Developing Your Sixth Sense?!
Can chiropractic help develop your sixth sense? Well, not in the way you might think (ie, the throwback “I see dead people!”), but it will certainly assist you to tune in with your body awareness, which can affect so many areas of life!
Chiropractic works with several “almost” senses that increase the awareness of our body and how it’s working. The three “near senses” I discuss most often with patients include the following: vestibular, proprioception, and interoception. Our vestibular system keeps us upright and balanced while sitting or standing. Proprioception is a sense that lets us know where all of our body parts are in space. Interoception tells us about what’s happening within the abdominal cavity so we can feel our organs… is our bladder full? Or is our stomach empty and growling?
Within our vestibular system, our inner ears send signals to our neural structures that control how our eyes move… this is necessary to maintain our desired position in space. A disturbance of this can create dizziness, balance issues, etc. Chiropractically, we see challenges in this area frequently - children who fall often or have trouble riding a bike, and even older adults who are prone to balance problems. As we find proper posture and joint motion in the upper spine, this allows our vestibular system to send signals more clearly.
Proprioception gets classified within our sense of touch.. It is very particular; when our brain knows where all of our joints are in space, proprioception works properly. This awareness of the brain and joints helps us gain body awareness that allow for very precise movements, as we see in gymnasts who can flip and jump on a beam, or football players who can keep their feet in bounds while contorting their upper body to catch a pass. Proprioception allows us to avoid injury, improves sports performance, and helps us feel better. Why? Several reasons. First of all, proprioception helps drown out the signal of nociception, or pain. Also, when the brain can find the joints, everything can relax, decreasing the defensive posture that can put a lot of tension on our joints and muscles and create pressure or stress. Proprioceptors are located in all joints, with the largest amount in the upper neck, followed by the ankle, and the sacroiliac joints.
The final “almost” sense we will explore is called interoception. Interoception helps us know what is happening within our body, especially in the abdominal cavity where most of our organs are located. It tells us when our bladder is full, when it’s time to have a bowel movement, or for those expecting moms it tells us exactly which organ baby’s parts are pressing on. Interoception that works properly helps us heed our “gut feelings” and stay in tune with our internal environment.
The “almost” senses, when working properly, help us heed our body signals with more ease and create better balance, improve joint motions, decrease pain, and help with sports &/or physical motion! If you feel out of touch with your body, chiropractic may be just what you need.
