This last weekend I loaded a 24' truck and moved our family to Portales, NM to take a new position that would allow me to continue my education. My wife and I are exhausted but very excited about the new adventures we are going to have and the new opportunities. We had a crazy few weeks leading up to the actual move, and now we are surrounded by boxes and living in chaos. That's OK though, because we have positioned ourselves to pursue more education to help Multiple Sclerosis patients. My wife has done great through the move and has had limited MS complications even though it has been physically and emotionally exhausting the last few weeks.
Now that we are moved and my wife is not working full time as a houseparent, she will be pursuing a degree in nutrition to better understand how food is affecting her MS. She is so excited to learn and educate herself more on the intricacies of diet and MS. We know from experience that diet affects Multiple Sclerosis in crazy ways and can help or hinder a healthy life. So after the boxes are unpacked and summer comes to an end, we will begin to study and learn and make more sense out of our experiences and life lessons. Today we will embrace the philosophy of living life to the full and MS won't have a chance to rear it's ugly head.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Not All Chiropractic Is Equal
A few weeks ago a friend of ours tried chiropractic for the first time. She was manually adjusted due to some issues she was having with her neck. She had such a horrible experience getting adjusted that I don't think she will ever try Chiropractic again. I shared this experience with our Chiropractor, Dr. Kevin Atchley, and we discussed how not all Chiropractors are equal. Dr. Atchley has been our Chiropractor for the last year in Albuquerque and uses the Pro Adjuster to make any adjustments to our body. He and I talked about the fact that some people will try a particular chiropractor once and then write off all chiropractic based on that one experience. It would be the same as not taking any other medication if one did not work.
After talking with Dr. Atchley I wanted to make sure and explain our position on Chiropractic and how we have used it to affect my wife's MS. I have been using Chiropractic since I was a young teen due to a bad dive into the swimming pool. For years I would be adjusted to help with a stiff back and breathing issues. All of my adjustments were manual adjustments, meaning that the Chiropractor physically popped and cracked me to adjust me. I continued to use Chiropractic to help with headaches, back issues and other issues as I grew older. When I met my wife I had read and learned everything that I could about Multiple Sclerosis and I never even thought about using Chiropractic to help with her MS.
In 2000, my wife had never been to a Chiropractor and didn't know how it would affect her physically. When we began to see a Naturopath after my wife was numb for a month, he recommended her see a Chiropractor to help allow her body to heal. She first saw a Chiropractor in Del Rio, Texas and he was great. He helped her with digestion issues she was having and with the numbness. He manually adjusted her neck and back a few times while we were in town then we returned to San Angelo and setup an appointment with Dr. Darci Stotts. Dr. Stotts took x-rays and did an initial consult with us about the Atlas Orthogonal adjustment that she used for all treatments.
When my wife was adjusted in Del Rio, she was adjusted using the Diversified technique. The first time her neck was popped, she cried and hurt from the adjustment. Her back adjustment caused some pain but wasn't too bad. She was not crazy about how this felt and didn't want to see another Chiropractor that used this technique. We were not completely informed at the time and didn't understand that there were other methods of adjustment that weren't so physical. That's what we learned from Dr. Stotts. The Atlas Orthogonal method she used didn't hurt at all and my wife saw immediate results from the adjustments. I also saw Dr. Stotts and had great results with back issues that had plagued me for years.
Since the first adjustments, my wife and I have become more informed and now understand that not all Chiropractors are equal. There are many techniques and methods with some involving separate tools used to adjust and some using physical pressure. With my wife, we have found that some work better than others. Dr. Stotts also introduced us to the Pro Adjuster machine which is what we use now. The adjustments are painless and have provided help for everything from numbness to vertigo. Dr. Atchley used the Pro Adjuster to adjust my wife and I today. My wife and I both feel that Chiropractic is a key component that allows my wife to live a more normal life.
There are many individuals that search the web for information on Multiple Sclerosis and Chiropractic that find this blog. I would be curious to know how many MS patients actually go on to try Chiropractic and what results they have. Many of the treatment books I have read include Chiropractic as a main part of their MS treatment. We have suggested many times that our MS friends go to a Chiropractor but I can't think of one example where one actually went and was treated. I guess my wife and I look at this process differently than our MS friends and have taken the initiative to explore alternative treatments. Some of those treatments have worked and others have shown few if little results, but Chiropractic has had almost miraculous results when MS attacks my wife.
After talking with Dr. Atchley I wanted to make sure and explain our position on Chiropractic and how we have used it to affect my wife's MS. I have been using Chiropractic since I was a young teen due to a bad dive into the swimming pool. For years I would be adjusted to help with a stiff back and breathing issues. All of my adjustments were manual adjustments, meaning that the Chiropractor physically popped and cracked me to adjust me. I continued to use Chiropractic to help with headaches, back issues and other issues as I grew older. When I met my wife I had read and learned everything that I could about Multiple Sclerosis and I never even thought about using Chiropractic to help with her MS.
In 2000, my wife had never been to a Chiropractor and didn't know how it would affect her physically. When we began to see a Naturopath after my wife was numb for a month, he recommended her see a Chiropractor to help allow her body to heal. She first saw a Chiropractor in Del Rio, Texas and he was great. He helped her with digestion issues she was having and with the numbness. He manually adjusted her neck and back a few times while we were in town then we returned to San Angelo and setup an appointment with Dr. Darci Stotts. Dr. Stotts took x-rays and did an initial consult with us about the Atlas Orthogonal adjustment that she used for all treatments.
When my wife was adjusted in Del Rio, she was adjusted using the Diversified technique. The first time her neck was popped, she cried and hurt from the adjustment. Her back adjustment caused some pain but wasn't too bad. She was not crazy about how this felt and didn't want to see another Chiropractor that used this technique. We were not completely informed at the time and didn't understand that there were other methods of adjustment that weren't so physical. That's what we learned from Dr. Stotts. The Atlas Orthogonal method she used didn't hurt at all and my wife saw immediate results from the adjustments. I also saw Dr. Stotts and had great results with back issues that had plagued me for years.
Since the first adjustments, my wife and I have become more informed and now understand that not all Chiropractors are equal. There are many techniques and methods with some involving separate tools used to adjust and some using physical pressure. With my wife, we have found that some work better than others. Dr. Stotts also introduced us to the Pro Adjuster machine which is what we use now. The adjustments are painless and have provided help for everything from numbness to vertigo. Dr. Atchley used the Pro Adjuster to adjust my wife and I today. My wife and I both feel that Chiropractic is a key component that allows my wife to live a more normal life.
There are many individuals that search the web for information on Multiple Sclerosis and Chiropractic that find this blog. I would be curious to know how many MS patients actually go on to try Chiropractic and what results they have. Many of the treatment books I have read include Chiropractic as a main part of their MS treatment. We have suggested many times that our MS friends go to a Chiropractor but I can't think of one example where one actually went and was treated. I guess my wife and I look at this process differently than our MS friends and have taken the initiative to explore alternative treatments. Some of those treatments have worked and others have shown few if little results, but Chiropractic has had almost miraculous results when MS attacks my wife.
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