Neurodevelopmental Challenges & Chiropractic
Chiropractic care is often the missing key for families seeking thorough supportive care for their children struggling with neurodevelopmental challenges like cerebral palsy, down’s syndrome, seizures, autism, etc.
Many are already doing speech therapy, occupational therapy, and physical therapy but are looking for something a little different to optimize their children’s growth & development and overall health. That’s where nervous system centered chiropractic comes in!
By restoring balance to overactive and stressed nervous systems, children are able to live healthier lives with better behavior, digestion, immune function, balance and coordination, learning, sleep, and so much more.
How can chiropractic help?
By addressing the stress, a specific chiropractic adjustment restores proper balance and alignment to the neuro-spinal system and restores balance and function to the central nervous system. Depending on the severity and duration these injuries have been present, more care is required to speed up the healing process and creating lasting positive change. The sooner we start, the better our chances of having success!
Most children with neuro-developmental challenges have two major challenges at the root of their issues: An overstressed nervous system that is stuck in protection mode right from the beginning of life, or even before. As, Dr. Bruce Lipton states, “You can’t be in growth and protection at the same time.”
The nervous system cannot be on the stress/protection mode at the same time as it’s on the rest/digest mode. Misalignment and stress to the upper neck and brainstem area “locks in” the nervous system to that stress mode. A specifically trained pediatric chiropractor is the only provider trained to find and locate that, and if found, correct and resolve it to begin healing!
What compromises the nervous system?
After connecting with so many families and studying the research, we have found a common thread- the birth process. In many cases, these kids' nervous systems have been stressed since birth and even in-utero due to uterine constraints such as breech positioning or the cord being wrapped around the neck.
After talking to numerous parents and connecting the dots back to birth, parents have often said, "The doctor was really pulling and twisting the neck! I knew that it didn't look right." or "My baby was stuck in my pelvis for a really long time, so they had to use interventions to get my baby out." It's no surprise that the area most commonly injured during the birth process is the head and neck and the risk of injury goes up exponentially with the use of interventions like C-sections, forceps, vacuum extracting, and prolonged pushing.
How does the birth process effect the nervous system?
Unnecessary pressure and stress can be put on the upper neck and head, which negatively impacts how the brain stem, spinal cord, and spinal nerves function. If a misalignment occurs in the upper neck and head, it leads to improper neurological communication going to and from the body and brain. This communication breakdown is one of the primary reasons children with neuro-developmental challenges have a hard time with sensory processing, social interaction and behavior, and learning.
All of this eventually puts the nervous system into a chronic or permanent state of stress or fight/flight response. This response is meant for true stressful moments like getting cut off on the freeway or if a bear comes outs of nowhere to help you engage in the "fight" or "flight" response. By being stuck in a state of stress, the fight/flight response is engaged for an extended period of time and starts to rewire the brain and body for stress. This new "normal" can persist and lead to the health challenges so many children are suffering with such as chronic immune suppression, autoimmune challenges, and neuro-developmental disorders.