Dominating the Competition – Melissa Bettess, DC Student

from skinny swimmer to winning middle weight body building championships

On Saturday, July 16, 2011, after years of diligently working out and months of restrictive dieting, fourth quarter Joe Mushanlansky did what few people have the drive or guts to do; he stepped onto the stage at the Georgia World Congress Center and dominated the competition at the NPC Georgia State Bodybuilding, Bikini & Figure Championships, taking away three first places out of the four categories. Joe’s first place finishes happened in the following divisions: Junior Middle Weight, Junior Overall, and Open Middle Weight. The win in the Open Middle Weight division not only qualified him for Nationals, but he was also awarded a pretty sweet battle axe!

So how did a skinny freshman swimmer end up in the intense world of bodybuilding? You could say it was love at first sight. The moment Joe walked into a weight room to start lifting to improve his swimming, he was hooked. Joe simply loved the gym. Then to further fuel his drive, his sister was dating a bodybuilder and Joe went to watch his first show. It was at that moment he knew that someday, he too had to be on that stage. At that time he didn’t know what it took to make it to that point. In April 2007, he set his sights on doing his first show the following year.

Back then, with the help of his sister’s boyfriend, Joe started on a strict diet and intense work-outs. He competed in his very first show on September 6, 2008. Joe had no idea just how restrictive the diet was, so after avoiding many sweet, delicious food temptations starting at 14 weeks out prior to the show, Joe competed in the Tri-State Championships in Eerie, Indiana. His first time on stage was a mixture of euphoria and nervousness. He was happy to be done dieting, knowing he could now eat whatever he wanted, but he was also being very critical of himself and his presence on stage, always wondering if he had done enough. By the last class his nerves had subsided and he was able to put on a huge smile for the judges. To his delight and amazement, he won the biggest class of the night!

Since bodybuilding does not happen overnight, Joe took three years before competing again. He felt he was too skinny his first show and wished to improve upon his earlier success. He, along with the judges, were thrilled with the results. With the help and critical eye from friend and coach, Dan Newmire, a Master’s program student and bodybuilding expert, Joe went from initially 154 pounds on stage, to 168.5 pounds on stage, with fuller, more dense and symmetrical muscles.

If you have class with Joe, or see him in the halls at school, he seems happier, more talkative and more fun. Why? He is now free to eat whatever he wishes! To make his dream of success in bodybuilding happen, he was on a restrictive diet for five months prior to the show. He ate the same thing, at the same time every day. The diet consisted of lean protein, such as turkey, chicken, or tuna and low glycemic carbs, such as oatmeal, apples and brown rice. Zero sugar and dairy, except for egg whites, is allowed. A bodybuilder has to eat about every 2.5 hours, must resist cravings, and is left feeling hungry most of the time.

Another key component to Joe’s success was his willpower to be at the gym twice a day. At 530 am, before class, he would be doing 50 minutes of cardio, briskly walking on an incline, rocking out to “Rise Today” by Alter Bridge. After class the workout consisted of high intensity weight lifting with his workout partner and fellow classmate, Jericho Matthews. As the show drew closer, his diet got stricter, so the intensity of the workout decreased, since the caloric intake had dropped.

Along with the set regime of diet and exercise, Joe took a regiment of supplements such as creatine, casein powder, whey protein powder, l-glutamine, multi-vitamins and fish oils. The supplements helped to keep his insulin levels stable, which aids in lipolysis. Clearly a ton of dedication and discipline goes into making it in the bodybuilding world. The sport is not for the faint at heart.

Chiropractic helped give Joe the winning edge. The day before the show and following the morning weigh-ins he was adjusted. After weighing-in, he was having trouble posing, even the relaxed poses. After an adjustment he felt fantastic. Posing is stressful to a competitor, and often times painful, but thanks to chiropractic, Joe was able to pose dis-ease free, and it showed on his face! While other competitors were trying to hide their agony, Joe was happily smiling away! Even professionals will have chiropractors backstage to help improve their posing. As Joe works towards paving his way to pro level, do I smell a chiropractic sponsorship for Joe in the future? Joe will continue to use his chosen sport of bodybuilding to spread the gift of chiropractic.

LifeSource – Jenn Roberts, DC Student

Octagon

During the weekend of April 15th, LifeSource 2011 sponsored the Octagon event on Life’s campus. Attended by DC’s, CA’s, spouses, biochemists, functional neurologists and, unfortunately, very few students, the Octagon brought together experts in their field to pose their own definitions of subluxation and how to measure success in treatment of that subluxation.

Dr. Riekeman started the conference Thursday afternoon, after the Lyceum Park opening on campus by discussing the term subluxation, focusing specifically on nerve interference, including mechanical dysfunction, environmental toxins and thoughts & stressors. Dr. Riekeman also drew our attention to the fact that the Octagon is a dynamic, ongoing forum for thought and discussion to benefit understanding of chiropractic both externally and internally of our profession.

Dr. Triano discussed that while Vitalism asks ‘why,’ Reductionism asks ‘how;’ how the Vital Force is equal to the human soul. He stated that the goal of any DC should be to intervene both productively and predictably with the subluxation. He also pointed out that while the flutter of a butterfly wing can indeed cause a hurricane half a world away, we do not yet know which flutter set off the storm.

Drs. Haavik-Taylor and Goertz discussed research and statistics around subluxation and chiropractic and results experienced by patients and how that translated into statistical data. Dr. Goertz talked about what matters most to patients and the difference between somatic dysfunction and subluxation while Dr. Koch mentioned how ‘intelligence exists without scientific hypothesis,’ however the nervous system ‘is scientifically appraisable.’

Dr. Lipton spoke to the attendees about how the more energetically connected we are, the more we care… and that entanglement is equal to a change in the recipient. He also stated, “In order to be the master of your science, you have to DO your science.”

An attendee brought about an interesting question as to are we ‘mechanistic back crackers or are we Wholism, Holistic. The answer was that yes, we are more than just biomechanics. We need to bring the theory of subluxation into the classroom. We need a mutual starting point for the discussion.

A lot of chiropractors in practice focus on pain and whiplash, being a focus of many, received some attention at Octagon. Dr Damadian discussed Chiari Syndrome and Cerebellar Tonsillar Ectopia as well as the amazing results experienced by patients once they had their atlas adjusted. Patients experienced a reduction in headaches from occlusion of CSF movement and arterial flow to the brain, nausea and vomiting, pain and numbness and black outs among others. Dr. Damadian, inventor of the MR Scanner, (more commonly known as MRI,) demonstrated how results are different in MR pictures depending on whether the patient is recumbent or sitting/standing; the more evident injuries were visible in a standing/sitting scan.

Dr. Carrick spoke about the relationship between science and philosophy and how once you answer a philosophical question it becomes science; the theory of Science = True & False while Philosophy = Sense & Nonsense and about errant a priori concepts upon which conceptual questions can be developed.

We discussed politics and its relation to improving or impinging patient care and comparative effectiveness and that the ‘absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence’.

Another point mentioned by staff at the Octagon was how few students were repeat visitors every day – only three signed in and out on the registration sheet. Fellow students remarked Saturday evening at a gathering I attended how they didn’t know it was happening. As students of chiropractic it is our duty to learn, be focused and pay attention. Ignorance is no longer a viable excuse for missing data and details. The Octagon was published on the front page of the Vital Source newspaper, on all of the televisions in the cafe as well as communicated several times by student email. And while I know there were a lot of events during the same weekend, DE, a BGI (biogeometric integration) seminar, a Pierce Results seminar, the Gonstead Extravaganza and a few others, many of us were still on campus.

And while attendance of the conference excused us from class, I know whole-heartedly we are still responsible for the material, but to some that acted as an excuse for not attending any of the forum. To that I say, what about Thursday night and Saturday? Or when classes ended for the day Friday. The more we attend, understand and breathe in about philosophy, the physical attributes in technique as well as the biggest concept, subluxation, the better DC’s we will be when in practice with our own patient base, or the better our research will be, should we follow that tract.

The Octagon is an ongoing event we were fortunate to host this time on our campus. Hopefully it will be back on our campus for the next session

Factoids: Did you know…

• 45-50% of people experience whiplash symptoms 17 years after of the injury

• A ten mile car cash is equal to catching a 200lb bag of cement dropped from a second story bldg.

• 4-30% of neck injuries are missed by other practitioners, which leads to permanent ‘neurologic sequela’.

Faculty for the Contemporary Scientific Paradigm that is Octagon:

Dr. Bruce Lipton, PhD, Conference Chair.

Dr. Gerry Clum, DC, Conference Host

Dr. Fred Carrick, DC PhD

Dr. Ray Damadian, MD

Dr. Joe Dispenza, DC

Dr. Christine Goertz, DC PhD

Dr. Heidi Haavik-Taylor, DC PhD

Dr. David Koch, DC

Dr. Scott Rosa, DC

Dr. Peggy Samples, PhD

Dr. Rob Scott, DC PhD

Dr. Jay Triano, DC PhD

Microbiology and Chiropractic – David Traster, DC Student

Proof of the principle from the human genome

The year is 2011 and modern science is beginning to validate what Chiropractic has preached for over one hundred years. With thousands of practicing Chiropractors, Chiropractic students, and Chiropractic patients, one would expect to hear more of an outcry about the fact that Chiropractic was correct; yet there is still deafening silence.  Medical Schools for decades have indoctrinated both Medical Doctors and society on what is called the Central Dogma. The Central Dogma states that our genetic makeup determines everything from our physical characteristics to our behavior, and most importantly our health. There is only one problem with the Central Dogma – it is not true.  And modern science has continued to validate this fact for the past decade.

The Human Genome Project began in the early 1990s and was initially focused on cataloging all the genes of the human body. The expected result was to correlate genetic variations with specific diseases in order to develop “gene therapy” which was supposed to be the future of medicine. Billions of dollars were funneled into this project and the public was told this would single-handedly end heart disease, cancer, diabetes, autoimmune disease and hope seemed infinite. Scientists expected to find at least 120,000 genes with the assumption that there must be one gene for each individual protein in our body, in which we have at least 100,000 known proteins. On top of that, scientists assumed around 20,000 regulatory genes whose function was to “orchestrate” the complex protein assembly. When the Human Genome project was over, everyone was astonished by the fact that only 23,688 genes are responsible for the ever complex human body. Research has now shifted into the study of epigenetics which focuses on how genes are expressed in our body and the causative factors of this expression.

In November of 2010, The New England Journal of Medicine sadly reported on how little correlation exists between obesity, diabetes and our genes. It is now shown that most of our genes are secondary to the environment of our cells. Not only do our cell membranes act as a semi-permeable lipid bilayer covering which regulates what goes in and out of our cells, but the cell membranes are also able to read the environment of the extracellular matrix and send signals to our cell nucleus in order for the cell to adapt and survive.  Similar to how the nervous system takes in sensory information and relays an appropriate motor output, it seems our cells may act in a similar manner. Studies now show that our thoughts, stresses, social connections, diet, exercise, exposure to microbes and environmental toxins all have major effects on how our genome is expressed. This expression of genetics, based on our environment, is now said to be causing between 70 to 90 percent of all disease.

The human body hosts 100 trillion microorganisms. The DNA of the bugs living within each human body outnumbers that of human DNA by one hundred times. The molecules produced by the DNA of these microorganisms have a significant impact on our health.  It is the job of the chiropractor to maximize our patients’ biology in order for their immune system to work optimally. Chiropractic spinal and myofascial adjustments not only improve the nervous system, but also the vascular and lymphatic system.  With the additional focus on clinical nutrition, social behaviors, as well as any other stressor that a patient might present with, chiropractors have the ability to drastically improve the immune system’s ability to fight off pathogens. In order for the chiropractic profession to truly be considered primary physicians, we must continue to stay educated on modern, unbiased science. With this understanding, the Chiropractic profession can now scientifically and intelligently argue why everyone should be under our care.

Chiropractic Schizophrenia – Alexandra Gerdel, DC Student

Being a Chiropractic Student stuck between the TORS and Medis

At New Beginnings this past April, Dr. Liam Schubel referred to the chiropractic education as schizophrenic. The following is an explanation of just what that means and a proposal to purge chiropractic of its schizophrenic education and identity.

In the infancy of the chiropractic profession two philosophical camps developed that continue to run rampant today. As LIFE students we are all familiar with the philosophy created and developed by the Palmers. They sought to fill a void they saw in medicine and correct the cause of disease rather than treat its effects. They did not use any therapies, but simply applied the chiropractic adjustment at the right place and right time. They did not come from the educated upper class, but instead were hard-working, self educated blue collar men who developed a method of health care they believed would change the world.

As the Palmer’s took their newfound passion to the masses and began teaching others what they knew, another camp of chiropractors developed. The leaders of this group were two men, Langworthy and Carver. Unlike the founders of chiropractic, they believed in the use of modalities and alternative ways to treat disease. Their followers, like their leaders, tended to be medical doctors, osteopaths or naturopaths, seeking to add yet another degree and tool to their white collar education.

These two camps have been known throughout history as the “straights” (Palmers) and the “mixers” (Langworthy and Carver.) Both sides have continually worked to develop chiropractic in the direction they feel it should go, one as a separate and distinct profession, and the other as another route to become a medical doctor. Today these terms have been replaced by chiropracTOR’s practicing chiropracTIC, and MEDIpractors pushing for prescription rights and the incorporation of chiropractic into the medical profession. Regardless of the terms, chiropractic schools are charged with satisfying the traditionally medipractor educational standards devoid of any philosophical background that is required of the Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE) and National Board of Chiropractic Examiners (NBCE), while still, if their own philosophy is intact, providing students with the philosophical understanding necessary to practice chiropractic in it’s pure form, as a science, philosophy and art.

The weird dichotomy that has been created in chiropractic through political power struggles between the two factions rears it’s ugly head on our own campus in the form of our curriculum. It’s a fairly common phenomenon to walk around the LIFE campus and hear someone complaining about a class we’re required to take as chiropractic students. What exactly does urinalysis, visceral diagnosis or learning how to do a digital rectal and female pelvic exam have to do with chiropractic? Every quarter at least one class in the curriculum raises the question: “Why am I being asked to learn this? I’m going to be a chiropractor, I remove vertebral subluxations by adjusting the spine!” Well the answer lies in the philosophical division described above.

As students we are left trying to figure out just what our role is as chiropractors in “the real world.” We attend classes where we are informed we must know this information for boards. Our teachers stress mastering medical diagnosis lest someone die under our care. Then we attend seminars where we are told to forget everything we learned in school because most of it is baloney required by the CCE, NBCE and state licensing boards, but will hold no place for us in the real world. By the time we reach 12^th Quarter Advanced CLET with Dr. McCoy, a full case of schizophrenia has set in. No help is to be found from Dr. McCoy, who further rattles our brains by pointing out LIFE’s mission statement is to train us as “primary clinicians” fully capable and competent in every subject we have learned in school—including urinalysis and performing a Digital Rectal Exam. Although he himself is arguably one of the more principled chiropractors teaching at LIFE, his job is to ascertain whether we have truly learned the information necessary to competently fulfill the school’s mission for us upon graduation. With all the mixed messages about what our role truly is when we graduate, is it any wonder a portion of the profession has abandoned all philosophy and are fighting for the comfort of joining the medical world?

Given the recent events with the CCE abandoning all reference to chiropractic as a separate and distinct profession that heals without the use of drugs or surgery, the time has come for chiropractic to reclaim it’s own education. It’s time to take a stand for ourselves and our profession. We don’t need medicine to make our profession successful in changing the health of the world, what we need is a revamping of our education system so that chiropractic students graduate ready to spread chiropracTIC around the world. What we don’t need is for students to continue to graduate feeling scared or incompetent in their chiropractic art, science and philosophy because of a schizophrenic training in two conflicting ideologies. Who is ready to join me in a revolution?

Carrick on Chiropractic – Collin Bartoe, DC Student

A Functional Neurology Perspective

With an almost palpable level of awe, excitement, (and for some, disbelief,) hovering throughout a crowd of nearly 160 students, video after video was shown of the true breadth of what chiropractic can achieve.  Dr. Carrick, a world-renowned chiropractor, functional neurologist, and educator to thousands stood before the Life University student body on Monday, March 7^th 2011 and delivered a lecture for the ages. He spoke about the depth with which chiropractic can be utilized, explained some of the basics of what science shows us regarding how chiropractic may exceed our own expectations, and challenged the profession to step up and move toward integrating modern knowledge.

The topic of the lecture was, “Functional Neurology: What It Is And What It Means For The Future Of The Profession,” and Dr. Carrick delivered every ounce of that topic and then some.  For Dr. Carrick, the work of a chiropractor is vital for the health of the world. He shared stories about how veteran medical doctors, even surgeons around the world are looking at the possibilities that only chiropractic can deliver, and they want it. He explained about and showed videos of a myriad of situations in which standard medical practices were powerless to help patients, and the only thing that was able to help was directed and specific chiropractic care. One of the most influential clips of the night was of Dr. Carrick being called into a hospital room to adjust a medical patient in the throws of a stroke. The sounds of jaws hitting the floor almost rose above the video as he utilized his knowledge of physiology and chiropractic and ADJUSTED a patient to help her during a stroke! During the performance of a George’s Test, a test to determine vascular integrity in the vertebral arteries, the patient began to shake uncontrollably, and her eyes began to shake (nystagmus.) The patient had also lost her ability to speak prior to his entering the room. After a quick assessment of the situation and the patient, Dr. Carrick began to adjust her upper extremities on both sides, and then moved on to adjust her NECK! After just a few moments of adjusting, the patient began to speak again! When Dr. Carrick performed George’s Test again, the patient did not being to shake and the nystagmus did not recur. For Life’s students to see the absolute majesty of directed and intentional chiropractic giving a most dire patient their life back was incredible.

In total, more than a dozen separate case study videos and clips portraying specific disorders were shown while Dr. Carrick lectured over a number of topics that ranged from what a subluxation is, to how the adjustment can affect the function of the nervous system and body. Students were challenged to not become stagnant in their knowledge, to continually educate themselves and expand their understanding of how the body works so they can better determine how to give that specific chiropractic adjustment. One of the greatest comments of the night pertained to how chiropractors are utilizing 1895 science that is no longer scientifically valid, when the 2011 science that stands now shows much more diverse and empowering possibilities for our profession than ever before. We have seen through modern research that the bone-on-nerve model has been largely disproven and that new models of how subluxations and adjustments work is based on a brain-based nervous system approach. More and more research is being published to support how chiropractic works, and now a new fully-indexed journal is being unveiled! The journal is called: “Functional Neurology, Rehabilitation, and Ergonomics” and is part of a movement being created in part by Dr. Carrick as well as other interdisciplinary physicians and functional neurologists. The importance of the journal is not just that research is being done, it is that advanced research, by many different professions is being done for the sake of chiropractic and functional neurology…and it will be published in a place where people of all professions can read it!

For more information about the journal, go to www.frcarrickresearchinstitute.org/iafnr

Cancer and Chiropractic – Jenn Roberts, DC Student

MY Story

My name is Jenn and I am a member of the student community here at LIFE; I am a future Chiropractor. Recently, I was diagnosed with breast cancer and this article, shares with you, my personal experience.

I’m a married 40 year old woman who happens to share a 15 year old with my husband and his first wife, one of my best friends. I usually live off radar. I am quiet, non-gossipy person and don’t like cliques and exclusionists. I have friends from all walks of life and love them all with my whole heart; many of them I met while here at school.

I received my cancer diagnosis not once, but three times. I was given a 95% chance of having invasive breast carcinoma. I found the lump the Wednesday night of finals week of Winter quarter. Saw the OBGYN the next day, had the mammograms and ultrasound and close up mammograms (first diagnosis) by the end of the week and met the surgeon Monday (second diagnosis.) The Thursday morning of break, four days before Spring quarter started, I had surgery and afterwards, the surgeon again reiterated his diagnosis to my husband Adam and my Mom who flew in from Oregon. Again, the diagnosis upon examination of the excised tissue was 95% chance of malignancy. The surgeon’s physicians assistant later stated that the surgeon was being ‘conservative’.

The size of the lump I found, guided solely to that spot by the innate one evening while changing clothes, was 2×3 mm. The size of the mass they removed during the ‘breast conservation surgery’ (vs. radical mastectomy based on the triple diagnosis) was 3.5 cm, leaving a four inch scar on an area of my body many women associate with their very femininity. Most of the time I leave the compression bandages on, letting the surgeon remove them for examinations and such. The next conversation my surgeon wants to have is a talk about reconstructive surgery, but I am not sure how I feel about that quite yet.

This all happened really fast. Before I knew it, within one week I was physically scarred for the rest of my life. But it was a blessing overall that we did not proceed with the mastectomy as the pathology came back with a diagnosis of Granulomatous Lobular Mastitis, a very rare condition which mimics, nearly identically, invasive breast carcinoma.

I was in the 5% category.

I dodged the bullet and I cannot begin to describe how thankful I am for that.

While I was recovering from surgery, waiting the full week before pathology came back, I started a charity craft project to raise money to go to women who cannot afford mammograms called ‘Beads for Boobs.’ But something else was on my mind while I waited at home before classes started this quarter… how would I be received on campus.

You see, a large number of chiropractic students as well as chiropractors themselves believe that medical intervention should not be necessary if one receives regular adjustments. Part of this rings true… Better spinal alignment leads to less nerve interference, allowing the body to respond better to the environment while less stress is experienced by the body. This allows our bodies own innate intelligence to regulate itself without typical allopathic interjection. I do believe that in whole. However, some in chiropractic believe that everything can be fixed or cured, type 1 diabetes for instance, with the ‘right adjustment’. And while opinions are like hineys, everyone has one, I ask for respect in return regarding my own beliefs. And my belief says that cancer cannot be necessarily curtailed proactively via regular chiropractic care. It helps, especially during cancer treatment for allowing the body to be on top point, but is not a sure fire cure or preventative.

As Dr. Koch, a professor of mine, will tell you, an adjustment would not have helped his retinas reattach. That had to be done by an ophthalmic surgeon who specialized in retinas just as my circumstance had me rely on a surgeon who specialized in breast cancer.

I still had no pathology report before school started again and carried around within me the worry that I too would hear the same rumblings in passing; that if I had gotten adjusted, or lived a more vitalistic lifestyle, I wouldn’t have had the breast mass. The assumption however by my medical team was that the mass was driven by hormones and if it indeed came back as malignant, along with node biopsies and other procedures, I would have to go on hormone blocking agents to prevent a recurrence.

I rarely get colds and never get the flu. I have had neuro-work done and recovered from Guillaume-Barré syndrome with the help of chiropractic. I love chiropractic and its potential so much that I am here at LIFE at 40 years old, to be a chiropractor. And while this surgery has changed me forever in a lot of ways, I celebrate every sunrise, rain drop and star in the sky every single day because I have received a reprieve from the triple diagnosis. A reprieve many, like my Aunt and Sister-in-Law do not. I am now passionately motivated to raise money for women who cannot afford to get mammograms so they can have them proactively and reactively.

I am researching cancer treatments that combine the acknowledgement of innate intelligence and chiropractic, which may lead me to practice focusing a specialization in working with patients who are going through surgery, chemo and/or radiation. I am thankful – thankful I still have that possibility in my future.

The statistics for breast cancer are below but the most hard hitting is that 1 in less than 8 women will have invasive breast cancer at some point in her life. This can happen to anyone, even men. Breast cancer awareness even has its own month, but self-checks should be done monthly and if you are 40 or older, annual mammograms. If you have had a lump, mass or are cystic you will want to discuss alternative screening timelines with your OBGYN and DC.

The American Cancer Society’s most recent estimates for breast cancer in the United States are for 2010:

• About 207,090 new cases of invasive breast cancer in women
• About 54,010 new cases of carcinoma in situ (CIS) will be found (CIS is non-invasive and is the earliest form of breast cancer).
• About 39,840 deaths from breast cancer (women)
• Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the United States, other than skin cancer. It is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, after lung cancer.
• The chance of a woman having invasive breast cancer some time during her life is a little less than 1 in 8.
• The chance of dying from breast cancer is about 1 in 35. Breast cancer death rates have been going down. This is probably the result of finding the cancer earlier and better treatment.
• Right now there are more than 2½ million breast cancer survivors in the United States.

Where are the Thompson Tables? – Johnny Roberts, DC Student

Stuck with sub-par equipment

I am surprised. I am confused. I just can’t seem to find the Thompson tables in the outpatient clinic. I think it’s time to call attention to the fact that for some strange reason, despite the fact that Thompson technique is a required course in the curriculum, we do not have one Thompson table in the outpatient clinic. Surely it can’t be a money issue. With all of the recent improvements to the campus, which look great, the college surely has enough money to provide the students in the outpatient clinic with one or two Thompson tables. Let me clarify what I am referring to as a Thompson table. I am referring to the Zenith 440 table that a guy named J. Clay Thompson designed specifically for the technique he also designed. Honestly, how hard would it be to add a couple of Zeniths in outpatient clinic? So far the people I have asked about the issue simply tell me to talk to someone else because they are not responsible for it. My point is that it is time for the person, whomever that may be, to start the process of adding a Zenith or two to the outpatient clinic. If we are required to take the class, at least give us the proper tools to learn to use the technique the way Dr. Thompson intended, with Thompson tables.

Want to Prescribe Drugs? Go to Medical School – Alexandra Gerdel, DC Student

Chiropractic is a drugless profession

Chiropractic finds itself in a unique and treacherous position today. Namely, we are in the position of having people who call themselves chiropractors push for prescription rights in states like New Mexico, Colorado and Alabama. The arguments given for the incorporation of drugs into the profession are many. Typically these arguments entail some form of the idea that by earning prescription rights chiropractors will finally be recognized as doctors “equal” to that of medical doctors, or that we can provide more options for our patients as primary care physicians if we have the ability to prescribe drugs and perform other “primary care” procedures such as small surgeries. There’s also the argument that by earning prescription rights, chiropractors will be able to un-prescribe drugs. A question arises however: is the benefit really worth the risk?

The most obvious counterargument to the proposed inclusion of prescription rights into the chiropractic profession is, simply put, chiropractic was created as a profession that heals without the use of drugs or surgery. Chiropractic is not medicine, and in fact our predecessors fought like hell in chiropractic’s infancy to prevent chiropractic from being defined as or absorbed into allopathic medicine. Remember the chiropractors who went to jail, some multiple times, for practicing medicine without a license? The result of all of those battles was chiropractic winning multiple court cases that defined chiropractic as something separate and distinct from medicine. Why are we so eager to join a system we knew wasn’t working 100 years ago, and which tried to destroy us for many years because we posed a threat? (Perhaps the threat of actually healing our patients and not just masking their symptoms.)

Our profession has always maintained the stance that we are a profession that heals without the use of drugs or surgery. In a day and age when death from medical mistakes and drug side effects ranks among the top killers in the country, it appears a portion of the chiropractic profession has decided they would prefer to be a part of the death system, rather than maintaining our position in the HEALTH care business. The business where sick people get well and transform their lives through the new-found ability they have in being responsible for their own health. And for what purpose? What can we possibly stand to gain by joining ranks with medicine and “doing what they do” when our stance has always been that the allopathic approach to health and wellness does not work.

These are just a few ways medication interferes with the overall goals of chiropractors and their quest to naturally restore and maintain the health of their patients:

•  Medication interferes with instrumentation, which is a very important tool with which chiropractors assess the function and health of the nervous system in more than one technique.
•  Earning prescription rights allows pharmaceutical companies to begin monopolizing chiropractors much as they do medical doctors and contributes to their already ludicrously deep pockets, thereby perpetuating the health crisis rather than providing an alternative.

•  Any chiropractor who feels a need to prescribe medication to their patients has lost all faith in and understanding of what they do, have no concept of chiropractic philosophy, and are desperately seeking an alternative way to make money and feel accepted by the medical profession. In other words, they are no longer practicing chiropractic.

Chiropractic was, is and always will be a profession devoid of drugs and surgery. Those who have become lost and forgotten the roots of where they come from or the purpose they serve for their patients have two options: 1. Find a chiropractor practicing chiropracTIC and learn the philosophy that makes this profession the beautiful thing it is, or 2. Give up the title chiropractor and go to medical/osteopathic school. There’s a time and a place for the use of drugs. There are already multiple professions that fulfill that need. Let’s not attempt to make a profession that is separate and distinct into something it was never designed to be.

The 5th Annual All-Star Event Makes An Impact – Jenn Roberts, DC Student

On Saturday, February 26, Innate Enterprise, in conjunction with the SICA, hosted the 5^th Annual All-Star Event at Life University. This annual event was held in the Socrates Cafe and was attended by students from both Life University and Sherman College of Chiropractic. Doctors of ChiropracTIC spoke to the group of students as mentors to each of us. The panel included Dr. Susan Brown, creator and developer of Bio-Geometric Integration (BGI), Dr. Jim Dubel, founder of New Beginnings, Life Universities own Dr. Drew Rubin, Dr. Cirone, Dr. Clarino, Dr. Liam Schubel and Dr. Austin Cohen, graduates of Life University.

As a first quarter DC student who had never before attended the All-Star Event, I didn’t quite know what to expect. What I got was more than I bargained for. I was utterly amazed by what I experienced, listened to and learned. Not only were there recurring themes of philosophy, faith, an innate intelligence, and following your calling, but truly deep and touching recollections were shared by each of the DC’s who spoke and they spoke with incredibly passionate conviction. Each of them shared with us what ‘success’ means to them on such an emotional level, it was like they spoke to us all on a one-to-one basis in private discussion. They also not only recalled how they have impacted their patients’ lives, but how their patients have impacted them.

As Dr. Dubel asked, “What happens when you cut your finger? It heals… from the inside out.” That is innate intelligence. Bringing the body around to its homeostatic state. A power we all possess but a power we don’t all unleash in ourselves to its greatest potential.

Drs. Cirone and Clarino struggled with getting their own practice off the ground until they changed their thought processes, abandoning the educated mind for their own philosophy. Instead of bringing their practice into their faith, they brought faith into their practice. By sharing the wondrous capabilities of the human body with their patients, and how they were helping to facilitate their return to their own innate function, their patients experienced more. More than the pain relief that may have led them to their door. More than treatment of a symptom or a syndrome. While they may have made their initial appointment for those very reasons, they returned to their office for others.

Drs. Liam Schubel and Austin Cohen talked about the expansion of the ChiropracTIC philosophy. From offices in Atlanta and the Northeast, to practices around the world, ChiropracTIC is impacting the lives of people who have not only never had access to allopathic healthcare, many had never heard of ChiropracTIC until they were face down on an adjusting table in an office, a homeless shelter, a patch of grass near a rainforest in South America.

While the world needs exposure to what we do, our calling, we, as students need exposure to the world. We are only in the Life University bubble for a short time, like an egg in a nest. But when we graduate, we are kicked out of that nest by the Momma bird and we have no choice but to fly or fall hard. While our classes teach us the academics, we must embrace the challenge to experience and be taught the practical lessons ourselves, by volunteering at a local ChiropracTIC office, becoming involved in outreach/mission trips abroad, by doing PEAK somewhere other than our own back yard.

The world is a very big place and while some of us have seen a lot of it, it changes all the time. Views and opinions are changing and many people are now eager for other options related to health care. At assembly last week, even Dr. Manns talked about how the corporations and even the very government of Ghana have embraced his mission of ChiropracTIC as a natural, critical way to improve one’s body function proactively.

Each of the presenters at the All-Star Event shared miracles with us. Dr. Rubin shared the story of Peggy and her family with us and watching Dr. Rubins eyes tear up absolutely wrenched my heart. It was a beautiful story of how ChiropracTIC not only helped Peggy rebound amazingly from the cancer she had been in treatment for with radiation and rounds of chemotherapy, but it gave her time, three additional years of time with her most valuable asset, her family. When she knew her time was short, she called Dr. Rubin to her home and asked him to adjust her so she could be more clear of mind and heart, and could spend her last three days of life with her family at home. Dr. Rubin gave her that gentle, final adjustment and on the night of the third day Peggy spent with her children, their spouses, their children and their children’s children, Peggy died in her sleep.

ChiropracTIC is not about the money. It is not about treating pain. It is not about the number of patients you ‘have to see’ in order to have a ‘good’ practice. If you practice for the right reasons, with faith and passion to help others, the rest will follow. ChiropracTIC is about the difference you make in others lives by empowering them and liberating the innate intelligence within to allow the body to function at its own maximum potential, do its own healing, to perform better.

And ChiropracTIC care is indeed for everyone. From adjusting a pregnant mother-to-be to giving her newborn baby his/her first adjustment after birth. From adjusting the young child through his/her adulthood, and then caring for that patient until they pass from this earth.

We are a small but growing group. We are meant to do this. We have been picked by the very innate intelligence we restore the connection to in the patients we care for. We are ChiropracTIC

Chiropractic On The Brink Of Extinction – Alexandra Gerdel, DC Student

The sad truth about the state of our profession off of the LIFE island

The Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE), the sole accreditation body for all chiropractic colleges in the United States, has a history of pushing a political agenda and making decisions based on conflicts of interest. They became the sole accreditation body for the chiropractic profession in the 1970’s when the CCE, an American Chiropractic Association (ACA) based agency, pushed through their application with the Department of Education to be the accreditation body for chiropractic. This action violated an agreement the ACA had with the International Chiropractic Association (ICA) and their accreditation body, to wait until common ground could be found in the profession with regard to it’s education. The ACA has historically been known for representing the “mixer” faction of the profession, while the ICA stands for the “straight” side of the profession. The drive to form one accreditation agency was an effort to improve chiropractic’s status as a profession and to qualify for federal financial funding for students. The CCE and ACA took on that role with brute force and not with peaceful acceptance from the entire profession. (1)

In 2001, a review of the CCE by the United States Department of Education (USDE) found the CCE in noncompliance with several of their own standards. These included not allowing faculty of schools a means for feedback on changes made to the CCE Standards; failing to respond to complaints in a timely manner; and several instances of conflict of interest between those on the board of the CCE and their political agendas.

In 2006, the CCE came up for another five-year USDE review. In the transcripts of those proceedings, the CCE, the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners (NBCE), and the Federal of Chiropractic Licensing Boards (FCLB) were characterized many times by reviewers as forming both a monopoly and cartel. These three organizations have complete control over what is taught in schools, what is tested on national and state boards, and what is accepted at the state level for chiropractic licensing requirements. Since these three organizations have taken over control of the chiropractic profession, and allopathic model of disease treatment has begun to dominate chiropractic education, and the amount of medically oriented diagnosis and physical therapy has increased and become the norm for a chiropractic educational curriculum, the National Board exams and state licensure. As a result, all three organizations, and specifically the CCE, have been accused of numerous acts of supporting a political agenda leading chiropractic in the allopathic direction championed by one faction of the profession.

Some of the biggest issues brought forth at the 2006 hearing to renew the CCE’s accreditation came from the subluxation-based side of chiropractic. The problems brought forth were the questionable attempt to revoke Life University’s accreditation (which was immediately overturned by a federal judge due to conflict of interest issues), continuously refusing to recognize any national organizations beyond the ACA and ICA, and maintaining a far from democratic governing structure, wherein those in control represent a small faction of the profession and schools. Despite hearing testimony from many concerned with the CCE’s actions over the years, and having concerns of their own, the USDE determined the CCE had fulfilled the requirements for continued accreditation and could find no legal reason to refuse renewal of the CCE’s accreditation for another five years.

Last fall, the Life University campus erupted with concern over the newly proposed CCE Standards of Accreditation. A rumored 4,000 comments were submitted to the CCE, including a nine-page document from our own President, Dr. Riekeman, in the hopes of pointing out the huge ramifications the new Standards potentially held for both the chiropractic profession and the accreditation of the CCE with the USDE. However, in January, the worst fears of many were realized when, on the brink of their next five-year review, the CCE announced their plans to officially adopt the new Standards without any of the revisions suggested by the chiropractic community.

As a recap, there were three major changes made in the language of the CCE accreditation Standards that pose a huge threat to what chiropractic has always been known for and stood for:

     One: The wording of the programs the CCE accredits has been changed from just “Doctor of Chiropractic Programs” to include “or their equivalent.” (1,2,3) This change opens the doors for the Doctor of Chiropractic Medicine degree, a degree long sought after by National University of Health Sciences (NUHS) and Western States Chiropractic College (WSCC) whose missions are to broaden the scope of practice for chiropractic to include prescription rights and have chiropractors take on more of the general practice (GP) medical physicians’ role. (1,2,3)  Contrary to the popular rumor circulating around this campus, this change does not require all chiropractic colleges to confer the DCM degree. It does, however, open the door for those schools wishing to do so to implement that degree and maintain their accreditation with the CCE. It also allows state licensing boards to choose to accept both a DC and DCM degree, or only one of the two.

     Two: The word ‘subluxation’ has been removed from all language in the CCE Standards document. (1,2,3) This change is of great concern to subluxation-based chiropractors and marks the culmination of a long battle between the search for scientific evidence for subluxation and the philosophical basis of chiropractic. If we don’t ajust subluxation as chiropractors, what exactly do we do? If it’s not part of the language that accredits our schools, what is the basis of our education and profession? There are many who argue that all chiropractic is good for is the treatment of low back pain and headaches. Can we prove that we find, adjust and remove subluxations? The CCE appears to have taken a side on this issue and answered “no” to many of the above questions. However, just what chiropractic is remains somewhat undefined by the CCE’s new Standards.

     Three: All reference to chiropractic as a profession providing health care “without the use of drugs or surgery” has been removed. (1,2,3) For the last 115 years, chiropractic’s identity has been a profession that doesn’t use drugs or surgery. That has been one of the main distinctions separating chiropractic and chiropractors from the medical profession. Our predecessors have fought long and hard battles in politics, in jail and in court to prove our profession is separate and distinct from the medical profession, that we are not practicing medicine without a license, because we are not practicing medicine at all. Within the last year, things have begun to drastically take us away from this distinction with the passing of prescriptive rights for chiropractors with continuing education in pharmacology in New Mexico, the conferring of a Master of Science in Advanced Clinical Diagnosis by the National University of Health Sciences (NUHS, formerly NCC), and now the CCE Standards revisions. (4,5) Our profession is no longer distinguished as separate and distinct from allopathy, osteopathy and physical therapy.

How long will it take the rest of the chiropractic educational “cartel” to further force medicine into our profession with new parts to National Boards that include more training in pharmacology and other “primary care medical physician” procedures? How long until more state boards pass laws to expand our scope of practice and begin to require new pharmacology training and pharmacology board exams for licensure?

Our profession has developed a passion for non-involvement. (6) As chiropractors, we go out into the world, forget about the parts of our education we hated and become wrapped up in our own lives, practice and community. The membership of both the ICA and ACA, even when combined with that of the other political organizations existing on both sides of philosophical divide, still represent a very small fraction of the profession.

The “no-chiropractic association” phenomenon is arguably a huge part of the reason we have come so far from what our profession was originally founded for – an entity separate and distinct from medicine which restores the power of the body to do what it was born to do. Those in control are pushing to be absorbed into the allopathic model, and with these new Standards they have fairly well succeeded.

It is up to the next generation of chiropractors to either take a stand for who we are, or let chiropractic fall by the wayside and turn into a second or even third rate medical profession. Do you love what you do? Do you want to see chiropractic survive, united at last? Do you want to help your patients regain control of their health and wellbeing, or treat people for low back pain and headaches for the rest of your life, giving them a few prescriptions here and there to cover up their symptoms?

It’s time to get involved. Not once you graduate, not in ten years, not never. It’s not time to take the easy way out, to agree to something because the road less traveled is too hard. If we want to see our profession, as we know it, survive we must be as unreasonable as our predecessors. They insured our survival against all odds by standing for what they believed in, going to jail as many times as they had to, and knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that what they were doing was not for the benefit of themselves, but for the benefit of their patients and the overall health of the world. For most of us at this school, chiropractic is a way of life, an answer to the poor health plaguing this country. It’s time to wake up and realize that in the real world, that’s not the direction the profession is heading. Now I ask you future chiropractors, what are YOU going to do about it?

For more information on the history and current events mentioned in this article, check out the following references or email Vital Source at submissions.vs@gmail.com.

1. Dr. Riekeman’s Response to the CCE, found on the Life Facebook page

2. CCE proposed standards, taken from their website.

3. Edwards, J. What is the CCE trying to pull? Dynamic Chiropractic, Oct 21 2010. 28(22).

4. Nutz, J. Chiropractic Needs an Adjustment, Not drugs. Dynamic Chiropractic. Mar 26. 2010. 28(07).

5.  Kent, C. Drugs, Chiropractic and Boiled Frogs. Dynamic Chiropractic. Feb 12, 2010. 28(04).

6. Perle, S. The No Chiropractic Association: Professional Duty Not Required. Jan 29, 2011. 29(03).

Producing Miracles and Results – Alexandra Gerdel, DC Student

An introduction to the Pierce Results System

Do you ever feel frustrated by the reliability of motion palpation and guessing where a subluxation is, based on what you feel, a leg check, or tight muscle fibers? Have you ever wondered what you’re really feeling? Or wondered if it’s really truly possible to find THE subluxation causing problems, versus a vertebrae that may be fixated but isn’t necessarily the main problem? Can you objectively prove that you have helped a patient and removed their subluxation?

The Pierce Results System provides a protocol for analysis and adjusting that takes all the guesswork out of your patient care and allows you to deliver the right adjustment, in the right place at the right time. The system combines the use of three important aspects of analysis to develop the when, where and why a patient needs to be adjusted.

Plain film x-ray: In the Pierce System, we use plain film x-ray to tell us why we’re adjusting a patient. Cervical and lumbar films give us information on the state of the spine. Through a series of rules and analyses, developed by Dr. Vern Pierce, we are able to tell how long the spine has been injured, how long it will take to correct itself, and how much correction we can expect it to achieve.

Video-fluoroscopy: In addition to using plain film x-ray, the Pierce Results System uses video-fluoroscopy, or motion x-ray, to see exactly how the spine is moving. This tool allows those using the Pierce system to know exactly where to adjust without any guessing. This tool is the biggest reason Pierce produces the results it does, as quickly as it does, because seeing the motion or lack of motion in the spine allows you to adjust exactly where needed. This means adjustments are less frequent and hold longer, allowing your patients to get to a state of optimum function much more quickly than other techniques.

Instrumentation: Instrumentation is probably the most important aspect of the Pierce Results System. Full spine digital thermography is used every time a patient comes in to get checked. The significance of this extra step is that instrumentation tells the doctor exactly when to adjust. This allows the body time to adapt to the adjustment. Rather than constantly over stimulating the nervous system by osseously adjusting a patient every time they come in, the Pierce System uses a scan of how the nervous system is functioning to determine if the patient needs to be adjusted that day. If the nervous system is in flux, no pattern is established when a patient comes in, so there is no need to forcefully adjust the patient at every visit. There are other lower force techniques utilized in the Pierce System, such as Logan Basic or holding pressures on areas of concern found on video fluoroscopy, that are utilized to continue facilitating the changes made by the first or most recent adjustment.

Allowing the body and nervous system to dictate when to adjust, along with having a system and protocol to follow for the order of what vertebrae to adjust, is the biggest reason the Pierce Results System produces changes in people’s spines and health as quickly as it does. While the results that have been produced in patients under Pierce care are incredible, the system is also strongly grounded in the concept of subluxation as the cause of dis-ease, and educating patients on the importance of getting their nervous system checked regularly. In the Pierce Results System, structure is function. The system is streamlined to effectively restore spinal structure and integrity so the nervous system can function at its optimum level. When structure and function are restored, miracles are produced. Diseases disappear, quality of life drastically improves and medical doctors are perplexed, wondering what happened when their patient no longer needs drugs or surgery.

There is much more to the Pierce Results System than can be explained in a single article. If you have questions or are interested in finding out more about Pierce, come to Pierce Club. The club meets Tuesdays from 11-12p.m. and Wednesdays from 5-7p.m. in room CUS-109.

When the Unexpected Happens – Kelly Milano, DC Student

A Case Study of a Herniated Disc in a 31 year old female

At the end of April, Michele Zebrowitz, DC student, was suffering from low back pains. Assuming it was just normal pains and due to the life stresses she’d been going through at the time, she continued to go about her life, competing in several cycling races, (and winning two of them.) On May 1st, Michele competed in a 12 hour cycling race in Ft. Yargo, GA, a ride she’d taken many times on her bike in the past. After finishing, she realized she was having bilateral sciatica to her knees. After a few days, the pain had isolated to her left side and within a few more days, she’d lost all feeling and function in her leg. She had difficulty walking and was unable to both heel and toe walk. This was an incredibly scary time, and one that took her a long time to talk about.

After seeking out medical care, Michele found out the worst. For someone who is incredibly active participating in bike races at least once a month and riding her bike daily, to hear that she was going to be off her bike for months was scary! On the MRI, a disc protrusion was seen at L2/L3 as well as disc extrusion at L3/L4, but no nerve roots were being displaced or compressed at that time. The disc material was displaced slightly posterior into the spinal canal. The discs were showing some desiccation all the way from L2-S1 but the biggest concern was at L4/L5 where there was a large disc extrusion displacing and pushing on the nerves.

Michele states, “I’m healthy and 31 years old….didn’t have any crazy bike crash….just many things that eventually led up to them finally giving out.” She continues, “Everything happens for a reason right? But, I have yet to find the reason a healthy, athletic, car-accident-free woman would have three discs blow out.”

For many months Michele didn’t talk too much about her situation. She was scared that she would never walk normal nor be able to ride her bike. She decided there were a lot students could learn from her story and has decided to share it with Vital Source so we can all learn from her experience. Through this living case study, we may better understand our role as doctors in a case such as this; see better what we are looking for and how to treat it, as well as see an insight into the life of a patient.

Her journey to recovery has not been an easy one. In the early weeks after her MRI, she survived with Prednisone, Advil and other pain meds. She states, “Drugs are for emergencies, and it helped get the inflammation down so I could walk again.” Every day for the next three and a half weeks she was doing traction and decompression at the Center for Optimum Health & Performance, (or as we refer to it, the Outpatient Clinic.) She was getting adjusted, having fascia work done and seeing a Physical Therapist who did McKenzie Method, which she highly recommends we look into. As we learn in classes, with an injury as severe as this, Michele should have been scheduled for immediate surgery, but she didn’t take that route and battled hard to get her life back. She states, “Any other person with my MRI would have been sent immediately for surgery – or at least an epidural, but I took the conservative road and gave Chiropractic, PT, and massage a try. I was definitely miserable for a few months due to the pain, but I am happy with my decision. I still have plenty of rehabilitation to do, but I am pretty much back to normal.”

For those just starting their chiropractic schooling and journey and wondering how you would handle a patient like this one, Michele says you don’t need to be afraid of acute disc patients. She says there are many ways to approach it and in her opinion PT is absolutely necessary in order to help the patient fully recover and get out of pain as quickly as possible.

As of the writing of this article, Michele states, “I am still in a little bit of pain, but it’s mostly tightness in the fascia. I can touch my toes, and I can ride my bike.” She currently is receiving low force adjustments, cold laser treatments, massage and myofascial release. She’s using a foam roller on her legs and back every day and working on her core strength. She is still unable to carry her backpack but all the numbness and tingling is gone and she is able to again touch her toes.

One of Michele’s biggest questions was “When will I be able to ride again?” Some doctors didn’t know if she would ever ride again and tried to prepare her for that, while others told her to give it a year, but those who know Michele know she is determined and was going to fight through this. One friend told her, “You will ride when you can ride.” She started swimming laps to get strength and movement back to her legs, although at first she was unable to kick her legs. Her therapy continued and today, Michele is seeing great improvements. In fact, she just finished 4^th place in her first Cyclocross race, which she was also instrumental in developing and setting up here on campus October 31. We look forward to more great cycling events and race in her future.

 

The Immunization Debate – Michelle Allgeyer, Casey Carter, Jonathan Fonke, Joseph Fonke and Mike Rullo, DC Students

A Chiropractic Philosophy Perspective

Staying within the context and limits of chiropractic philosophy, how can a chiropractor respond to his/her patient’s question of whether the patient should or shouldn’t get his/her child vaccinated? What role will chiropractic care play in either answer (“Yes, I will get my child vaccinated.” or “No, I won’t get my child vaccinated.”) the patient chooses for the child?

*All quotations in this text came from Modern Chiropractic Principles, a CPAP 1605 powerpoint presentation by Dr. David Koch*

Doctor, by definition, means teacher. So as doctors of chiropractic, we are teachers to the unlearned community about chiropractic, and to some extent, overall health. Our main job is to present unbiased, scientific information to patients, give them a recommendation based on facts, not any prejudice, and then allow the patient to decide what they feel is best for their child’s overall health. It is the current belief within the chiropractic community that we should not directly tell a patient whether or not they should choose to vaccinate their children, but only present both sides of the issue and have the patient decide on their own.

In terms of philosophy, the issue of vaccination brings to discussion some of the chiropractic principles. First, drawing on a biological principle, “Each and every living organism has the self-organizational consciousness of the universe inherent to and active within it, which is its unital consciousness,” or innate intelligence if you will, chiropractic philosophy starts by saying that we humans,  living organisms, have an innate intelligence inside of us. A patient who would be willing to accept this biological principle may inquire as to what innate intelligence is.

This offers the chiropractor the opportunity to open dialogue with the patient and further define innate intelligence for them as, “A living organism’s innate intelligence is expressed by the higher order interactive processes that characterize life itself, including self-assembly, self-maintenance, self-transformation, species-perpetuation and self-directed matter/energy exchanges with the environment”. With that foundation, it would be an optimal time for a chiropractor to discuss the purpose behind immunization. From the scientific perspective, the purpose of immunizations are to expose a child (or an adult) to a given pathogen (in some form, whether it is dead or weakened), in order for the body to be able to create antibodies and an overall immune response to defend against it if the pathogen were to expose itself to that person at a later date.  The difference between this approach and choosing not to immunize your child is that you are not exposing them to this pathogen in its vaccinated form, but instead relying on the body’s ability to defend itself against a foreign pathogen without antibodies being present prior to infection. Thus, not creating an immune response at the time of vaccination, but taking into consideration the possibility of never getting exposed to the pathogen, and if exposed, allowing the body to create its own immune response. What we then relay to a patient is according to another of the chiropractic principles, “A living organism’s innate intelligence is the source of the information necessary to reorganize the matter and energy it assimilates from its environment into patterns of structural relationships (forms), and energetic interactions (internal biological forces) that maintain the identity of the organism and thus are constructive to the organism.” This principle is saying that what the body does through innate intelligence would always work toward good aspects of health for the body, including self preservation and healing. This does not mean however, that the body is impermeable to sickness and disease because of the bodies self maintaining capabilities. What a chiropractor should tell the patient here is that our bodies do the best they can at the time of infection, given their current physical condition and influences from the environment around them. This statement leads into what chiropractors call interference.  “For any specific structure to express its unital consciousness (or innate intelligence) to its fullest, all the matter necessary to create it must be present, and all the energy-mediated interactions necessary to give it its specific form must occur without interference….If the distortion of the message does distort the organizational relationship, the distortion of the message is interference.”  What we then tell a patient is that a distortion of organization, in theory, changes the body’s capacity to adapt to outside stimuli, such as a strong pathogen. If interference is removed from the body through regular chiropractic care, according to the chiropractic principles, the body will be able to fight off foreign pathogens that it encounters, and in fact it does so every day. However, if interference is present in the body, then its potential to fight off any pathogen will be greatly diminished and thus an increased necessity for vaccination.

It is also the chiropractor’s duty to inform their patients of the potential toxins that many vaccinations contain. These toxins have demonstrated dangerous effects on the bodies of children through their interference with not only the nervous system, but many other body systems as well. The question of being vaccinated or not is a “double-edged sword”. Being vaccinated causes interference and increases one’s chance of being adversely affected by a toxin or the pathogen itself, but at the same time allowing the body to build antibodies for the specific pathogen being vaccinated for. By not vaccinating, but instead keeping the body interference-free through chiropractic adjustments, the child’s immune system is not weakened from the toxins and pathogen/s in the vaccination, and their own body’s innate ability to maintain health is trusted. Basically it boils down to a parents’ individual beliefs and ideals which will become the determining factors for them to decide on whether or not to vaccinate their children.

In today’s society, childhood immunizations are common medical practice in the United States. The more information that is being spread to the American population through various media, whether or not it’s accurate, the more important it is for chiropractors to get the correct, unbiased, chiropractic principled and scientific information to their patients so that they can make their own informed decision concerning vaccinating their children. Patients are asking questions – that’s good. As trained health professionals and primary care providers, chiropractors should be ready to help patients with the answers they seek. The above gives a basic glimpse into how chiropractic philosophy can be applied to the immunization debate.

The Next Generation of Chiropractors – Michael Schmidt, D.C. Student

A new perspective on how to create a health paradigm shift

Research tells us that the last thirty years has seen a subtle change in public opinion regarding health care. Whether due to the efforts of chiropractors and chiropractic advocates or other reasons, people are turning to “alternative medicine” and “complementary medicine” in lieu of traditional medicine; it has become apparent to them that medicine is not as reliable as they once believed. However, by calling their recent choices “medicine,” we learn why the growing support for extra-medical options is not enough to create the shift that proponents of chiropractic are aiming for—the paradigm is still disease-treatment. Maintaining the current emphasis on education regarding “wellness,” the “optimization of health,” and the “full expression of human potential” in addition to providing care in the next decade is a necessary foundation for maintaining the momentum of the shifting public consciousness.

The educational discussions regarding wellness-based care, however, also need to be supported by a shift in perspective regarding the doctor-patient relationship.  As students and Doctors of Chiropractic, there is much emphasis on the innate power of the body to heal itself, but less discussion revolves around the empowerment—and therefore responsibility—of the individual regarding his or her own health. Chiropractic care greatly contributes to health on many levels, but ultimate health lies in a person’s power to choose it. If people are taught that the only route to health is via the chiropractic adjustment, it reinforces the dependency on the heath care provider. This is the prevalent Medical Doctor-patient relationship and, therefore, it is difficult for people to appreciate the significant differences between Medical Doctors and Doctors of Chiropractic. Only by teaching people that they have the power to choose the quality of their own health—through a combination of wellness practices such as chiropractic adjustments, exercise, nutrition, meditation, and others—will they develop a sense of ownership and responsibility.

These are necessary precursors to the public’s desire for true health as long as symptom-masking drugs are still available. Additionally, patient empowerment is a macro-level application of the innate intelligence behind the principles of chiropractic. This congruency in education about chiropractic will boost the shift of public opinion of chiropractic, but only by way of their newfound value of their own health. Accordingly, the next decade of publicly influential chiropractors will be seen as coaches first, adjusters second.

Assessing the recent state of health care in the United States of America, the public is not satisfied and is demanding change. When the public demands a change, however, it always appeals to the same few entities. Whether the changes are in health insurance plans, governmental legislation, or American Medical Association policies, all of the practical health care changes have been enacted—or at least strongly influenced—by well-established institutions. This poses a logistical obstacle that must be overcome for chiropractic to be a focus in the public’s view of health care. In addition to their abundant financial resources, these institutions are always responsible for the changes because they already have public familiarity and general acceptance. This means that if the institutions’ efforts and values change, the public is more willing to align with this change than with a change proposed by an unfamiliar entity. This is true in interpersonal relationships as well: if a stranger offers clear evidence for how a particular product will greatly benefit you, you would be less likely to try it than if a family member without evidence suggests the same product. This is because you trust family. Throughout its history, chiropractors and advocates for chiropractic have taken the role of the “stranger.”  They have mainly tried to change public opinion in one of two ways: influencing governmental policies, or directly educating potential patients.

Although each method has celebrated enormous successes, the first one aims to ally with an institution that already has significant inertia against chiropractic, and the second does not involve an institution at all. Using these logistical strategies, influencing public opinion on a large scale has been, and will continue to be, arduous and inefficient. Intentionally developing partnerships with receptive institutions in the next decade will continually provide large, welcoming audiences for chiropractors and advocates to empower with the tools of health.

To develop a partnership, there must be interest on both sides. Chiropractic is broad enough to appeal to many different institutions as long as it is presented in a relevant manner. In other words, it must support the values and needs of the institution.

One example of partnering is with institutions of higher education. These institutions are actively struggling to discover a solution to the continual increases in students’ anxiety, mood disorders, and demand for counseling because they highly value student health.  Those who are familiar with the chiropractic technique of Network Spinal Analysis can attest to its unique ability to reduce anxiety and regulate moods of patients. Therefore, I am in the process of developing research that would formally test the validity of the anecdotal evidence. If the results are positive, then I would organize my findings and other relevant research and present the information at conferences of higher education.  To be effective, only one attendee needs to bring this idea back to his or her institution, and it would take no more than a couple of years to develop an internal system that promotes and offers chiropractic care to students. Ideally, it would result in a new salaried position, the College Chiropractor. This employee would not only provide care for students at no additional cost, but would be a part of the campus community and have regular opportunities to educate students about wellness, chiropractic, and responsibility for one’s own health. With the success of the program in one institution of higher education, others would look to adopt it, eventually changing the face of higher education across the nation.

A second example of how chiropractors and chiropractic advocates could earn well-established large audiences involves Parkinson’s Disease research. The Michael J. Fox Foundation thus far has funded $196 million to projects that would hasten the discovery and development of new drug treatments for Parkinson’s disease. The values of the foundation are realizing better therapies and possible cures for Parkinson’s Disease. Given the presence of both formal and informal evidence of chiropractic’s effectiveness at decreasing the symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease, presenting this information in a relevant manner to the Foundation would give chiropractic a partner that has much influence with the medical research community, Parkinson’s patients, and their families.

A third example of a partnership between chiropractic and an institution is already in place: since August 2009, a Life University student and her husband have led an ever-growing church that recognizes the inextricable link between spiritual and physical well-being. Churchgoers who attended for the spiritual message automatically became receptive audiences of the accompanying physical message. Additionally, every student of chiropractic can start empowering new audiences through churches and other community organizations by utilizing the tools of Straighten Up America. Straighten Up America is a national health promotion initiative that addresses “spinal health, well-being, and positive self-esteem,” and by establishing daily spinal hygiene in the USA.  There are many organizations that maintain community programming, and it is easy to lead an educational weekly program that reinforces spinal hygiene. Personally, I will soon begin hosting a weekly program at the local Salvation Army Church of Marietta. As the attendees begin feeling better physically and emotionally and the program becomes popular, other Salvation Army churches will become aware of it and recognize the benefits of starting classes in their communities.

Chiropractors already practice educating how chiropractic leads to true health, and this education is important. However, the majority of this population still has access to symptom-masking drugs. In order to demonstrate that true health is valuable, chiropractors and advocates must appeal to the underlying—and most devastating—deficiency of Americans: control over their own health. Once they feel they have control, they will get a sense of ownership and, therefore, responsibility. This sense of control and responsibility will tip the nation’s consciousness regarding what form of health care they actually want and need. Additionally, with the institutional inertia suppressing chiropractic from becoming well-known, it is critical that advocates focus less on competing with these powers and more on allying with more receptive institutions, allowing chiropractic to build its own momentum. Although the actual effectiveness of the cited examples is unknown, it is true that the quickest way to the heart of an institution is by strengthening its weakest link—not by exploiting it. As chiropractors and advocates continue to reach out to help these institutions, the institutions’ audiences will quickly become chiropractic’s audiences. As these receptive audiences continue to grow, the obstacles that chiropractic has always faced will eventually disappear.

Life University Represents – Michael Hollerbach, UG Student

At the World Congress of Chiropractic Students in Dallas

Life University’s chapter of the World Congress of Chiropractic Students traveled to Dallas, Texas for the 31st annual conference. Students from twenty three chiropractic schools from around the world—including Japan, New Zealand, Australia, Denmark, Canada, the U.S. and Mexico—came together to discuss the future of chiropractic on a global scale.

Parker College of Chiropractic hosted the week long event September 18-23 at the Fairmont Hotel in downtown Dallas. The purpose of the WCCS is to unify leaders to provide leadership in chiropractic education around the world. In order to have effective meetings, the Congress uses the same rules as the United Nations and U.S Congress to communicate and get things accomplished. During this event there were also motivational chiropractic speakers, as well as an informal visit from the Presidents of the ICA and ACA speaking together to inform members of the Congress on the state of chiropractic.

The Life University representatives were led by their club president, Dr. JK Wetterlin, who also represented Life University at last year’s congress in New Zealand. There were also four other Life students working as a team on various proposals. Christie Kwon, club treasurer, was chosen as the Head Delegate to represent our school at the proceedings. The other delegates representing Life University were Stephen Cain, Sean Drake, and Michael Hollerbach. Some of the highlights from this years’ meeting are detailed in the rest of this article.

After thirty one years of being a non-profit organization, this year’s Congress voted to incorporate. This was a monumental decision for the future of this organization. There are many advantages to becoming a corporation. One of the benefits that the Congress is excited about is that they will be able to increase their ability to raise more funds. This will enable the organization to offer more humanitarian aid.

As part of the incorporating process the Congress proposed that they needed a definition of the words “chiropractic” and “subluxation” in their guidelines. In doing this, sub-committees were formed to develop the definitions and bring them back to Congress for a vote. A dozen delegates selected from varying schools were chosen to take on the challenge of unifying the multitude of opinions from all over the world. The European schools were adamant that the definitions must come from the World Federation of Chiropractors (WFC) definition. After hours of negotiations, both definitions were taken from the American Chiropractic Colleges paradigm endorsed by the WFC.

One of the more shocking proposals discussed was an issue from the chiropractic school in Tokyo. In Japan chiropractic is not a licensed medical entity and therefore people are able to take weekend seminars and call themselves chiropractors. Many people in Japan have been hurt by the uneducated unqualified people and therefore chiropractic is developing a very bad reputation in that country. The Tokyo school asked for help from the WCCS to submit letters to their government to put a stop to this practice. This would help to uphold the standards of the chiropractic profession and stop the unnecessary harm that is being done to unknowing people.

A very proud moment for Life University came when Sean Drake was awarded an endorsement for an internship with the World Health Organization in Switzerland. Each year one student at the Congress is awarded this endorsement. This is a great honor for any student, but it is a prestigious honor for a chiropractic student to be working alongside the world leaders in health care. Sean made an outstanding impression on the Congress with his fifteen minute presentation about himself and how he would represent the WCCS in Switzerland. This endorsement must be approved by the WHO before Sean is awarded the internship. A former Life student, Dr. Aryn Gabai, has also served as a WHO intern in the past.

Over the week of this years WCCS conference, students from all over the world enjoyed camaraderie, developed new friendships, shared laughter as well as new experiences—all with the goal of creating a unified chiropractic profession and message throughout the world. They left looking forward to April 2011 for the 32^nd annual congress in Rio de Janiero, Brazil.

The members of the Life University WCCS would like to thank the President’s office, student allocations, Life student council, and all of the students that supported the club at the Mansion Parties. They would also like to announce their next fundraiser “Party with a Purpose III” on November 12^th. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. If you would like to join WCCS or have questions the club meets on Thursdays at noon in room C108.

Activator Club – Carley Edwards, D.C. Student

Learn how to give low-force chiropractic care

The Activator is the most widely used instrument for chiropractic care offering gentle, low-force adjustments. The Activator protocol uses leg length checks and neurological reflex tests to determine where subluxations are present. Activator Club Vice President Matt Griswold points out that the activator club is unlike other clubs because, “It’s a smaller club, and so you get more individual care – about five or six people to a table.”

Griswold also points out that being able to use an activator in your office is beneficial to both doctor and patient. It puts less stress on the doctor’s joints over time. For the patient, they are receiving the same adjustment from the doctor every time. “By six o’clock in the evening, a chiropractor is typically not giving the same quality of adjustments as they are in the morning. The Activator gives the same adjustment every time,” says Griswold. It also allows the doctor a wider variety of patients including infants and the elderly, where an activator is less forceful. It is also good for patients with osteoporosis or those who are afraid of the thrust of a typical manual adjustment.

The next Activator seminar in the Atlanta area will be April 9 and 10 at the Atlanta Marriott in Alpharetta. Activator club meets Tuesdays from 11-12pm in B108. Students do not need an activator of their own to attend club. For more information on Activator Methods, visit www.activator.com

Lessons Beyond the Classroom – Melissa Bettess, D.C. Student

The story of Dr. Lydia Dever’s fight to return to her life after a horrific accident

Every once in a while a student will learn far more from their teacher than what is testable by means of paper and pencil. The teacher herself may not even be fully aware of all the extra valuable lessons she is impressing upon her students. Dr. Lydia Dever is one of those fine educators available here at Life University whose teaching extends far beyond the sometimes suffocating walls of the classroom.

The greatest lessons of life often follow tragedy. On Memorial Day weekend 2009, Dr. Dever was faced with a near-death experience. After a horrific motorcycle accident, Dr. Dever ended up under a heavy-duty pickup truck’s back tire. Though in critical condition, thankfully she was still alive. The accident left her with a long list of injuries: a pelvis broken in four places, a diagonal fracture from its base to S2, two damaged ligaments in her right knee, a broken middle finger, a fifth-degree separation of her right shoulder, four broken ribs on her left side, her clavicle had become hyper-mobile, moving in front of her sternum, and a lacerated bladder.

Coming back from such trauma was not an easy feat. Questions flew around campus wondering whether Dever would ever be strong enough to return to campus or her practice in Kennesaw. She was able to leave the hospital June 19th, ahead of all the doctors’ expectations, wearing a pelvis fixator, which resembled a towel rack.

Dr. Dever’s healing progressed quickly with support from the Life community, her family and friends, daily adjustments by practice partner, Dr. Tomasello, and physical therapists. Her recovery was difficult. It was easy to push herself physically too far and she would end up paying the price through increased pain and/or fatigue. Her strong will gave her the drive to persevere.

Dr. Dever returned to the classroom last October, a mere five months following her accident, with a modified schedule that allowed her a break after teaching a class.

In November, she sought out the expertise of DC student, Brandon Shriner, to help further with her recovery. Shriner is a personal trainer at the Wellness Center, and a TRX expert. (TRX is a suspension trainer developed by a Marine that is designed to be used anywhere there is a tree or tree-like structure). When Shriner started working with Dever, she could not even start on the TRX. She had to start with simple workouts that focused on core strengthening and stability and increasing range of motion. He took a neurological approach to her workouts, to get the brain-body connection balanced. He managed this task by using exercises that unveiled Dever’s weaknesses so she built up weaker muscles instead of overdeveloping stronger muscles thereby preventing her increasing the gap between stronger and weaker muscles. This helped reduce setbacks in her reconditioning. The exercises were analogous to a chiropractic adjustment – specific and precise.

While working out with Shriner once a week, Dr. Dever also had occupational therapy to increase her shoulder range of motion in order to help propel her workouts. She did cardio on her own, had soft tissue work done, and of course, adjustments.  Shriner concluded that, “All of the soft tissue work, adjustments, exercise, love and support, etc., created a body fit for healing so that God could do His work.”

A person’s true colors come out when forced to deal with adversary. Dr. Dever’s true colors have a lot to teach anyone who is blessed to come in contact with this fascinating woman. Shriner got to experience more of that than anyone. Shriner states that, “I learned more from her than she did from me.” He saw her fight harder than any other person in her sneakers would have, “I wasn’t going to let her quit. A lot of people would have thought, ‘It’s okay to quit because I’ve come this far.’” Dr. Dever’s drive to recover was not for self-seeking reasons. No. Her feisty desire was to be back in the trenches to serve chiropractic. Dever was anxious to get back to serving her patients. She had students waiting patiently for her return to the classroom. She is a great example for the school, her students, her patients, the chiropractic profession, and especially women chiropractors. Through her life story, she emanates what chiropractic stands upon, ‘To give. To do. To love. To serve.’

Changing Leaves, Tides, and Lives – Jason Feltz, Student Publisher

Fall is my favorite season. It’s the time of year for college football, opened windows, campfires and family get-togethers. It’s the last season, before the dead transition to winter, in which you can wrap up your annual goals.

This quarter started the fall season of my DC student career as well, as I have reached the outpatient level of clinic and I’m preparing to be a chiropractor. I have one year left, one chapter to write, and a bunch of tests to complete before I am the doctor that I have always wanted to be. There are many loose ends to tie up and decisions to be made, but at the same time I have reached the pinnacle of my learning experience and I’m going to be making the most of it. In working with the general public in the outpatient clinic, I am sharpening the

clinical skills necessary to be an effective chiropractor.

My sister Kayla is now in her first quarter of the DC program. I can’t tell her that time will fly or slowly pass by. I can’t tell her how difficult or easy her path will be, only, that along the way she will be in a vacuum of like-minded individuals and she will enjoy the transition that I have endured if she wants to. First quarter for me seems to have been so long ago, and yet sometimes it seems like it was only yesterday that Dr. Demons was “cha-chinging” me. Now I feel as though I am caught in a transition from being a student to being a person in the “real world.”

It took pressure and time for me to adapt to this student lifestyle, and I think it will take some time for me to transition from being a student to a member of a common community.

Now that I am an upper-quarter student, I feel something of a disconnect with the rest of the student body. Many of the students I had known on campus are in the process of, or have graduated. I see many new faces on campus without the time I once had to form new relationships.

In this last year, I will be relinquishing some of my leadership roles while hoping to find replacements. At the end of winter quarter we will have a new Vital Source student publisher. There will be a new leader of the golf club come spring quarter, and I’m going to need a student(s) to take over the planning of next year’s Chiro-Games. If you are interested in such positions please contact me. Enjoy the warmth that is left this fall season, the cold winter is coming!