The Parable of the Fortress: A Tale of Disease and Healing

 

“How does Network Spinal Analysis work?   How does such a gentle contact make such a difference?”

This is by far the most common question I am asked by my patients. When looked at scientifically, the answer to this question is quite complex, yet there is I story I tell that answers it quite clearly. What’s profound about this story is that not only does it describe how network works, but it also describes the process of how we get sick and how we heal.

Here is “The Parable of the Fortress.” Enjoy!

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Imagine a small, peaceful village.   Farmers, merchants, women, children….all going about their daily routine.   There is no danger.   There are no threats.

Part I: Defense / Dis-Ease

Suddenly, a group of bandits arrive on horseback.   They burn the houses. They steal their treasures. A few of the villagers are injured….a few are killed and the bandits leave. The villagers realize that there is now a danger.   There is a threat.   The villagers realize that they are no longer safe and need to defend themselves.   They build a wall around their village with a gateway to enter and exit.

The bandits return. They climb over the wall. They dig under the wall. They smash the wall.   They ride through the gateway. They burn the houses. They steal their treasures. A few of the villagers are injured….a few are killed and the bandits leave. The villagers realize that they are still in danger.   There is a greater threat. They build a taller, deeper, thicker, stronger wall around the first wall with a smaller gateway to enter and exit.

And so it goes….on and on…building wall after wall.

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The first half of the parable demonstrates the process of disease. As we go through life, we experience stress. These stresses may be of a physical, emotional/mental, or chemical nature.

Whenever we perceive any change in our external environment, a part of our brain asks one question: “Am I in danger?   Is there a threat?”   If the answer is “YES,” the brain initiates a response called “The Fight-or-Flight or Stress Response” and the body begins a series of reactions called “Defense Physiology.”

Just as the villagers put up walls around their village to protect them from the bandits, so does the body put up a defense to protect us.

This quote from Kurt Vonnegut’s “Breakfast of Champions” describes the process well:

“My mind sent a message to my hypothalamus, told it to release the hormone CRF into the short vessels connecting my hypothalamus and my pituitary gland. The CRF inspired my pituitary gland to dump the hormone ACTH into my bloodstream. My pituitary had been making and storing ACTH for just such an occasion. And nearer and nearer the zeppelin came.

And some of the ACTH in my bloodstream reached the outer shell of my adrenal gland, which had been making and storing glucocorticoids for emergencies. My adrenal gland added the glucocorticoids to my bloodstream. They went all over my body changing glycogen into glucose. Glucose was muscle food. It would help me fight like a wild cat or run like a deer. And nearer and nearer the zeppelin came.

My adrenal gland gave me a shot of adrenaline, too. I turned purple as my blood pressure skyrocketed. The adrenaline made my heart go like a burglar alarm. It also stood my hair on end. It also caused coagulants to pour into my bloodstream, so, in case I was wounded, my vital juices wouldn’t drain away. Everything my body had done so far fell within normal operating procedures for a human machine. “

 

Research now shows that 95% of all disease is a result of this stress response and defense physiology.   In fact, the top 10 most diagnosed ailments are the body remaining in the stress response even after the threat is gone.   Look at this table of the stress response in relation to the top 10 most diagnosed ailments.

Stress Response

• Adrenalin Pumped into Blood
•  Blood Pressure Increases
•  Heart Rate Increases
•  Shallow, Rapid Breathing
•  Blood Sugar Increases
•  Muscle Tension Increases
•  Pupils of Eyes Dilate
•  Immunity is Turned Off
•  Digestion is Turned Off
•  Sexual Function is Turned Off

Top 10 Most Diagnosed Ailments

• 6    Depression and Anxiety
• 1   High Blood Pressure
• 10 Heart Palpitations
• 3   Respiratory Disease
• 4   Diabetes
• 5   Back/Neck Pain and Headaches
• 9   Vision Problems
• 2   Allergies and Frequent Colds
• 7   Digestive Disorders
• 8   Impotency

 

As you can see, when compared, there is a direct correlation between these two lists.  In fact, the top 10 most diagnosed ailments are the long term effects of the body being stuck in the Fight-or-Flight Stress Response and Defense Physiology.

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It is important to understand that in the dis-ease process, the brain and body believe that it is in danger.   On some unconscious level, we made a decision, due to our experiences, that the world and our lives are not safe. Therefore, the body is continuing the stress response so that we SURVIVE the threat.   It is the wall around the village.

This “wall around the village” is most obvious in our spine as muscle tension, altered posture, and reduced range of motion.   In Network Spinal Analysis, we refer to this as Defense Posture, often seen as a roundedness in the back, the pelvis tucked under and the head forward. It can also be seen in the posture as a high shoulder or hip.

Traditionally in the healing arts, whether it be medicine, chiropractic, massage, acupuncture, physical therapy and so on, the strategy has been twofold. The first strategy is to attack and kill off the threat. Medical doctors may prescribe antibiotics to fight off a germ and natural practitioners may prescribe herbs, nutrients or stress management techniques to reduce the stress-load on the body.

The second strategy is to attack “the wall” itself – “the wall” representing the components of the stress response as listed above.  The medical doctor may prescribe blood pressure medication, while the chiropractor will restore the vertebra to its proper position and the massage therapist will massage the muscle until relaxed. And so on. In other words, to “climb over, dig under or smash the walls.”

Unfortunately, because the body is intelligent and it creates the stress response in order to protect itself from a perceived threat (whether real or imagined), just as in the parable of the Fortress, unless the brain, nervous system and body begin to “believe” it is safe once again, it will continue to initiate the stress response and put back its defense, usually with a “higher, deeper, thicker, stronger wall.”

That is why the symptoms, tensions, ailments keep coming back, never fully heal and become a chronic condition.

···

If you examine the Fight or Flight Stress response, you will begin to realize that when the body goes into defense, all of the mechanisms of healing and growth are diminished or stopped completely.

Ergo, when the body begins to let go of the stress response and the resultant defense physiology, then and only then can the body begin to heal.

Part II: Letting Go / Healing /Ease

Now, imagine years and years have passed. The bandits continued to attack the village year after year. The villagers continued to build thicker and thicker, deeper and deeper, higher and higher walls around the village with one tiny gateway to enter and exit.   There is a vast fortress now around the village with many walls, with a gateway in each wall. The fortress is now impenetrable and the bandits have left never to be seen again. The villagers live in their fortress still believing they are in danger.   There is a threat.

The truth:   There is no longer a danger.   There is no longer a threat.

One day, a wise sage arrives at the fortress. He knocks on the gateway. The soldiers guarding the gate demand, “Who goes there?” The sage answers, “I come with a message and a gift.” The guards frisk him, check his credentials, interview him and determine that it is safe to let him through the first wall….the first gateway. The villagers inside the first wall greet him and ask him for his message.

He tells them… “You are safe.”   The villagers invite him to stay and after a few days they decide to tear down the outer wall.

The wise sage approaches the gateway in the next wall. He knocks on the gateway. The soldiers guarding the gate demand, “Who goes there?” The sage answers, “I come with a message and a gift.” The guards frisk him, check his credentials, interview him and determine that it is safe to let him through the next wall….the next gateway. The villagers inside the second wall greet him and ask him for his message.

He tells them…“You are safe.” The villagers invite him to stay and after a few days they decide to tear down the second wall.

And so it goes….on and on….until all the walls are down.

···

The second half of the parable demonstrates the healing process available through Network Spinal Analysis.   Rather than trying to fix anything, correct anything, treat anything, we take the approach of the wise sage.   We bring a message to the brain, nervous system and body.

“You are safe.”

How do we do this?   Through Network Spinal Analysis (NSA), we first determine where the body is in defense.

These areas are in a state of tension.   These may be areas of pain or discomfort, but more often they are areas that you are totally unaware of.   They are areas “disconnected.”   They are unresponsive to stimuli, but instead react with greater defense when touched or “treated.”   In NSA, we tend to avoid these areas, where in other health-care practices, they are the area of treatment.

Next, we analyze the spine to find what we call “Spinal Gateways.”

Spinal gateways are often found right above, below or on the opposite side of the area of defense. They are areas of calm and ease, free of tension.   They are very responsive to light touch.   By making a gentle contact on the spinal gateway, at just the right time, with just the right amount of force, the attention of the brain is brought to this center of peace and for a moment, it decides, “I am safe.” Suddenly, you may feel yourself take a sigh-like deep breath….you may feel like you want to move or stretch and you begin to become aware of the area of defense as it starts to relax.   You begin to feel the first “wall” come down.

Through a series of levels of care, we continue to develop these gateways, as the body “decides” to let go of all the dominant patterns of defense it has accumulated over a lifetime.

We do not force, coerce or direct the body to do anything through any medication or therapy.   We simply bring it the message of safety and invite the body to let go of defense.

Through this process, the body heals.

A Facebook Debate… Do Germs Cause Disease?

I recently had a discussion with another Facebook user about the true cause of disease and role germs do or do not play in this process.    Read this discussion below:

 

Barry Weinberg   If you saw flies swarming around some garbage in a field, would you think the flies caused the garbage? How would you get rid of the flies…with bug spray? I think you know the answers. Then why do we think germs cause disease and treat it with medicine? Maybe its time to clean the garbage from the field.

Share

Facebook User Reply en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germ_theory_of_disease

Pretty sure this is the answer to your question.

Barry Weinberg Oh, my friend, it was not a question. It was a point. I know you choose to believe that germs cause illness, but the truth is a depressed immune system causes disease. It has been proven that there are more germs in our body than human cells. It is when our immune system gets depressed due to the inadequate adaptation to stress that germs take the opportunity to feed….like the flies on the garbage in the field. When things are in right order in the body, germs are actually beneficial and assist our body. Even Pasteur, the creator of the Germ Theory recanted his germ theory on his deathbed, saying, “Bernard is right. The pathogen is nothing…the terrain is everything.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claude_Bernard

Claude Bernard – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org

Claude Bernard (12 July 1813 – 10 February 1878) was a French physiologist. Hist…See More

Facebook User Reply I agree that when we are weak and run down, we are considerably more likely to get sick. However, take a well rested, healthy person, introduce disease into their body and you will very likely also end up with a sick person. We’re not that far apart on this one…I think.

Barry Weinberg I think where we differ is in our beliefs. Your belief is that disease can come from without. I believe (and have seen 20 years of evidence for) that disease comes from within. Just as darkness can not be introduced to a room. So can disease not be introduced to the body. Just Darkness is caused by removing the light, disease is caused by a lose of health. Just as darkness can be eliminated by reintroducing light, disease is eliminated by restoring health. To fight disease is as futile as fighting darkness. (PS. Thank you for your comments. This is an important discussion. I believe our current health care crisis is not caused by lack of insurance but by this very issue.)

Facebook User Reply I respect your experience. The only experience I have is reading, but a lot can be gleaned from reading.

Using your model of “disease cannot come from outside the body”, are you suggesting that if we inject a perfectly healthy, well rested person with hiv, flu, a common cold, that they will not become infected?

This is essentially what I’m hearing, and the crux of my disagreement.

Barry Weinberg If their immune system is strong, yes! We are exposed to an uncountable number of germs every moment and we are not sick. There will be a classroom of children that get sick, yet one child does not. His immune system was strong. Nurses and doctors have worked in hospitals and triage for centuries amongst the most horrendous of disease and do not get sick. Their immune systems are strong. I’ll repeat, just as the flies do not cause the garbage in the field, the germ does not cause the disease. They are opportunists that take advantage of an already dis-eased system. Just because something is in the same the same location of a problem, does not deem them cause. Germs are ALWAYS there. Just because they are found in the location of where there is disease, does not create a cause and effect relationship. In fact, the proper cause and effect relationship would be that the disease is the cause and the germs are the effect.

Facebook User Reply wise

Barry Weinberg PS. I always trust my experience way before I trust what I read. You will never know the taste of an apple by reading about it….only by taking that bite!

 

A Beautiful Testimonial: What My Practice is All About

A Beautiful Testimonial:

What My Practice is All About

 

“I originally came to Dr. Barry Weinberg and A Place for Healing because I suffered from vertigo, migraines and lower backaches.  Lots of work stress and taking lots of medications.

Since receiving Network Chiropractic care, I’m off my meds…less tension in my back and neck.  I’m much more aware of my mind and body.  I experience very little headaches.  I used to have an episode of vertigo about every other month, but now I’ve had only 2 minor attacks during the year I’ve been coming.

I feel energetic physically and mentally under Dr. Weinberg’s care.  I now have peace and am stress free.”

~ Linda Damon
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This beautiful testimonial demonstrates what my practice is all about. People who have been to my practice know that I am not about fixing anything or making pain go away. Yet, when the spine and nervous system are free of tension and interference, the body seems to “magically” heal and pain, illness and injury leave the body. People who have been to my practice know that I don’t usually give instruction on nutrition, exercise and other lifestyle habits. Yet, when the spine and nervous system are free of tension and interference, people seem to “magically” know what changes they need to make in their lifestyle and make those changes.

People who have been to my practice know that I am not a counselor, life coach or therapist. Yet, when the spine and nervous system are free of tension and interference, anxiety, depression and fear tend to “magically” fade and they experience more mental, emotional and spiritual well-being.

This is what my practice is all about.

Through the gentle, honoring contacts I apply to the spine with Network Spinal Analysis chiropractic care, people connect more with their bodies and develop new strategies to release tension, use tension to create change and become more adaptable to life. Through this process, not only does the body heal, but people experience more well-being in all areas of their life in a way that they never experienced before.

This is what my practice is all about.

Empowering people to heal themselves by finding the message in their pain, tension, illness, or injury and using it as a guide and the fuel to make subtle changes in their life that produce dramatic, positive results.

This is what life is all about.

This is what I am all about.

This is what my practice is all about.

With Love,

Dr Barry

Visit our website www.placeforhealing.com

The Key to Begin Healing

Have you ever had a pain that just wouldn’t go away?  An injury that doesn’t seem to want to heal?  Any chronic health problem or challenge?   It is my intention in this article to share with you a subtle, but powerful solution to this dilemma.  And although the solution is simple, I can guarantee a part of you will not want to do it.  In fact, a part of you will scream, “NO!  I WON’T DO IT.”   Let’s explore this.

In any healing process, the first step is awareness.  You have to become aware of a problem before it can be changed.  If you have a piece of lettuce in your teeth, you can’t remove it until someone points to their mouth and says, “There’s something in your teeth.”  In the healing process, this awareness usually starts as a symptom, such as a pain or discomfort.

The next step in any healing process is acknowledgement.  You have to acknowledge that there’s a problem.  If you ignore the pain or discomfort that you became aware of, what usually happens?  It gets worse, doesn’t it?  So acknowledgement is necessary.  The admittance that “I have a problem and something needs to change.”

Now we come to the next step in any healing process.  And this is the key to truly begin the healing.   This is the step I referred to earlier.  This is the step that you will probably resist and stop reading this article with an adamant “NO!”

The third and critical step to any healing process is ACCEPTANCE.

Once you become aware that there is something happening that needs to change, and you acknowledge it for what it is, to truly start the process of it changing and healing, you must accept it for what it is.  You must feel it, experience it and accept that in this moment this is what is.   You must accept that your life up to this point has led to this experience.   You must accept responsibility that the structure of your life as you have lived it, your behaviors and actions, and your thoughts, beliefs and the meaning you give things led to this experience.  And, most importantly, you must accept that you have the power to change it and only YOU can change it.

One of the greatest stories of the power of acceptance is the story of Victor Frankl, author of Man’s Search for Meaning and a survivor of the Holocaust. Victor Frankl was a prisoner in the Auschwitz death camps during the Nazi occupation of World War II. Surrounded by the smell of burning bodies and the sounds of children’s screams, Frankl found himself in an experience where death was certain.

One day, Frankl was taken to a dark room in the basement of a burnt out building, so that the “doctors” could give him a “routine checkup.” Before he knew it, he was strapped to a table and the men began sterilization surgery on him … without anesthesia. As he lay on the table in excruciating agony, he had a realization. These men had the liberty to go where they pleased and do what they wished, but, they did not have the freedom to think for themselves. They were puppets of a dark master, of which they must perform such horrible acts upon another human being. Although they had liberty, he, Frankl, had the freedom to create in his mind whatever picture he desired and think his own thoughts. With this sudden insight, he accepted his situation and began spending all his time with his eyes closed imagining himself running through green fields with his children and grandchildren. He saw himself being free of his horrible surroundings and envisioned himself traveling to America to share his story and newfound wisdom.

Victor Frankl survived the death camps. He traveled to America and wrote his book, Man’s Search for Meaning, which has been a source of inspiration for millions of readers. If Frankl had not accepted his situation, he would have suffered through his experience and probably never survived. By accepting his appalling circumstance and creating a new vision within his mind, Victor Frankl not only lived through it, but healed himself in the process and helped millions of people around the world to accept their situation and heal as well.

So what comes after acceptance?  NEXT!!!  This is what is, but what’s next?   What is your ideal?  And your ideal is not to be free of pain or cured of your illness.   The ideal is what is on the other side:  abundant health, vital energy, full self-expression, living on purpose.  Create a vision of your ideal and align the structure of your life, your behaviors and actions, and what you focus on with that vision … and watch the magic of healing, growth and success unfold.

If you want support with this process, please call our office at (954) 202-7477 or email me at drbarry@placeforhealing.com to experience the health and wellness benefits of reorganizational healing and network spinal analysis care.

Healing your Pain

Do you feel any pain or tension in the body?

Pain and discomfort has one purpose:  The body is asking for your attention.

Often when we experience a pain or discomfort in the body, our first reaction is to resist it and do what ever it takes to make it go away.  Instead, give the body what it is asking for:  ATTENTION.

Close your eyes and put your full attention into the area of discomfort.   FEEL IT without resistance….without trying to make it go away.  Allow it.

It may take a little time, but by give the body the attention it is asking for, not only will the pain begin to lessen, the body will begin to heal.

Just as we give a child attention when he or she is crying….and not try to stifle their expression….so too should we give our body attention when it cries for it.

With Love,

Dr Barry

Moving with Awareness – Applying the Triad of Change

Good morning!

This Saturday my family and I are moving to our new home.   Besides getting married and starting a new business, moving residences is probably one of the biggest changes one can have.   Yet, when you have effective strategies for change, this big change can be made smoothly.   One of the greatest strategies for change is applying the Triad of Change from the Reorganizational Healing model as discussed in an earlier blog.

The Triad of Change encapsulates all areas of life and demonstrates what needs to be in congruence for change to happen.

The three components of the Triad of Change are:

Structure – What we have – Home, Body, Business, Finances, Relationships, etc.
Behavior – What we do – Our daily actions and habit
Perception – What we focus on – Our thoughts, feelings and the meaning we give things.

We also discussed previously that when you have a challenge and/or want to create change in one of the aspects of the Triad, rather than trying to change that aspect, focus on the other two.

So I’d like to use our move as an example and demonstrate how we applied the Triad of Change.  You will see how common sense this strategy is.

The change we wanted to make was in Structure – our Home.

So to make this change we focused on Perception and Behavior.

First, we made a list of all the qualities of our ideal home and how it would feel to be there.  Every day, we would look at the list and really feel how it would be to live there….as if we were already there.    That’s Perception.

Then we took the appropriate actions (Behavior) to find the home.  Got a realtor.  Visited homes. Etc.

Before we knew it, we’re packing and moving to our new home – Structure.

That’s how it works and you can apply this to any area of life you want to change.
If you want to change how you feel about something (Perception) – Focus on Structure and Behavior
If you want to change a habit – Focus on Structure and Perception
If you want to change something you have – Focus on Perception and Behavior

With Love and Appreciation,

Dr Barry

www.placeforhealing.com

 

Signal for Change

If you are driving with a destination in mind, is your focus in the rear view mirror?

Are you moving away from something or are you moving toward something?

Are you focused on where you were or where you are going?

If you touch a hot stove, it’s supposed to hurt

If you are living a life that is not up to the standard of who you are – if you are living someone else’s life, if you are living off purpose…it’s supposed to hurt and nothing is supposed to take away that pain until you change the path you are on.

If you are not feeling the pain, when you take the behaviors and thoughts that are not in your highest and best, you will begin to feel ok with living a life that is beneath you.  You will begin to lower your standards.

What if your disease, pain, symptom was the cure?

If you take your hand off of the hot stove, it will stop hurting

When you begin living your life to your highest standards, it will stop hurting.

Are you asking the questions, “How far can I get from what I do not want to feel?”

Or are you asking the question, “How can I develop new resources to create an ideal experience of life I have never experienced before?”

No matter what happened in your past, starting now, we are moving in a new direction.

No matter what you came in with, starting now, we are looking to the future, not the past.

The only reason you should look in the rearview mirror is to celebrate how far you’ve gotten from there

What’s behind you will not help you

Your past is not there and your future is not either, but by taking a different path, you definitely won’t meet the past…and definitely meet a different future than the path you are currently on.

Rather than asking, “How can I make it go away?”

Let’s ask:

“What can I focus on differently….what new actions can I take….what structures in my life can I change, to create the life I would prefer?”

Let’s ask a different question.

Let’s choose a different path.

With Love and Appreciation,

Dr Barry

www.placeforhealing.com

The Cause of All Disease and All Health

Our Three Brains

Did you know we have three brains?  Actually, we have one brain made up of three integrated parts.  The first brain is the Brain Stem or Reptile Brain.  This is the Survival Brain.  It controls all functions responsible for our survival – as an individual and as a species.  It controls such things as hunger, thirst, heart beat, breathing, digestion, immunity, and sexual drive.  It is the basic, primal part of us that is in all animals – Give Me Food…Give Me Shelter…Give Me Sex!  Most importantly in regards to this article, it initiates the Fight-or-Flight Stress Response.

Our second brain is the Limbic System or Mammal Brain.  It is in all mammals and is composed of such interestingly named parts such as the amygdala, hippocampus and thalamus.  This is our Emotional Brain.  It controls all functions related to emotional aspects of survival.  It controls such things as memory, behavior, pleasure and pain responses, and experience of all emotions.  Most importantly in regards to this article, it maintains the Fight-or-Flight Stress Response and initiates the Defense Posture.

The third brain is the Cerebral Cortex or Human Brain.  It is in “most” humans and is evident in other mammals, especially apes, dolphins and whales.  This is the convoluted part we see in monster movies sitting in a jar.  It is our Thinking Brain.  It controls all functions related to higher thought.  It controls such things as decision making, attention, awareness, language, judgment, reading, writing, etc.  It is the center of higher thought.   Most importantly in regards to this article, it is impaired by the Fight-or-Flight Stress Response and Defense Posture.

 The Fight-or-Flight Stress Response

Every moment, our brain is assessing the world around us and asking one question: “Am I Safe?”  This question is asked on all three levels:  Intellectually, Emotionally and Survival.  If at any moment the brain determines you are in danger on any of these three levels, it sends out an alert to the body and the Fight-or-Flight Stress Response occurs.  Mechanisms of survival are activated by the Brain Stem to prepare you to face the situation or run away.  This occurs whether we are being chased by a lion, taking a final exam, seeing flashing lights in our rear view mirror, or touched in an inappropriate way by clergy.  It occurs any time the brain determines, “Danger!”

Here is the Stress Response in a Nutshell:

• Adrenalin is Released (Provides More Energy)
• Blood Sugar Elevates (Provides More Energy)
• Blood Pressure Rises (Provides More Oxygen to Muscles)
• Pulse Increases (Provides More Oxygen to Muscles)
• Muscles Tense (Provides Readiness for Action)
• Pupils Dilate (See More In Less Light)
• Immunity turns off (These three functions use a lot
• Digestion turns off of energy and are not necessary
• Sexual Function turns off for our immediate survival.)

This quote from Kurt Vonnegut’s “Breakfast of Champions” described the process well:

“My mind sent a message to my hypothalamus, told it to release the hormone CRFinto the short vessels connecting my hypothalamus and my pituitary gland. The CRF inspired my pituitary gland to dump the hormone ACTH into my bloodstream. My pituitary had been making and storing ACTH for just such an occasion. And nearer and nearer the zeppelin came.

And some of the ACTH in my bloodstream reached the outer shell of my adrenal gland, which had been making and storing glucocorticoids for emergencies. My adrenal gland added the glucocorticoids to my bloodstream. They went all over my body changing glycogen into glucose. Glucose was muscle food. It would help me fight like a wild cat or run like a deer. And nearer and nearer the zeppelin came.

My adrenal gland gave me a shot of adrenaline, too. I turned purple as my blood pressure skyrocketed. The adrenaline made my heart go like a burglar alarm. It also stood my hair on end. It also caused coagulants to pour into my bloodstream, so, in case I was wounded, my vital juices wouldn’t drain away. Everything my body had done so far fell within normal operating procedures for a human machine.

But my body took one defensive measure which I am told was without precedent in medical history. It may have happened because some wire short-circuited or some gasket blew. At any rate, I also retracted my testicles into my abdominal cavity pulled them into my fuselage like the landing gear of an airplane. And now they tell me that only surgery will bring them down again.”

 

These are all appropriate responses to survive an attack from a lion or any other danger.  However, once the danger is gone and the stress is over, these body functions should return to a state of balance and the body should move into a state of safety.

This paragraph is the most important in this article…so pay attention:  If during these stressful events, the Emotional Brain or Limbic System is involved (we feel fear, anger, resentment, etc.), it then sends a message to the Brain Stem to maintain the Stress Response to keep us safe, just in case such a situation ever happens again.  Over time, this develops into  what is called Defense Posture.

According to the Center for Disease Control, this is the cause of 95% of all disease and is directly what Network Spinal Analysis (NSA) addresses.  NSA helps people move from Stress Physiology and Defense Posture to a state of Safety and Growth.

 The Cause of 95% of Disease?
How Come?

If you look at the list of responses in Stress Physiology, it is immediately apparent that long term these are our most common chronic ailments:

• Adrenalin is Released              (Anxiety/Depression)
• Blood Sugar Elevates              (Diabetes)
• Blood Pressure Rises               (Hypertension)
• Pulse Increases                         (Cardiac Arrhythmia)
• Muscles Tense                            (Fibromyalgia, Neck and Back Pain, etc.)
• Pupils Dilate                                (Far-vision)
• Immunity turns off                   (All immune related diseases)
• Digestion turns off                     (Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Indigestion, etc.)
• Sexual Function turns off         (Impotency, Infertility)

When the body and brain are locked in stress physiology and defense posture, we react as if the stress that caused it is still occurring, even though it may be decades in our past.  In this state, health and healing are impossible, and our quality of life and degree of wellness greatly diminishes.

Not only does this effect us physically, it effects us emotionally and mentally as well.

A Brain is a Terrible Thing to Waste

When our brain and body are locked in Defense, blood supply to the Cerebral Cortex is diminished.  Our ability to experience higher thought, make decisions and place our attention on those things that are important to us is impaired.

When our Limbic System is locked in Defense, we are more apt to experience fear, anger and sadness than we are to feel joy, peace and love.  We experience a higher degree of separation from ourselves and those around us.  We become numb to what we are feeling in our bodies and our hearts.

Since we are still reacting to stresses and events from the past, we lose our ability to respond and adapt appropriately to changes in the present.  We feel stressed out all the time and we get sick often and easily.  We may feel locked in a job, relationship or other circumstance that we can not change.  As Thoreau wrote so eloquently, we begin living lives of “quiet desperation.”

The Solution

Help the brain and body develop new strategies to self-assess and regulate its own tension, move from defense into safety, and more effectively adapt to stresses and change so as to cause growth  instead of defense.

Enter the Spinal Gateway

If you’re working on my spine, why do you always look at my feet and feel my ankles?  Why do you always want me to turn my head left and right?  Why do you ask me to tuck my chin? All of these actions are part of Network Spinal Analysis to find a very special point on your spine called the Spinal Gateway.

Hey…do you mind if I talk a little R-rated with you for a moment. Have you ever been in a room with someone you were sexually attracted to, when suddenly they touch you on a special place on your body, or Errogenous Zone, that made all the days worries disappear.  Your mind suddenly blanks and your body begins to melt into a big pile of mush?

The Spinal Gateway is a “Heal-ogenous” Zone and has a similar effect on your brain, spine and nervous system.  In a body that is stuck in the Stress Response and Defense Posture, NSA helps us to find the one or two tiny spots (Spinal Gateways) amidst the tension on the spine that are free, in safety, and most important, possess energy available for healing and growth.

When an area of the spine is locked in defense, we feel tense and tight in this area.  The energy is locked up and not available.  It is invested in defending us from DANGER!

So…how does such a gentle touch make such a giant change in our health and wellness?  By placing a gentle force exactly at the Spinal Gateway, for just a moment, the Higher Brain (Cerebral Cortex) is alerted to a place in the body that has been forgotten, but safe, and has a lot of free energy to share.  As we gently touch the Spinal Gateway (like the Errogenous Zone), the body drops its defenses and realizes we are safe.  The areas in defense actually learn from the Spinal Gateway.  Suddenly, we may take a deep breath or feel tension release from our shoulders or low back.  We may feel tingly or electrical sensations.  We may feel a desire to move or take a bi-i-i-i-g stretch.

Over time, with guidance from the NSA practitioner through the Three Levels of Care, your brain and body develop strategies of breath and movement to self-assess and regulate its own tension, move from defense into safety, and adapt more effectively to stresses and change, causing growth instead of defense.

 The Research

Everything that I have shared with you in this article, is documented by a team of researchers at the University of California Medical School in Irvine.  Headed by Dr. Robert Blank, they have found that Network Spinal Analysis Care…

• Doubles our Experience of Wellness.
• Triples our ability to make healthier choices.
• Helps our Brain and Nervous System self-organize to higher levels of Complexity with each Level of Care…in other words, EVOLVE.

 

 

 

The Triad of Change cont.

Yesterday, we discussed the Triad of Change and how all change requires congruence in the 3 areas: Structure, Behavior and Perception.

Today, we explore this further and discuss how to effectively use this model to create long-lasting change.

Although counter-intuitive, the greatest hindrance to making effective change is that we focus on the area that needs to be change.  For example, if we want to change a behavior such as a habit, we tend to focus on the habit and try to change our behavior.   If we want to change how we feel (our perception), we tend to dwell on how we feel.   If we want to change our structure, such as a our finances, we tend to focus on the finances.

This is our greatest source of struggle.  For generally, the side of the triad that we want to change is our weakest link and by trying to make a change utilizing our weakest side is a sure formula for further struggle.

The most effective way to create change in one of the sides of the triad is to focus on and start making change in the other 2 sides of the triad…and the 3rd side you are trying to change will fall into step with them.  This is the magic of this model and the amazing thing is when all three sides are at a new level of congruence you tap into a new and previously untapped source of Energy that supports that “new triad.”

So if you want to change Structure (What you Have) change what you are focusing on and what you are doing congruent with the new structure you want to create

If you want to change Behavior (What you are doing) change what you are focused on and the structure in and around you congruent with the new behavior you want to create.

If you want to change Perception (How you think and feel)  change the structure in and around you and what you are doing congruent with the new perception you want to create.

Let’s look at some real-life examples

Have you every felt down or stressed out (Perception), so you went for a walk (Behavior) in a Park (Structure) and not only did you start to feel better (Perception) but you had a creative idea that would move you forward.  (New source of energy in New triad).   This is the model at work!   By focusing on the other 2 sides of the triad, the other side you wanted to change….changed, and the new congruence of the 3 sides allowed you to tap into creative resources that were unavailable before.

Have you ever need to move a new apartment or house (Structure)?  If you just focused on the new residence you wouldn’t move anywhere.   By shifting your focus to the ideals you would like to experience in the new house and how it would feel (Perception), taking action to look at listings, visit homes and then make a choice and actually move (Behavior), before you know it you are in your new house. (Structure).  You can also apply this example to finding a new job, relationship, etc.

Have you ever wanted to start exercising or go on a diet (Behavior).  Generally, when you failed, you probably were focused on losing weight and attempted it on your own.   But those times you were successful, you focused on how the new you you wanted to feel (Perception) and  joined a gym or exercise class … or followed some diet regime such as Weight Watcher’s or Atkin’s in the case of diet (Structure).

So Let’s put it to work:

• What is something you want to change?
• Is it something you have (Structure), something you do (Behavior) or how you feel (Perception)
• If it is a Structure, what is a compelling reason to make the change (Perception) and what can you do differently (behavior) that would be congruent with that new structure?
• If it is a Behavior, what  is a compelling reason to make the change (Perception) and what can you change around you (structure) to support that new behavior?
• If it is a Perception, what can you change around you and do that would be in alignment with that new perception.

In my Network Chiropractic Wellness center, A Place for Healing, we support people in their health and wellness goals by implementing the Triad of Change.

Network Spinal Analysis (NSA) uses gentle touches on the spine to help develop new internal emerging strategies of breath and movement (behavior) to optimize the posture (structure) of the spine and nervous system and be more effective at adapting to stress (behavior) helping people to feel better and have a more satisfying and fulfilling experience of life (Perception).   By changing structure and behavior, we change perception.

We also utilize a strategy called Somatorespiratory Integration (SRI).  SRI utilizes includes specific exercises which enhance self-awareness with respiration. It promotes the ability to focus attention on gross and subtle body movements and rhythms, self-directed breathing, awareness of one’s tension, and verbal statements reflecting one’s internal state.   These exercise dissipate energy stored as tension, enhance structural flexibility, increase the experience of safety within the body, and demonstrate characteristic shifts in states of consciousness.

So next time you need to make a change, determine which side of the triad that change resides.   LET IT GO and focus on the other 2 sides!

With Love,

Dr Barry

www.placeforhealing.com

 

The Triad of Change

Have you ever intended to make a change only to find yourself right back where you started shortly thereafter?

Perhaps you had a low back pain and your posture was off and you wanted to change your structure, so you visited a chiropractor?
Perhaps you wanted to change a behavior such as quitting smoking or exercising and eating healthier, so you joined a gym?
Perhaps you were feeling anxious or depressed and you wanted to change your perception so you consulted a therapist?

Often when making changes such as these, we often find ourselves frustrated that it is so difficult to make the change.
Have you ever experienced this?   I know I have.

Why is this?  The answer can be found in a model called The Triad of Change brilliantly created by the developer of Network Spinal Analysis, Dr. Donald Epstein.

The Triad of Change illustrates that in order for there to be a change, three things must be congruent:  Structure, Behavior and Perception.

• Structure = What we have – our body, our home, our business, our schedule, our relationships, our finances, etc.
• Behavior = What we do – our actions, habits, movements, posture, facial expressions, etc
• Perception = What we think and feel – what we are focused on, the meaning we give things, our thoughts and feelings, etc.

For every Structure, there is a corresponding Behavior and Perception.
For every Behavior, there is a corresponding Structure and Perception.
For every Perception, there is a corresponding Structure and Behavior.

In order to make change in one of these “sides of the triad,” the other 2 sides must be in congruence.

Let’s use the three examples I made at the beginning of this article to illustrate:

Let’s say you have low back pain and your posture is off, so you visit a chiropractor to get help in changing your structure.   In order for there to be a change in the structure, there will need to be a congruent change in your behavior and perception.   The change in behavior may be more effective bending strategies and doing some stretching.    The change in perception may be rather than looking at the pain as something wrong, looking at it as an alert signal from your body to do things differently.

Let’s say you want to change a behavior such as exercising and eating healthier.  In order for there to be a change in the behavior, there will need to be a congruent change in your structure and perception.  The change in structure may be finding a coach who can create and support you in an exercise and dietary routine.  The change in perception may be from “I hate exercising!” to “Although its uncomfortable, I am getting stronger and more flexible every day…and I love that!”

Let’s say you are feeling anxious and depressed and you want to change your perception.  In order for there to be a change in the perception, there will need to be a congruent change in your structure and behavior.    Have you ever noticed that when feeling down, that your posture tends to be hunched over, head and neck forward and down?   The change in structure may be to change your posture….to hold your head up and bring your shoulders back….perhaps working with a NSA practitioner to help you with that change.   The change in behavior may be to take deep breaths and get yourself active in something you enjoy such as painting or exercise.

So you can see from these examples, that in order to make an effective change in any other sides of the triad, there must be a corresponding congruent change in the other two sides.

In my Network Chiropractic practice, A Place for Healing, whether a person comes to me to change there spine (structure), start exercising or quit smoking (behavior) and/or feel better physically or emotionally (perception), we always look at the other 2 sides of the triad to make the change.

So how do we effectively use the Triad of Change to make substantial, long-lasting change?   We will explore this tomorrow in our next blog entry.

With Love,

Dr. Barry
www.placeforhealing.com