Lesson 7- "Expand your box."
Fundamental Edict:
"Everyone needs chiropractic care. Not everyone needs YOUR chiropractic care."
Recap:
Lesson 6: "Act from a place of abundance"
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Identity Crisis
We were now cruising along and the new practice was growing and the model of the O Institute was expanding.
Every day we were getting calls from people who wanted to get their health and lives back on track.
We had people who couldn't get out of bed because they were so tired.
People suffering from various chronic conditions like irritable bowel, high blood pressure, heart disease, type 2 diabetes.
We had people whose stress was interfering with their sleep, their sex lives, and even their mood.
The interesting part was when they arrived, they still had a classic understanding of chiropractic as being doctors who "cracked your back."
Now to be fair, that is what chiropractors are best known for; we call it the "chiropractic adjustment."
So it took us some time to explain to people that it was much more than that.
That chiropractic care was just one component of what we were trying to do to change their lives.
Eventually people got it but it led to a whole new problem; our identity.
People started having a very tough time trying to describe who we were and what we did to all the friends and families they were trying to refer to our office.
He is a chiropractor right? Yes but more than that.
Okay so they do some nutrition and herbs? Yes, but it's not for symptoms but to sort of rebuild your body.
I don't get it.
So here we were once again trying to explain ourselves.
Who were we?
What did the O institute really do and how could it be simply explained to others?
Existential questions, I know.
But aren't existential questions in your life fun?!
We had to help people start thinking outside the box of what they were used to.
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Outside the box
It's not easy to think outside the box.
What does that even mean?
To me it means thinking beyond what you currently understand.
Example: the current healthcare model is where I see a doctor when I have a problem and he helps to solve that problem.
This is a reactionary model. It has been that way for decades, even centuries.
That is the existing box.
Nowadays, there is a push towards "preventative care" but I would argue that there is no true prevention happening and rather it should be called "early detection care."
My examples are:
colonoscopy
mammograms
prostate exams
annual blood tests
Basically, all these exams are ways to "detect' something that has already started happening or has happened.
But that's NOT prevention.
Prevention by definition is YOU NEVER GET IT. as in you prevented it from happening.
If I prevent a car accident, it never happened.
It doesn't mean that I got to the accident scene early.
Thinking outside the box would be a truly preventative model where people understood that their lifestyle choices would actually prevent future negative health effects.
Prevent high blood pressure.
Prevent heart disease.
Prevent cancer.
A simple, obtuse example would be like cirrhosis of the liver from excessive alcohol.
You know how you prevent that?
YES! Don't drink excessive alcohol and you will NEVER get cirrhosis of the liver. Voila!
It's a little trickier with health "conditions" but certainly doable.
Let me explain.
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Testing
The evolution of medical testing and gadgetry is amazing.
In the last half century, we have developed X-ray, MRI, genetic testing, stool samples, hair analysis, saliva testing and so much more. We can pretty much test for anything if you have the money. However, these tests are expensive.
At some point, all this testing will become so inexpensive that it will be a normal part of an annual check up, but right now it isn't.
But there is one thing that is very inexpensive that can tell you your relative risk for any future health ailments...you family history.
Your genetic makeup comes from your family history.
Your genes are passed down from your parents, grandparents, etc. So if your mom or dad had high blood pressure, there is a pretty good chance you have a higher risk of developing high blood pressure too.
A new vision
We envision a new box, where the model is true preventative medicine, using information and testing to determine what real risks you have and how to significantly reduce or eliminate them with simple lifestyle changes.
Epigenetics
Epigenetics is the genetic code above-( epi) your DNA code.
This grouping of code in your genes control up to 70% of the expression on your genetic markers.
What does that mean?
It means if you have a family history of high blood pressure, the epigenetic code most likely determines whether that gene is turned on or off.
So pretty important.
So, why do I care?
I'm getting to that.
The research shows that epigenetics is modulated by lifestyle:
food
exercise
stress
toxin exposure
sense of purpose
your gut microbiome
relationships
and more
.....
Get it?
Isn't that mind blowing?!
You have the power to change the expression of your genes by simply changing your lifestyle!
Here is the kicker- UP TO 7 GENERATIONS!!
I kid you not.
Lesson 7
"Expand your box"
Light bulb!
We went through some major soul searching to try to help with our identity.
And what did we figure out?
We didn't have an identity problem, society had a paradigm problem.
We were not the ones who were confused, everyone else was.
It was our responsibility to hold true to this idea of true preventative or "wellness" care.
Our purpose was to show people that this was a better model.
Our job was NOT to make it fit into the existing model but to break the box altogether so that a new model could be introduced.
We would have some struggles.
To be continued...
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