Compensation reactions: A new problem that results from the body’s attempt to respond to a problem elsewhere. In other words, the *source* of your pain,

Finally! I have a title for the weirdness that happens to me when I'm actually hurt in one place & end up hurting in other places for no apparent reason! I wasn’t sure if this was just a “me problem,” or if it was a real thing. Now that I know that it’s real, let’s talk about it.

Headaches are a perfect example of this. I’ve been chugging water like a camel at an oasis, but I still have a headache. I haven’t been reading, staring at a screen, or smashing my head into anything. So why does my head hurt as if I had? As it turns out, my neck was waaaaay out of whack.

I didn’t feel any pain in my neck. So I asked for an in depth explanation after my adjustment (because I couldn’t wait to be adjusted!) As it turns out, my very top vertebra (the “Atlas” – more on that later) was subluxated (fun new term to throw around = “out of whack,” as described previously). Have your eyes glazed over? Let me ‘splain …

Our spines are generally described in four sections: Cervical (neck bones), Thoracic (you might remember that from elementary school science class: the middle part of an ant = thorax), lumbar (the part that everyone tells you to support if you sit for a long time), and sacrum (the part that hurts for 6 months if you land hard on it while ice skating, take it from me).

So, my issue was at the tippy top of my spine, the atlas. The atlas is called this because, much like good old Greek Atlas, holds a lot of weight … your noggin. And here's the thing... if your atlas is subluxated, you may not associate the pain with your neck; you might have a killer migraine. If your knees are screaming at you & you haven't recently competed in the Broad Street Run, there's a good chance that there’s a subluxation in your lumbar spine (this happens to me *all* the time). Even weirder, if you have an unexplained stomach ache, it could be a Thoracic vertebra or two that aren’t where they should be.

I know I don’t think about nerves stemming out from my spine all that often. If you don’t either, you might be surprised to know that they literally affect every single cell in your body. Crazy, right? I mean, we all know that if you smack your funny bone on something, you may start spewing obscenities in languages you didn’t even realize you knew, but my gallbladder? Never thought about which vertebral connection might coincide with that.

Anyway, my point is, if you’re not feeling 100% and you’re not sure why, maybe scheduling a complimentary initial assessment at Gulph Mills Chiropractic Center might not be a bad idea. We’ll even include x-rays if they’re necessary! You’ve nothing to lose … 484-751-5037 or GulphMillsChiro.com/appointment