Avoiding Stress and Sickness This Holiday Season
We have all heard it before: exercise, eat clean, and supplement your diet. But what do we do about the mental and emotional toil that we go through daily? If left unchecked, it can ruin your health, and disrupt your holidays.
Here’s the deal – in avoiding stress and sickness there is no amount of any supplement or even good nutrition that can counteract the toxic effects of chronic, repetitive stress on the body. Stress causes a response that we know as “fight-or-flight”. When we are in this “fight-or-flight” response consistently, excess cortisol and epinephrine flood the system. This chronic response has been shown to increase the risk of anxiety, depression, digestive and even sleep issues.
Additionally, stress leads to sickness. Recovery from this sickness is then slowed down because of the stress – it’s a sick cycle. Sick cycle…get it?
When we are better able to adapt to the stress response, we are better able to adapt to the stress response, and then the body is able to do what it’s meant to do – heal itself. This is where chiropractic fits in.
When the spine shifts from it’s normal structure this causes a fixation, and this fixation leads to interference and stress placed on the nerves in that area. This alone can cause the body to go into a “fight-or-flight” response. However, we do know that the body will heal itself when given the proper balance of stress, relaxation and nutrients.
Important “Nutrients” the Body Needs
1. Movement – Generalized movement is accomplished thorough daily exercise. Specific movement in the spine is accomplished though specific chiropractic adjustments. Movement is by far one of the most essential nutrients to decrease stress, improve the immune system and optimize the nervous system.
2. Meditation – Throughout life, we each have physical, chemical and emotional stressors. Emotional stress is mostly created by the internal personal battles we fight (alone) in our own heads. Much of the emotional stress that we have we place on ourselves. It is proven that those who take time to meditate 10-15 minutes a day are happier and have decreased disease and sickness.
The Immune System
Research done on serum thiol levels – which is a way we measure our DNA’s ability to repair itself and measure disease – has shown that Chiropractic care improves the ability of the body to adapt to stress. In the study, the participants that received chiropractic care for 2 or more years had higher thiol levels than those with disease. Some of the chiropractic patients had levels higher than what is associated with normal wellness.
Chiropractic was founded on the principle that the body is a self healing and self regulating organism, and that the body will fight illness and prevent infection when it is working optimally. But when the body is in a constant state of stress, or “fight-or-flight” it isn’t able to optimally adapt to additional stressors. The body then becomes vulnerable to sickness and disease. Regular chiropractic care can help you and your body better adapt to stress this holiday season.
Challenge – Spend 10-15 minutes each day in meditation for the next week. Alone. Quiet. No cell phone…and no cheating yourself.
References –
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15142434
