research about head injuries and their long-term implications on football players. Much like Powers, I just have to flip the switch on game days. At times, it feels similar to knowing all of the ill-effects of smoking and still advocating the use of cigarettes. It’s a contradiction that leaves me feeling uneasy.
According to Dr. Powers’ data, a single season of high school football does potentially irreversible damage to the brain in proportion to the severity and number of hits taken. Basically, he concludes that the brain changes shape and the white matter, which allows for the intercommunication between parts of the brain, is what is specifically damaged. His stance has created widespread panic. Shawn Springs, a former Pro Bowl NFL player and the co-founder of a company that designs football helmets with greater safety measures, has told Powers that his research is going "to scare everyone to death...and kill football." Doctors and researchers have told Powers, “You have to kill the game. There's no way, as a physician, that you can condone the data."
All of us that have any interest in the game – parents, coaches, players, doctors, researchers, etc. – are being forced to evaluate our position and form an updated opinion based on the data that has become available. "I was totally naive about it,” Dr. Powers said. “I thought people would see the data and say, ‘This is awesome. No one has ever looked at it this way.’” The fact of the matter is that people should be looking at the data like never before. We have to.
From the Upper Cervical perspective, any repetitive trauma to the head and neck is bad. The body was built to be well-protected against trauma, but not repetitive trauma. My problem with the sport has more to do with the impact that the hits, the tackles, and the falls have on the upper neck, particularly the top bone in the neck because it’s not designed so much for stability as it is for mobility. Being held in place only by muscle puts the top bone at a fundamental disadvantage to withstanding the impact of traumas. Without the stability of an interlocking joint or bony lock, the top bone is very vulnerable to misalignment. Remember that the brainstem – the part of your body responsible for regulating your organs, muscles, and tissues (even intercommunication between the brain) – rests in the ring of that bone. The head and neck protect your life line. Helmets can’t protect that vital head-neck junction.
Dr. Powers is hoping to make the game safer by directing his studies toward the high school level, thus creating a safer game in college and the pros as a by-product. I plan on reaching out to Dr. Powers and trying to add a new wrinkle to his research. What if we ensured that the kids enduring the trauma were strong enough to withstand it without the adverse effects? A body that is balanced/structurally sound from an early age would be more capable of absorbing the same traumas than an out-of-balance counterpart. I suggest we keep in-check the structural integrity and balance of these young athletes and see if that changes the outcomes. As of now, given the sheer number of traumas that occur between birth and the fifth year of life, plus the other traumas that occur at school ages, we don’t know for sure that the kids in the study aren’t already weaker. We ought to know.
Frankly, this is a scary topic. There is not a time in your life when your body is more vulnerable to the effects of trauma than during youth, yet that is the time that kids start playing football. We have to look beyond the obvious, here. The effects of trauma from football include more than just hospital visits, broken bones, dislocations, and concussions. This entire discussion is based not on black and white injuries, but on the shades of gray effects that often do not become noticeable until much later – headaches, pain, degeneration/arthritis, memory loss, lack of focus/concentration on the surface layer; and, bearing in mind what the brain and brainstem do for your body, the connection to heart disease, cancer, and autoimmune disorders.
As much as I love football, if you asked me – as a parent – “Would I be OK with my child playing,” my answer would probably be “No.” Imagine building a home on a tiny island in the middle of the most common area in the world to be affected by hurricanes. Even if you constructed the sturdiest little house on the planet, why would you voluntarily build it in a place where you knew – for a fact – that it was going to be subject to high winds and flying debris for four months per year? Why would I let my kid do the equivalent? I’m not sure I could overcome that thought.
Thinking good things for you, as always,
Dr. Chad
Monday, September 22, 2014
The "One Day at a Time" Lifestyle
“The best thing
about the future is that it comes one day at a time.” -- Abraham Lincoln
A recent trip to Philadelphia yielded a conversation during which my friend told me, “I hate it when people say, ‘Just take it a day at a time.’ Who can do that?!” I responded, “As someone who lives that way, I can promise you that it’s doable. Some people are just wired that way. For those of us who aren’t, it takes work, but it’s worth it; it makes my life much better.”
Living life “a day at a time” is a foreign film without subtitles to some of us. I remember the days before I began living life one day at a time and they were not pretty. I lived in a perpetual cycle of fear and worry. I’ve shared with most of you the physical part of my journey. Another part of my healing process involved changing my mindset, not just in regards to my health but to my entire life, too. Figuratively, I was driving down the road at 100 MPH at night, constantly more concerned about that which lay beyond the range of my headlights instead of the 200 feet in front of me. If I wasn’t concerning myself with the future, I was hyper analyzing the past. Only, I was not doing it to take away important lessons from my mistakes and was, instead, getting stuck in a rotten pattern of self judgment and doubt.
It was during my early days being under Upper Cervical Care that I started becoming more aware of my mindset (being in a brain fog kept me unaware of many things). Surrounding myself with people that lived by the “one day at a time” mantra was eye-opening. I had basically been trained to anticipate the worst and hope for the best. Seeing these happy, purposeful, dynamite personalities living their lives to the fullest allowed me to recognize the futility in spending so much time caught up in the past – which is over – and the future – which I cannot control. There’s no future in living in the past. “The past cannot be changed. You can learn from the past but you can’t alter it,” Bryan Golden, author of Dare to Live Without Limits, wrote in a 2009 article on this topic. “The past is a seminar you have taken. Make note of what worked and what didn’t. You don’t want to repeat the same mistakes. You do want to replicate successes. Worry is a complete waste of time and energy. You will never achieve anything by worrying. To make matters worse, any time spent worrying takes away from the time you have available for dealing with today. “
It’s quite a burden, carrying the past on your back with your mind simultaneously weighed down by the future. “Exhausting” is one word I’ve seen used to describe that lifestyle by a fellow liver of life just a day at a time. To live anything more than a day at a time is to approach life, energetically, like a sprint. It takes enough energy just to get done what you need to right now. Add to that the energy required to dwell over what already happened and brood over what could… you only have so much energy. Life is a marathon. Distance runners have to learn how to pace themselves to make certain that they have enough stamina for an entire race. Counselors use that analogy when helping addicts overcome their vices. Many of us get addicted, if you will, to – as my mom often says – the woulda, coulda, shoulda. It doesn’t begin that way, no more than a chemical addiction does, but it can end up that way. And as they say to addicts, “When you allow yourself to be consumed with anger and worry [or judgment and doubt, etc.] or become embroiled in non-stop stress that you’ve accepted as a way of life, your strength is sapped, depleting you of the energy and motivation to continue.”
The biggest thing that kickstarted my transformation to a new way of thinking was my mentor’s favorite saying: “What you think about, you bring about.” So, living life a day at a time is merely an exercise in being aware of what you do want and not wasting time or energy on what you don’t. Intention is very important in this lifestyle. If you make clear what you want, then you plan and think toward your goal. It prompts you to maintain a high standard for yourself, but it’s also not about being perfect. It’s about present time consciousness and the acceptance of the fact that learning never stops – it’s just part of the journey. Every day, I wake up with a quick self note about the things that I want. Every night before I go to bed, I restate that purpose. Everything in between is about staying in the moment, my intentions already set.
We speak often in the office about health being a goal that requires certain fundamentals, amongst them a good attitude. Who can realistically overcome problems (health or otherwise) if they’re full of negative thoughts about days, week, months, or years ago or ahead? Living life a day at a time lays the groundwork for a less stressful existence. Today is over once it’s over. Tomorrow is a new day. You take the good things from yesterday forward, acknowledge the previous day’s less awesome moments for learning purposes, and embark on the next step in the journey. The only thing that you have control over is your actions, anyway, so there’s little sense in prognosticating. From personal experience, I can vouch for this being a very enjoyable way to live. The great stuff is greater and the lousy stuff isn’t nearly as a lousy.
“One day at a time- this is enough. Do not look back and grieve over the past, for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering.” -- Ida Scott Taylor
Thinking good things for you, as always,
Dr. Chad
A recent trip to Philadelphia yielded a conversation during which my friend told me, “I hate it when people say, ‘Just take it a day at a time.’ Who can do that?!” I responded, “As someone who lives that way, I can promise you that it’s doable. Some people are just wired that way. For those of us who aren’t, it takes work, but it’s worth it; it makes my life much better.”
Living life “a day at a time” is a foreign film without subtitles to some of us. I remember the days before I began living life one day at a time and they were not pretty. I lived in a perpetual cycle of fear and worry. I’ve shared with most of you the physical part of my journey. Another part of my healing process involved changing my mindset, not just in regards to my health but to my entire life, too. Figuratively, I was driving down the road at 100 MPH at night, constantly more concerned about that which lay beyond the range of my headlights instead of the 200 feet in front of me. If I wasn’t concerning myself with the future, I was hyper analyzing the past. Only, I was not doing it to take away important lessons from my mistakes and was, instead, getting stuck in a rotten pattern of self judgment and doubt.
It was during my early days being under Upper Cervical Care that I started becoming more aware of my mindset (being in a brain fog kept me unaware of many things). Surrounding myself with people that lived by the “one day at a time” mantra was eye-opening. I had basically been trained to anticipate the worst and hope for the best. Seeing these happy, purposeful, dynamite personalities living their lives to the fullest allowed me to recognize the futility in spending so much time caught up in the past – which is over – and the future – which I cannot control. There’s no future in living in the past. “The past cannot be changed. You can learn from the past but you can’t alter it,” Bryan Golden, author of Dare to Live Without Limits, wrote in a 2009 article on this topic. “The past is a seminar you have taken. Make note of what worked and what didn’t. You don’t want to repeat the same mistakes. You do want to replicate successes. Worry is a complete waste of time and energy. You will never achieve anything by worrying. To make matters worse, any time spent worrying takes away from the time you have available for dealing with today. “
It’s quite a burden, carrying the past on your back with your mind simultaneously weighed down by the future. “Exhausting” is one word I’ve seen used to describe that lifestyle by a fellow liver of life just a day at a time. To live anything more than a day at a time is to approach life, energetically, like a sprint. It takes enough energy just to get done what you need to right now. Add to that the energy required to dwell over what already happened and brood over what could… you only have so much energy. Life is a marathon. Distance runners have to learn how to pace themselves to make certain that they have enough stamina for an entire race. Counselors use that analogy when helping addicts overcome their vices. Many of us get addicted, if you will, to – as my mom often says – the woulda, coulda, shoulda. It doesn’t begin that way, no more than a chemical addiction does, but it can end up that way. And as they say to addicts, “When you allow yourself to be consumed with anger and worry [or judgment and doubt, etc.] or become embroiled in non-stop stress that you’ve accepted as a way of life, your strength is sapped, depleting you of the energy and motivation to continue.”
The biggest thing that kickstarted my transformation to a new way of thinking was my mentor’s favorite saying: “What you think about, you bring about.” So, living life a day at a time is merely an exercise in being aware of what you do want and not wasting time or energy on what you don’t. Intention is very important in this lifestyle. If you make clear what you want, then you plan and think toward your goal. It prompts you to maintain a high standard for yourself, but it’s also not about being perfect. It’s about present time consciousness and the acceptance of the fact that learning never stops – it’s just part of the journey. Every day, I wake up with a quick self note about the things that I want. Every night before I go to bed, I restate that purpose. Everything in between is about staying in the moment, my intentions already set.
We speak often in the office about health being a goal that requires certain fundamentals, amongst them a good attitude. Who can realistically overcome problems (health or otherwise) if they’re full of negative thoughts about days, week, months, or years ago or ahead? Living life a day at a time lays the groundwork for a less stressful existence. Today is over once it’s over. Tomorrow is a new day. You take the good things from yesterday forward, acknowledge the previous day’s less awesome moments for learning purposes, and embark on the next step in the journey. The only thing that you have control over is your actions, anyway, so there’s little sense in prognosticating. From personal experience, I can vouch for this being a very enjoyable way to live. The great stuff is greater and the lousy stuff isn’t nearly as a lousy.
“One day at a time- this is enough. Do not look back and grieve over the past, for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering.” -- Ida Scott Taylor
Thinking good things for you, as always,
Dr. Chad
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