Where did time go? I seriously feel like I was writing a similar post a year ago talking about all that Kyle and I have learned through our first year being parents. And now we have an almost 2-year-old! How can it be? And we sure have been blessed with a fun, loving, healthy little girl!
One of my biggest blessings as Anna’s mom is that I have been able to provide her with regular chiropractic care. We have seen so many benefits for her (and for all of my little patients) through chiropractic and I am so glad that I have been able to provide this to her!
What does regular chiropractic care mean? For us (and what I recommend for my little patients) it means that she is checked and adjusted if needed at least every other week. There have been times that she has had a bad fall and I will check her the next time we are at the office. Or if she is showing signs of not being as healthy as we think she can be, either a runny nose, tugging on her ears, not sleeping well, or not having regular bowel movements, I will check her spine and correct any subluxations that are present. Through this, and eating healthy, getting adequate sleep and being active, we have been blessed for her to never experience any ear infections, major colds/flu like symptoms, serious constipation or motor developmental delays.
Funny story quick about when she didn’t have a poopy diaper for a day and a half (which is not usual for her). I decided to check her spine to see if she need adjusted. Well, she did- and then about 5 minutes later we had a very full diaper. My only regret was that I did this when Kyle was not around to be the one to change the dirty diaper. The neat part was that after the adjustment, I didn’t just get a poopy diaper, I also had a daughter who was now more content and playful, when a few minutes before she was crabby and very clingy. I hear these stories frequently from parents after their child has been adjusted and I see it all the time in Anna as well. But for some reason, it always amazes me how much the adjustment really does.
My wish is that I would be able to see all of my little patients on an as needed basis like I do for Anna, but I understand that is not always possible due to time and financial reasons. This is why I do make my recommendation of seeing kids at least every other week to make sure that through their falls and bumps, we are taking care of their spine so they can be as fully functioning as possible! But do know that I provide your child with the same love and care that I provide for Anna.
Another question that I am often asked is if chiropractic care is safe for children and what an adjustment looks like for them. The short answer here is yes, chiropractic care is generally safe for children. If you would like more details on this, please let me know and I would be happy to get it for you. I think this safety question comes up so frequently because the general population does not realize how different a pediatric adjustment is from an adult adjustment. The spine is analyzed in a very similar way, but the adjustment is so much different. To start off, the pressure that I use when adjusting a newborn is around the same pressure that you would use to check the ripeness of a tomato- not very much! And the adjustment is made using my pinky! And as the child grows, this pressure does increase due to their developing muscles, but it is never the full pressure of an adult adjustment. The other big difference is that in a pediatric adjustment, there is absolutely zero rotation of the spine. The child is either laying flat on their belly (usually on mom’s lap) or lying flat on the table on their back. The reason for this is that part of the bones in their spine do not fully turn to bone, or ossify, until they are 7 years old. Any force that has rotation involved in it has the ability to alter the development of the bones. This is where bring your child to someone who has additional training in pediatric care is so important. Their little spines are very different than the adult spine and must then be cared for differently!
I would love for you to share this post with a mom who has a child that you feel may benefit from a chiropractic evaluation. There are so many great benefits of chiropractic care and to help you know who many benefits from reading this here is a list of some conditions that respond well to chiropractic care: Colic, Reflux, Constipation, Ear Infections, Asthma, Allergies, ADHD, Growing Pains & Bed Wetting. If these moms have any questions, please have them reach out to me with their questions and I would love to set up a time for them to learn more about chiropractic care!