Good clutter has a home and is never ’stuffed’ or hidden away indefinitely.  It has a place to belong.  It may have appeared during a particularly busy week or maybe you weren’t feeling well.  It’s temporary.

The not-so-good clutter has been accumulating over time.  It’s hidden in closets, covers flat surfaces, causes you stress and lost time.  It begins to creep into all aspects of your life, leaving you feeling tired and overwhelmed.

The definition of clutter is postponed decisions.  Procrastinating and not clearing it regularly is a vicious cycle.  We all must clear the clutter routinely.

Tips:

• Everything must have a home.
• Instead of putting it down, put it away.
• Start small; take baby steps.  One drawer, a table top, a closet, or the mail.  The trick is to start.  Make some decisions.
• Remember the clutter didn’t appear overnight and it will take some time to control.
• Keep a donation bag, box or drawer: a place so when you come across an unwanted possession, it can be removed immediately from your main living space.  Donate once it’s full.

By being organized you will save time and reduce your stress level.  Time is one of our most valuable assets, yet we tend to waste it everyday.  Start clearing the clutter and find time for those things that truly matter in your life.

Lori Brandes

Time 4 Order – Professional Organizing

www.time4order.com

(925) 846-8476

Some of the actions and issues that cause us to waste time are:

• moving slowly, possibly due to pain
• sleeping in – is it because we didn’t get efficient sleep?
• running back and forth inefficiently because we can’t find something or can’t remember what we were doing
• thinking slowly
• inability to focus

Stephen Covey said, “Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent and not enough time on what is important.”

We tend to react when there is an “emergency” and run from one emergency to the next without planning ahead to avoid the problem.

The NUCCA technique will help with these things.  It can help you think clearer and give you a better perspective on life once you’re out of pain.  It can help you move better, faster and without pain as well as making your daily activities more enjoyable and more possible!  It can also improve your quality of life.  You’ll be more efficient!

The time you spend seeing Dr. Pritchett is minimal compared to the time savings you’ll see.  Plus, you won’t need to keep coming back three or four or five times a week.  Once your spine stabilizes, you’ll need fewer adjustments.

Call Vital Life Wellness Center in Dublin, CA for a consultation.

What if we can’t sleep?

• Is it the presence of a child (perhaps young or perhaps just not able to sleep either)?
• Do we have too much to do preparing for a holiday or a job?
• Are we unable to sleep?
• Is sleep restless and disjointed?

I don’t think there’s much we can do about the presence of our children, although if there’s a reason he/she is not sleeping and it can be resolved, let’s deal with that.  If kids are insecure, sick or teething, they need more TLC, but if they never sleep well, perhaps they, too, need a NUCCA adjustment.  NUCCA will also help boost their immune system.

Are we inefficient with our jobs? Are we stressed out and need to consider a career or job change?  NUCCA can help us to be more focused and able to get our work done better, so we’ll have more time to sleep.

Are we unable to sleep because our bodies won’t cooperate? Insomnia or an over-active mind?  NUCCA can  help stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system which helps us to sleep.  It helps relieve stress and allow us to relax.

Do we have trouble staying asleep or being rested in the morning? NUCCA can help make the sleep more efficient so you’ll be rested and more able to function.

If you’re like me and your lack of sleep is not due to staying up late having fun, make sure you’re doing everything you can to make the time you have to sleep as effective as possible.

Call today for a complimentary consultation at Vital Life Wellness Center in Dublin, CA.

If this sounds like you:

• NUCCA works to align your spine and improve the way your body works.
• There is no twisting or “popping”

With the NUCCA technique, you will sleep better than you ever imagined, and wake up refreshed, revitalized and with plenty of energy to propel yourself throughout the day!

If this is the kind of morning you’d like to start with, there are people who can help.  Whether you think your pain is age-related, or you’ve tried some things that just didn’t work, or perhaps you are not aware of what chiropractors can do for you:

You may be ready to find out what great potential your body has within it.  Try this:  Looking in the mirror, check your posture and look at your shoes to see if they wear unevenly.  If your posture is imperfect or your shoes wear unevenly, we can “put your head back on straight.”  This takes the tension away from your brainstem, improves blood flow to your brain and reduces or eliminates pain.

I can help to get you back to “being mom,” adding vitality to your life and relieving your pain and discomfort.

Call us today at (925) 829-7900 to schedule your consultation in Dublin, CA.

I began to think about how this relates to our bodies.

If our alignment is off (we have a crooked spine / we are subluxated / we have scoliosis / one leg is short), we can end up ruining our belts, too (needing joint replacement or spinal fusion and one often leads to another unless we correct the alignment).  Eventually, we may need to add pieces (it could be as benign as a heel lift, but it doesn’t solve all of the issues, or it could be a surgery to open the spinal canal wider or even adding a pacemaker).  Adding pieces could also include using a cane or a brace.

All of this could be avoided if the car was aligned in the beginning, or if our bodies were aligned.  We can replace the car if it gets too old and beat up, but we can never replace our bodies.  It’s really unfortunate that many people take care of their cars better than they take care of their bodies. Find an upper cervical chiropractor, such as a NUCCA practitioner to accurately align your spine.  It could save you a lot of headaches and injuries in the short- and especially the long-run.

Start with your chair:

Sit up straight with feet flat on the floor.  If you can’t reach the floor easily, adjust the height of the chair.  You should have your knees bent to 90 degrees and the back of your knees not touching the chair, but with your thighs mostly supported by the chair.  Your hips should be bent to 90 degrees as well.  Also, check to see that your wallet is not in your back pocket while sitting; it unlevels your pelvis and therefore the rest of your spine, causing misalignment and pain.  Make sure your chair has lumbar support.

If you don’t fit well in your chair, replace it with one you do fit in. Not all people are the same size, so not all chairs will fit you.

You can also use an exercise ball to sit on, which strengthens your low back, reducing the incidence of back pain.

Another option besides the exercise ball and the office chair is a kneeling chair.  These have no back support but allow you to kneel on them and easily maintain an ergonomic position.

Pull the chair up to your desk.

With your shoulders relaxed and lowered, your elbows should be bent to 90 degrees when resting on the desk.  Wrists should be flat (not bent) when resting on the keyboard.   When looking at the computer monitor, your head should be over your shoulders rather than in front of them, and you shouldn’t bend down to look at the monitor, so raise it up if you need to.  Also make sure you’re not turning your head to look at anything you need to see on a regular basis.  It’s important to be in neutral position as much as possible.  If you need to write, look at the phone or a second monitor, or other activity in addition to using the computer, you’ll need a swiveling chair and you’ll need to evaluate your position for each of these activities.

Maintaining a good posture during the work day will help reduce your stress, your pain and will help maintain your chiropractic adjustments. Even with a good chiropractor, if you spend a lot of time in a poor position, the adjustments won’t hold as well.

If you have an ergonomic workstation and you still have pain, make sure to get a chiropractic evaluation to determine how your spine can be corrected.

• It saves you time.  There’s no time wasted when going from sitting to standing or standing to sitting.   It’s efficient.  Phone calls are shorter because you feel more urgency.  If someone comes into your office to talk to you, the visit will likely be shorter, again allowing you to get more work done.
• It encourages movement.  When standing, you’re more apt to move around, which uses more calories as well as keeping you from getting stiff and sore from sitting.
• It keeps you more alert.  When your reticular activating system is being stimulated by movement, you stay alert longer through the day.  You’ll be able to get more work done!
• It’s easier to maintain an ergonomic position.  It is easier to stand up straight than it is to sit straight in a chair.  This is, of course, if the desk is the right height for you.  A lot of people sit crooked by leaning over on their elbow or crossing their legs.

These are some potential issues with sitting desks:

• If you sit too long, it can lead to poor circulation and compressed discs.  This is multiplied if you have a long commute.
• Chairs and workstations are not always ergonomic.

Some things to be cautious of when using or purchasing a standing desk:

• It must be the right height for you.  If it’s too high, you have to reach up for things, which raises and tenses your shoulders and neck.  If it’s too low, you’ll bend over too much, which causes low back pain.
• If your feet get sore or tired, put a thick, soft cushion under your feet and wear shoes with arch support as well as cushion, or bring a second pair of shoes for wearing at your desk.
• If your legs get tired over the course of the day, use a tall stool to lean back on as needed.
• Be cognizant of your posture and balance your weight on both feet.

All in all, a standing desk is a great investment in your health and office efficiency.  It doesn’t have to be an expensive purchase.  Be creative about your cubicle or your desk, especially if you know someone who is handy and can build you one.  You can even put blocks under your desk to raise it up, thus trying it out before you invest much money in it.

• Are you able to expend energy helping others without wearing yourself out?
• Are you able to think clearly enough to make long-term plans?
• Are you able to think positively about life?
• Are you able to help your parents or friends or kids with their needs?

We are created to be in community and to make a difference in people’s lives.  We cannot live isolated lives. It’s not fulfilling to us and doesn’t make us feel rewarded or useful in life.

• Are you healthy enough mentally and emotionally to give to others and to know your boundaries?

You have to get healthy first – and that means more than being “fine”.  In the case of emergency on an airplane, we are instructed to put on our own oxygen mask first before giving it to others.  The same thing is true in life: we need to take time and effort to make ourselves healthy in order to be there for others.  Moms especially need this advice.  I need this advice!  It’s so hard to take time for myself when I have a little one who needs me.

One way to begin the journey toward mental and emotional health is through NUCCA.

“What?!” you ask?

Your purpose in life is difficult to determine when you are in pain (pain takes our focus off of other things) and with a subluxation (a.k.a. your brain not connecting with your body properly or firing optimally).  The communication between your brain and your body is not working properly.  Your body takes care of the necessary things like breathing and keeping your heart pumping, before complex thought and planning and relaxing.  NUCCA stimulates your body’s ability to communicate and to heal.

Once your brain is communicating properly, you can begin to get things in perspective.  Functioning will be more efficient.  Thinking will be easier and hormones and emotions will be more balanced.  Then and only then, will you be able to make better decisions for yourself and your family.  Then you’ll be able to have more time to spend on yourself.  Then you’ll be able to do other healthy things like counseling or exercise or organizing or eating properly. Then you’ll be able to stay healthy and feel better than fine – fabulous perhaps!?

So how should you choose?

Word of Mouth and Reputation.  Ask someone you trust who they’ve been seeing and if they like him/her and why.  If your friend or family member likes the chiropractor, there’s a good chance you will, too.

Technique.  If a particular technique has worked for you before, try it again.  Take note that all chiropractors practice in a fashion that is unique to them, so even if the technique is the same, there are going to be differences.  Remember, chiropractic is an art as well as a science.

Interpersonal Interaction / Your Gut Feeling.  If you don’t like the person you’ve come in to see, go somewhere else.  Just because you walk in the door doesn’t mean you need to sign up for a course of care with someone you don’t like.  If you don’t want to sign a contract for a course of care, go somewhere else.  If you don’t like the “vibe” of the chiropractor, go somewhere else.  There is an exchange of energy when you touch someone, so when someone adjusts you, your body has to be relaxed enough to properly accept the adjustment.  If you are uncomfortable around the practitioner, the results won’t be ideal.  On the other hand, if you connect well with the chiropractor, stay there!  Enjoy your care!

Cost (a secondary/tertiary consideration).  After all of those things above, cost can sometimes be a consideration, but it’s certainly not the best way to decide.  Sometimes, the cost may be more initially, but if you’re holding your alignment, you will save a ton of money by not needing to return as often.  (NUCCA is a technique that tends to stabilize and require fewer visits.)  Cost is also based on value, so if you need to sacrifice a luxury (buying coffee or eating out) for the sake of your health and long-term quality of life, the trade off is worth it.

If you have further questions about what chiropractor to see, you can ask your previous chiropractor, or call me.

Enjoy your new quality of life!

I help many people get rid of pain (low back pain, sciatica, shoulder pain, headaches, menstrual cramps, neck pain, chronic pain, etc) and allow them to sleep better.  It helps to allow the body to relax so that lying down is more comfortable.

NUCCA helps many people with their stress levels and to make them more efficient during the day so that they get their work done.  I help get their minds to be more focused so that things get done when they are supposed to.

If you are too tired to function during the day and need to drink caffeine to stay awake, then can’t sleep at night because you’re too hyped up, we need to figure out a way to get you to sleep better.  See above for a solution: NUCCA.  If your body isn’t relaxing enough for you to feel tired at night, we need to stimulate your parasympathetic nervous system, which is the complement of your stress response.  NUCCA stimulates this calming part of your nervous system.

I’ve helped many people sleep better at night.  It’s worth a try.  It’s time for you to get the sleep that allows your body to heal and function at is best!  It’s time for you to do more than take sleeping pills.  It’s time for rest.  Call Dr. Pritchett at 925-829-7900.