The holiday season is upon us!

Have you noticed that half your office is sick?

Well, that’s because the holidays encompass all 3 types of stress:

1. Physical

2. Emotional

3. Chemical

Stress zaps the immune system which makes you more vulnerable to infection. One easy action to boost your immune system is to come in for an adjustment. The Preventive Medicine Institute found people under long term chiropractic care had much better functioning immune systems.

Let’s look at physical stress first.

During the holidays, you travel more. Usually, that means long drives or plane flights. Both of those are stressful and aggravating. There is also the packing, wrapping, loading, getting in and out of planes, trains and automobiles. A little of this is fine, but it is way more amplified this time of year! You also may be sleeping in different beds with different pillows. Your exercise routine often changes or gets completely abandoned. You also are most likely putting up and taking down decorations, cooking more, cleaning more, socializing more and generally not getting the same amount of rest that you are used to.

So what can you do to manage the physical stress?

Here is what we suggest at WOW:

• Maintain some kind of exercise routine every day- even for just a few minutes.
• Take your own pillow with you when you travel.
• Get a lower back support air cushion for flying or driving. You can use it in two different ways that help undo that back stress. Just ask us at the desk or give us a call. We have a great one that many of our patients use!
• Get an adjustment before and after travel! You would be amazed at what a difference this makes. If you can’t make it before you travel, get in as soon as you can after you get home. You will be glad you did!

Bottom line:

Your body knows how to heal itself, and it will if you take care of it.

Keeping your spine in alignment is one of the most powerful things you can do to help the energy of healing do what it needs to do.

Take care of your body and you will have a much better holiday (and most likely not get sick). We’re here to help!

Dr. Julia Keiser