You may have once heard of an adventurer called Dr. Livingstone.
While in Africa, he was dragged away from his camp in the jaws of a lion and lived to tell the tale. It was strange. Once in the grip of the lion’s teeth, he felt a bizarre sense of euphoria, and went completely limp. It was as though he’d given up the fight and resigned himself to his fate. But he never gave up his desire to live. Sure enough, Dr. Livingstone survived his close encounter with the King of the jungle.
Today, we are living in the jaws of a similar lion. Or at least it can feel that way at times. Stress seems to come at us from every direction. Living under a pandemic fills our lives with the emotional stress of “what if”, leading to worry, fear, anxiety, isolation, pressure, anger, depression…the list goes on. The pressures of working at home, relationship discord arising from prolonged “house arrest”, money problems, and the high wire act that is homeschooling our kids while trying to balance other duties have been forced upon us as ‘the norm’.
TV and the internet only add to our levels of stress with a near constant stream of disturbing news. Add to this, stress is often manifested in the body in the form of subluxations (tiny misalignments in the spinal vertebrae). And when the effects of stress thereby become ingrained in our nervous system, the damage accrues over time.
Virtually every system of the body (e.g., the heart and cardiovascular system, the immune system, the lungs, digestive system, sensory organs and the brain) can become affected. That’s why, if you want wellness, your goal should be to head off stress before it takes over.
While the above may seem bleak, remember: your circumstances don’t create the inner turmoil, it’s your response to them that does. And like Dr. Livingstone, you have the power to choose your response. Resisting only causes the lion to sink its teeth into your flesh faster.
It’s a useful metaphor for dealing with stressful situations.
Instead of shouting ‘no!’ at events you don’t like, say ‘yes!’ to the blessings that still exist all around us, control whatever small radius of your affairs you can, and work on accepting the things you can’t change. I’m constantly working on this to achieve more tranquility day by day.
Next, throw into the mix a finely tuned nervous system (which regular chiropractic adjustments will help you do), and you’ll be empowered from a physiological standpoint to correct for stress. Often, the result of this is more stamina, focus, shorter “freak outs”, more overall productivity, confidence, and a sense of control. Indeed, I have many patients who will attest to it.
(Plus, it jives with my own experience of seeing MY chiropractor.)
If you’d like some help with stress control (or any acute or chronic health problems, like neck and back pain, sleep issues, and migraines), we’re classed as an essential healthcare service and remain open to serve you.
Anyway, that does it for this week. I hope my little tale today will stick in your brain as a reminder to “let go” even though it can be hard sometimes (trust me, I know!).
Dr. Josh
P.S. Got a great stress-control tip? What’s been working for you? Leave it in the comments!
