What Is Upper Cervical Care

The Upper Cervical Procedure

Precision Upper Cervical adjusting is a scientifically-proven chiropractic procedure that corrects the position of the top vertebrae of the spine, the atlas and/or axis. By correcting the tilt, shift or rotation of these vertebrae, the body is able to better overcome the effects or completely eliminate many different conditions.

alignmis.jpg

Illustration usage courtesy of Daniel O. Clark, D.C.
www.uppercervicalillustrations.com

The Atlas is a single, 2 oz. doughnut-shaped vertebra at the top of the spine. Trillions of nerve fibers from the brainstem travel through the small opening in atlas and flow down into the spinal column. Because of the smallness of the opening and because of the atlas' close proximity to the brain stem, if the atlas has moved out of position even a fraction of a degree, two very serious things can result:

Body Imbalance

When the atlas and/or axis are out of their proper position, the head moves off center of the body. This creates body imbalance from head to toe. More weight shifts to one side of the body than another. If these vertebrae are also rotated out of position, they can twist your entire spinal structure, including the pelvis, so that one leg becomes shorter than another. Not having your atlas corrected to restore body balance is like continuing to drive a car that is misaligned. Over time everything is going to break down. You can keep replacing the tires, but unless you have the car aligned, you'll just be wasting your money. The same thing is true for headaches or ADD or hundreds of other conditions that have been known to respond well to Upper Cervical health care. You can keep taking medication, but if your atlas is out of its proper position and causing the problem, it's not going away until you get your atlas corrected.

Restriction or Distortion of Brain Messages to Different Parts of the Body

The second serious result of an atlas and/or axis being out of position is the restriction or distortion of critical messages from the brain to all parts of the body. Every cell, organ or tissue that is not receiving adequate nerve energy and communication from the brain will suffer and degenerate.


Illustration usage courtesy of Daniel O. Clark, D.C.
www.uppercervicalillustrations.com


Example: Ball your hand into a fist. This represents your head. Extend your index finger as if you are pointing at someone. Your index finger represents your body. Take a rubber band and wrap it tightly around your index finger at the base of the finger where it is attached to your hand. The rubber band represents your atlas which is wrapped around the spinal cord right near the brain stem and has moved out of its proper position. Wait a few minutes. Your entire finger begins to turn white and blue due to the circulation being cut off by the rubber band. You can massage your finger to restore circulation. You can inject a syringe with pain medication to stop the pain. In severe cases you can cut off the finger to erase the pain. However, only the symptoms of the problem have been addressed, not the cause. The rubber band is the cause.

The same thing is true for an atlas that has moved out of its proper position. It can constrict or distort proper nerve flow from the brain to organs and limbs throughout the body. Your feet may hurt or you may be having kidney problems, but the cause of the problem may not be in those areas at all, but in your neck where a misaligned atlas is restricting or distorting proper nerve flow to areas throughout the body. If your atlas remains out of position for years, degeneration of organ, muscle and cell tissue results. Over time, that could be serious, since in many conditions, pain is the last symptom to occur to indicate a problem exists.

Now, Here's the Good News! Repositioning the top vertebrae of the spine brings healing!
Here's How!

The repositioning of the atlas vertebrae is done by hand or by instrument. Depending on the doctor's technique, it feels like a light tap, a brisk thrust, or a soft massage at the side of the neck as the atlas is moved precisely back into its correct position. It is completely "underwhelming." There is no twisting of the neck. Patients are often surprised how anti-climactic it is until, over a period of time, they feel their bodies healing. The procedure cures nothing. It simply restores body balance and brain-to-body communication so that organs, limbs and tissues can resume normal functioning. The body can now self-heal. That is why we see many different conditions responding to the same procedure.

However, too many of us wait too long to get our atlases corrected. This is mainly due to ignorance of the vital role the atlas plays in the health of the entire body throughout life. It is becoming increasingly clear that parents should have their children's atlas' examined as soon after birth as possible and have periodic atlas check ups throughout their lives. Countless problems could be avoided entirely. A rightly positioned atlas is so fundamental to good health, children to grandparents need to get their atlases examined now.

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