Gratitude is more than a feel-good emotion—it’s a powerful tool for improving mental health, strengthening relationships, and building resilience. This blog explores the science-backed benefits of gratitude and offers simple ways to incorporate it into your daily life. From journaling to mindful reflection, discover how cultivating gratitude can shift your perspective and lead to a more joyful, fulfilled life.
Read moreUnderstanding the Human Spine: The Backbone of Our Health
The human spine is a vital structure that supports the body and protects the nerve system. In this blog, we explore the anatomy of the spine, common issues like herniated discs and sciatica, and how chiropractic care can improve spinal health. Discover how maintaining a healthy spine can lead to better overall well-being for you and your family.
Read moreThe History of Chiropractic Care: From Ancient Practices to Modern Health
Discover the rich history of chiropractic care, from its ancient roots to modern techniques. Learn how chiropractic adjustments help optimise health and function, with a focus on the connection between the spine and the nerve system.
Read moreBuilding Community Wellness: Eastern Bay Chiropractic
At Eastern Bay Chiropractic, we believe that true wellness extends beyond just physical health. Located in the heart of Whakatane, our practice is dedicated to fostering connections within our community. From spinal adjustments to lifestyle advice, our team is here to empower you and your family to live healthier, happier lives. Discover how we’re making a difference both inside and outside our clinic.
Read moreTeenage Brain: Closed for Renovations
The Teenage Brain
Teens & tweens, those energetic, creative, curious, ravenous and sometimes confused humans. As they transition between child and adulthood, it’s not always smooth sailing. Heck, I remember it being downright rough. Challenges such as starting a new school, making new friends, figuring out social connections, dealing with bullying, tests, exams, pressure to achieve, learning difficulties, nutritional or hydration issues: all these things add to the daily stressors of a growing body in a state of flux. This is why we cannot overlook this demographic when it comes to health and wellness. Being fully connected to your body, your environment and your sense of self can be a major game-changer in these sometimes vulnerable periods of growth and development. Chiropractic can help keep your kids be more ‘Switched On’.
We all know that on a physical level, driven by hormones, adolescent bodies are going through immense developmental changes at a rapid speed. This in itself can bring new challenges to overall self-image, co-ordination, balance and posture.
There is a huge correlation between posture and the body's ability to deal with stress.1 We have all heard about ‘Tech Neck’ and we are now seeing it in kids from a very young age. Having forward head-carriage, rounded shoulders or slumped posture is physiologically telling your body to POWER-DOWN and protect itself.2 This can have an impact on the health, growth and development of your child. Research has shown3 that good posture can be the key to building:
· resilience to stress
· higher self-esteem
· better mood regulation
· reduced feelings of fear
· more optimal breathing patterns
Does this sound like it could help someone you know?
And it’s not just hormones. The adolescent brain literally goes through a period of re-wiring and re-organising during this time as it is working out its identity and place in the world. For some kids this is relatively easy, for others it may be a time of stress and angst. The upstairs part of the brain behind the forehead is called the pre-frontal cortex. It is the reason why we humans are who we are. It drives our personality, our ability to plan, how we make decisions, problem-solving, and how to see consequences of our actions. During puberty the pre-frontal cortex takes a bit of a back seat for ‘re-wiring & renovations’.
This means that the average teenager is most likely functioning from the limbic area, the downstairs section of the brain. This is where the amygdala and hippocampus are located. The amygdala is like the brain’s smoke detector and the downstairs brain is where your feelings are. This section of the brain is also focused on such simple things as heart rate, breathing, sleeping, and hunger as well as keeping us safe and making sure our basic needs are met. As the limbic brain charges up, kids tend to become more reactive, sensitive, emotional and have more extreme responses to different situations.
Imagine you are late for work and you have misplaced your keys. You are getting more wound up and less rational as you keep going back to the same places over and again to look for them. You panic – you are no longer thinking with your cortex, you are thinking with your emotions. Now remember how you feel if somebody tells you to “CALM DOWN”. Not exactly calming. The teenage brain is still in the process of wiring up the calming, rational connections to the cortex. Their ability to stay cool and see consequences of their actions might be as tricky as your ability to stay calm when you are already late for work.
Another neurological principle is that when connections 'fire together they wire together'. Adolescence is a crucial time to develop good habits around activities like thinking positively, eating healthily and regular exercise, as it programs these habits to continue into adulthood. We know that the brain can change throughout life but it is much easier to get the wiring right at the start, during teenage years. It takes a bit more hard work to rewire as adults.4
A chiropractic adjustment ensures effective brain:body connection and communication.3
This is vital, because the brain needs to accurately perceive what is going on in the body in order to figure out exactly what it needs to do to keep you laughing, thinking, moving, sleeping, digesting and doing everything that makes you, you.
Recent studies3 show that chiropractic care can not only help with co-ordination, balance and muscle strength, but it even makes positive changes to the pre-frontal cortex.5
A well-adjusted teenager benefits the balance and ease of the whole family.
1. Moustafa, I. M., Youssef, A., Ahbouch, A., Tamim, M., & Harrison, D. E. (2020). Is forward head posture relevant to autonomic nervous system function and cervical sensorimotor control? Cross sectional study. Gait & Posture.
2. Morningstar, M. W., Pettibon, B. R., Schlappi, H., Schlappi, M., & Ireland, T. V. (2005). Reflex control of the spine and posture: a review of the literature from a chiropractic perspective. Chiropractic & osteopathy, 13(1), 16.
3. Haavik, H. (2014). The reality check. A quest to understand chiropractic from the inside out: Haavik research-heidihaavik.com.
4. Adolescent Brain Development. (2018, July). Retrieved from https://www.kidshealth.org.nz/
5. Lelic, D., Niazi, I.K., Holt, K., Jochumsen, M., Dremstrup, K., Yielder, P., Murphy, B., Drewes, A.M. and Haavik, H., (2016). Manipulation of dysfunctional spinal joints affects sensorimotor integration in the prefrontal cortex: A brain source localization study. Neural Plasticity, 2016.
Boost your immunity
Many things you read say, drink more water, get out in the sun and eat oranges, but why are these things good for our immune system? And what else can be done to help boost the immune system?
Why drink more water?
Water serves 2 functions when it comes to boosting immunity. Firstly, water carries oxygen to your cells and this process helps aid your immune system. Secondly drinking enough water helps your body to flush bacteria and toxins, that may cause infection, from your system.
Why get out in the sun?
Vitamin D is known to help the immune system by fighting off infection and regulating the natural activity of Immune Cells. We can get Vitamin D from some foods such as salmon, tuna, and egg yolk, or we can get out in the sunshine and soak up the rays to get vitamin D (this has many other benefits as well as boosting your immune system). There are also supplements we can take if we are low in Vitamin D.
Why eat oranges?
Oranges (and other citrus fruits) are high in Vitamin C. Vitamin C helps to increase the production of white blood cells which helps fight off viruses. Having good amounts of Vitamin C not only should reduce the chances of getting the nasty winter bugs but if we do get sick it will reduce the length of time and severity of the sickness. Other foods high in vitamin C are capsicums, broccoli, strawberries, and potatoes. There are also many good supplements available to boost Vitamin C intake.
Other things that are good to boost your immune system are:
Get checked regularly by a chiropractor!
Chiropractic care provides a natural, non-invasive, and gentle means of supporting the immune system. Research has shown that our immune system relies on our brain and central nervous system to work together to detect and respond to anything that may harm us. When our spine is not moving properly this can hinder that connection. Getting regular adjustments helps our spines move better and our brains to better see what is going on in our bodies which can help us fight off illness.
Getting enough, good sleep
When we sleep, our body produces protein called cytokines which are known to target inflammation and infection. Also, when we sleep our body produces white blood cells which we know play a critical role in the bodies response to infections.
Looking after our gut health
About 70% of the immune system is in our gut. It makes sense if the microbiome in the gut is not in balance our immune system will not be in balance. Having balance means our gut is better at digestion, absorption, detoxification, and protection against germs. We can help our gut bacteria by taking a good quality probiotic or being careful with what we are eating.
Winter bugs can get us all, but if we give our body a fighting chance at being the healthiest it can be we can not only reduce the amount of time and severity of sickness, but hopefully can reduce the chances of catching the nasty winter bugs in the first place.
Why chiropractors care about your breathing
If at ANY moment of the day you are feeling overwhelmed, unmotivated, highly anxious, or uptight: Take ONE slow deep inhale through the nose if possible for four or more seconds: try not to move the chest but just really concentrate on filling that belly
Read moreUnderstanding the round ligament pain during pregnancy
During pregnancy, have you ever felt a sudden, sharp pain usually located on one side (but can be both) of your lower abdomen?
Read moreThe power of Ergonomics : Nurturing posture for a healthier you
In the hustle and bustle of our daily lives, we often neglect one of the most fundamental aspects of our well-being: our posture.
Read moreLove and Connection
A person who is able to be more present and vibrant from not being in a state of discomfort or dysregulation may feel a deeper connection in social environments, with family, friends and nature.
Read moreWelcome to 2024
What are Values? Whether you’re deciding to make a career change or trying to make space for more self-care, defining your personal values can act as a guide. But what’s the meaning of personal values, and how can you identify yours?
Read moreChiropractic and Muscle Release Therapies
Muscle release therapies or MRT for short has been around for thousands of years and pose many great benefits. If that’s deep tissue massage, myofascial release, acupuncture, dry needling, the list goes on and on, but they all have one core principle. They release the tension in the specific muscle being worked on. So how does this benefit you and fit into the chiropractic lifestyle?
Read moreDo you understand the Brain-Gut connection
Let’s talk about the brain-gut connection and how it can impact the health, wellness, immune system, digestive system, and emotions of our children. There is so much to unpack here, but we need to approach it from the right perspective.
Read moreWhat is Symphysis Pubis Disorder (SPD)?
Pregnancy related pelvic girdle pain, also known as Symphysis Pubis Disorder (SPD), describes multiple symptoms of discomfort around the front or the back of the pelvic joint that women may experience during pregnancy. Research supports that 30% of women experience SPD throughout their pregnancy. So, what causes SPD and what can we do about it?
Read moreWhat is an Activator?
The most common question I get in practice is what is that clicking gun and what does it actually do?
Read moreCoordination and Balance Issues - Normal in Children?
Occasionally, we hear our mums and dads confessing about how clumsy their little cherub has been over the past few days, and how their toddler has been falling a little bit more often. Did you know that it could be a sign that your child is due for a chiropractic adjustment?
Read moreNew Habits
We don’t need to wait for the new year, the start of the month or a Monday to begin new habits, the repetitive thoughts and behaviors that get us where and what we want. In fact starting small, making little changes, particularly those that integrate within the way you already live may be the best way to get going.
Read moreHelping Your Child With Anxiety
Chiropractic care for children.
What we see in practice is that Anxiety links in with the nerve system. We can tackle feelings of anxiety externally, where it’s coming from, and internally, with the nerve system, your bodies control system.
Read moreGolf and Chiropractic
It’s fair to say for an ideal golf swing, a free moving spine and pelvis is required. With the amount of force on the spine we can eventually get areas of increased tension. And increased tension means less flexibility which leads to restricted range of motion. Its also important to have a strong balanced foundation, around which the torso can rotate.
Read moreChiropractic Care and Pelvic Floor Function
Have you ever experienced leakage when you sneeze, cough or jump? Is having intercourse painful? Do you ever feel that you are not fully emptying your bladder or like you frequently need to go to the toilet? Do you feel heaviness or a bulge in your vagina or rectum? These are some signs that you may be suffering from a pelvic floor disorder.
Read on to find out more.
Read more