Is Your Nervous System Making you Anxious?

Your body’s network of nerves conveys information to and from the brain and spinal cord. Sensory fibers in the nerves carry messages from the sense organs, such as the eyes, ears, and skin. From the internal organs other fibers control muscle movement and gland activity. Much of these actions are done automatically by your autonomic nervous system.

The autonomic nervous system has the task of maintaining constant conditions within the body which means it keeps the body’s internal organs and muscles and blood vessels etc, in a balanced state. Therefore the autonomic nervous system works “automatically” to provide involuntary responses, both immediate and long term within the body.

The initial nerve pathways for these responses run along spinal nerves, which travel to and from the body’s internal organs and muscles and travel into the spinal cord and ascend to the brain. The brain analyses and processes the information and sends instructions back down the spinal cord to the organs and muscles and skin etc.

All of these actions are done at a speed of 168 miles per hour and are going on inside your body right now. The spine protects these vital nerve channels. It consists of 33 ring-like bones called vertebrae. The bottom 9 vertebrae are fused and form the sacrum and coccyx, leaving 24 movable bones within the spine. Between the vertebrae are discs, which are springy, pads of tough fibrous cartilage that squishes, slightly under pressure to absorb shocks. Strong ligaments and many sets of muscles around the spine stabilize the vertebrae and help control movement.

When you misalign your spine an occlusion occurs which affects the smooth running of your nervous system. The reason for misalignment can come from many areas, such as extreme stress, constant daily small stresses, sport, repetitive motions such as driving, sitting etc.