Before gaining a new understanding of the biking world, I had resigned myself to the fact that I was going to end up paying thousands of dollars for a bike of decent quality.  Either that or ride a tinker toy down the road that would make my experience miserable.  In doing so I failed to recognize the fine line between price and quality.  What I wanted was the best bike for the best price: period.

What that means for me is some due diligence.  I have to be willing to ask favors of people and their expertise, ask good questions to those who know, and be willing to do my research.  The funny thing is, these practices are carried out by many when it comes to purchasing goods be they bikes, cars, houses, etc…

However, we rarely do this with our healthcare.  We resign ourselves to “who’s in my network,” simply because I have insurance.  We rarely shop healthcare providers to see how much we’re being charged and for what service or what level of experience.  Well I ask, why wouldn’t you look for a better deal?  It’s still your money isn’t it?  If you have the luxury of health insurance these days it is your responsibility to expect the very best.  If you do not, the system breaks down.

Now by no means am I suggesting you find the cheapest provider around and just go with her/him.  We must begin to implement the same practices in healthcare that we do with our cars, houses, bikes, etc…  Our system of healthcare is becoming more and more unreachable to many and I can assure you as a healthcare provider I see no government alternative fixing the problem.  In the end, only we, the consumer have the ultimate control of how much our healthcare costs and to what level of satisfaction we demand.

There are lots of providers out there looking to make care “universally attainable.”  And we are doing it without sacrificing the consumer experience.  In fact, I am willing to bet our office provides you MORE in terms of overall experience because of our affordability and how we deal with insurance (we don’t use it!).

It’s time we took matters in to our own hands.  The longer we wait, the greater the chance we won’t have a say in the matter.

The term disease we know and understand well.  Disease is a medical condition treated my medical professionals.  Type I diabetes is a medical disease treated by medical professionals.  Seeing a chiropractor in hopes of being adjusted and having your Type I diabetes disappear would be grossly misguided.  Many however, misunderstand the difference from dis-ease and therefore believe chiropractors treat such problems.

Dis-ease unlike disease is not a diagnosis of a problem, it is a description of your bodies state of physiology.  Quite simply dis-ease means: not at ease, aka STRESS!  Stress in and of itself is very dangerous to human health and well-being.  In fact many of the more prevalent medical diseases are often attributed to stress.  The role of chiropractic is simply to improve your bodies ability to manage the every day.  In other words to turn your dis-ease into ease.

This is why regular adjustments accompanied with other healthy life choices improve your life potential.  By adding strength through diet and exercise all while keeping your spine at ease improves the bodies ability to adapt to stress and life.

Now that you know this information, you can more accurately apply it to your care.  Using chiropractic to treat medical conditions will only leave you frustrated and empty.  This is not because chiropractic is ineffective, it is because chiropractic is not medicine.  Likewise, using medicine to improve your health potential will also leave you frustrated, broke and angry.  This isn’t because medicine is bad, it is because medicine is designed for the short term relief allowing you to get back to gaining health which, comes from your own daily actions.

We talk about the getting the big picture in the office a lot. Below is a writing from BJ Palmer, one of the founders of the Chirpropractic profession. If you get this, you get chiropractic, you get health. Please note that dis-ease is VERY different from disease. I’ll talk more about that another time. For now, enjoy…

A slip on the snowy sidewalk in winter is a small thing. It happens to millions.

A fall from a ladder in the summer is a small thing. It also happens to millions.

The slip or fall produces a subluxation. The subluxation is a small thing.

The subluxation produces pressure on a nerve. That pressure is a small thing.

That decreased flowing produces a dis-eased body and brain. That is a big thing to that man(woman/child).

Multiply that sick man(woman/child) by a thousand, and you control the physical and mental welfare of a city.

Multiply that man (woman/child) by one hundred thirty million, and you forecast and can prophesy the physcial and mental status of a nation.

So the slip or fall, the subluxation, pressure, flow of mental images and dis-ease are big enough to control the thoughts and actions of a nation.

Now comes a man (woman). And one man (woman) is a small thing.

This man (woman) gives an adjustment. The adjustment is a small thing.

The adjustment replaces the subluxation. That is a small thing.

The adjusted subluxation releases pressure upon nerves. That is a small thing.

The released pressure restores health to a man (woman/child). This is a big thing to that man (woman or child).

Multiply that well man (woman/child) by a thousand, and you step up the physical and mental welfare of a city.

Multiply that well man (woman or child) by a million, and you increase the efficiency of a state.

Multiply that well man (woman/child) by a hundred thirty million, and you have produced a healthy, wealthy, and better race for posterity.

So, the adjustment of the subluxation to release pressure upon nerves, to restore mental impulse flow, to restore health, is big enough to rebuild the thoughts and actions of the world.

The idea that knows the cause, that can correct the cause of dis-ease, is one of the biggest ideas known. Without it, nations fall; with it, nations rise.

This idea is the biggest I know of.

This means not worrying about how many miles the guy next to you is running or at what level his treadmill is set on.  Nor should it concern your thoughts in chiropractic care.  If your friend noticed changes after on adjustment, or one week or one year the reality is your body is unique and will make progress at its own pace.

Your concern in life should be to make the decisions that will benefit you and add strength to your experiences.  Rather than basing decisions on keeping up with the Jones’ your only thought should be whether you are taking appropriate actions for yourself.  If you can rest your head on your pillow each week knowing that the decisions you made and the actions you took progressed your life rather than setting it back then that is enough!  Have faith that the more you dedicate yourself to improvement the longer lasting your results will be.  Worry not about the rate at which you achieve these results and simply enjoy the ride!

After all nothing compares to you….

PS.  Dr. Jon LOVES using song lyrics and titles in his blog posts.  If you can be the first to comment on the title and singer of the songs when they exist you will win a prize courtesy of the office.

Dr. Jonathan Ploeger is a chiropractor in Forest Lake, MN.  He and his wife operate Ploeger Chiropractic Center; a family chiropractic practice that specializes in providing regular affordable chiropractic care to families of all sizes.  Beyond the office Dr. Jon is actively involved in his community as a volunteer soccer coach, board member with the local chamber of commerce and volunteer in youth services.  Dr. Jonathan is passionate about health and full expression of life and it is reflected in he and his families healthy life choices.  To learn more visit www.ploegerchiropractic.com

If you’re going out of your way to visit the front door of your gym only so you maintain your monthly average to gain cash back from your insurance company, I’m guessing you have 10 minutes to dedicate to walk on the treadmill, ride a bike, run the elliptical or simply pump 5 lbs of weights.  In the end your dishonesty ultimately impacts you.  Your health, energy levels, satisfaction and stress levels suffer for what, a measly $20?  This is just one reason having a partner in your health is so important.  Having someone that keeps you accountable for your actions limits these slips that we all make, including myself.  However, repeated actions of this variety are a dangerous slope to play on and all the more reason to find exercise you truly enjoy rather than using it simply as a means to an end (in this case financial incentive).  This brings me to one last point that I hope insurance companies find and begin to adhere to.

 When I posed this conundrum earlier in the week a number of peoople mentioned they have done the “swipe by” when they have gone for a run or a bike ride outside.  Who could blame them?  They’re outside, they’re active and improving health.  While I applaud the action, that’s not what the reimbursement is for.  Insurance companies are not giving you money for making healthy decisions.  They’re giving you money to combat the costs associated with joinging a gym.  Herein lies a major flaw with the entire system.  Basically, the insurance company incentivises the expenditure of more money.  That is, you are only taking your health into your own hands if you spend money on a gym membership.  Yet, we have federally drafted standards for everything from cholesterol levels, blood pressure, blood glucose, etc…  All of which are kept in balance when making healthy decisions.  Therefore, my solution is simply this: rid the current policy rewarding only gym contracts and instead offer people the ability to have an annual or semi-annual check-up on their numbers.  Those that fall within the set standard deviation of the “normal” numbers receive lower premiums on their insurance.  This way you have the ability to decide whether a gym is for you or not.  And those that do not favor gyms can still find enjoyment in healthy activity and be rewarded for being at their best.  This leaves more money for people to visit chiropracotrs regularly, buy more fruits and vegetables, purchase exercise equipment or helath club memberships, etc…  All of which are necessary when attempting to become truly healthy.

Likewise, this helps to further eliminate cheating the system and cheating yourself.  Numbers don’t lie, so if you’re not on that bike or walking with friends you’re not taking responsibility for yourself and not receiving false rewards.  I’d love to hear what solutions you come up with.  Feel free to share on our facebook page, via twitter or at our website www.ploegerchiropractic.com.

Is it genetics?  While genetic susceptibility or protection certainly plays a role in human health it doesn’t have the last word.  If it did everyone with “poor” genetic traits would always get sick and those with “good” genes would never get sick.  Yet this doesn’t happen.  So what is it then that makes us who we are?

Dedication.  Very simply those that understand success in life, sports and health comes from dedication and not instant gratification.  This means that you can’t expect to be healthy by visiting your chiropractor one to three times if you’ve never been there before.  Nor does it mean visiting an office a few times per year will help you the same as expecting to take a few free throws a year won’t put you in the NBA legends club, nor will eating half a dozen carrots every month qualify you as health conscious.

In order to be the very best in life you must dedicate yourself to improvement every week at the very least.  What are you doing each week that makes you stronger or better off than where you were at the beginning?  Harness the inborn potential your body posseses by making healthy choices as often as possible.  Only then can you expect to rise to the top.

  Health is wholeness, or 100% expression of intelligence through matter. When the “Triune of Life” is perfect, health is perfect. When intelligence, which is always 100%, is unable to express 100%, it is because force, the link, is interfered with or unable to be properly transmitted. It can also be stated that health is harmony; the maximum state of organization in which every cell is harmoniously functioning to fulfill its purpose for the benefit of the entire organism. It is a state of supreme order.

      Dis-ease is nothing more nor less than a lack of organization or order. Thus, malfunction is dis-order. There is no such thing as a stomach disorder or a blood disorder, because the stomach and the blood have but one purpose: the total of being. The total being is either in orderly organized harmony or in dis-ease.

     Dis-ease, dis-harmony or dis-order are all one and the same thing. They are but functional manifestation of a single fact. The triune had been violated. The intelligence is unable to express 100% through the matter because the link between them, the vital force, has been interrupted. Unless and until the triune is restored to its natural perfection, life must of necessity be diminished. This the principle of chiropractic.

1.  Why did you need a treatment, pill, procedure and was it truly your only option?  I certainly believe there are times in our lives when our bodies need a little help overcoming the copious amounts of stress we place on ourselves.  But the question we should be asking ourselves is why should it even be necessary (more often than not) to rely on such implementations?  What did it take to have your cholesterol get as out of control as it did?  Why do you have headaches every week?  Why can’t you sleep well enough at night on your own?  All too often we, instead of asking these questions, immediately jump to the conclusion that our bodies are incapable of functioning without such devices.  While it may be that some do need corroboration from an outside source, I’d venture to guess that the larger majority are simply taking the “easy way out.”

2.  For the majority then, what is missing in your life and in your journey of being healthy that has relinquished you to relying on outside influences in order to overcome symptoms?  In other words, what is missing from your picture of health?  The answer is YOU ARE (or UR from our question of the week)!  In all, but a few cases the reason symptoms become present in the first place has a direct correlation with how present we are in our lives and in our health.  What then is being present?

To me being present simply means accountability.  If you hold yourself accountable for your actions you are present.  Being present in your health therefore, gives you the best opportunity of being at your best as often as possible.  This is why chiropractic is so important in maintaining yourself.  Simply put, the goal of chiropractic is to make help you be at your best as often as possible, meaning chiropractic helps you be present in your health.  No other healthcare system or action is designed to work only within the parameters of your body like chiropractic is.

In the end we must realize the potential of our bodies if we are to make any forward progress.  We must come see that if not for the innate design of our bodies things such as Advil, Lipitor, knee surgery, etc… would never work.  It is because your body is so intelligent and resilient that it utilizes those interventions and become healthier despite them, not because of them.  Put faith in your body, it is capable of great things.  Understand that the only way to unleash such potential is through utilizing actions that illicit such a response such as diet, exercise, rest and certainly chiropractic care.

Instead of perpetuating the continued selflessness many of us exude each an every day as husbands/wives, brothers/sisters, mothers/fathers, sons/daughters, friends and co-workers why not take an opportunity to focus on loving yourself?  Many of us have become such givers that we forget how to receive.  Our days are spent running kids to school and practice, making dinner for our families, washing clothes, finishing projects, cleaning house, etc…  When was the last time you decided to put you first?

A typical response may be that “I don’t have the luxury of putting me first.  I have to run my household, manage my employees, take care of my parents, etc…”  My response to you asks if you don’t put you first how can you expect to be your best for those that depend on you?  If you don’t love yourself first how can you expect others to love you?  The truth is finding time for you isn’t a luxury…it’s a necessity!  Take the opportunity of Valentine’s Day to break the mold.  Have a love affair with yourself.  Take the day to recharge your giving battery.  And what better way to recharge your battery than by visiting your chiropractor.  In fact he/she is the very person you need to turn the power on in your body!

Go ahead, get adjusted, get back to full power and then get back to giving!  Just don’t forget to make giving to yourself a priority.

It’s really not a very difficult question to answer in my opinion, but one that not many people act on.  The truth is one doesn’t even need to know the very definition of a subluxation in order to know if they would want one or be satisfied with their loved ones having them.  All one needs to know when it comes to subluxation is that it keeps you from being your absolute best.  How could anyone not want that for themselves or their loved ones each and every day.  Wouldn’t you want to be at your best when you are called in for your annual review with your boss, on your biggest sales call of the year, while on the golf course or driving your kids to school?

Wouldn’t you want your son or daughter to be there best on the day of their big Math exam, at their athletic event practice, while doing their homework or while out with friends?  Of course we always want the best for our children and ourselves.  The simple reality is that this just isn’t possible if you aren’t being cleared of subluxation regularly.

Sadly, many of us know the perils of ignoring the health and well-being of our bodies, yet do nothing.  If we were acting our country would be in a much different place financially and the leading causes of death and disease wouldn’t be lifestyle related.

The good news is it’s never too late to start.  Action is simple, starting is the hurdle.  Start today.  Set the curve for those you care about, get adjusted, get connected to life and be your best.  Remember, “It’s better to light one candle, than to curse the darkness.”