“It’s all in your head – I mean neck!”
Has your doctor ever told you “It’s all in your head”? Well, just maybe it would be more accurate to say “It’s all in your neck.”
I just got back from another fabulous Integrated Neurosomatic Therapy course through Neurosomatic Educators in Clearwater, Florida, and once again, the importance of our structure to our function was made abundantly clear. Although the importance of our body structure is frequently considered in "alternative" therapies such as chiropractic and massage therapy, perhaps it is time mainstream medicine looked more seriously at the impact of poor structural alignment on the ability of our bodies to function properly. As I touched upon in a previous post on this topic, medications won’t do much to cure acid reflux if the person is slouched over most of the time, squishing the esophagus (food pipe) as it goes through the diaphragm (breathing muscle that separates our chest cavity from our abdominal cavity). Do you have high blood pressure? Here is a common structural problem that may actually be playing a significant role – could it be that your top two vertebrae (atlas C1 and axis C2) are not in their optimal alignment?
Now before you toss me into the loony bin or call me a quack, hear me out. As you know, the vertebrae of our spine provide boney protection for our spinal cord, just as the skull provides boney protection for our brain, and the sternum and ribcage for our heart and lungs. All our really important bits for our survival are encased in bone. Darn good design if you ask me! Well, coming down through the hole in the base of our skull (foramen magnum) to connect to the spinal cord and encased within the rings of the top two vertebrae (the atlas and the axis) is our brainstem, which is responsible for much of our bodily function that is outside our conscious control.
What does the brainstem do? The stuff that is vital for our survival, like breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, digestion, sleep, wakefulness, and motivation. In addition to that, the brainstem contains most of the cranial nerves, which are responsible for everything from sight, hearing, balance and smell, to control of most organs via the vagus nerve. Not only that, but the brainstem is responsible for transferring messages from the body to the upper centres of the brain and vice versa, and for overall tonus in the body. Very important stuff that most of us wouldn’t want compromised! So, should the top two vertebrae be shifted to one side or forward, rotated or tilted, they may encroach upon the brainstem potentially creating any number of problems in the body.
Furthermore, the dura mater (the thick coating that protects the spinal cord itself) attaches to C2 (axis), and if C2 is rotated, it will create a torsion in the entire spinal cord via the dentate ligaments which attach the cord to the dura down to just below the ribs, potentially entrapping some or even many of the spinal nerves lower down, creating pain and dysfunction. So, a poor position of the top two vertebrae can impact pretty much all areas in the body.
It has been suggested that potentially the cause of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is a poorly positioned atlas, possibly due to a difficult birth. The vertebral artery and vein are also encased in bone in the transverse processes of each cervical vertebrae (the 2 smaller holes outside the big one shown at this link) on the way up to the brain. If the atlas is rotated or sheared enough, and the baby is put on his stomach with the head rotated to the side to sleep, the vertebral or basilar artery may be occluded enough to cause blood and oxygen debt to the brain resulting in death. This can explain why fewer babies have died since the dictate to sleep babies on their backs. Perhaps if the atlas and axis position of babies were routinely checked after birth and corrected as necessary, that problem along with many other potential health problems, could be avoided all together.
Despite the propaganda against upper cervical adjustments, it is very possible to gently mobilize these joints into position safely. NUCCA Chiropractic is only concerned with the repositioning of the atlas, and after an X-ray where the position of the atlas is ascertained, the mobilization is very gentle, with no violent movement of the neck at all. Other practitioners may use muscle energy techniques to gently mobilize the atlas.
It should be noted that if one leg is actually shorter than the other, (much more common than one would think) or if muscles and fascia are pulling unevenly about the pelvis or neck, it will be very difficult to permanently stabilize the upper cervical area until these other issues are also addressed.
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Copyright 2008 Vreni Gurd
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