I Wish I Would Have....

Have you ever looked back at your younger years and said to yourself, "I wish I would have (insert comment here)."  You see, we hear this a lot at the Walton Clinic, mostly when it pertains to a patient's spine, posture, and over all health.  

Let me give you an example.  Recently, a new patient came to us with pain and stiffness in her neck, upper back, shoulder and had numbness going all the way to her fingertips.  She's in her early 30's, and at that age we all believe that we shouldn't have any problems until we're older.  She had no recent injury.  She mentioned she played sports growing up, but again, had no injury.  Sure, she had some bumps and bruises a long the way, but hey kids heal...right?  She stated she always knew she had a 'slight' scoliosis (improper curvature of the spine), but didn't think it ever affected her.  Now, back to her current complaints.  "It just came out of nowhere," she says.  You would not believe how many times we hear this a day.

In actuality, 90% of people's aches, pains....poor health don't just come out of nowhere.  Think about it.  Someone doesn't just get out of shape or overweight overnight.  It's an accumulation of not eating healthy or not exercising or both for months or years.  People don't just wake up with heart disease or high cholesterol.  Again, it's years of breakdown that occurs.

Poor posture may reveal potential future health problems.

So, when it comes to the patient I referred to earlier, I'm confident that had she had her spine checked by a Pediatric Chiropractor, who deals specifically with proper spine alignment and motion, nervous system function and their relation, at a younger age she would most likely not be experiencing her current aches and pains.  She'd be able to sleep comfortably at night and she'd be able to play with her young children without stopping due to pain.  She'd be able to enjoy life.

Do you want the most for your child/children?  Give them the best opportunity to have a healthy nervous system.  Get them checked by a Pediatric Chiropractor.  You get their teeth checked.  Your get their lungs and heart checked.  You get their ears and eyes checked.  Doesn't it make sense to get their spine and nerve system checked???  It just happens to control all other parts of their entire body.

Have questions regarding Chiropractic for KIDS or ADULTS?  Contact our office today to schedule a FREE consultation.  (217) 544-4000 or www.WaltonClinic.com

Conversation with a New Mom

Dr. Matt had a great conversation with a new mom this morning at the Walton Clinic!  Her son started life with colic...making life miserable for him, but also for mom & dad.  Their pediatrician basically told them he'd grow out of it.  Mom is concerned (as she should be) that his colic could be a sign of something else going on....and she's RIGHT.  

You see, just because something like colic is common with infants and they'll 'grow out of it,' doesn't make it NORMAL or right.  More and more research is showing that 80-90% of all newborns have suffered from SPINAL STRAIN during the birth process.  

As our conversation continued, mom relayed that her son may indeed be 'growing out' of the colic, but is now very congested and showing signs of a possible ear infection and having problems with constipation.  I explained to her this is a very common path we see in kids as they come into our office and are all subtle signs of SPINAL MISALIGNMENT that is causing stress to her son's nervous system.  Babies don't come to us because they're in pain or having a headache, etc.  They come to us because they're not able to live their life to their fullest potential because their nervous system is under constant stress.  And, going a step further, had mom come to us while she was pregnant or even before that, we could have helped make pregnancy and delivery easier for both her and baby...putting less strain on her newborn's spine from the get-go.

Mom went on to say how NERVOUS she was to bring her infant child to a Chiropractor.  That's understandable was my initial response.  I followed that up with the fact that Chiropractic is actually one of the safest forms of healthcare.  Don't take my word for it!  If you look at malpractice insurance for healthcare providers, Chiropractors actually pay a fraction of what the typical Medical Doctor pays.  Which quite plainly means, if we were hurting people we would be either out of business or our insurance rates would be through the roof.  The great thing about what we as Chiropractors do, is we can modify our techniques for our pediatric patients to provide a safe, gentle and effective adjustment.

That being said, if you owned a Ferrari, you wouldn't want to take it to just any mechanic down the
street because he was close or didn't charge much.  You'd want to take it to someone with training and experience.  Same goes true for your body and especially that of a child/infant.  Both Drs. Adrian Walton and Matt Link have the training and experience with working with infants.

As mom and I finished our conversation, she asked "why don't more people know about this."  I wish I had a good answer for that.  I think mainly it's fear of the unknown.  BUT, that is our goal....to make it KNOWN what we can do for you and your family.

If you are unsure if Chiropractic would be beneficial for you or your child, give Walton Clinic a call:  (217) 544-4000.  The docs would be happy to schedule a consultation (at NO CHARGE) to discuss your problems, explain more about what we do, and see if we may be able to help.  

How Did That Happen?

It seems like many times a week at the Walton Clinic of Chiropractic, when the doctors are going over x-rays with patients, we get asked the question "how did that happen?"  They usually ask that when their x-rays look horrible.  Now, the first assumption most people have is "shouldn't that patient know what happened to them?"  More often than not, patients tell us something like, "well, the pain just came on a few years ago and has been gradually more frequent/intense."  The answer to the "how did that happen" question is both easy and complex.

You see, degeneration on x-rays can occur usually one of two ways.  One, the person is in a traumatic accident.  We all know the story of Christopher Reeve who was famous for playing 'Superman' in the movies.  Several years ago he suffered an upper neck injury when he fell off a horse.   That trauma severely and quickly altered the function of his entire nervous system not allowing his muscles and organs to function properly from his neck down.  The other way most people's spines degenerate are from what we see most often in our office. We are seeing more and more patients who under go multiple 'minor' traumas over a period of years.  And, most people don't even know they are undergoing these traumas.  Poor posture, working at a computer for long hours, repeated smart phone use, talking on the phone, reading a book, poor sleeping positions, repetitive use activities, etc.  These are just a few examples.

Case in point, here's is a neck x-ray of a 15 year old in our office.  At 15 years old, he is already showing signs of degeneration by how straight his spine is from this view...with NO TRAUMA, and no pain in his neck for that matter.  Research shows that an x-ray like this will lead to issues like headaches, eye problems fatigue/thyroid problems, concentration difficulties, and asthma.

This is why we highly encourage everyone to take care of their posture, and get their spine checked regularly, even from a young age.  Think it's not happening to you?  How do you know?  It's time to put aside the belief that 'Chiropractic doesn't work,' or 'kids shouldn't get checked.'  Chiropractic itself has been around for over 100 years, and treatment of the spine through adjustments have been around for thousands of years.

For more information on Chiropractic, or to set up an appointment, give our office a call at (217) 544-4000 or go to www.WaltonClinic.com.

Pregnancy, Children, and Chiropractic

In the video below, Drs. Adrian Walton and Matt Link of Walton Clinic discuss a couple things regarding pregnancy and pediatric chiropractic that Dr. Matt learned at a recent seminar.  This is just the tip of the iceburg.  Soon, Dr. Matt will discuss Chiropractic Webster Technique that is used to allow breech babies to turn naturally and for allowing the birth process to be easier for both mother and baby.

For more information, contact our office at (217) 544-4000 or go to www.WaltonClinic.com

Can Chiropractic Help Colic?

The doctors at Walton Clinic of Chiropractic often get asked "can Chiropractic help my baby with colic?"  We almost always get that look that jokingly says "well, while I'm here, I'll ask."  Then, comes the look of astonishment when we reply with "yes!"

The next question that usually comes is "how does that work?"  In a nutshell, it comes down to how that child's nervous system is functioning.  You see, the nervous system is the 'master controller' of the body.  It controls how our muscles and joints move, but on a deeper level, the nervous system controls ALL cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems...which includes digestion, cardiovascular, reproductive and immune systems, etc.

Research by several Medical Doctors have repeatedly shown that when a baby is born (doesn't matter whether natural or assisted) there is at LEAST 60lbs. of force that is applied to that baby's head and neck.  Now, imagine if someone came along and picked up your baby by it's head...and then add a 50lb. weight on top of that.  What kind of stress would that do?  The research goes on to show that between 80%-90% of newborns have sustained trauma to the neck during the birth process...often going 'undetected'....but showing in symptoms in the form of COLIC.  Colic is your baby's nervous system under stress and under constant 'protection mode.'

"You CAN'T be in growth and protection at the same time."

- Dr. Bruce Lipton, PhD (stem cell biologist)

Pediatric and family Chiropractors, like the doctors at Walton Clinic, are specially trained and use very safe and specific techniques designed to free up nervous system disturbances allowing your child to grow and thrive the way you hoped they would.

Contact Walton Clinic of Chiropractic today for more information.