Can Chiropractic Care Help Alleviate Stress in Chicago?
When we hear the word “stress” we tend to think of situations that make us nervous and affect our emotions. But, these situations are just one example of the three types of stress that we all encounter in our lives.
In the professional field, chiropractors identify three types of stress that directly affect the correct functioning of our nervous system and our well-being:
- Emotional stress
This type of stress is the best known and that everyone talks about. Emotional stress can appear because of the personal and professional responsibilities of our day to day; of events that can cause us anxiety, such as an exam; or also due to the suffering of specific traumatic events such as a period of mourning, moving, or divorce.
- Chemical stress
Chemical stress is less obvious than emotional stress, but it is just as important for its consequences. Chemical stress includes all the particles that enter our body and influence the body, such as the quality of the water we drink, the food – organic or not – that we eat daily, the air we breathe or the medication we take. The clearest example of a present chemical stress that affects the majority of the population is the consumption of alcohol, tobacco, caffeine or drugs.
- Physical stress
Physical stress is caused by repetitive movements. Usually accompanied by bad postures at work, sport, or our leisure time; like spending too much time in front of the computer, doing loading and unloading movements, reading … Physical stress can also be caused by specific events that directly affect our spine such as accidents or other physical traumas, falls, blows, sports injuries, accidents of traffic, …
In many cases, leading a sedentary life is enough to cause problems in our spine and affect our well-being.
Why is it important to measure our stress level?
Knowing our stress level is vitally important because stress directly influences our nervous system.
The nervous system is the one who directs, regulates, and organizes our entire body. The rest of the systems present in our body such as the circulatory, respiratory, digestive, reproductive, hormonal, muscular, and skeletal systems need the proper functioning of the nervous system to function correctly.
The nervous system works on two levels – sympathetic and parasympathetic – to control the functions of our body and its involuntary actions:
The sympathetic nervous system is in charge of regulating the body’s activation responses:
- Releases adrenaline throughout our bloodstream through the adrenal gland
- Dilate the pupils
- Speeds up the heart rate
- Opens the airways to increase oxygen in the blood
- Inhibits the digestive system to concentrate efforts on attack and flight tasks
- Maintains muscle tone
- Stimulates orgasm
The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for returning to a state of balance and conservation after the activation of the sympathetic system.
- Constricts the pupils
- Reduces the volume of the lungs
- Slows heart rate
- Stimulates the digestive process
- Causes muscle relaxation
- And, it complements the stimulation in sexual arousal
Thanks to a homeostasis mechanism, both levels, the sympathetic and the parasympathetic, manage to work in a complementary way and make our body respond appropriately in different situations.
If we have a lot of stress, it does not matter if it is emotional, physical or chemical, it can affect the delicate balance of our body and cause problems.
For this reason, it is so important to evaluate our stress and our spine to know if the stress has produced the appearance of subluxations in any of our vertebrae in our spine.
If there is a subluxation in our spine, our body cannot communicate properly, stress increases, and our well-being and vitality are reduced.
How does stress affect us?
Stress affects us all, but it does not affect all people in the same way.
Today we live in a fast-paced society: children with many tests and expectations; adults with demanding and stressful jobs and with increasing expenses; and seniors who want to take advantage of the elderly with the best possible quality of life.
A large percentage of Spaniards suffer from chronic stress, affecting our well-being, and with it our abilities to live a quality life like the one we want to have.
Different medical investigations conclude that chronic stress affects the general body, causing different types of health problems.
For this reason, it is so important to take care of ourselves and our spine even if we do not feel a specific physical pain or discomfort.
As the saying goes, “prevention is better than cure” to optimize our performance and improve our quality of life.
The important thing is to make sure that our body is well adapted to handle these three types of stress by having a spine free of subluxations.
How can chiropractic help you?
Various scientific studies have shown the efficacy of chiropractic in reducing anxiety levels. Grandview Health Chiropractors in Chicago can help you reduce your stress level and improve your well-being with the help of chiropractic care.
Chiropractic care specializes in correcting subluxations in our spine to improve the functioning of our nervous system and promote a better adaptation to stress. Contact us today and start improving your well being.
