Poor Sleep and Subluxations. Can Chiro Help You Sleep?
Do you struggle with getting a good night’s sleep? Does deep sleep that leaves you feeling rested seem elusive to you? You might not immediately think of Chiropractic care when you think of a good night’s sleep, but wait just a minute before you reach for those meds that promise you rest. Your body knows how to sleep, it may just need a few adjustments, ok pun intended, so that it can do what it knows how to do.
What is Sleep Disturbance?
First let’s define sleep disturbance so we know exactly what we are discussing. Do you have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep? When you wake up are you still tired? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you have a sleep issue! You may not even realize you aren’t getting good sleep; but if you are waking up tired, your body isn’t getting the quality of rest you need, even if you are sleeping what you consider enough hours.
Sleep disturbances can be due to many different things but two of the main issues are discomfort and stress.
Poor Sleep As a Result of Discomfort
About 80% of the patients that come into our office report sleep disturbances due to symptoms such as headaches, neck pain, low back pain, joint pain, radiating pain into arms or legs and restless legs.
With good Chiropractic care you can experience a decrease in discomfort caused by spinal issues. When your body is no longer in pain due to misalignment, your sleep will naturally improve. Headaches and migraines due to spinal issues will also improve with adjustments and you won’t be tossing and turning because of a pounding headache anymore!
Within the first month of care, the number one improvement that the majority of patients tell us is improved sleep. When your spine is aligned, your whole body will experience less pain and discomfort and sleep will come more naturally. Your brain will also be able to communicate more effectively to the rest of your body, sending those sleep signals and hormones without interference.
Poor Sleep As a Result of Stress
Stress is also a major contributor to sleep issues. Have you ever been exhausted, but when you go to lay down, your mind is racing and you toss and turn for hours? This is due to stress! Sometimes our mind and body struggle to get into a relaxed state where we can sleep. We want to shut down those racing thoughts but they just won’t stop. This is due to your body being stuck in a state of fight or flight where your sympathetic nervous system is engaged.
Our bodies and minds can get stuck in highly activated states and don’t receive the messages that we are safe and we can rest. Chiropractic helps balance the nervous system so you can switch out of fight and flight (sympathetic nervous system) and get to rest, digest and repair part of the nervous system (parasympathetic nervous system).
Chiropractic has been proven to reduce levels of cortisol- one of the stress hormones our bodies produce. With regulated cortisol levels, your body will be able to naturally relax. No more tossing and turning due to high cortisol levels throughout your body.
Poor Sleep and Toxic Overload
Toxins in food, beauty products, household cleaning products and the environment can also contribute to insomnia and poor sleep quality. Chiropractic can help with this as well. When your spine is adjusted, your body is able to release toxic chemicals that were trapped around a misaligned spine. Once these chemicals are released your body is able to detox and flush them out. This helps contribute to a better night’s sleep.
Poor Sleep Due to Colicky Babies
Maybe your poor sleep quality is simply due to the fact that you are a parent and your baby isn’t sleeping well. If you have a baby with colic and you are up half the night with a crying infant, you have come to the right place. Chiropractic can work wonders for babies’ sleep issues and is proven to significantly improve the symptoms of colic. Simple, gentle adjustments to your infant’s spine are perfectly safe and can help clear up digestive issues by realigning the nervous system to aid in proper digestion.
Good chiropractic care is a simple and effective solution for better sleep for your whole family.
At WellSpine KC, we are committed to helping you achieve whole body wellness and sleep is a huge part of that. If sleep is a struggle for you, we are here to help. Call us today to set up a consultation to discuss how we can help improve your sleep.
