What about my
symptoms?
(excerpts from "Enhance Your Life
Experience" by Dr. Joseph Strauss)
There are three categories of symptoms from an "Above - Down"
standpoint.
1. Adaptive
symptoms
2. Innate expression
symptoms
3. Limitations symptoms
An understanding of these will enable anyone to see why the person experiencing the symptoms is often the best person to treat the symptoms or determine whether they should be treated.
A Definition
A symptom
has been described as an indication that the body is reaching the outer
limits of its adaptive ability. Clearly, when the body passes the
outer limits of its adaptive ability, all symptoms cease. Death is
the lack of adaptation and there are no symptoms.
Are all symptoms bad? Let's explore.
Symptoms arise from the inability of the body to adapt to external invasive forces (factors such as bacteria, poisons and trauma). Doing everything necessary to raise your health level only guarantees that the individual will be better able to adapt, not necessarily perfectly, just better. But there are still limitations of matter that come into play. In a perfect world ,the body will adapt to all external invasive forces. Unfortunately, we do not live under normal circumstances.
The world is an imperfect place. We are continually subjected to abnormal external invasive forces and abnormal circumstances. Accidents happen. Falling down a flight of stairs, having your car struck from behind are good examples of imperfection. When our bodies are unable to adapt to these forces, symptoms occur. Stepping off a curb is a normal part of every day life. It should cause no symptoms because the body is able to adapt under usual circumstances. Jumping out of a three story window will move the body toward the outer limits of adaptability and cause symptoms. (maybe a broken leg or death!)
Our bodies were designed to be resistant to micro-organisms in a natural and normal amount. Regularly practicing health-raising activities will help enable the body to live in this environment with these viruses and never show symptoms. There are viruses and bacteria constantly in the air, and even our respiratory tract. That is a perfectly normal part of the environment in which we function and adapt.
Another example, involves the ever-present bacteria in the food we eat. That is normal and natural. However, with poorly prepared food, an abnormal amount of bacteria could get in the food, causing symptoms. Symptoms may occur either because of an abnormal exposure to viruses, bacteria, toxins, poisons, etc. or because the body may be weakened and cannot adapt to normal amounts in the environment. If a perfect body were adapting perfectly to a perfect environment, it would never have symptoms. But we do not have a perfect body, and we definitely do not have a perfect environment.
Adaptive Symptoms
Symptoms, as described above, result from adaptation occurring in the body. These symptoms are always a result of the body adapting. If the body is working at its highest possible level, and symptoms occur, then they are good. It means the body is successfully fighting something foreign. For example, fever, is an adaptive mechanism that the body uses whether the body is working at its peak or not. When the body is trying to fights off micro-organisms, whether in "normal" amounts in a body with a lowered resistance or in greater than normal amounts, it will elevate the body temperature to accomplish all that is necessary to enable the body to adapt.
Vomiting and diarrhea are two other symptoms that can, at times,
be adaptive symptoms - signs of a healthy body. The body may be
fighting off an invasion of a micro-organism and needs all its strength to
do so. The digestion of food takes a good deal of energy and much of
the body's attention. We all know that a person may drown if
swimming after a meal because the blood rushes to the digestive tract and
is inefficient for the large leg muscles, resulting in cramps and the
inability to stay afloat.
Similarly, the body not
wanting food during an adaptive process, may innately empty the stomach's
contents. This is a perfectly normal result of the body
adapting. In the same way, getting rid of a poison or noxious
substance that has been ingested may cause the body to flush substances
out of the system resulting in diarrhea.
These are examples of symptoms which are normal adaptive
mechanisms of the body. If these were the only symptoms that
ever occurred then we can say that all symptoms are good. But there
are other symptoms which are a different type. The same symptoms
can occur in different categories.
Innate Expression
Symptoms
This type of symptom occurs when
the innate
intelligence of the body communicates that limitations of the
body are being reached and there is something that we (are educated
intelligence) can do to enable us to better adapt. Our
educated brain enables us to adapt to our external
environment. Its very cold so our educated brain enables us to build
a fire. No animal has the educated ability to build a fire.
Often when the innate intelligence is aware that the body's outer limits
of adaptation are being approached, it will stimulate the educated brain
into action. Sometimes this message is perceived as a
symptom.
The most common symptom is pain. Sitting in the hot
sun for a length of time can have destructive effects on the skin.
The skin turns red and hot and the innate intelligence will definitely
communicate that fact to the educated brain. Instinctively, animals
will avoid external invasive forces when they begin to create a threat to
their well-being. An animal will seek shade on a hot day, even
avoiding the hunt for food. But we are anxious for that
"perfect" tan so we sit out in the broiling sun. We think it looks
healthy and beautiful.
The innate
intelligence does not care about beauty, it only cares about
adaptation. So, the innate intelligence will begin adaptive
measures which we are not even aware of as we're laying on our beach
chairs. Melanin is being formed in the skin to prevent tissue damage
as a result of burning. Perspiration is taking place to attempt to
cool the skin. Blood is being rushed to the areas to help the
cooling process. However the innate intelligence is limited to
time and matter. It cannot produce melanin fast enough
and the sweat glands cannot produce sufficient fluids without damaging the
organism. So the innate intelligence will communicate to our
educated brain through pain, also thirst and the need to educatedly
do something to adapt us to our environment. If we use it properly
we get out of the sun and drink some fluids. Some people ignore the
educated brain entirely and continue to stay in the sun and drink alcohol
which actually promotes
dehydration.
Limitation
Symptoms
This category of symptoms consists of ones that occur as a result of limitations of matter, which in turn allow a breakdown to occur in the body's system. These symptoms would include those associated with terminal diseases when the entire system appears to be failing. Limitation symptoms may be chronic. They may also be associated with major degeneration or damage on a limited level. Pain associated with arthritis and other chronic disorders would be in this category.
Symptoms are not the Focus!
In Conclusion, it must be understood that there are different categories and causes for symptoms in the human body. You may be experiencing the same symptoms as a friend of yours and yet, they may have different causes. Pain, for example, can occur in all categories. The symptom may also move from one category to another in the same person, especially as the body reaches the outermost limits of its adaptive ability. Because we cannot know the reason for symptoms, chiropractors do not place emphasis upon them, and neither treat them. Symptoms simply do not assist the chiropractor in the detection and correction of vertebral subluxations.