I've Been Out and About

All On My Own

As I had gone off the pain meds for at least the day, I decided to see how driving was and made an appointment for the chiropractor for late afternoon.

I am SO glad I did. There were a serious number of vertebrae out of alignment in my back, all contributing to my general feeling of "not quite well." Most important, perhaps were the mid back ones that do affect digestion and can make you nauseous. I didn't think about that as a factor, but once I was adjusted, I had an almost instant sense of relief--kind of unusual under more normal circumstances.

One muscle in my back is still annoying me a little, but I will wait a few more days and then go back for another treatment. All I can say is that for now, I feel SO much better!

Which offers a word about alternative medicine. How sad that the mainstream medical world does not tend to recognize the value of anything except conventional practices. I had a doctor once totally scoff at the idea a chiropractor could cure my migraine headache and instead insisted an overdose of aspirin and Tylenol (potentially dangerous to the liver) was his solution. Had I had a good chiropractor in the hospital, I'd wager I would have been feeling a heck of a lot better a heck of a lot sooner than I did. Add to that something like acupuncture--I've had it in the past but not tried it yet for this--and the benefits soar.

Yet skeptics hold the reins of power. Too bad. It is rare to find a doctor who is ready, willing and able to see both sides of the issue. For example, in my case, surgery was probably a necessity. (There is a treatment called "chelation therapy" that might have some ability to cure cancers but in this situation, the surgery is so super successful, it is the better option.) My chiropractic center--which has medical doctors on staff--never questioned that, so why would a conventional doctor question chiropractic if I insisted it worked for me?

Unfortunately, at least here in the USA, there is a long standing rift between the two schools of thought. At one time conventional medical doctors were even trying to make chiropractic illegal....for horses too. I boarded at a barn run by a vet who refused to let a horse chiropractor practice on the farm, so the horse owner and chiropractor had to go to an adjacent empty field for treatment. Silly stuff, now that I look back on it, but feelings were pretty strong then.

I am certain there are some "not so good" practicing chiropractors out there, but I have a wonderful one. He promised me when I came in again after surgery that he could adjust me without my having to lie on my stomach on the table. So we did some of the work with me sitting up, and some with me lying on my back. All I can say is, "Wow!!" My doctor, Shawn Morris of the AIMS Clinic in East Brunswick is a miracle worker!

After the adjustmen I headed out to a few stores. I wanted to get some Activia yogurt for my tummy and perhaps a new string of Christmas lights for the back porch. Yogurt, no problem. Lights? Three stores were completely sold out, including Target and Home Depot. The guy in Home Depot said it is the first time he can ever remember this happening. While I am pretty sure I can fix my lights as I presume it's just a bad fuse...I am amazed not to be able to find a new string somewhere. Before my surgery, when I was shopping, the shelves were full of all kinds of lights. Now, nothing...literally. I am definitely going to have to drive around to look at displays on other houses to figure this one out. Is the stumbling economy making people overdo in order to brighten up their emotions? Curious. The new LED lights to not take up lots of power, so they are fairly economical to operate. Could that contribute?

I may take a drive later in the opposite direction to see of there are any lights east of here to buy. In the meantime, I hope your holiday is already lit up with the promise of good things to come.

And thanks, I am feeling much better now that I have been adjusted. *G*