Oh, the holidays…. Sigh. Remember when you were a kid and how much you looked forward to Christmas? It seemed like it took forever to come, and when it did you were so excited for all those new toys! Fast forward to adulthood and now it seems that Christmas arrives faster than you can prepare for it, you don’t have a 2 week Christmas Break and instead you have to work, you’re responsible financially for everything, and you have to do all the shopping/planning/coordinating/ect. Sound familiar? To some, it may seem more of a hassle than joy with all the stress that comes with the holidays. Many of you probably notice that your back or neck gets tight and starts hurting during this season due to stress. We like to categorize stress into three groups: physical, chemical, and emotional. Physical stress is usually obvious; like lifting the Christmas tree or going up and down on the ladder all day to put up lights. Chemical stress is also noticeable this time of year: cookies, candy, and holiday cocktails put excess chemicals in your system. Both types, physical and chemical, are not good. However, I would argue that that emotional stress can be the worst. Mostly because it seems like its coming from something that is out of your control. For example, you likely had financial and time burdens to get through Christmas. You could try your hardest to minimize the stress, but at the end of the day it was always there. When you are stressed, your muscles tighten up and pull asymmetrically on your vertebrae. This pulling can cause misalignments we refer to as subluxations. The adjustments we do as chiropractors function to correct these misalignments. In doing so, patients often report decreased pain, tension, and increased range of motion and energy. With the new year right around the corner, many of you are likely planning your resolutions. I highly advocate bettering yourself with a gym membership like many people do. However, as a chiropractor I also advocate for a healthy spine just like a dentist would advocate for healthy teeth. Make an appointment today for a consultation to see how we can help you set and achieve your health goals.

Yours in health,

Dr. Bryan

#stress #christmas