The Top 10 Parent Questions About Pediatric Chiropractic
#1 WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU GUYS DO? (BROAD, OPEN-ENDED QUESTION)
We bring a very unique approach to health care not offered by any other kind of practitioner. We are not only distinctly different from traditional pediatricians and medical doctors, but we are also quite different from even natural medicine, functional medicine, wellness doctors, and traditional movement-based therapies like PT and OT.
What makes us most unique is our 100% focus on the central and autonomic nervous system. The nervous system is an intricate network that encompasses the brain, brainstem, spinal cord, and millions of nerves that branch from the NeuroSpinal Network to every tissue, organ, and cell in the body.
“The function of the nervous system is to perceive the environment and coordinate the behavior of all other cells.”
-Dr. Bruce Lipton
Meaning, the nervous system is the “boss” or as we like to say, the “mom” of the body. Moms know everything, coordinate everything, keep it all organized, and keep things moving at all times. Get in a mom’s way, and the whole thing suffers.
Well that’s what chiropractors work with – the thing that gets in the way.
As Pediatric Experience Chiropractors, we are doctors who really understand the true root cause of what causes our kids to get so sick and so stressed. And then through that understanding, we understand exactly what it takes to restore health to a child who’s lost it (no matter the condition or diagnosis), and for wellness patients and families… be able to preserve, protect, and promote health for good once we have it!
So what’s that “root root” cause of our kids’ chronic illness and struggles these days? We call it “The Perfect Storm” – a phrase coined by Dr. Tony Ebel all the way back in 2008 when he first started to notice that before environmental things like toxins (gluten, dairy, medications, vaccinations, etc.) even showed up in a child’s life, two (2) other major elements had already been occurred for 90% of their sick and struggling patients:
Prenatal + Maternal Stress
Birth Intervention + Trauma
Those two things show up in 80-90% of cases of colic, reflux, constipation, eczema, ear infections, RSV, croup, etc. in infants… and then from there while pediatricians continue to inappropriately tell parents they’ll “grow out of it”… the truth is, they don’t.
Because those two early life and neurodevelopmental stressors trigger what’s known as subluxation, where the central nervous system “shifts” to running on sympathetic fight-or-flight mode almost exclusively. Over time, this leads to another condition called dysautonomia.
Because subluxation, dysautonomia, and the function of the nervous system is not only the “missing link” that very few parents know about yet, and because it’s the single most important element of our health (even more important than diet, detoxes, etc.)… it’s the core foundational focus of all Pediatric Experience Chiropractors.
It doesn’t matter if your child struggles with digestive, immune, neurological, behavioral, emotional, focus, or really any sort of challenge – give Pediatric Experience Chiropractors a chance to help! When you focus on the one system that makes every other system work, you get some seriously incredible benefits. Just look at this chart below indicating all the incredible changes our pediatric patient’s experience when under neurologically-focused care!
If you’re interested in getting started, learn more about our 5- PX Clinical Process here.
#2 WHAT EXACTLY DO THE SCANS MEASURE?
While no one loves to talk neurology, science, and technology quite like us – we’re going to keep this one super simple for you.
Our INSiGHT Scans measure one thing – stress.
The nerd terms for that stress on the nervous system are subluxation and dysautonomia, but all you need to know is that when your child’s nervous system is stressed out and stuck in fight-or-flight mode at all times – it cannot develop appropriately, fight off illness, control gut function, and stay healthy.
So our INSiGHT Scans do three (3) very important things for us:
Find out if your child’s nervous system is sick, stressed, and subluxated or not
If so, quantify and measure how much stress and subluxation is there, and how long it’s likely been there
If so, locate and help us track down exactly where the subluxations (stress and interference) are within the NeuroSpinal System
The other great thing about our INSiGHT Scans is that unlike the majority of medical testing, it’s so easy, painless, fast, and simple. Literally, it takes only 15-20 minutes in most cases, and since the scans are reading and receiving neurological information from the body, there is absolutely no radiation or input at all like an X-ray, MRI, or CT scan would have.
These scans truly are incredible, and once we have them… things just keep getting better!
Once we have your child INSiGHT Scans, we can now sit down with you at that Report of Findings visit and layout a fully personalized and customized Care Plan for your child. Your child’s Care Plan will let you know exactly how long it will take to restore your child’s neurological health, how many adjustments, and exactly what to watch for and expect along the way!
It’s through our INSiGHT Scans that we truly can provide you with the Hope, Answers, and Help you’ve been looking for all along!
#3 WHAT EXACTLY DOES AN ADJUSTMENT DO?
Just like we did with the INSiGHT Scans question above, we’ll keep it nice and simple on this one! We will provide more technical explanations and demonstrations before you get started with care, but this answer will help you understand exactly what an adjustment does (and does not) do!
The coolest thing about a neurologically-focused adjustment is that it essentially does two things at the same time:
It reduces and releases that built-up stress and tension (subluxation)
It activates and stimulates the healing capacity of the body by bringing the autonomic nervous system back into balance
The adjustment is not the fix, and certainly not the cure. The only way the body heals restores, and cures are on its own. But, it can’t get that job done with interference to the master control system that organizes and controls all of that healing and health promotion – the central and autonomic nervous system.
Think of the adjustment as the “catalyst” or “jump-start” to the neurological healing that has been stuck and limited inside your child, likely since birth.
Done in the Neuro-Tonal Model that we are trained in, adjustments do not hurt and they do not have any side effects either. In fact, we always like to share that any “side effects” that we do have are all good!
Most parents report that their child sleeps better and has much better gut and immune function after getting care, even if those were not the original issues they sought our care for in the first place!
#4 HOW LONG DOES AN ADJUSTMENT TAKE?
Yet another awesome thing about chiropractic is how fast the adjustment process really can be and should be honestly.
While many other amazing helpful options like physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, ABA, counseling, and so forth can take an hour or more per appointment… adjustments literally take 5-10 minutes max most of the time.
That’s because when you know exactly where and how to stimulate the central nervous system with a Neuro-Tonal Adjustment, you can get a ton of positive change happening in a matter of a few minutes!
Now the one tricky thing we are always upfront with parents about is that while the adjustments themselves don’t take long per visit, most kids are so stressed and subluxated – that they need a high frequency of adjustments starting out.
This can vary from 1-2x per day for the toughest of neurological disorders (autism, epilepsy, etc.) to just 2-3x per week for more common things like Sensory Processing Disorder, Sleep Challenges, Constipation, and so forth!
Neuro-Tonal adjustments are so easy and relaxing many infants fall asleep during them, and many other kids simply can’t get enough… fighting with their siblings to hop on the table first and not wanting to get off once the adjustment is done!
#5 HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO SEE RESULTS, AND HOW WILL WE KNOW IT’S WORKING?
The answer to this one really depends on the condition and its severity and chronicity, which we can measure through their INSiGHT Scans described above. But, to cut right to it for most kids it doesn’t take long at all to start seeing positive changes and results!
Our kids were designed to be healthy, resilient, and adaptable. And that adaptability is exactly what neurologically-focused chiropractors work with, so we often see changes pretty quickly even in the toughest of cases!
The first changes we look for and typically see are what we call neurological “soft” signs. These are things like improvements in sleep, digestive motility, immune function, motor planning, coordination, and emotional regulation.
We will communicate with you all along the way as to what changes to really look for in your child, when they may occur, and what they mean.
Additionally, the most important thing we look for to know we’re on the right track and headed towards some amazing results is once again within our INSiGHT Scans! One of the other incredible things about the scans being so fast, easy, non-invasive, and affordable is that we can run them on a regular basis.
We will run a Progress Scan on your child every 3-6 weeks (or 3-6 months for wellness patients) and in doing so, ensure that neurological healing and restoration is occurring right on pace and as expected!
One thing we always notice especially in tougher cases or older grade school and teenage cases is that the INSiGHT Scans will often start to see change and improvement before symptoms do. This can be frustrating for families, as of course, we all want to see our children’s suffering fade away and go away fast. But having these scans is crucial to know we’re on the right track even in tougher neurological conditions.
#6 DO WE REALLY HAVE TO COME IN THAT OFTEN?
One thing that can confuse parents when they start to look into Pediatric Chiropractic is that there seem to be a few different models or methods out there. Just like in the rest of health care, there are various specialties and levels of expertise. And with that can come variation in the recommendations for care.
The one thing that truly does set our Pediatric Experience (PX Doc) Chiropractors apart is their understanding of what’s called neuroplasticity. Or simply put, the science of neurological health and healing.
No different than how it takes time, frequency, and repetition or being in class and doing homework for a child to excel in school, or hundreds of hours of practice for a child to become great at a particular sport… getting and staying healthy is no different.
The most important phase of the Care Plan that we will put forth for your child is the initial starting out phase. This phase must have a high enough frequency of adjustments per week to be able to get the child’s nervous system out of that stuck and subluxated state.
While many general family wellness chiropractors may recommend just 1-2 visits per week or something as low as one time a month or maintenance care, what we now know is that due to the high levels of stress and toxicity we all face these days… that kind of care first developed in the 1970s and 1980s by chiropractors just doesn’t cut it.
As families today we all seem to have busier schedules than ever between school, sports, and perhaps other specialists and appointments your child may need. That is why our office promise to work step-by-step with you to make sure your child gets the exact level of care they need, all the while making it convenient and accessible for your whole family!
#7 DOES INSURANCE COVER THIS?
Sadly no, not even close.
Traditional “health” insurance has nothing to do with your child’s health really. It’s there really for urgent and crisis care, which is really what the traditional medical system excels at. Whereas they struggle mightily at caring for chronic health conditions and keeping kids healthy in the first place.
Therefore it’s probably better to look at it as “medical” insurance more so than its traditional term, health insurance. With that, chiropractic care is only covered by insurance carriers when they deem it to be “medically necessary” care. And they’ve limited that care to really just adults with back pain, neck pain, auto accidents, and other injuries.
The kind of neurologically focused, health-promoting, and restoring care that Pediatric Chiropractors provide is not considered medically necessary.
By focusing on the root cause of the problems and seeking to get kids healthy without the use of drugs and surgery, we are officially “out of the club” and not really welcomed into that highly corrupt and frustrating industry.
Which on the surface can be disappointing, but really when you look at it differently – is good news! Whenever medical doctors and insurance carriers get involved they try to dictate and control what you can and can’t do to get your child healthy. Instead of parents making the decisions, they do.
Well, after a generation or two of them running the show – we’ve now got a generation of kids with more chronic illness, mental health disorders, autism, diabetes, obesity, anxiety, and depression than ever before.
We will put together a personalized, customized care plan made just for your child. And since they don’t have to mess with all the red tape and inflated prices the insurance industry brings about, you’ll be pleasantly surprised just how affordable chiropractic care can be for the entire family!
#8 DOES THE “TECHNIQUE” MY CHIROPRACTOR USES MATTER?
Once again we don’t want to get too technical, but yes this is an important element to know about. Chiropractic as a profession has over 100 different techniques, and all of them have slight differences that make them unique. However, they are more similar than they are different for the most part.
What may surprise you is that truly the best chiropractor you can find for your child and family is one that does not limit themselves to just one technique or two.
It probably won’t surprise you to understand that every child and every condition is different and unique. As such, we can’t expect just one clinical approach to work for every child.
That is why our PX Docs are trained to use a multitude of various adjusting techniques, using the PX Clinical Process to really hone in and decide exactly which one(s) will work best for your child!
This is where true clinical expertise and experience come into play, and you can trust that we are the most well-trained and prepared Pediatric Chiropractor out there for you and your child!
#9 CAN I GET ADJUSTED TOO?
Only if you ever get stressed out, worn out, struggle to sleep, get tension headaches, have gut and immune issues, back and neck pain, and so forth! And since most parents are full of energy and rarely get stressed out or worn out, you probably don’t need it!
Believe us?
Yeah, definitely just kidding… and you definitely can get care as well mom and dad!
In fact, perhaps the single most important factor in the health of our kids is this – our health.
No matter what it is, our kids don’t really do as we say – they do as we do.
If they see us making poor health choices and always stressed out, worn out, and sick… then that’s what we can expect them to go towards as well.
Therefore, really taking charge of your family’s health doesn’t just start with getting your child adjusted and under care with the right chiropractor, but by doing so yourself!
Get scanned, get started, and start to enjoy all the benefits of neurologically-focused chiropractic care yourself mom and dad! You literally won’t believe how good you can actually feel, even with your busy schedule and all the demands of work life, family life, and so forth.
#10 WHAT ELSE SHOULD I BE DOING TO HELP?
Is there anything more overwhelming than jumping into that “Holistic, Crunchy, Natural” Moms Facebook Group and asking for help!?!
For real, most parents have already been through the medical system ringer of pediatricians, specialists, and 3-5 therapists before they really get online or reach out and look for a different path. And when they do, oftentimes it’s impossible to even get started because there are so many options and recommendations, it’s just flat out overwhelming and paralyzing.
This is yet another way we will help change your family’s life in a huge way!
Our docs are not just experts in the nervous system and neurological health and healing, but they are wellness doctors too.
What may surprise you is that in nearly every single case they’ll teach you this very important, very stress-relieving (and time and money saving) truth – less is more.
When your child is really stressed out, sick, and subluxated it’s important to actually “slow down to speed up” as our Chief Hope Dealer and lead health guide Dr. Tony Ebel always says.
After running a fully integrated, multi-faceted clinic outside of Chicago for many of his early years in practice, Dr. Tony discovered one key thing that very few doctors of any specialty or approach know about – the order with which we do things matters most.
Breaking that down a bit means this – the nervous system is the boss.
If your child does not have a fully functioning central and autonomic nervous system, then all of these other major systems will be dysfunctional and “offline” so to speak:
Motor System – limiting the benefits of PT, OT, Speech Therapy, etc.
Digestive System (Gut) – limiting the benefits of detoxes, diet changes, supplements, etc.
Immune System – limiting the benefits of certain vitamins, supplements, essential oils, etc.
Mental + Emotional System – limiting the benefits of talk therapy, counseling, etc.
What’s really exciting is that once your child gets through their Neurological Restoration Plan with us, it opens up a whole new pathway to health and healing for your family!
Nearly every PX practice including ours offers all sorts of resources, workshops, and educational opportunities for you and your family to learn all about natural health in every form or fashion.
We’ll help you know not just what else can help your child heal, but most importantly – when is a good time to get started with other options and approaches!
This article appeared on PX Docs.