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The Life Chiropractic Philosophy


Tim Stackis, DC:

“Thank you for your interest in the Life Chiropractic Philosophy. Below you’ll see a number of elements of Chiropractic defined and discussed, primarily the WHATs, the WHYs, the HOWs, the WHENs of this form of spinal care. Questions after reading? Please contact us for answers or to set up an initial, no-cost, no-obligation appointment to assess your spinal health.”


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THE WHAT: Chiropractic


“Chiropractic is a philosophy, science, and art of things natural; a system of adjusting the segments of the spinal column (vertebrae) by hand only, for the correction of the cause of dis-ease.”

—R.W. Stephenson


Chiropractic’s primary objective is to locate and correct vertebral subluxations (please see THE WHAT: Subluxation below) by adjusting the spine to remove nerve interference and allow your body’s innate ability to heal.

The reality is that every level of human performance is regulated by body chemistry … meaning that everything you do and everything that you are is a result of your body producing chemicals.

It is your brain, through your nerve system, that controls, coordinates and regulates your organs and glands to produce your body chemistry at the right time and place, made in just the right quantity and quality. The bones of the spine house and protect your very delicate lifeline and your spinal cord and related nerve roots (extensions of your spinal cord that divide and re-divide to form a nerve system).

As an objective straight chiropractor, Life Chiropractic’s approach: Locate vertebral subluxations and introduce a gentle force so that your body may make the correction. This correction then allows your brain to properly communicate — to control and regulate — your chemical-producing organs and glands. When your body chemistry is in balance — and ONLY when your body chemistry is in balance — your body can function properly. And when your body functions properly, it can perform the way it was designed to perform: at optimum levels.


THE WHAT: Innate Intelligence

A “living thing” has an inborn intelligence within its body, called Innate Intelligence. It is a God-given, constructive power …

  • that is of perfect quality in all living things,
  • that communicates to establish balance and homeostasis,
    • by adapting to internal and external forces,
    • for the optimal expression of life.


“To express the individualized intelligence which runs all the functions of our bodies during our wakeful and sleeping hours, I chose the name Innate. Innate — born with.”

—Daniel David Palmer, D.C. Founder of Chiropractic


THE WHAT: Subluxation

Basically, a subluxation (aka Vertebral Subluxation) is when one, or more, of the bones of your spine (vertebrae), have lost their normal motion from the vertebrae above or below (move out of position) and create pressure on, or irritate spinal nerves. Spinal nerves are the nerves that come out from between each of the bones in your spine. This pressure or irritation on the nerves then causes those nerves to malfunction and interfere with the signals traveling over those nerves.

With subluxation, Innate Intelligence (please see THE WHAT: Innate Intelligence above) is unable to function at 100%. A vertebral subluxation interferes with the mental impulse which carries vital information to every cell in the body. With this interference, the cell which the impulse is directed is misguided. No longer will that cell be under constant communication and direction from Innate Intelligence. This gives life to a profession called chiropractic.

Without subluxation, Innate Intelligence grows, assimilates, repairs, and reproduces. These actions are precise, multi-faceted, intricate, and largely beyond man’s current understanding. Without subluxation, there is no need for chiropractic.


THE WHY: Correction of Vertebral Subluxations

The objective of the chiropractor is to bring about the correction of vertebral subluxations to allow the nerve system to function better and the individual to express more of what he or she was intended to be.


THE HOW: Chiropractic Adjustments

After analyzing your spine, we’ll introduce a sufficient force into your body to set the subluxated (misaligned) vertebra into motion. Once the bone is in motion, the muscles and ligaments of the spine work to put the bone into its ideal position.

This adjustment, or force, introduced is very simple, yet requires skill and accuracy. Anyone can move bones. Everyone knows someone who can “crack his neck.” Unfortunately, that takes no great skill. The skill and training required to locate misaligned vertebrae and to know when and where to perform an adjustment make this technique and practice unique.

All people will not necessarily receive the same adjustment. Through a spinal analysis, we’ll determine which of twenty-four spinal vertebrae are subluxated and in which direction. The adjustment is then given accordingly. Because of anatomical factors and the similarity of living habits among people, certain areas of the spine are more prone to subluxation than others, such as the upper neck area.


THE WHEN: Chiropractic Care for Children

The reality is that many parents understand the importance of regular checkups for their child’s teeth, hearing, eyes, ears, nose, and throat. But for some reason, don’t incorporate a regular spinal checkup.


If you’ve read the information above — which emphasizes the connection between the spine and the brain — you’ll know that spinal checkups are vital … because running through the spine is the spinal cord, a cable-like structure that contains billions of nerve fibers. And it’s the spinal cord that allows communication between the brain and the body, which controls proper function.

A blockage of any of the nerve fibers along the spinal cord, a Vertebral Subluxation Complex (VSC), will cause a general weakening of your child’s body and a lowered resistance to disease resulting in body malfunction and sickness.

The Vertebral Subluxation Complex can have many causes. A baby’s head is very large and heavy compared to the rest of the body, and special care must be given to the way the head is handled during the birth process. Injuries to the spine called Traumatic Birth Syndrome can be caused by obstetrical procedures. Babies were meant to be pushed and guided out of the birth canal, not pulled and yanked out.

An infant’s spine is very susceptible to injury. Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS), which occurs when a baby is severely shaken, can cause eye and brain damage, blindness, paralysis, convulsions, and even death. It is a cause of post-natal brain damage that most medical doctors don’t even recognize. Chiropractors have been dealing with the effects of SBS for more than one hundred years.

Childhood can be a very physical time. Although physical activities are all part of normal childhood, running, jumping, falls, and accidents can all cause VSC and nerve damage, with potentially serious consequences.

It only makes sense for parents to have their children’s spines checked regularly throughout the growing years.


“I LOVE seeing 
an entire family coming in for regular spinal checkups!”

—Tim Stackis, DC