This is the third post in a series. You’ll be a little lost if you don’t start at the beginning…

When I went back to the doctor and told him everything that was going on, his first suggestion to me was giving me an antacid for the burping, and a prescription for an MRI of the brain for my headaches and lightheadedness. Wow, that is just what someone with anxiety needs, isn’t it? A chance to believe that she could have a brain tumor!! I started crying as soon as I left the doctor’s office, and nervously called my mom. She sympathized with me, and suggested – for the last time – that I see a chiropractor.

My mom had been visiting a chiropractor for years at this point, and she really believes in holistic health care. In fact, at this point in time, she was working on becoming certified to be a holistic health coach with Integrative Nutrition. I did NOT want to get an MRI, as I had a roommate and co-worker who was diagnosed with a brain tumor right around the time that my anxiety started the year prior, so I went home and googled chiropractors in the area. Guess what?? The first one I found was called Living Well; the website explained that the doctors are believers in Jesus, and the name has a double meaning – to live well, but also that Jesus provides the water of life. I knew immediately that’s where I wanted to go.

So far I had been blessed with Christian doctors, but when I met Doctor John I knew that he was different. Our first consultation, he listened to me explain all of my various symptoms until I didn’t have anything else to say. This was a huge answer to prayer, as every night I would have gastrointestinal, neurological, and hormonal issues, and not know who in the world to call, which doctor to go to, or whether I just needed to go to the Emergency Room as soon as possible!!

Instead of recommending immediate changes or giving me a bunch of prescriptions, Dr. John asked me to continue doing everything I was already doing. He ordered a hormone saliva test (you spit into a few different tubes during one day at home, and mail the test back, and they send you a report of your hormone levels), and encouraged me that I didn’t need the MRI; it would just make me more anxious (he was right!). I knew that I needed change in my life, so instead of going to see the counselor that my GP recommended, I asked my mom if I could do a health coaching program with her. We set up a weekly appointment, and I started being able to breathe again – figuratively and literally. It was then that I finally started to get on the right track.

There are so many people, adjustments, and techniques that helped me. I want to go into more detail about all of them, so that if you (or a friend) are in the same position, you have some practical places to start. For now though, I’ll just share a little more detail about the things I’ve already mentioned. Next week I’ll share one last post with some of the other things that helped me.

Chiropractic care – I highly, highly recommend seeing a (preferably Christian) chiropractor if you have any kind of pain, a lot of issues going on, or want someone to give you more personalized care and attention.

Chiropractors don’t have the same training as general physicians, but they have a holistic approach, that looks at your entire body and the underlying systems and factors that may be affecting your health. I do believe it’s still wise to continue seeing a “regular” doctor (GP), but a chiropractor is often able to hear out more of your problems, and often suggests lifestyle changes and herbal medicines instead of just turning to drugs, like “doctors” are prone to do.

Of course, chiropractors, in addition to hearing our your problems and helping you approach health holistically, they do manipulate your spine to fix sublaxations – places your spine is out of alignment. Chiropractic care is safe (obviously make sure you go to someone you trust, who will not force an adjustment), and it’s not just “cracking your back.” It feels amazing if you have neck or back pain! But it’s not limited to that, like I said. Each vertebrae on your spine is linked to health in a different part of your body. So, if you are out of alignment in one area of your spine, it could be affecting the health of your stomach, adrenals, heart, etc. Everything in your body is linked!

Health Coaching – One of the biggest catalysts for change in my health was participating in a health coaching program. It may seem obvious that I would submit to a health coaching regime from my mom, since she had just started her business. However, the final straws had to be drawn for me to visit a chiropractor as well as ask my mom to coach me.

The program was excellent, but it only worked because I wanted to change. I had an open mind, I was willing to learn, and I eagerly tried the techniques my coach taught me. I think that’s the only way health coaching can work. A health coach is sort of a personal trainer for health. A coach or trainer can’t do the work for you, they can only advise you to put in the effort yourself. You have to have the motivation to show up, and put into practice what they advise.

Through health coaching, I learned a breathing technique that helped restore calm (and breath) when I was anxious. Your brain needs oxygen to function; if you’re holding your breath or not breathing deeply, you’re not going to function as well. In addition to visualization techniques, we discussed the importance of eating beans, different ways to eat greens, how to do self-care, and I achieved my three-month goals right on time. It made me feel empowered and confident to work with a coach to achieve health goals; I learned to love my body and value the state of my health, and place importance on working towards my health goals.

That’s it for now… I’ll share the rest next week! {Update: View Part IV here}