In the last article we identified a hierarchy of approaches to health. Success leaves clues and if you observe the healthiest people in the world, you see that they approach ‘health care’ much differently from those who struggle.

We also looked at the first rung on the hierarchy ladder – Symptom Treatment. The value of symptom treatment is that it can buy us some time to get through a crisis so that we can heal and regain our health at a later, safer time. The challenges with symptom treatment are that it does not consider the underlying cause of the problem and very often actually harms our long-term health.

Moving beyond symptom treatment, we come to the next level on the Hierarchy of Health. That approach is Addressing the Cause. An individual with this approach to health may experience the same back pain or headache as someone who just pops a pain killer but will take significantly different actions.

A person who addresses the cause understands that a headache isn’t caused by an Advil deficiency. That a muscle doesn’t just ‘spasm’ for no reason. That high blood pressure is a sign of something deeper going on.

While addressing the cause seems like a great idea to virtually everyone, it is not employed by nearly as many people as you would think. The reason for this is that it takes more work than just treating a symptom. It requires you ask different questions and it typically requires more action over a longer period of time. It is more work to pull out the dandelions by their roots than just chopping off their heads with the lawn mower.

Our office sees many people who first come to us with back pain, neck pain, and headaches. Most of them have spent a significant amount of time merely treating symptoms. After examining their spine and nervous system we often see significant structural distortions and a hyper vigilant nervous system leading to muscle spasms and/or weakness, organic issues, and even shifts in mental/emotional well-being.

Does addressing the abnormalities in the spine and nervous system take more time and effort than treating the individual symptoms? You bet. Is it worth it? I think so.

The added bonus to addressing the underlying cause is that people will usually notice that other, more subtle problems that they may not have even been concerned with start to improve also.  In our office, while most people first come to us with some sort of pain concern they quickly report more energy, better sleep, better athletic performance, faster healing, enhanced digestion, better mood and other conditions resolving. Why? A healthier nervous system leads to a better functioning body.

Unlike symptom treatment, when we address the underlying cause our overall health improves at the same time.

So, if you are not getting the results you desire when it comes to your health, perhaps there are some areas where you can look at addressing the cause, as opposed to – or in addition to – just treating symptoms? How might your health be different if in the past, when faced with a challenge you had taken care of the cause right then and there?

How much better would your lawn look today, had you pulled the dandelions by there roots 5 years ago?

In the next article we will take the next step in the hierarchy of health and look at Prevention.

Thorin Gault, D.C.

It is my belief that deep down, everyone wants to be healthy. On top of that a tremendous amount of time, energy, money, and resources are spent on health related endeavours. Just pick up a newspaper, turn-on a TV, eaves-drop on conversations in Tim Horton’s, or take a good look at your last tax bill. We are a society obsessed with health!

Clearly, whatever we are doing is NOT working. People are sick, in pain, lacking energy and vitality and are medicated to the gills. They are also frustrated. The situation of our children is even worse. Why is this happening? There are some very simple, yet all pervasive societal mistakes that have led us to our current situation.

1. We are not clear on what we want. I have worked with thousands of people in my office over the past 12 years. When I ask new patients what they want from care, most will tell me they want some sort of relief – from pain, symptoms, disease, anxiety, depression – whatever. This is almost NEVER true! After a few questions it becomes clear that they don’t care that much about the pain or symptom – they care greatly about the impact it is having, or may have on the future on their lives.

What they really want is to be able to participate fully in life. To work, to play, to have fun, to love, to support their families, to interact with people, to grow, to contribute. They want to be healthy and happy! Fortunately, NSA care works to help the person become more adaptable and resourceful as an objective – pain and symptoms often improve as a side effect. Sometimes the patient or practice member’s quality of life improves so much that they don’t care about their symptom because they are too busy living life!

It is important to know what we want before making decisions in any endeavour. Marketers have done a great job in convincing us that relief equals health. I am here to tell you that is bull$#%. Know the outcome you want. This brings us to our next reason most people are not healthy.

2. We sacrifice health for relief. Following reason #1 this is no surprise. Assuming that a pain, symptom or disease is a sign that something is off with your health, wouldn’t it make sense that your next step would be to focus on your health and not the symptom? How many common, accepted treatments focus on your health? If you have a headache and take a pain killer are you getting healthier or sicker? If you have your gall bladder removed, are you healthier after?

Studies show that the more “treatments” you receive, the faster your quality of life will decline – even if the procedures are successful.

The next time you seek treatment for anything, ask yourself if it will add or detract from your overall health. Obviously there are times when we may choose a health harming treatment in order to save our lives – this makes perfect sense and I recommend it. For most people however, these are emergencies that may occur a couple of times in our lives. Otherwise seek out interventions that ADD to your health on a regular basis. Better yet, focus on building health and vitality whether you have a problem or not. This leads to our final reason.

3. We don’t take action. Being healthy requires healthy action. Being wealthy requires actions of the wealthy. Great relationships require great relationship action. Most people do not consistently take healthy action and therefore most of the population is unhealthy.

It is my belief that one of the most deadly ideas in our country is that health care is free. Subconsciously this is often processed as health is free. This single idea has ruined millions of lives. YOU are responsible for the health of yourself and your family regardless of what challenges may be present. You must have a plan and you must carry it out.

Where you focus your time, money and energy will determine your health and quality of life. Trying to get healthy by avoiding disease is like trying to get rich by avoiding bankruptcy. Focus on your health.You are worth it and so are your loved ones.

If you are one of the many people frustrated with your health and happiness, it is never too late. First, get clear on the highest outcome you hope to achieve. Then seek out ways you can get there. Finally, take massive and consistent action. You will be there before you know it.

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Spencer Johnson