Vertebrae of the Week: T2 Vertebra

Your T2 vertebra is the second below your C7 or T1 vertebra. It is marked by faceted sides and is the bone that protects your spinal nerve 2, which is directly related to your coronary arteries. This means it helps to control the blood flow to and from your heart, which makes it an exceptionally important nerve to protect. There are a range of conditions that could be associated with the T2 thoracic vertebra, but in this article we’ll look at a couple of the most common issues you might encounter if it’s out of alignment.

T2 and Coronary Arteries

Your cardiovascular system, quite simply, keeps your body running. Without your brain, you can’t get signals to do things like breathe and move and think and see. Without your heart, your brain doesn’t get the blood it needs to operate. The nerve that is located at the T2 provides the impulse and innervation for many aspects of your heart’s function.

Your spine, when it is subluxated or misaligned, can put pressure and compression on this nerve that can negatively impact its ability to communicate between brain and heart and cause a whole range of problems including blood pressure issues.

Pericardium

Your pericardium is a sac that contains your heart and your important veins and arteries such as your vena cavita, pulmonary veins and arteries, and aorta. The nerve root at T2 can influence all of these vessels, creating illness and disease if its function isn’t at its peak. These can include pericarditis, pericardial effusion, and cardiac tamponade.

Symptoms of T2 Vertebra Problems

A T2 vertebra that’s out of alignment can cause symptoms such as chest pain, breathing problems, rapid heartbeat, and even fever. If you are experiencing issues with your heart, your blood pressure, your breathing, or the like, a T2 subluxation could be to blame.

A good chiropractor can diagnose problems with your T2 and other vertebrae and help to get your proper spinal curvature back to where it should be, and ensure your body and its immune system function at peak performance.

If you’d like a consultation or evaluation to see if chiropractic can help you, contact ACT Wellness today!

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Why Chiropractic Care is for the Whole Family

It’s unfortunate, but there are still a ton of myths and misconceptions about chiropractic which put a lot of people off from undertaking this kind of care, which can actually contribute to the health and wellness of the whole family. People think that chiropractic isn’t good for kids, or that it’s somehow inherently dangerous. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Chiropractic is not only safe, but it’s non-invasive, holistic, and can be a great way to get your family on the road to a happy and healthy lifestyle. Discover the reasons why chiropractic care is good for everyone in the family, kids and adults, and where to find the best family chiropractic in Woodbridge.

What Is Chiropractic?

Chiropractic is a hands-on, holistic, non-invasive means of treating a number of illnesses and injuries that does not use drugs, but an all-natural, whole-body approach to healing. Your body is an amazing machine, capable of great feats of healing if it’s in the shape to do it. The key to your body and it’s health is your spine.

Your spine protects the key nerves that control everything you do from bending your finger to breathing. When it’s out of alignment, your brain can neither send nor receive signals effectively, and that means your body doesn’t work as it should. Chiropractic focuses on getting, and keeping, your spine into proper alignment so your body works better than ever.

Chiropractic and Your Family

Because chiropractic is an all-encompassing discipline, it can help anyone. Chiropractors have even treated infants, through gentle massage that helps the baby eat, sleep and even develop better and healthier. Small children have been found in studies to find relief from cholic symptoms through chiropractic, as well as ear infections and acid reflux.

Teens are notorious for slouching and posture issues, conditions chiropractic can help, and those who play sports can find relief from inflammation and sports injuries, while gaining better immune response, muscle function and even improved breathing. Adults receive many of the same benefits related to posture, pain relief, and health issues from back pain and sciatica, even to blood pressure, diabetes symptoms and more.

Senior citizens often find relief of symptoms due to stiff joints like osteoarthritis from chiropractic, as well as restoration of flexibility and mobility. No matter what age you are, chiropractic can help.

Family Chiropractic in Woodbridge

ACT Wellness has been the leading provider of family chiropractic in Woodbridge, VA, for the past eight years running. We provide a full range of services to families, including general chiropractic, sports chiropractic, occipital adjustments, treatment of migraines and more. We will work to develop a plan of treatment that is specific to you, and may include not only spinal adjustments, but exercise and stretching, massage, physical therapy, and even nutritional counseling.

Our goal is to help you and your entire family live their best life. We want to get you, your spouse, your parents, and your children happy, healthy and well without drugs, without invasive procedures, in an all-natural way. Give us a call for more information about our family chiropractic services today.

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Seeing Your Chiropractor for Migraines

Migraines are the worst. Millions of people all over the world are afflicted with this condition, which can occur once every couple years, or at worst, every few days, and can be truly crippling and disabling. We’ve all heard the common line: a pain pill, caffeine, a dark room and silence. For some people that’s great—until the next one occurs.

What if there was a better way to treat migraines? What if there was a way that could keep them from coming back, while giving you control of your life back? Learn how seeing a chiropractor for migraines can not only alleviate your pain, but keep them from coming back, and help you be healthier overall.

Seeing a Chiropractor for Migraines

The first question people ask about seeing a chiropractor for migraines is how a doctor specializing in the spine can help a headache? The answer is that many headaches are caused by the pressure on your nerves that results when your back is out of alignment, and this can include migraines.

Chiropractic treatment is drug-free, holistic and non-invasive. It involves getting your spinal curvature corrected so that your brain and body communicate better. This can alleviate the pain from your migraine, and help to make sure you don’t suffer the problems any more. The fringe benefits are that you’ll be healthier than ever before as your whole body works better!

The Science Is in

There’s not a ton of large studies regarding the science of chiropractic and migraines, but those studies that have been done are positive. One study looked at 22 different existing studies, to create a total sample size of over 2,600 patients. This study showed that chiropractic treatment could serve to prevent migraines effectively.

Another study showed that 22% of those who had chiropractic for migraines saw a 90% drop in frequency, and 49% reported a significant lessening of pain. Still another study in Australia backed up these findings, finding that especially among those with stress as a trigger, 80% of sufferers found that chiropractic enabled them to process stress better and therefore reduced migraine symptoms.

Are There Side Effects?

Chiropractic is an incredibly safe process, and your chiropractor is a trained and licensed healthcare professional who has gone through advanced post-graduate studies to earn a doctorate in Chiropractic. This means your chiropractor is a doctor. If you experience side effects, they should be mild, and they could involve tiredness, temporary discomfort where the adjustment occurred, and stiffness which should abate with time and as your body gets used to the adjustments.

Your chiropractor will be happy to discuss any potential side effects with you as they develop your personalized plan of treatment, which may also include dietary and nutritional information, exercise and other approaches to manage your pain and lead a healthier life.

Woodbridge, VA, Chiropractor

If you’re thinking about visiting a chiropractor for migraines in the Woodbridge, VA, area, ACT Wellness can help. We’ve been the leading chiropractic facility in the region for over eight years, and we’re ready to help. Give us a call for a consult today.

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Your Neck, Your Health and You: the C1 through C7 Vertebrae

We talk a lot on here about the relationship between your back and your overall health and well-being. Your spine is the epicenter of your immune system and really, your entire body. It’s the medium through which every single communicative signal passes to and from your brain. It’s the way your brain talks to everything from your fingers and toes to your heart and lungs to your pituitary gland and hormone production.

This means that when your spine is out of alignment it can create a whole host of health problems. A misaligned spine can be responsible for everything from chronic headaches to depression, to your risk of developing illnesses from the common cold to cancer. Your spine is also a long chain of bones in your back, with those in the neck often being the most commonly misaligned, and the most prone to cause problems.

The first seven bones in your neck, the C1 through C7 vertebrae, each have a specific function, and can cause very specific problems when they’re out of alignment. Let’s take a look at the problems you can face from dealing with each of these bones, and how chiropractic and neck care can make all the difference in the world.

Cervical C1 Vertebrae

The C1 vertebrae is the first cervical vertebrae in your entire spine, located at the top of your neck and base of your skull. It’s the bone that supports your head, and is held in place by muscles and ligaments, but is the only vertebrae that doesn’t have a disc. This bone is the Holy Grail of all your vertebrae, and misalignment at this joint can cause issues for your entire body.

This occurs because when it becomes injured or experiences an atlas subluxation, the C1 vertebrae can place stress on your brain stem as well as your spinal cord. That makes this sort of a master switch for your nervous system. Because of this, issues with this stem can create issues ranging from headaches and migraines to high blood pressure, insomnia, and a host of other issues. Even the common cold has been traced to an atlas subluxation.

A misaligned C1 vertebra can create any number of issues, including affecting the following body systems:

1.      Pituitary hormones
2.      Brain function
3.      Facial bones
4.      Ear (inner and middle)
5.      Mental health (nervousness and depression)
6.      Balance

Cervical C2 Vertebrae

The C2 vertebrae is also called the Axis, and it’s the second one down in your neck. It’s a hinge that helps your C1 pivot and allows you to turn your head left and right. When your C2 vertebra becomes subluxated, it can result in pain and difficulty rotating your head, as well as creating specific health problems that affect your eyesight, hearing, sinuses, head and even your tongue. People who experience symptoms like chronic sinusitis, allergies, pain around the eyes, earaches, dizziness and fainting, loss of hearing or similar issues could be suffering from a misalignment in the axis vertebra.

Cervical C3 Vertebrae

Nerve pain is the most common indicator of issues with your cervical C3 vertebra. This third bone down in your neck is at about the same level as your lower jaw. It’s related to your outer ear, cheeks, teeth, the bones in your face, and the main sensory nerve in your face, also called the fifth cranial nerve.

People who experience a subluxation in their cervical C3 vertebrae can experience nerve pain known as neuralgia, or inflammation of the nerves known as neuritis.

Cervical C4 Vertebrae

The fourth bone down in your neck, the cervical C4 vertebrae is responsible for some potentially shocking ailments when it’s out of alignment. Sitting roughly where the Adam’s apple is, it has a direct influence on our ears, nose and mouth. The nerves under this vertebra are what allow us to breathe, and allows motor function in your shoulders, arms, collarbone and similar regions. Any numbness or pain in these areas including biceps and collarbone could be due to a subluxation in this bone.

In some cases, people suffering from symptoms of COPD or asthma find that it’s due to a C4 misalignment. Adjusting this bone can even help to stop hiccups!

Cervical C5 Vertebrae

Your C5 vertebrae is critical to the health and function of your diaphragm. Injuries at this level can harm your ability to breathe, as well as affecting systems like your pharynx, vocal cords and neck glands. Those with misalignments can experience issues ranging from sore throat to laryngitis to certain skin problems.

The nerves in your C5 affect your dermatomes, areas of skin that indicate nerve root pathways, allowing for bicep, elbow and shoulder movement. Any tingling, difficulty with motion or numbness in these regions could indicate a C5 subluxation.

Cervical C6 Vertebrae

The sixth down from your head, and the second-to-last in your neck, the cervical C6 vertebrae is associated with issues like carpal tunnel syndrome, tonsillitis, stiff neck, and even chronic coughing. People who experience symptoms like these can often find relief from a C6 vertebra adjustment.

Cervical C7 Vertebrae

The vertebra located at the base of your neck, the cervical C7 vertebrae is also called the first thoracic vertebrae. It’s the one that feels like it sticks out when you run your hand down the back of your neck. It’s directly associated, when out of alignment, with issues like shoulder and elbow bursitis. This condition indicates the swelling and irritation of a bursa, the cushion that lies between your tendons, muscles and joints. The symptoms can be similar to those of tendonitis, and an X-ray can sometimes help to detect these issues, though in some cases an MRI is indicated.

Other conditions that are related to C7 misalignment include thyroid issues. The thyroid is the gland that helps to regulate growth, body temperature and even brain chemistry. By repairing a C7 subluxation, a chiropractor can help to get your body functioning the way it’s designed to once more, and may help to clear up a range of similar issues.

Chiropractic and Neck Care

As you can see, chiropractic and neck care are intrinsically linked. The bones in your neck are directly associated with a range of vital body functions, and the right chiropractor can help to address any subluxations or misalignments that may exist in your C1 through C7 vertebrae and beyond, helping to get your body communicating more efficiently and getting you healthy once again.

Chiropractic is an all-natural, non-invasive and drug-free approach to health and wellness. It focuses on the whole body, and goes far beyond simple spinal adjustments. If you’d like more information about how a chiropractor might be able to help you when you experience symptoms like those above in the Woodbridge, VA, area, contact ACT Wellness for help and more information today!

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How Chiropractors can Help with Back Pain Relief

When you’re suffering with back pain, there can be a broad range of causes. Most doctors will prescribe physical therapy for an injury, and supplement it with prescription medications. In the worst cases, they might engage in invasive surgical procedures to investigate and repair the problem. Wouldn’t it be great if there was a way to fix these issues without drugs and invasive procedures?

The good news is, for many people who suffer with back pain, there is a completely safe, effective and holistic way of doing just that, and it’s through visiting a chiropractor. Discover the ways that a chiropractor can help you with back pain relief in Woodbridge, VA, and get you living a better and overall healthier lifestyle.

Chiropractors and Back Pain

For many years, visiting the chiropractor to address pain in the back was a last-ditch effort. It was viewed as dangerous and subject to a lot of myths which still unfortunately persist today. The truth is, not only is chiropractic completely safe, all natural, and a recognized medical science, it can often be the very best course of action for many ailments.

When your back is out of alignment, a condition known as subluxation, your brain is not able to effectively communicate with your body. That’s because the discs in your back put pressure on the nerves they’re there to protect, which cuts them off from the signals your brain sends and receives. Not only can this result in back pain, but in problems with your extremities, loss of motion, hormonal and even immune system deficiencies.

Treating Your Pain Permanently

When a chiropractor treats these subluxations, it can permanently alleviate the pain you experience in your neck, shoulders, upper or lower back, or even other areas of your body. It can do this without drugs and surgery. There’s little risk of injury; your chiropractor is a trained medical professional with a medical degree in their science.

Drugs can create all manner of complications. At best they’re a temporary way to address symptoms, and with opioid addiction such a huge problem, if there’s a better way to treat pain, why not take it? Even more, what if that treatment could get your whole body feeling healthier and working better?

Back Pain Relief in Woodbridge, VA

When you’re suffering from back pain, your first visit to a chiropractor will involve an examination and discussion of your medical history. They may recommend X-rays or an MRI to confirm specific subluxations to be treated. Then, your chiropractor will work with you to develop a specific plan of treatment tailored just for you.

This plan will involve spinal adjustments, but it may also involve exercise, physical therapy, and even dietary changes. It’s all part of an overall holistic plan to improve your quality of life, while eliminating your pain for good. If you’re interested in back pain relief in Woodbridge, VA, ACT Wellness has been the leading area chiropractor for the past eight years and counting. Give us a call to schedule an appointment today.

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