Walk It Off

Child bumping their head, smashing your finger with a hammer, a baseball player getting hit with a pitch what do these all have in common? Well they hurt but something else that they have in common that you may or may not realize is that they all three do once thing similar.... the use movement to help it feel better.

When a child bumps their head a mom will almost as a reflex tell the child to rub it. Don't go trying it but when you smash one of the first things you'll to is start shaking your hand in the air. Coaches alway tell their players no matter the situation to get up and "walk it off". Why is that you ask? What makes movement so important that we do it almost on instinct when we are injured?

To understand first you have to know a bit about how our nervous system works. There are millions upon millions of nerves that go to and from every part of our body. These nerves have different jobs with out getting too complicated we'll talk only about two types ones that send pain from your body to your spinal cord and brain that sense movement.

The first type there is easy enough to understand their job. when you smash your finger with the hammer these nerves let your brain know it.

The other type have special movement detectors (mechanoreceptros) When they detect movement they let your body know. That is how you are aware that you are moving, walking, jumping or whatever it may be. These nerves as well as sending a signal to your brain informing it of movement it also send substances (neurotransmitters) into the spinal cord that help to block pain signals. This is why in the before mentioned scenarios rubbing it or walking it off helps you feel better. It also it why we feel so good getting a massage.

Movement is important for keeping our joints healthy, keeping us physically fit and now you know that it also helps with dealing with pain. Chiropractic adjustments help to decrease pain (short term affect of care) and improve the motion of joints in your body to improve or maintain proper movement and keep the joints and you healthy and functioning well.

I enjoy being a chiropractor and helping people feel and function better. If you or someone you know wants to talk about how chiropractic care can help please email me.