Chiropractic and Postural Deviations

Postural distortions represent the body’s attempt at regaining balance and symmetry. When left uncorrected, postural imbalances can lead to chronic pain, and numerous pathological processes. Moreover, when our posture is off, it can affect the way we move and feel, and undermine our self esteem.

Postural distortions are commonly seen as:

	Shoulders not level
	Hips, pelvis not level or twisted
	One foot or both feet turned in (pigeon-toed) or out
	Pes planus (flat feet)
	Pes cavus (high arches)
	Ankle pronation
	Genu valgus (knock knees)
	Genu varus (bow legs)
	Knee hyper-extension (backward curve)
	Scoliosis C-curve or S-curve
	Hypolordosis = decreased lumbar or cervical spine curve (military neck)
	Hyperlordosis = excessive lumbar or cervical spine curve
	Kyphosis = exaggerated thoracic spine curve (round-shouldered)
	Gluteal folds uneven
	One or both shoulders roll forward or backward
	One scapula higher or more protruding than the other
	Hands rotated forward or backward
	Ears not level / head tilted
	Forward head position
	Head level but rotated

Postural distortions can also manifest in the head and face (slanted nose, crooked smile, prominent eye, etc).

Causes

The potential causes of postural distortions are numerous and complex. The human body is a finely-tuned machine and anything from dropped foot arches to missing teeth can disturb its symmetry.

Chiropractic / Applied Kinesiology Approach to Postural Distortions

Postural distortions affect all 3 sides of the triangle of health: structure, emotions, and biochemistry. When any one of these 3 sides are out of balance, it affects the whole triangle of health. An example of this would be an old ankle trauma that resulted in an unlevel pelvis. If left uncorrected, chronic pain and inflammation can set in and leads to frustration, mental fatigue, and despondency. Likewise, emotional complexes such as timidity, or lack of self-esteem can manifest as a round-shouldered, hunched over posture which adversely affects muscle, nerve, and joint function, not to mention breathing and digestion.

Chiropractic and A.K. rely on the fact that body language doesn't lie and is therefore a valuable source of clinical information. As holistic forms of medicine, the entire state of health is considered when arriving at the causes of postural distortions.

Dr. Morrison assesses posture to understand muscular imbalances. As therapy progresses, posture is monitored continually, in order to understand a patient's responses to therapy. As posture improves, one usually feels more healthy and energetic, and is able to move with increased grace and confidence.