emotional impact of scoliosis, man struggling with mental health

emotional impact of scoliosis, boise chiropractor


Emotional Impact of Scoliosis

According to a poll recently done by the American Psychiatry Association, nearly 40 million American Adults have some form of anxiety disorder.  On the other end of the spectrum, the National Institute of Mental Health estimates that 16.2 million adults suffer from some kind of depressive disorder as well. With that being said, nearly 18% of the adult population in the United States has anxiety and 7% suffer from depression. Many people seek help for mental health problems, including counseling, medication intervention and even physical exercise to help alleviate symptoms associated with the disorders. Not many people know that seeking help from a Chiropractor could also highly benefit them and managing their symptoms.

Physical symptoms of anxiety and depression are associated with a remarkable list of symptoms that Chiropractors have been known to help people with for over 100 years. These symptoms include:

  • Headaches
  • Neck and lower back pain
  • Muscle aches and tension
  • Trouble sleeping
  • Fatigue
  • Shortness of breath
  • Inflammation in the entire body causing achy joints
  • Digestive problems
  • Inability to relax

But how does chiropractic care help to alleviate some of these symptoms? Seeking guidance from a CBP-trained chiropractor that is trained to adjust your spine and train it to be in the normal alignment can help your body’s natural response to hormones associated with depression and anxiety. Spine alignment influences every region of the body and studies show that getting adjusted can increase oxytocin and Neurotensin. These two hormones are shown to reduce pain from stress and help form positive connections in someone’s life. Getting adjusted also helps decrease the ‘stress hormone’ cortisol. Cortisol is a hormone that decreases pain in the short term, but many people with mental health issues suffer with chronically high cortisol. Getting adjusted can help get these hormones in balance.

Insomnia is also a byproduct of these two mental health problems and making sure your spine is in proper alignment will decrease tension and stress in the nervous system, promoting proper sleep. As a CBP trained chiropractor, many of our patient’s self-report sleeping better and getting better quality of sleep following their mirror-image adjustments and traction.

Not only can mental health have a direct influence on your body, but spinal conditions such as scoliosis can also have a negative effect on your mentality. According to many studies, people with scoliosis have a higher rate of mental health issues and suffer from problems like lower rate of social participation, lower marriage rates and report having lower self-image. According to a 2016 review in the Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, people with scoliosis have a higher rate of the following mental health conditions or quality-of-life issues:

  • Lower rate of social participation
  • Lower rates of marriage
  • Poor self-image
  • Negative self-talk
  • Difficulties finding and keeping jobs
  • Depression
  • Anxiety
  • Personality disorders
stress and spinal alignment
emotional impact of scoliosis, boise chiropractor

There is a direct correlation on spinal alignment and mental health issues. If you believe you may have anxiety or depression and/or spinal deformities that could be impacting your overall health, please call one of our offices to get on the schedule for a free consultation with our CBP-trained chiropractors. We will do our best to find the cause of your health concerns and get you on a path to better overall physical and mental health.

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