{"id":2110,"date":"2013-08-21T11:37:35","date_gmt":"2013-08-21T15:37:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chescotimes.com\/?p=2110"},"modified":"2013-08-21T11:37:35","modified_gmt":"2013-08-21T15:37:35","slug":"celebrating-the-gifts-of-the-spine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/?p=2110","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating the gifts of the spine"},"content":{"rendered":"

Health and well-being spring from your spinal column<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

By Dr. Matthew Lapp<\/strong>, Columnist, The Times<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"CTColLogoMattLapp\"<\/a>The summer months are a time of great activity and celebration.\u00a0 It\u2019s also a time when many people begin an exercise routine or take a closer look at their fitness goals.\u00a0 And, since the spine is the foundation for almost all activity, it\u2019s important to understand and recognize some of the most important gifts that our spinal structures have to offer.<\/p>\n

So, as you read through some of these concepts, keep in mind the question \u201cwhat level of function do you want for your body and your life?\u201d\u00a0 You might be surprised\u00a0 at how closely related spinal health and your overall quality of life actually are.<\/p>\n

The first gift of the spine is function.\u00a0 As we mentioned earlier, almost all physical movements are generated by the spinal structures and the single biggest physical stress on the spine comes from the use of the arms and legs.\u00a0 Therefore, it\u2019s important to make sure that all of the components of the spine, including the muscles, the bones, the ligaments, discs and the neural control system are functioning optimally.<\/p>\n

For example, a 2003 study<\/a> performed at Akita University in Japan found that, when compared with factors including spinal fractures, spinal angles and spinal range of motion, spinal range of motion had the highest correlation with quality of life.\u00a0 Furthermore, they found that spinal mobility has a high influence on overall quality of life.\u00a0 Other studies have shown that individuals with higher functioning spinal health actually have more joy and happiness<\/a>, less risk of falls, and lower rates of mortality<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The second gift is the ability to convey and experience emotion.\u00a0 Have you ever seen someone slumped over in a chair or sulking towards you and thought, \u201cthat person must be having a great day!\u201d?\u00a0 Of course not; you would probably think that they were depressed, angry or sad.\u00a0 On the other hand, standing up straight with the shoulders back and the spine in alignment has the ability to create an appearance of inner strength and happiness.<\/p>\n

Over the years, artists have used a sharp spinal angle to create the effect of anger and the appearance of a curved spine to indicate joy.\u00a0 Additionally, research<\/a> from John\u2019s Hopkins actually showed that the the highest concentration of the chemicals that signal our emotions, called neuropeptides, were actually found in an area of the spinal cord.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The next time you feel tired or upset, try changing your posture and notice the effect it has on your whole demeanor.\u00a0\u00a0 Or, the next time you\u2019re experiencing profound joy, try rounding the shoulders and slumping forward.\u00a0 It\u2019s almost impossible.<\/p>\n

The third gift of the spine is a sense of self.\u00a0 Each of us has a \u201cstory\u201d of who we are in the world.\u00a0 This story dictates how we interact with those around us, how we view ourselves in comparison to our community, and the actions and behaviors we engage in as we live our lives.\u00a0 If you\u2019ve ever heard the phrase, \u201cin the back of my mind\u201d then you should also realize that the spinal cord is the literal extension of the brain and mind.\u00a0 Therefore, whether joyous or painful, a life event can be stored in the mind and actually transferred to the physiology of the body based on the influence of the spinal structures.\u00a0 Furthermore, a life filled with excitement, love, and gratitude can have a profound influence on how we see ourselves, as well as how we outwardly express those inner feelings.<\/p>\n

The next gift is behavior.\u00a0 Or, more specifically, access to and awareness of our behavior, as well as the ability to change it rapidly.\u00a0 Just as our inner story is largely generated by the implications and meaning that we give to our experiences, our behavior is an external representation of the story.\u00a0 As, we mentioned earlier, you can sometimes create a new internal feeling (happiness, sadness, anger, etc) by changing the external structure of your posture.\u00a0 Thus, we can apply this knowledge and actually create behaviors that work for<\/i> us, as opposed to against us simply by changing the structure of our body, are agreements with others, or some other external structure.<\/p>\n

The final gift of the spine is consciousness.\u00a0 Put simply, consciousness is awareness, and awareness is paying attention.\u00a0 By paying attention to our body, we are able to develop a greater sense of internal awareness.\u00a0 By paying attention to our emotions, we\u2019ll become more in touch with them.\u00a0 If you want to experience spiritual enlightenment, start paying attention to the wonder that is all around us.\u00a0 No matter where you put your attention, you\u2019re bound to create a greater awareness and understanding of it.<\/p>\n

As is the case with any new activity, practice, or skill it\u2019s important to take your time and recognize that lasting change doesn\u2019t usually happen over night.\u00a0 If spinal health and fitness is a new concept to you, start slowly as you begin to celebrate the gifts that the spine has to offer.<\/p>\n

Drs. Allison and Matthew Lapp are the owners of Salus Chiropractic Studio in Thorndale. For more information, visit them on the web at http:\/\/www.thorndalechiropractor.com\/<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

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Health and well-being spring from your spinal column By Dr. Matthew Lapp, Columnist, The Times The summer months are a time of great activity and celebration.\u00a0 It\u2019s also a time when many people begin an exercise routine or take a closer look at their fitness goals.\u00a0 And, since the spine is the foundation for almost […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,15],"tags":[1636,1637,1638],"class_list":["post-2110","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-featured","category-health","tag-emotional-well-being","tag-movement","tag-spinal-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2110","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2110"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2110\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2110"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2110"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chescotimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2110"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}