Top 3 Reasons Your Kids Need Chiro
If I had a penny for how many times I heard someone question or disagree with the safety of chiropractic adjustments for children… I probably wouldn’t be a rich woman, but I would have a few more dollars to my name!
Myth: “Chiropractic isn’t safe for kids.”
Fact: Chiropractic is safe AND beneficial for the health, development and well-being of kids,
EVEN babies who’ve been earth side for merely seconds.
Chiropractic is truly for anyone with a nervous system. Especially for someone who has
experienced overwhelming or traumatic events.
Let’s think about it.
Our nervous system is responsible for taking in information from the environment, interpreting it in the brain, then sending signals to the rest of our body for how to respond, act and engage socially, physically and emotionally. This happens regardless of our age or development.
Adapting to our environment is meant to be effortless; we have an innate need to develop, grow and mature into an authentic version of ourselves. However, we know that life often has it’s challenges. We classify these into the thoughts, traumas and toxins that are ultimately inhibiting our potential, and requesting that we seek a little extra help.
So why is this relevant to your child?
Let me dive into the Top 3 Reasons Why Your Kids Need Chiro
1. Birth isn’t always traumatic, but it can be dramatic!
Giving birth can be a beautiful experience AND it is still:
1. quite the journey for baby
2. exhausting on moms body
Birth is a massive experience, whether or not it was considered “traumatic.” Every birth experience is unique in its own way, so it’s difficult to speak to each one. Yet, no matter what the experience was, baby went from being cozy in mom’s belly to transitioning to an entirely new environment they now need to navigate through. There’s a plethora of situations that could have added stress to this transition, ultimately increasing the demand for baby AND mom to adapt.
If you are a mom, take a moment to recall what your journey was like for both you and baby.
When the demand is too high (babies, toddlers, and adults alike) we subconsciously find ways to deflect that failure to adapt by creating different ways to soothe our nervous system. This can take the form of several symptoms in little ones, such as colic, constipation, torticollis, tics, anxiety, you name it.
Now how is that relevant to chiropractic care?
Chiropractors are specialists in nervous system adaptability and are trained to enhance our ability to not only restore, but elevate the innate ability to heal and reorganize. We do so much more than “neck pain and back pain.”
So it’s safe to say, having a chiropractor on your team is crucial for the continued health and development of you and your baby.
2. Behavior is a beautiful window into a developing brain
Remember when I referenced above that the demand can be too high for our child’s ability to adapt? This can be an extremely common experience throughout childhood development. Throw in childhood traumas to the equation, and you have an even more robust situation.
One thing I found intriguing when studying childhood development was that first kindergarten, and next 3rd grade, are two of the most demanding years your child will experience. This is because children are interacting, learning and engaging with adults and peers in ways they’ve likely never experienced before. These cognitive demands are often occurring at a rate faster than their developing brains can keep up with. Therefore, around this age you might notice your child experiencing new challenges, new symptoms, and behavioral changes.
This is OKAY!
It simply means that their nervous system is struggling to adapt to the demands life is asking of it. Behavior is a beautiful window into the brain. Note the shifts your child is experiencing with the new “stressors” and then consult your chiropractor. A clear and efficient nervous system will provide the tools, resources and energy needed to process new information.
In the last few years, we’ve seen the drastic effect of environmental stressors on childhood development and overall behavior. In response to a very stressful pandemic, the CDC had to increase the age of a number of milestone markers in childhood development. Through the right lens, we can use this information to motivate us to do something different.
To have healthy brain development, it’s ideal to have a healthy environment. If we have an environment that is less than optimal, such as the stressors presented during the pandemic, then we need a flexible nervous system that can adapt to it. There’s only so much we can change about our external environment, but a lot we can change about our internal one.
3. “Happy mom, happy home?” How about “happy baby, happy family?”
The energetic exchange of relationships is SO important, especially when it’s a household dynamic. The good ole saying, “happy mom, happy home” holds a lot of value, however, let’s apply that concept to every member of the family.
When one person is dysregulated, everyone around them will feel the implications of it. I’ve had moms see me for care absolutely distraught because their child struggles with sleep, baby isn’t breastfeeding, cries all the time, xyz. The kiddo obviously needs help, but so does mom at this point.
I will say again and again, an unhappy baby is not normal. For example, although there’s no medical reasoning for why a baby has been diagnosed with colic, we can’t write it off as “normal”. Most of the time, we see a disconnect between the gut-brain connection with the babies presenting with colic. Complimentary to checking in with their diet, ensuring supple nerve flow between brain and the rest of the body has the potential to improve the gut-brain connection.
Imagine how different the home environment would be if the children were happy and interacting with their environment as if they were safe? What I mean by “safe” is that outside of cognitive awareness that they’re obviously not being chased by a tiger, is their system in sympathetic overdrive? Bringing balance between “rest and digest” and the “fight or flight” systems are what build subconscious safety.
How would that innate safety change the entire home ecosystem?
I share these three insights from our ongoing experience of taking care of perinatal and pediatric clients and the most common things we see. If you think your kiddo(s) would benefit from getting their nervous system evaluated, reach out to us to schedule a free call with the doc.
Remember, you aren’t alone in this journey and raising a little one is HARD. You’re doing everything right and we’re here to simply support you however we can.
With gratitude,
Dr. Aryn & Dr. Mel
We stand for a world where health is inspired by CHOICE, rather than inhibited by chance.
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Give us a call: 651-756-1218