The role of the nerve system in health is truly profound. Acting as the central communication network, the nerve system governs every aspect of our health and life. The nerve system is critical in adaptation, healing, regulation, regeneration, repair, control, communication and maintenance of all aspects of your health. The nerve system is comprised of the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves. It is the master communication system of the body. It is the conduit for your innate inner intelligence to interact with itself and the outside world. The nerve system enables your body to coordinate the function of every cell, tissue and organ: from digestion to movement, from immune response to emotional balance and everything in between. Signals travel along nerve pathways to ensure effective communication between cells, tissues, and organs. Without this effective communication, your health is vulnerable.
When the nerve system is ‘disturbed’ communication breaks down. This disturbance disrupts the flow of information and eventually symptoms can emerge due to the inability to adapt. Ultimately, your capacity to express health, to its fullest potential, is compromised.
Think of a telegraph line.
You’ve no doubt noticed them on the side of the road and spotted many dotted in the countryside; large posts with wires swinging from post to post. Let’s imagine you are on the phone to a friend and a storm comes through. The line starts to go static because of the interference due to the weather. The messages you are sending each other are not getting through clearly. You hear your friend say I’ll meet you at the park at 10AM but what she really said was I’ll meet you at the pool at 10AM. You end up where you are not meant to be, vast distances away from your friend and what was said.
Your body is no different.
Disturbance to your nerve system occurs due to stress. This stress can be divided into three main areas – physical stress (MOVE), chemical stress (EAT) and emotional stress (THINK). The disturbance is often silent at first, occurring well before symptoms arise. Then over time the body starts to create symptoms alerting you that your health and wellbeing are out of balance. This symptom could be a rash, a cough, a headache, hormonal imbalance, heart attack, stroke, cancer or diabetes etc. The key here is the change in your health doesn’t ‘just happen’ although it will appear like that. The symptom is the result of an insidious erosion of your health over time due to stress. Symptoms are not the cause nor the problem they are the messenger; a signal to alert you that change is taking place and the fine balance that is your health is off kilter.
In a mechanistic approach to health, symptoms are often seen as problems to be diced out, cut out, sliced out, covered up and masked; they simply need to be eliminated. Alternately, in the vitalistic approach to health (Chiropractic), symptoms are seen as valuable. The nerve system plays a crucial role in generating these symptoms, alerting the conscious mind to areas of disturbance and imbalance. Rather than suppress symptoms, at Vital Wellbeing we teach people to observe and understand what they are experiencing. We teach people to recognise the causes (underlying stressors) of their symptoms. We get them to ask the question Where is my life out of balance physically, chemically or emotionally or combinations thereof causing the symptoms. We help people to act and take self-responsibility for their symptoms, their health and their lives.
At Vital Wellbeing we educate through our three pillars – MOVE EAT THINK. The nerve system is influenced heavily by physical factors, posture, exercise or lack of, injuries, habits, electromagnetic radiation, etc. For example, did you know that 60% of your brains focus and attention (all the time) is on how well the spine is integrating and adapting to gravity. So yes, posture is wildly relevant and is getting major disruption by phones and devices and our unnatural preoccupation with chairs. Then there are chemical stresses, from environmental toxins, processed foods, cleaning and grooming products, pharmaceutical drugs and the 40,000 plus extra chemicals in the world that did not exist 50 years ago. And finally, we have emotional stress, which when ramped up activates the nerve system’s fight or flight response. This response shifts the body away from rest, repair, regulation, regeneration and healing. Over time, chronic stress disrupts the nerve system’s ability to maintain balanced communication, leading to further imbalances and reduced adaptive capacity and a reduced ability to express health.
So let us look more closely at how chiropractic fits into this discussion. To do so we need to look at the structures that house the nerve system. The cranium or skull and the spinal column or vertebrae, act like a suit of armor, protecting the delicate brain tissues and nerves that send messages to every part of the body. When these structures are misaligned due to physical (MOVE), chemical (EAT) and emotional stresses (THINK), neurological interference, a subluxation, results. A chiropractor’s focus is on finding and correcting subluxations. The chiropractic adjustment aims to restore structural integrity allowing messages between the brain and the rest of the body to once again flow freely and clearly. The adjustment ultimately results in a change in neurological function. This is the aim of chiropractic, to have your nerve system functioning differently, clearly and optimally.
Think of it this way.
The nerve system is the bridge between perception and reality. The nerve system plays a profound role in how we perceive and interpret the world. Our perceptions—shaped by past experiences, cultural beliefs, and internal narratives—are processed by the nerve system and influence our physiological responses. When the nerve system is clear and balanced, we perceive the world more accurately and respond appropriately. When interference exists, perceptions become distorted, leading to exaggerated stress responses, poor decision-making, and further interference.
The vitalistic approach to health reminds us to trust. The body is always seeking balance; always wanting to express health. When we respect the role of the nerve system and support its optimal function through regular adjustments, nurturing our thoughts, reducing physical trauma, and minimizing chemical exposures we create the opportunity for optimising health.
Your nerve system is the conductor of your symphony. It ensures every part of the orchestra communicates, adapts to changes, and works together. Through the lens of the vitalistic model of health, we understand that the body’s innate wisdom and intelligence flows across the nerve system. When this flow is uninterrupted, the body has the potential to express optimal health at all times.
A healthy nerve system free of disturbance enables the body to effortlessly adapt to life.
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