Truth and Consequences
Posted: Oct 05 2011 Topic:
Truth and Consequences
Recently, I bumped into a former patient. She saw me sporadically for back pain when I practiced in Whistler but she hadn’t been to see me for about ten years. At that time I recommended that she should be receiving regular chiropractic care because of significant spinal problems that had built up over time. She didn’t heed my advice and only came in when her symptoms were at their worst.
Now she is experiencing chronic unremitting pain in her low back, pain and numbness and tingling into her right leg. She has had a CT scan which revealed two herniated discs in her low back that are pressing on vital nerves (explaining the symptoms in her legs). The CT scan also revealed severe osteoarthritis in her lower spine which will also be affecting nerves that control her legs and other vital organs including her lower bowel, reproductive organs and urinary tract. This is a woman who is in her late forties!
At the end of our conversation she said something that I found interesting. She said “this is so unfair, why did this happen to me?” Obviously this person is quite distressed by her condition and I am empathetic regarding how it would feel to be in that situation. The truth is, she is in that situation because she chose to neglect her problem. She allowed the condition to progress to a level that is irreversible. Had she received the care that she needed years ago she would most likely have a well functioning spine and nervous system.
I think I am much better at explaining this type of situation to people than I was ten years ago. I frequently take x-rays so that we can see if any degeneration of the spine has begun. I am still working on this communication because there are far too many people that choose not to follow through with my recommendations. It is far better to have a properly functioning nervous system so that your body has its full capacity to heal and repair itself than to wait for it to fail and require surgery. Surgery is a band-aid and does not address the underlying problem that allowed this situation to occur.
All the best,
Peter