5 Ways Chiropractic Care Can Help Fight Stress

Did you know that over 40 million Americans suffer from anxiety? As it turns out, chiropractic care can be very helpful in battling the harmful effects of stress and anxiety. An Amesbarry Chiropractic chiropractor lists some reasons why in this article.

How Does Stress Affect The Body? 

Stress and anxiety basically poison the mind, body, and soul. They may not start as physical: you may be worried about your job, your relationship, your family, your finances … the list goes on. However, they can definitely take a huge toll on the body. 

The Mayo clinic delved into this topic, citing research that connected anxiety with several concerning physical effects. 

These include the following: 

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Digestive problems
• Headaches
• Muscle tension and pain
• Heart disease, heart attack, high blood pressure and stroke
• Sleep problems
• Weight gain
• Problems with memory and focus

What Does Chiropractic Care Do?

Chiropractic care is focused on the alignment of the spine and nervous system. These act as information highways for your body: they are constantly sending and receiving messages to and from every single part of the body. The nervous system controls and coordinates all bodily functions. 

Misalignments in the spine are known as subluxations. Think of trying to send water through a kinked hose: some may get through, but it definitely won’t be flowing as it should. Just like that kink in the hose, these can block and disrupt signals that go back and forth between the brain and the body.

Chiropractic care realigns the spine, therefore opening up the flow of communication through the nervous system. Chiropractic care won’t address any of the external issues that cause stress. What it can do is reduce the physical effects and help you keep from internalizing it. 

How Does Chiropractic Care Help With Anxiety?

While the root causes of anxiety may not be medical, the effects of anxiety on the body certainly are. By helping ‘unclog’ your nervous system, you’ll at least get the stress out of your body. This can then help your mind start to relax, almost as though it were starting a positive feedback loop. 

Here are some of the physical benefits: 

Hormone Release

The body is a complex system, which in a way functions as its own ecosystem. Your body produces natural chemicals, such as enzymes and hormones.. These must be balanced correctly in order to maintain good health. One benefit of chiropractic care is that it triggers the body to release its own natural feel-good hormones, such as oxytocin and cortisol. In fact, the body responds to chiropractic adjustments by releasing ‘happy’ hormones, such as oxytocin. Oxytocin, also called the cuddle hormone, is associated with feelings of love. It is often released when mothers and children snuggle, or even when people cuddle their pets. These hormones lower stress, help reduce social anxiety, and generally just contribute to an overall improved state of being.

Lower Blood Pressure High blood pressure is quite common among people with anxiety. Anxiety and depression can both contribute to high blood pressure, which, as you may know, is very harmful to your body. This can become a downward spiral, as the stress of dealing with medical issues only adds to anxiety. Chiropractic treatments can help put the brakes on rising blood pressure, allowing you to get that tension out of your body. This isn’t just heresy: quite a few studies have indicated lower blood pressure may be a benefit of chiropractic treatments. This may in turn lead to a calmer, healthier mental state.

Tension Relief As you may know, anxiety and stress often manifest in some very physical ways. Muscle tension is one of the most common ones. Chiropractic care can help relieve muscle tightness and stiffness, making it easier for you to rest and relax. 

Reduced Headaches Did you know that chiropractic care can help prevent and reduce headaches? Muscle pain and neck tension often go hand-in-hand with headache pain. Chiropractic care has been shown to be effective in alleviating these issues. (Check out our prior blog for more information on this.) 

Good Sleep Getting enough rest is very important! Of course, it’s hard to sleep when your mind won’t stop running, or when you’re in constant pain. Anxiety and insomnia often feed off one another, in a negative Catch 22. Not getting good sleep and/or not getting enough sleep, will only add to issues such as stress. The effects of chiropractic care often include better sleep, which will in turn help improve your overall well-being.

Balance Hormones Your nervous system is your body’s natural communication system, carrying messages between your brain and the rest of the body. Your spinal cord is crucial to this process. Spinal misalignments can interfere with this process, leading to hormone imbalances and other issues. This can definitely play a huge role in anxiety levels! 

Is Chiropractic Care Proven To Help With Anxiety? 

There have actually been studies on the effect that chiropractic care has on anxiety. One study examined 21 people who had anxiety and high blood pressure. They were given one of three treatments: active chiropractic treatment, placebo chiropractic treatment, or no treatment. The patients who received active treatment had less anxiety and lower blood pressure after. You can read more about that study here.

Of course, chiropractic treatment is most effective when it is one part of a holistic self-care routine. This would also include things like nutrition, exercise, massage, and even meditation. Together, these things can all make a big difference in the fight against anxiety.

How Can Chiropractic Treatment Treat Anxiety?

It’s important to note that chiropractic care isn’t recommended as the sole—or even primary—treatment for anxiety. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to treating anxiety, as it is an extremely complex condition that is often fed by a multitude of factors, many of which are external to the body. That said, chiropractic care can help alleviate symptoms. It can also reduce the tension and discomfort that anxiety often causes.

Many people ‘hold’ stress and anxiety in their backs and necks. You’ve likely experienced that tight feeling that stress causes sometimes. When your muscles lock up, it can affect your circulation and disrupt the body’s hormonal balances. Stiff muscles can also pull on your spine or neck, pulling you even more off-kilter. 

Managing Anxiety With Self Care

Chiropractic care is ultimately a form of natural self care. There are no drugs or chemicals used: the key is to help the body help itself. In this case, it does that by reducing the physical tension, neck and back pain, and other issues that anxiety can cause or contribute to. 

Massage can also go a long way in helping ease anxiety. If you’ve ever had stiff muscles, you may have found that a good massage is extremely relaxing. Both massage and chiropractic care can work very well together, and can be powerful tools that can help you reduce your stress and anxiety—or at least, the physical manifestations of them—and get to a happier, healthier place overall. 

For more information, reach out to our Savage, MN chiropractic care center. 

Make An Appointment At Our Savage, MN Chiropractic Care Center

Are you suffering from neck or back pain? If you want to learn more about chiropractic care, and the many ways it can be beneficial, please do not hesitate to reach out to us here at Amesbarry Chiropractic, your Savage, MN chiropractic clinic.