Hello everybody. As the weeks have passed by at an
incredibly fast rate, another quarter is in the books at Sherman College of
Chiropractic. I am very excited to say I am officially half way done with
chiropractic school: 7 quarters down, 7 to go. It’s hard to believe. This was
by far the busiest quarter due to the fact of taking a normal class load and
the board exams in the middle of March. Below is a list of the seven courses we
completed this past quarter.
1)
Cervical X-ray
positioning- This 48-hour lecture/laboratory course is designed to teach the
student those practical procedures necessary to obtain analytical quality x-rays
of the cervical spine including lateral cervical, A-P Open Mouth, Base
Posterior, Nasium, A-P lower cervical, cervical obliques and cervical
flexion/extension views. Some of these x-rays are EXTREMELY critical for the
doctor to understand the exact misalignment of atlas or axis so the correction
can help your body do what it’s supposed to do; get you well, and keep you
well. This was by FAR my favorite class of the quarter. I would say about 90%
of the class was done in the x-ray rooms practicing and applying what we have
learned about the x-ray views. So, at 8:00 in the morning every day
Monday-Thursday, we are up, moving around, and practicing these views. The
class was always a great start to the day and got us energized and focused for
the hours of lecture classes lying ahead of us. At the end of the course, my
classmates and I feel VERY confident on setting up for x-rays in an efficient
amount of time and knowing how to get the best images possible in order to
properly analyze the misalignment tailored to you.
2)
Full Spine III- This is a
48-hour lecture/lab course in full spine adjusting methods for the sacrum and pelvis.
This was not exactly my favorite course. Although it was an adjusting class,
which I have been very fond of in the past quarters, this class took quite the
toll on our bodies. The entire 11-week course was focused just on the hips
region. A big portion of chiropractic adjustments with full-spine care
sometimes involve A LOT of twisting and cranking. And as students, we have to
practice on each other and demonstrate to the professor on how to do the setups.
By midterms, my sciatica from two years ago (which got me into upper cervical
and introduced me to Dr. Chad) came back in full force. The twisting and
awkward positions must have really irritated my herniated disc and knocked me
off of my feet for a good week or two. After that, I pretty much became a
spectator in the class. Once again, I never want to bash or talk down on full
spine chiropractors during this blog, there’s just other ways of addressing WHY
the body is hurting or not functioning properly than twisting the patient up
like a pretzel and then thrusting into them. Removing interference from the
nervous system, particularly the brainstem region, can be done by applying a
quick, light force without any twisting, cracking, or popping. With that said,
I’m very happy to be done with the course and excited to not have to go through
that again. Some people joke about how chiropractic students have the worst
spines because of all the practice and abuse they go through during the course
of their experience at school, basically having to be practice dummies. I now
find that to be very true. It’s rather hypocritical.
3)
Orthopedics/Neurological
Exam II
4)
Cardio Diagnosis-
5)
Lab Diagnosis II
6)
Physical Exam II
7)
X-ray Physics - This
24-hour lecture/demonstration course addresses the uses and dangers of ionizing
radiation. An in-depth study of the physics involved in the production of
x-rays, their properties, and interactions with matter is presented. Basic
x-ray machine operation, developing procedures and procedures to minimize
radiation to the patient are also covered. With the advanced technology in
today’s x-ray systems, we probably get more radiation by getting a sun tan or
sitting in front of a computer all day under fluorescent lights than actually
getting x-rays in a doctor’s office. As a matter of fact, according to Idaho
State University research, just by living in Denver, Colorado, the population gets
exposed to 50 mrem/year, which is the equivalent of two x-rays of your neck.
That’s just from living there! Not to mention all the ADDITIONAL radiation we
already expose ourselves simply by flying in an airplane, using a cell phone,
sitting in front of a laptop, or driving in a car. The x-ray beam exposure in
and out of the body so fast, the total amount of radiation is very safe, and
minimal. Believe it or not, there is actually research being done by one of my
mentors and professors regarding radiation exposure. Some of their results are
actually showing that minimal amounts of radiation are actually beneficial for
the body. Very interesting findings. Just like everything else of course,
including water, too much of anything can be harmful.
So, those are the classes that my
classmates and I completed this past 7th quarter. Like I mentioned
in our previous blog, we also had to take Part 1 of the national board exam for
licensure. The test was made up of six sections, which covered all of the basic
sciences that were covered in the first 18 months of our education process. So,
how did it go? Let’s just say I will know by the end of April. All six exams
were extremely difficult. But, they are graded on a specific curve system. So,
it is very normal to feel like you failed all six sections by the end of the
weekend. I didn’t feel like I failed all of them, there was really only one
section where I felt like I had no clue reading some of the questions.
Everybody else taking the exams with me felt the same way. There were a lot of
times I had no clue what the question was even asking me, so I couldn’t even
make an educated guess on the four answer choices. My strategy for those types
of questions was to look at my scantron and pick a letter I haven’t selected in
a while, and that was my answer. It was a very difficult exam, but I felt more
confident than I thought I would have coming out. I will be able to give you
folks the results on my next blog this upcoming summer.
During my Spring break, I got the privilege
to hang out with Dr. Chad, my mentor and Upper Cervical Doctor, in Greensboro
for the day at the Natural Triad Health and Wellness annual expo. We spent the
entire morning and afternoon educating folks on the wonders of upper cervical
care and how the brainstem controls and connects all the messages routing from
the brain to every organ, tissue, and cell throughout the rest of our bodies.
During the conference, Dr. Chad also gave a one hour speech specifically on
upper cervical care. It was an awesome learning experience for me. I gained a
lot of confidence by telling the story of upper cervical to so many different
people throughout the course of the event. Although I learned several things from
how to educate patients, to actually scanning the potential patient, to telling
them what their scan means, and why they need upper cervical care; I also
learned a lot about myself and why I am so passionate about what I want to do.
I truly just want to help people. Going back to my original and first blog
entry, if I could help one person have their life changed, how amazing is that?
Two? Three? Just keep on multiplying my excitement. I want to show the power of
the human body, and even more importantly the love of Jesus Christ to anyone
and everyone who will listen to me.
It’s very easy for me to discuss how
Upper Cervical Care could help due to the fact I’m a living testimony. Instead
of telling patients that Upper Cervical Care has seen positive results with
this disease and that disorder, a lot of the times I can just tell my story. I
completely blew a disc in my low back, causing severe, life-altering sciatica.
I couldn’t tie my shoe, I couldn’t go up or down stairs, I couldn’t get out of
bed in the morning without tears in my eyes due to the pain. I was going to a
full spine chiropractor THREE times a week, getting waterbed massages, and
bio-electric stimulation therapy. On top of that, I would drive 1.5 hours to
Mooresville, NC to see a Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor to get acupuncture
and deep tissue massage. I felt like I was running out of options and began
looking into surgical procedures done in Ohio and Texas. Yes, I was that
desperate. Through a friend I went to undergrad with, by divine intervention might
I add, (he never met Dr. Chad and was from Chapel Hill, somehow he knew a guy
who knew a girl who knew a guy who lived in Kernersville?? That’s no
coincidence). He told me about Dr. Chad
and how he receives all these weekly-well beings emails from Dr. Chad. So, I
gave it a shot. It was either this Upper Cervical practitioner in Kernersville
or off to Ohio for surgery. One correction, and my entire body changed… I was
running and tying my shoes and back at work within two-three days. Unbelievable.
So, what
am I trying to get across?
I’m thankful for my injury. I’m
thankful for the fact that I was in so much pain that summer. Through the
injury, God brought me to Dr. Chad and the wonders of Upper Cervical Care. From
there, there was no turning back. I’m grateful for the fact that it bugs me on
long car rides and being in one position for too long causes the sciatica
coming back a little bit. It’s a constant reminder of what I believe my purpose
is. It’s a constant reminder for me to get people well and educate them about
the POWER of their OWN bodies, not any new age medicine or surgery. OUR BODIES
are the best doctors. So, I feel more compassionate and sympathetic to people
who have gone through what I went through. I feel I have that extra push to go
that mile to want to lend a helping hand. And it’s all because of a slipped disc
while lifting a tarp at my dad’s work one summer. Sometimes, bad things may
happen in life. It will cause your faith to be tested, it will make you stronger,
more courageous, build character, become more appreciative, learn from it, and
it will give you the opportunity to glorify God through the misfortune.
So, whatever
you’re going through, don’t give up. If you or a family member or friend is
sick, hurting, or want to perform at their optimal potential, get checked by an
Upper Cervical Doctor. It may just change your life.
On to 8th quarter! 8th quarter is also known as
Pre-Clinic! 9th quarter is known as Student Clinic, and finally 10th
quarter to graduation is just known as “Clinic.” Therefore, I’m close, only a
few more months :-). I’m taking TEN
classes this quarter. I will let you know how it goes when you hear back from
me this summer. In 8th quarter, you are also allowed to begin taking
elective courses. The first elective class I will be taking is called Applied
Clinical Radiology. This course is a pre-requisite for the X-ray Intern program
for students wanting to specialize in taking x-rays and assisting the entire
clinic in the x-ray department including students and faculty during their
clinic experience. By the time I get out of school, I’m going to be so tired of
reading x-rays it’s going to be like a first language to me.
As you know, I tend to enjoy ending with
words of encouragement straight from God’s word… having it been Easter weekend
just recently, I thought this scripture would fit well straight from the Savior
of the world:
“This is my
commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no
one than this that someone lays down his life for his friends. You are my
friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the
servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you my
friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.
(ESV)
John 15:12-15
May God Bless you, and love one another. Until next
quarter!!
Josh
