Who else has had moments where bright lights, loud noises, a terrible smell, or even stress has made you want to curl up in the closet or under the bed? That is the perfect example of sensory information - a touch, smell, sound, sight, or taste - that is TOO much for your brain to handle at any given moment. This reminds me of a fully blown fuse box - information/power can't get to and from your brain, just like the power source. Everything needs to shut down.
Last week we spoke about the behavior of children as a window to their developing brain. We asked... what happens that might cause the brain to develop with gaps, or get stuck in a stage of development?
We know that if a child is not touched, never sees light or hears sounds, or doesn't receive proper food, he or she will not develop normally. Proper sensory information builds a healthy brain. So what carries that information from all of our bodies (to tell the brain what's happening in the environment)? The back part of the brain and top of the spinal cord. As a chiropractor, we detect and correct neurostructural shifts, or subluxations, in this upper part of the spine.
A neurostructural shift occurs as a result of stress to the body. Stressors can come in many forms: emotional stress (like friend struggles or a yelling parent or teacher), physical stress (slips, carrying heavy back packs, sitting too much, being on screens), and chemical stress (air pollution, poor nutrition, polluted water) etc. When the stress is too much, the fuse blows. Altered movement in the upper spine, which often happens due to a difficult pregnancy or delivery, as well as from head injuries, keeps information from getting to the brain, or alters the sensory information that the brain receives.
If the fuse has been blown, there will be clues. Some of these are what happened along your child's development: perhaps they crawled on three limbs and dragged a leg behind. Did they respond to their name before age 1? Did she skip gesturing and take several years to speak in sentence? Maybe their pencil grip is on the thumb and fourth finger instead of the thumb and pointer.
More clues show up in our chiropractic exam: the way the child holds their head, moves their body, and changes in their structure and muscles. If we find these clues and the upper spine has a blown fuse, we can help by very specifically and gently (with the force of checking ripeness of tomato) correcting the neurostructural shift. If the input to your child's brain is not appropriate and proper, we HAVE to deal with this piece first. This tills the soil to the developing brain so it can learn and grow. Any other treatment is likely to overwhelm or create more imbalances in the brain.
Are you seeing clues that your child might have a blown fuse box? Would you like a complimentary consult to discuss the gaps in your child's development or some behaviors that concern you? Please fill out our contact us form