"Whereas, every year, more than 30 million Americans throughout the country, including 2 million in Illinois, visit chiropractors, who locate and help correct joint and spinal problems; and
"Whereas, chiropractic physicians have long stressed that exercise, good posture, and balanced nutrition are essential to proper growth, development, and health maintenance; and "Whereas, Illinois chiropractic physicians are dedicated to protecting and promoting patient rights, the practice of chiropractic medicine, and fostering the growth of chiropractic through ongoing training and a commitment to safe and ethical practice; and "Whereas, chiropractic is a safe, conservative approach to pain relief and wellness, and is the most popular form of natural healthcare in the world; and "Whereas, the science of chiropractic and the physicians who practice it have contributed greatly to the health and wellbeing of the people of Illinois: "Therefore, I, Pat Quinn, Governor of the State of Illinois, do hereby proclaim October 2012 as CHIROPRACTIC HEALTH CARE MONTH in Illinois to raise awareness about chiropractic care." See the official proclamation here. Happy Chiropractic Health Care Month in Illinois!
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Did you know that not all pain is created equal? Most of us think of pain as a single entity: when you smash your thumb with a hammer, you have pain. When you chip a tooth, you have pain. When you bang your funny bone, you have pain. When you freeze your tongue, you have pain. When your cells become cancerous, you have pain. When you undergo chemotherapy to fight the cancer, you have pain. These are all scenarios of pain, but all are very different. Different types of body tissue are sending pain signals to the brain via different types of nerves, caused by a wide variety of stimuli and trauma, requiring an even wider variety of responses and healing processes. Yet all are classified under the same heading of "pain". Part of the problem is that the English language only has one word for pain. Many different ideas get lumped together under that single word. Here is one way to start breaking down the idea of "pain" into different categories: fast pain and slow pain. Fast pain is felt by your body almost immediately after the cause begins, and signals to your brain that something foreign to the body is quickly destroying your cells. This type of pain is caused by being stuck with a pin, cut, burned, or even shocked with electricity. The purpose of this fast pain is to encourage you to immediately remove yourself from the painful stimulus, whether it be a knife, a hot stove, or a live electrical outlet. This pain travels quickly to the brain, in order to encourage you to react quickly. This type of pain is often described as "sharp" pain. Slow pain doesn't travel nearly as quickly to your brain, but slowly builds in intensity over time. Slow pain is almost always associated with a slower and more inisidious form of cell destruction: not a quick destruction as being stabbed with a pin, but a slow destruction as when cells slowly cease to function properly. Slow pain is usually caused by a constant or chronic stimulus. This type of pain is normally described as an "ache" or "dull pain". Slow pain actually travels to your brain through a whole different set of nerves than fast pain. Slow pain and fast pain actually travel to your brain through different sets of nerves, and describe very different problems in the body. For example, if you sprain your ankle, you're more likely to experience "sharp" pain. However, if you have a pebble in your shoe that is constantly compressing your foot over time and creates an open sore, you'll be more likely to experience "dull" pain.
The difference in the types of pain can be very valuable for a doctor when diagnosing your condition. Always be sure to tell your Peoria chiropractor how your pain feels, because the type of pain you feel may be key to discovering exactly what is wrong. Johnson Family Chiropractic is proud to announce that we are now a "dofollow" chiropractic blog. This means that any comments you leave on our blog posts will NOT be tagged as nofollow links, which will encourage other readers and search engines to explore your blogs as well.
But, with dofollow blogs, come dofollow responsibilities. Your comments must be pertinent, related to the content of the blog post, and further the positive discussion of health on this blog. Your comments will be strictly monitored, and spam comments will be deleted immediately. Thank you for understanding, and thank you for visiting. The Illinois Chiropractic Society passed along the following exciting commentary on a "white paper" from OptumHealth, which is a major health insurer in Peoria: A recent study released by OptumHealth, titled “Conservative Spine Care: The State of the Marketplace and Opportunities for Improvement,” indicates there is a cost benefit in cases where patients begin care with a chiropractic physician.
The study indicated that orthopedic conditions are their #1 cost category, surpassing cardiology, gastroenterology, and oncology. However, from “an episode-based perspective, chiropractors are the most cost-efficient health care providers for the initial management of low back pain.” Additionally, OptumHealth’s release indicates that patients who have the greatest risk of an unfavorable outcome should seek care from a chiropractic physician (see page 4). In fact, treatments from a chiropractic physician are more closely aligned to the recommended treatment guidelines for low back pain, thus resulting in “more favorable solutions at more reasonable costs.” Find the study here. Pain. Nobody likes it. Everybody fights it. Wouldn't it be nice to live without it? There is a fairly rare condition called "congenital insensitivity to pain" in which a person quite literally never feels pain. In these individuals, their nerves may not transmit the pain, or their brains may not interpret the pain signals correctly. Doesn't that sound like a wonderful world? A world where none of your actions or activities will be hindered because of that piercing physical sensation we call pain? Unfortunately, it turns out that congenital insensitivity to pain is a terrible and horrifying disease. Ask Roberto. Ask Gabby. Ask Ashlyn. The reason is very simple: pain is a signal that something is not right in your body. It signals you to stop doing whatever is hurting your body. It signals you to refuel your body when necessary. It signals you when tissues are being destroyed. If you had no pain, you wouldn't know to remove your hand from the hot stove. This could cause a life-threatening burn. If you had no pain, you wouldn't know that you had just broken your ankle while playing basketball. And you might continue to play, causing further injury and soft tissue damage. If you had no pain, you wouldn't know where the apple stopped and your fingers began. This could cause serious hand damage when slicing fruit and vegetables. If you had no pain, you would never shift your body from one uncomfortable position to a more comfortable position. This could cause chronic ligament damage. If you had no pain, you would never know when your stomach acid is splashing on the lower lining of your esophagus. This could cause chronic esophagitis and lead to life-threatening complications. If you had no pain, you would never know that your appendix is bursting. This could also be life-threatening. The examples are nearly endless. Pain is our first defense, our early-warning system against destruction and death. Why then do we Americans spend about $20 billion a year on pain medications? It's almost as though we think the pain is the problem: "If only I didn't have pain, then I could do [insert activity here]." But the pain is not the problem... In fact, pain is the stimulus that is supposed to help us find the solution. The solution is not to turn off the pain. The solution is to hunt and find the cause of the problem. We are supposed to wonder what is causing the pain. We are supposed to be curious about the source of the tissue damage. We are supposed to remove ourselves from danger. But the more we turn off the pain signals, the more danger we invite. Living with pain is a very difficult thing, and sometimes pain medication is the only solution. In most cases, however, the pain is useful, because it spurs us on to find help. Most people who first come to Johnson Family Chiropractic come because they have listened to their pain. Patients tend to stay at Johnson Family Chiropractic because they appreciate the health-giving support that we provide. If your pain is telling you to do something about it, then consider calling your local Peoria chiropractor to see if Johnson Family Chiropractic is right for you. |
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DisclaimerUnless otherwise attributed, all content is written by Kyle Johnson, DC, of Johnson Family Chiropractic of Peoria.
All images used are under Creative Commons license. Although every effort has been made to provide an accurate description of our chiropractic care and its benefits, the information given on this website and blog is not intended to be, nor should it be interpreted as, medical advice for any condition. If you have any questions regarding your condition, you should seek the help of Dr. Johnson in person, so that he may properly assess your condition. This blog is provided by Johnson Family Chiropractic of Peoria, S.C., proudly located in Peoria, IL. |