Wondering if you’re ready to actually say goodbye to your chronic neck or back pain?
It’s not a question I hear a lot but it’s worth asking. And the truth is, if you’ve never really committed to putting yourself first, before, and made your well being a priority, the commitment can seem intimidating.
- You don’t have the time in your schedule!
- You can’t afford it!
- Nothing else has worked, why would something else?
It’s completely understandable, too. No one wants to put all that effort in only to experience the same disappointment as with other approaches. But don’t let that stop you!
- Imagine for a moment what life would be like without having the pain that has limited you for weeks or months or years. We get used to pain but that doesn’t mean it isn’t exacting a toll on you physically and emotionally. What would life be like?
- Neck and back pain are associated with the development of spinal arthritis that is called Degenerative Joint Disease. If nothing is done to slow this process down it progresses faster and faster. It’s a little like the uneven wear on the tread of tires. The more uneven it is the faster it wears out.
If you’ve been feeling like you’re ready to put yourself first and overcome the limitations of your chronic pain, you probably are getting close!
To help you decide, today I’m sharing a few ways to know if you’re ready for your first to take action.
This way you can focus on taking the most effective steps to start shifting the cause of your pain – without experiencing any aggravation of your condition..
(And if you’re not ready yet, you’ll know what you need to do!)
Let’s dig in.
4 Ways You Know You’re Ready to Correct Your Chronic Neck or Back Pain
Only you can say for sure whether you’re ready to take your first step in defeating your pain. As I mentioned above, if it’s been heavily on your mind lately, you’re probably in a good place to start researching your options, at the very least. You may even find that you’re more prepared for it than most people who take the first step but aren’t really committed.
To help you decide, here are a few tell-tale signs that show you’re more than ready to say goodbye to your pain.
- You’re more and more upset at missing the activities that you either can’t do or know will only cause you to suffer later on.
- You are more and more aware of your inability to do some of the simple things – from lifting something from the trunk of your car to getting up off the floor.
- It seems like more and more of your time is taken up managing your condition rather than simply living.
Readiness Sign #1: Other people have stopped even inviting you to certain activities
Have friends or family members stopped asking you to participate in activities that aggravate your pain?
This is why it’s so helpful to take control of your own destiny and trust in your body’s ability to overcome your condition.
When I first started seeing a chiropractor, I didn’t feel I was ready for it but a family friend cared enough to make the referral and tell me how much he had helped her.
When I was 18 I was the driver of a car hit head on by a car that made a turn in front of me. Back then you could unplug the seatbelt alarm so I did. My head struck and broke the windshield. For more than a year I suffered with neck pain, headaches, back pain, fatigue, difficulty concentrating, and more.
Look at me now, my experience led me to chiropractic college and more than 3 decades later I’m still practicing. Every day I get to share the power of the body to heal with the people who come to see me. I still get adjusted most weeks and I’ve cultivated other practices that support my ability to participate in all the activities I love.
If you are ready to take the next step but don’t know of a corrective care chiropractor, try asking friends and coworkers. You can even try asking dr. Google and read reviews and look at websites. Given the circumstances and any frustrations you are experiencing, would you say you’re ready?
Always trust the amazing capacity of the body to heal.
Readiness Sign #2: You are missing those special activities more and more
You may not feel it now, but your intuition about taking action sooner rather than later will always steer you in the right direction.
So if you think you’re ready for overcoming the burdens of pain but struggle with what your first step should be, it can be hard to admit that any action is better than no action.
Inaction can be debilitating and paralyzing. The less action we take the easier it becomes to stay where we are, even when it isn’t working for you. I know my decision to seek out chiropractic was life changing in many ways.
Here are a few ways to push past it:
- First, if you keep doing whatever it is you’ve been doing that isn’t working, nothing is going to change. If you want it to change you have to take action.
- Next, imagine what it will be like over time as your condition worsens, as your arthritis progresses. Because it will!
- Finally, think back to a time before this pain and how you felt and what you were able to do. There is no rewind on life but you can always improve on where you are.
Now, it is your choice. Whether you change and take action or not is your call. It is your life and make the calls.
In the words of Albert Einstein, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”.
Readiness Sign #3: You’ve thought about doing something different for a long time
Sometimes big decisions come easy because we really want what the decision could bring.
That can feel exhilarating in the moment when you reach that point, but many times it’s preceded by a long time of being unable or unwilling to take action.
So when that happens, you need to decide what would be the worst thing to happen if you took decisive action to get better. Often we are paralyzed by indecision when there is little to lose and much to gain.
I see new people on a regular basis who have suffered with the same problem for many months and often years. When I ask them “Why now?” they often respond that they have reached the end of their proverbial rope and that it’s time to care for themselves.
If you’ve tried the over-the-counter and prescription anti-inflammatories, considered injections, done the physical therapy route, gave traditional chiropractic a go, and all fingers point to trying something different, it could mean it’s just time.
For example:
Physical Therapy and short term traditional chiropractic didn’t work. But, looking back on it they never really formulated a plan to attempt to correct as much as possible and never really discussed the concept of imbalance and balance.
In either case, if there’s no other way to reach that place of significant relief and more importantly better function, it may be time to give Corrective Rebalancing a try. What do you really have to lose?
Readiness Sign #4: You have already done the work to know what doesn’t work!
Now that we’ve covered some of the mindset signs that will help you determine if you’re ready for Structural and Neurological Correction, it’s time to cover some practical reasons.
Before you commit to applying yourself to significant change, there are some things you’ll need to have in place. It makes little sense to start the process of correction without the right attitude. There are no guarantees in life except that if you don’t make a change your long term pain is unlikely to change.
The program I’ve put together, the Corrective Rebalancing Program isn’t difficult but it does require a commitment on your part and daily effort to make changes. Think about it, where in life can you make significant changes without sustained effort?
I understand if you’re a little hesitant, even scared. This is your decision. How is what you have done thus far working? Do you really think if you continue doing what you’ve done to this point that anything significant will change.
Here’s how you’ll know that the Corrective Rebalancing Program will be a huge success:
#1. We won’t accept you as a patient unless we feel there is an exceptional opportunity to succeed.
We can help almost everyone but not always to the same degree and I like to be upfront about expectations. I don’t ask anyone to commit to a long term program without some expected benchmarks of improvement.
After a history and exam and any other testing we will have a conversation to explain our expectations and answer any questions.
It bears repeating that unless you do something different it’s unreasonable to expect anything to change. It doesn’t have to be with me and Life Chiropractic of Grass Valley. If you want change you have to change something.
Here’s what I mean:
Not a week goes by that I don’t see a new patient that has tried a number of other approaches. The most common are acupuncture, chiropractic, physical therapy and medicine. More often than not the description they give me of what has been done leaves me stunned.
Often the exam had no chance of identifying what the cause was and the treatments were the same that everyone else gets.
Here’s the link to the above post: Are You Out of Balance?
#2. What I’ve been talking about in this and other posts makes sense.
You don’t have to have a background in science or healthcare for something to make sense. If you really stop and think about the practice of medicine how much of it makes sense?
Doesn’t the fact that the body is forever striving for balance or homeostasis make logical sense? And, if your structure is out of balance putting stress on the nervous system, nerves, muscles, and joints it is going to cause problems.
Anything mechanical, like spinal joints, left in a state of imbalance will wear out at an accelerated rate. It’s the cause of accelerated tire wear and also a huge contributor to degenerative arthritis.
If you’re not quite there yet, here are a few things you can do:
- [Step 1.] Do your own research online and visit groups of people with similar challenges
This is especially important if you are considering an invasive procedure.
If you are in Nevada County, CA and want to learn about Life Chiropractic check out the google reviews. - [Step 2.] Check out the website of different practitioners. Understand that websites are marketing tools but the language used and the descriptions and philosophy will give you a good sense of their intentions and methods. The Life Chiropractic site is www.LifeWithinChiropractic.com
- [Step 3.] Schedule a complimentary consultation on the phone or by person. It helps to meet someone you will work with. Do you feel comfortable with them? Is there a sense of trust?
- [Step 4.] Make a decision and move on. If it’s not right, it’s not right. Find someone else. If it is right there’s no better time to start than now.
#3. Make sure you have the space in your life to commit to yourself. Often we spend a lot of energy and time serving others and we only get what’s left over.
It’s easy to complain about how miserable you feel and how much of life you are missing out on. And, it’s justified.
But, it can be challenging to put yourself first and schedule the rest of your life around your needs. If you don’t take care of yourself you can’t be very effective caring for others.
Readiness Sign #5: You have a plan f
or making sure nothing will get in the way of your journey of healing
Now, I can hear you saying, “What if this or this happens?”
You know the saying…”Sh*t always happens!”
And that’s absolutely true. Having said that, it’s critical that you have a plan for staying the course and not stopping and starting. Because it’s going to happen!
Nothing comes easy, right?
It wasn’t until I realized the power of consistency and routines in my self-care that I stopped riding a roller coaster of flare ups.
Here’s what you can do to prepare so you’re ready for it:
- First, always look at your daily and weekly schedule and find times for both office visits and self-care in your day to day life.
- Get in the habit of using reminders and alerts to keep you on track.
- Remember that this is about you and more importantly for YOU!
- Be ready to work through those times when it might not seem like things are changing or changing enough.
- Have a discussion with your practitioner about what reasonable expectations are.
Having a plan like this, even if it’s only in your head at this point, will help you stay committed to yourself and your journey of healing.
Standing in between you and starting your program: The Doubt Edition
Usually, the biggest thing standing in the way of your wildest dreams isn’t something external. It’s actually between your ears, your own doubts.
Some common concerns I hear from my clients are:
- I’m not going to get better. I’ve had this for so long!
- How is this different from everything else I’ve done?
- I’m not sure I can afford this! (often another way of saying I’m not worth it)
Does any of that sound familiar?
The best way to clear those concerns up is to spend some quiet time alone and get clear on your “why”. Why do you want to escape the pain you’ve endured for so long in the first place?
Make a list of all that your condition is costing you in your life. What do you have to change or avoid? What are you unable to do?
Make another list of everything that would change even if your pain and limitations were reduced 50%. How would your life be different?
Standing in between you and Pain Relief: Real-Life Obstacles
Real-life obstacles are some of the most obvious challenges you’re going to face with the commitment to support yourself through the process of healing.
We’ve already covered common obstacles in this post, but you likely will have some challenges that are unique to your situation, resources, and life.
The good news is, you can do it. With a big enough reason you can accomplish amazing things. This is within your reach.
And remember, when you’re ready, you’re ready.
If you find that you are doing everything possible to avoid taking action, you know that you’re not quite ready to make the commitment to getting well. And that’s okay, just keep setting the stage for it and you’ll get there.
That’s a wrap!
I hope this post has helped clarify
If you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed, I understand as it is a big decision.
Have a question about anything I covered today? If you’re considering if this is for you consider scheduling a complimentary 15 minute consultation here Schedule Here.