McDermott Chiropractic Care, P.C.
141 Main Street
2G
Prince Frederick, MD 20678
Structure and Function A Balanced Life
“I have a body and I am grateful, as I find it to be a very useful instrument for expressing love, strength, flexibility, grace but, I am not my body…”– Kate Mullane Robertson
Our body is the means by which we are able to fully manifest and express the intricate and unique aspects of our own personal experience of life. Effective mobility depends on a balance of strength/stability and flexibility in a coordinated sequence to achieve any physical task. If you have ever experienced a painful area of your body, you can easily understand how smooth balanced movement is impaired and you feel quite limited in normal daily functions.
The shape and structure of our spine allows for movement needed for effective function. A specific example is the thorax (area from neck to waist). The thoracic section of the spine has comparatively little flexion for bending forward, back and to the side. This area supports the rib cage, which encloses many vital organs. Here there is less flexibility and more strength/stability, providing maximum protection for the vital organs.
On the other hand, the shoulder is structured to afford the flexibility of maximum range of motion in all directions to bring the arm and hand to an intended location. The magnificent structural design of the human hand with the opposable thumb (for gripping and pinching) offers a functionality that sets us apart from other primates. This ability opens almost unlimited creative possibilities for us.
We create multiple masterpieces daily with our hand. A fine cup of coffee, well constructed plumbing systems, a new path for blood flow (in surgery) and beautiful pieces of crystal glassware, to name a few of the infinite possibilities. Without the supportive networks of biomechanical sequences, this could not take place.
This perspective and appreciation of the structure and function of the body and the implications for realizing human achievement and happiness, make my practice of chiropractic rewarding and interesting. When a patient's functioning is impaired by pain, I work to improve or remove the discomfort.
If pain is throwing your life out of balance, let your chiropractor help restore your biomechanical, musculoskeletal balance and things will surely improve! As Lena Horne once said, “It's not the load that breaks you down, it's the way you carry it.”
