Can Chiropractic Help With Energy?

Burnout, exhaustion, fatigue. We hear these words all the time in our busy, bustling society. The body is a machine, and when the body does not function properly, it can affect how we are able to live our lives. We can often feel tired or overwhelmed, but when our body is stretched to it’s limit, we can because exhausted, and exhaustion can wear on the body’s overall health. Many people seek out ways to help manage their energy levels such as drinking a caffeinated drink, or making sure their bodies are well fed with fuel, but what causes this fatigue and what are the best ways to combat it?

Understanding Fatigue

Fatigue is defined as extreme tiredness or weariness resulting from mental or physical exertion. This can make a person feel weak and sluggish and can cause them to struggle to complete their daily tasks. Over time, constant fatigue can have a wear not just on the body but on the mind as well, causing problem solving and critical thinking to become more difficult. If you have ever lost a night of sleep, you know that the next day you feel groggy and the easiest assignment can feel like climbing a mountain

Fatigue can be caused by a multitude of reasons. Often times it can be traced back to a lifestyle habit such as poor sleep habits or lack of exercise; sometimes fatigue can be a symptom of depression. Unrelenting fatigue can even be a symptom of a deeper issue. Fatigue is a common symptom of sleep apnea, and can also be a sign of physical stress and mental stress.

Studies have shown that sleep deprivation and the fatigue that accompanies it produces impairments in cognitive and motor performance equivalent to legally prescribed levels of alcohol intoxication. So if you’ve ever not driven your car because you had an alcoholic beverage, sleep deprivation can be just as dangerous and detrimental to your mental state!

Acute fatigue is a somewhat common condition that will resolve after getting the body the true rest it needs. Chronic fatigue is different.

What is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?

Chronic Fatigue syndrome is defined by the Mayo Clinic as extreme tiredness and fatigue that lasts for at least six months, and although symptoms will worsen with physical or mental activity, they won’t ever fully improve with rest. This over time can result in headaches, muscle and joint pain, trouble with concentration, memory difficulties, forgetfulness and headaches.

Fatigue and the Nervous System

Chronic fatigue has been associated with increased sympathetic hyperactivity and reduced parasympathetic nerve activity. The nervous system has two sides of it, sympathetic and parasympathetic. The sympathetic nervous system is the gas pedal of the body; controlling your fight or flight response. The parasympathetic nervous system is the side of your nervous system that is the brake pedal; it allows you to rest, digest, and recover. And if the body is suffering from constant fatigue, this can result in the body functioning improperly and keeping your body on high alert when there are no tigers to run away from. This high stress wears not just on the nervous system but on all systems in the body. And the decreased nerve activity on the parasympathetic side means that it will be harder for the body’s systems to recover and rest.

How Chiropractic Care Can Reduce Fatigue

Chiropractic care can very effectively help address issues with your body that may be draining your energy levels without you even being aware of it. Chiropractic adjustments can help your body have more effective rest, by restoring proper balance and relieving pain, thus making your body more comfortable and your sleep more restful and recharging. Bettering your sleep habits can lead to higher energy levels.

Chiropractic care is also greatly effective at combating chronic pain, which can wear your body down and lead to you feeling exhausted. Chronic headaches, low back pain, shoulder tension, all of these can add to a feeling of tiredness in your body, but chiropractic adjustments help find the root of these issues, giving your body the relief it needs, and take it from poor functioning to optimal functioning.

By prioritizing your spinal health, chiropractic treatments will work to help your body stay properly aligned, reducing physical symptoms of fatigue and helping your overall body function. People under chiropractic care often find that they have more energy and significant improvement in their ability to rest and recover. Even the change of finally being able to have a good night’s sleep after chiropractic treatment can be the best thing for treating fatigue.

And with more intense causes of exhaustion, such as chronic fatigue syndrome, chiropractic care, specifically chiropractic adjustments serve to help better communication of the central nervous system by relieving nerve interference to allow balanced and even communication to be easier for the body to accomplish. Working to reduce nerve interference on the nervous system will help the parasympathetic and sympathetic sides of the nervous system find better balance and reduce stress on the whole body, finally allowing your body to rest and recover as it needs.

Which will you choose?