Most of the time, when we go to the doctor, we go because we’re suffering some sort of illness or pain and want to feel better. Sometimes, we also go to maintain our health and well-being. But whatever our reason, we’re usually going to help support ourselves.
I want to talk about the benefits of working on the health of your whole family as a unit.
All of us are part of some sort of family. Whether we live alone, or with husbands, wives, partners and children, we’re members of some greater web of people. We have parents, siblings, cousins, even dear friends. We affect them, and they affect us.
Wouldn’t it make sense, then, to look at the health of our families as a whole, as well as the health of the individual members? Rather than pretending that an individual’s health has nothing to do with the health of the group, I believe that working with several or all members of a family can have considerable impacts beyond what could be achieved by simply working with one member.
Let me give you an example. Let’s say a mom comes into my practice for an adjustment. Her spine is out of alignment because she’s feeling particularly tense. She hasn’t been sleeping well and she’s frequently grumpy because of it.
If I’m looking at her in isolation, I can give her an adjustment for her spine, and suggest she take magnesium to help with sleeping. But what if we widen the perspective to look at the whole family?
Her husband comes with her for the next appointment. He’s been cooking dinner for the family for the last few weeks, because his wife is working overtime on a deadline at work. Almost every night, he makes some sort of pasta for dinner. When we digest pasta, the white flour turns into sugar in our stomachs. In this case, it’s giving mom an extra kick at night, making it hard to fall asleep.
When we look at these factors together, we see that a lot of mom’s original complaint is coming from circumstances that involve the broader family situation. Once we realize this, we can take steps to change it!
Quite often, if we’re feeling unwell, our families have some role in what’s going on. Conversely, a healthy family can be a major asset in enhancing your own wellness.
I’ve built up much of my practice around the idea of working with all members of the family—from the parents to the children to the baby. I love seeing everyone come in, and seeing how much better they all feel after an adjustment. The good vibes seem to bounce from one person to the next.
So many of us feel like we have to do everything on our own. In life and in wellness, I believe it is better to approach most things as a we instead of an I. The difference can be profound.