The Next Ten Years!!!

What does the future hold in store? None of us can know with certainty, although some predictions are possible. Stock market indexes will rise. Then they'll fall. Then everyone will hope that the indexes will rise again. Hemlines will fall. Then they'll rise. Then in two or three years they'll fall again.

The French have a saying for all this - plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose. The more things change, the more they stay the same. But is this really true? Superficially, it appears as if things have changed a lot in 10 years. The Internet exploded. Cell phones are everywhere. In the United States an African-American man was elected president. Longstanding dictatorships were toppled in the Middle East.

But if we look below the surface, not much is different. Cell phones are primarily used to indulge in time-wasting chatter. The Internet serves three main functions, all of which embody the most mundane aspects of human existence - as a shopping mall, a center for interminable and meaningless gossip, and a convenient platform for gambling and other illicit activities. The U.S. federal government is embroiled in policy debates which have stagnated for more than 40 years. Global geopolitics appears similarly entrenched.

So the French saying gets it right. The more things change, the more they do stay the same. But if this is true for us personally, the existential bind we encounter can have disastrous results. If in ten years our lives are exactly the same as they are now, if neither growth nor development has taken place, what is the point of it all? If nothing I do makes any difference, why do anything at all? Why exert any effort? Of course, many people find themselves in exactly this position. Personality disorders are the direct result of such ennui. Many global pharmaceutical companies have been built on the billions of dollars spent annually on antidepressant medications, anti-anxiety medications, and sleep aids by millions of people in great distress.

But the next ten years have the possibility of being gloriously impactful.^1,2,3 Things do not necessarily remain the same. The actress Betty White has reinvigorated her career at age 89. Jeff Bridges won a Best Actor Academy Award at age 61, highlighting a 40-year career. The 2010 Best Original Screenplay Academy Award went to the 73-year-old first-time winner David Seidler. Leon Russell, the beloved musician/songwriter, was recently inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Well into his 60s, Russell observed that he had been "lying in a ditch on the side of the highway of life" when he his career was suddenly, unexpectedly resurrected by Elton John.

In the next ten years, for us, anything is possible. But in order to move beyond the "same old, same old" we are required to make a choice. Another old saying, "if it's going to be, it's up to me", remains true today. We need to make choices on our own behalf, choices that will further our growth and development and the growth and development of our loved ones. We can create a spectacular next ten years.

¹Fosha D: Positive affects and the transformation of suffering into flourishing. Ann NY Acad Sci 1172:252-262, 20093

²Bunkers SS: A focus on human flourishing. Nurs Sci Q 23(4):290-295, 2010

³Culbertson SS, et al: Feeling good and doing great: the relationship between psychological capital and well-being. J Occup Health Psychol 15(4):412-433, 2010

PMS Again?

You’re cranky, tired, achy and irritable. You feel bloated and you cry easily. You crave salt and chocolate and you say things you really don’t mean. The scale tips upward and your mood shifts are even making you feel like you’re crazy! Ah yes, it’s your favorite time of the month – PMS, premenstrual syndrome, is raging once again and your family has headed for the hills. What makes you feel this way?
No one really knows what causes PMS, but it is thought to be largely hormonal and may occur due to elevated estrogen levels, decreased progesterone levels, and the hormonal interaction with other brain chemicals. It generally occurs two to 14 days before the first day of your menstrual cycle, and symptoms tend to subside once menstruation begins.
Classic PMS symptoms fall into two categories:

• Physical, such as bloating, weight gain, headache, backache, fatigue, breast tenderness or swelling, increased appetite/cravings
  
  
• Emotional – such as irritability, depression, mood swings, panic attacks, bouts of crying, tension, hostility

There are many non-drug alternatives that reduce the severity of or even relieve PMS symptoms, including:

• Dietary changes, including increasing your intake of leafy green vegetables, fish with omega-3 oils (tuna, salmon, shellfish), grains, lean proteins
  
  
• Exercise, because it releases chemicals in the brain called endorphins which are natural mood elevators that help reduce bloating and weight gain
  
  
• Frequent hydrating, by drinking plenty of water you actually reduce swelling/bloating
  
  
• Stress reduction techniques, such as prayer and meditation, yoga, deep breathing, or spending time doing a favorite hobby or activity
  
  
• Chiropractic care, shown to be helpful in relieving many PMS symptoms in several studies^1,2,3 when receiving two to three adjustments during the weeks leading up to the onset of the menstrual cycle.

If you’re plagued with the symptoms of PMS (or know someone who is), call our practice and arrange to come in and speak with Drs. Philip Afghani and Melissa Ferranti. Hear our success stories in caring for patients with PMS.


¹Thompson, P.R.,Fisher, B.L., Carpenter, P.A. et al. Effectiveness of spinal manipulative therapy in a treatment of primary dysmenorrheal: A pilot study. JMPT, 1979, 2,pp.140-145

² Liebel, N.A. & Butler, L.M. A chiropractic approach to the treatment of dysmenorrheal. JMPT 1990,13 pp. 101-106

³ Stude, D.E. The management of symptoms associated with premenstrual syndrome. JMPT, 1991, 14, pp.209-216

Health Is No Accident!

When we get sick or experience various aches and pains, it’s tempting to look for causes outside ourselves. The most convenient culprits:

Bad luck. Accidents often fall into this category—being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Germs. Blaming a cold or flu on germs overlooks one critical ingredient—being a hospitable host!

Genetics. The new fall guy is "bad genes.” Yet, research shows that gene expression is a reaction to our environment.

Thankfully, we live in a world of cause and effect. Every symptom has a cause. And as tempting as it is to look to outside causes, many health problems are the result of our own choices, beliefs and habits. Sometimes the effects can take decades to appear.
Ill health is not an accident, but the result of your body’s inability to accommodate physical, chemical or emotional stress. Similarly, good health results when your body works the way it was designed to.