What is Upper Cervical Chiropractic and Why is it Important?
Upper Cervical Chiropractic
The powerful Upper Cervical region of your spine is home to some of the most important parts of the nervous system - including your cranial nerves.
Your nervous system innervates every organ, cell and tissue in your body - making it a vitally important system within your body.
The cranial nerves control vital functions in your body such as vision, hearing, respiration, heart rate and digestion - to name just a few!
Your spine protects your nervous system and the optimal alignment of your spine - especially in these two vertebrae right at the base of your skull - is critical in maintaining the proper flow of information from your brain to the rest of your body.
As your chiropractor, our main goal is to locate and correct the misalignments of these vertebrae which indicate interference in your nervous system. Using state of the art digital X-ray imaging and infra-red thermographic scanning technology, we will determine the precise manner in which to deliver a specific adjustment to the upper cervical region of your neck.
Often the root cause of many of these symptoms stem from a misalignment in the Upper Cervical Region of your Spine.
What about my low back or hip pain?
You might be curious about how can an adjustment in your upper neck may be able to help relieve pain or discomfort in your low back?
When you hear Upper Cervical Chiropractic we want you to remember your brainstem! Specifically cranial nerves 3-12 which are involved in many of the important processes that take place in your body!
Some of your major postural muscles are innervated or supplied cranial nerve 12. And, there are other postural muscles that attach both into the upper cervical spine and the low back. This means that an adjustment in your Upper Cervical Spine may be able to help relieve postural issues and pain associated with these postural muscles.
The dentate ligament runs continuously down all 4 quarters of your spinal canal and and protects the soft tissue of your spinal cord from the bony structures of your 24 moveable vertebrae. The only places it connects to bony structure is in the upper cervical spine and in the low back. When there is torque or tension in the upper cervical region it can translate down to tension and/or pain in the low back region. Upper Cervical Chiropractic Care may be able to relieve tensions to this ligament.
We also must remember how connected we are. Our bodies are fully connected and integrated which means that a compensation pattern at one end of the spine will most likely, eventually, create compensation patterns and misalignment throughout the whole spine and even into your extremities. By addressing your most primary misalignments through precise adjustments, your body has an opportunity to unwind these additional compensation patterns.
What About My Kids?
Upper Cervical Chiropractic care is something the whole family may be able to benefit from.
Cranial nerves 3-12 are equally as important for children as they are for adults. These nerves support functions such as chewing, swallowing, latching, breathing, and the development of postural muscles.