Why Nervous System Repair Must Come Before Regulation

Before investing in another ashwagandha supplement, booking a wellness retreat to Sedona, or purchasing an infrared sauna for your home, there's something crucial you need to understand about your family's nervous system.

The conversation around nervous system "regulation" has exploded recently, and that's genuinely wonderful news. Providers, parents, and experts everywhere are finally talking about ways to support and "hack" your nervous system. But here's what most people don't realize: like most hacks, these approaches only scratch the surface. They rarely dive deep enough to truly heal and repair the nervous systems of the families who need help most desperately.

Please don't misunderstand. We're huge advocates of nervous system regulation practices, functional medicine, targeted supplementation, detox protocols, diet modifications, and thoughtful fitness programs. These approaches have tremendous value. But here's what we hear from parents almost daily: "I've tried everything, and none of it seems to be working."

The brain fog persists. The anxiety remains. The exhaustion won't lift. And for your children, the sleep struggles continue, sensory challenges intensify, and behavioral issues seem stuck in an endless, frustrating loop.

The Truth Most Parents Haven't Heard

Here's what most parents and even many healthcare providers don't yet realize: you can't regulate a nervous system that needs to be repaired first.

Until we address the foundational problems at their root, everything else becomes just another surface-level band-aid that eventually peels off without delivering lasting results.

You're Not Alone in This Struggle

Let's look at some eye-opening statistics. Depending on which research you examine, between 60 to 75% of US adults are living with at least one chronic illness. The numbers for children aren't much better, with 40% to over 50% facing chronic health challenges according to various studies.

Whether we're discussing chronic digestive issues, autoimmune conditions, or neurodevelopmental challenges like autism, the rates of nearly every condition have exploded in just a couple of generations.

This means we can't simply blame genetics or attribute it to better diagnostic tools. Instead, we must acknowledge the real culprit: a chronically stressful, chaotic, toxic, and overmedicalized environment and lifestyle that's impacting our families from day one.

We witness this pattern every single week in clinical practice. Parents arrive after trying everything imaginable. They've consulted multiple specialists. They've invested thousands in every therapy, protocol, and program available. They see temporary improvements—maybe a few good weeks—but then everything resets. The anxiety returns. The digestive issues flare up again. The developmental progress stalls.

It's not that these approaches don't work. The problem simply runs deeper than surface-level interventions can reach.

Understanding the Critical Difference: Repair vs. Regulation

Nervous System Repair

Nervous system repair addresses the actual dysfunction within the nervous system itself—the interference and disruption caused by past trauma and accumulated stress that leads to something called subluxation and nervous system dysfunction.

Think of it like repairing faulty wiring in your home's electrical system. No matter how many high-end appliances, 4K TVs, or premium sound systems you try to plug in to make your house more awesome, they'll just overload the system further until everything breaks down. The problem isn't with the equipment you're trying to add. It's with the foundational power supply that needs to be repaired.

Nervous System Regulation

Nervous system regulation includes practices that help an already-intact nervous system shift into calmer, more balanced states. This encompasses breathing exercises, yoga, meditation, cold therapy, supplements, and various wellness practices.

The Critical Distinction

Here's what you need to remember: repair is fixing the engine; regulation is learning how to drive it smoothly. You can take all the driving lessons in the world, but if the engine itself is broken, you're not going anywhere.

The Body Keeps the Score—And It's Stored Deeper Than You Think

According to the groundbreaking book "The Body Keeps the Score," trauma isn't just processed and filed away in our minds. It's stored in the actual tissues, structures, and nervous system of the body, often far below our conscious awareness.

This entire system is known as the Somatic or NeuroSpinal System. This is why you feel all sorts of stress—whether from physical exertion, environmental toxins and chemicals, or long, stressful, and emotional days—get fully lodged in your neck, between your shoulder blades, in your low back, and other parts of your body.

When your body encounters overwhelming stress or trauma, it goes into protection mode. This response is brilliant for survival in the moment, but that protective state can become locked in, creating patterns of dysfunction that persist long after the initial threat has passed.

Here's the uncomfortable truth: you simply can't talk your way out of trauma that's stored in your neurospinal system, brainstem, and vagus nerve. Similarly, you can't breathe away physical subluxation patterns that have been locked into your nervous system since birth trauma or early childhood stress.

There's a fundamental principle in neuroscience that every parent should understand: you can't be in growth and protection at the same time. When your nervous system is stuck in that sympathetic-dominant, survival-oriented state, all the meditation and supplements in the world won't create the lasting change you're desperately seeking.

The Perfect Storm That Requires Deep Repair

While we all know modern life is incredibly stressful for us as adults, what most parents and providers don't yet realize is how early the stress, toxicity, and medicalization of our current lifestyle begins—even for our children. We call this “The Perfect Storm”. 

Most children today experience a series of stressors that create cascading neurological dysfunction:

Prenatal Stress: When mothers experience high anxiety or take certain medications during pregnancy, it affects the developing nervous system of their baby.

Birth Interventions: C-sections (now occurring in 1 in 3 births), forceps delivery, vacuum extraction, or induction place profound physical strain on an infant's delicate brainstem and upper neck.

Early Childhood Stressors: Colic, reflux, and constipation aren't just normal infant struggles. They're early warning signs of nervous system dysfunction that too often get dismissed or only treated symptomatically.

The Antibiotic Cascade: When these issues lead to frequent ear infections and repeated rounds of antibiotics, the damage deepens. Research shows that repeated antibiotic use in children under age 2 significantly increases their likelihood of struggling with allergies, asthma, and gut issues later in life.

The level of stress and trauma most children experience locks the neurospinal system into such a deeply stuck state that surface-level interventions simply can't penetrate through to create meaningful change. It's not that other approaches are wrong—the dysfunction is just too severe and too deeply embedded for them to address on their own.

Why Your Regulation Tools Keep Failing

When subluxation creates constant interference in the system and the vagus nerve is dysfunctional due to early trauma, regulation tools are like trying to change the thermostat when the furnace itself is broken.

What are the clinical signs that repair must come first?

• Therapies and interventions don't stick or provide lasting results

• Gut health protocols work temporarily, then plateau

• Constant relapses after periods of improvement

• High reactivity to small triggers

• Quickly resetting back to a stressed state, even after calming activities

What Changes When the System Is Repaired?

Once the system is repaired and in a "ready state," something remarkable happens:

• Breathwork becomes significantly more effective

• Supplements are better absorbed and utilized by the body

• Dietary changes create more significant, lasting impacts

• The body's innate healing capacity can finally activate and do what it was designed to do

Your Family Deserves More Than Surface-Level Solutions

At Apex Family Chiropractic, we understand that nervous system repair opens the door for all those regulation tools to finally work as intended. Your family doesn't need more health hacks or another stack of supplements. You need the right foundation.

We practice specialized Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care and can measure and restore nervous system function using advanced scanning technology and gentle, effective adjustments. This approach helps release years of built-up stress and tension so your child's body—or your own—can finally shift from protection mode to healing mode.

So, if you're exhausted from trying intervention after intervention without lasting results, please reach out to Apex Family Chiropractic today! If you are not local to us, check out the PX Docs directory to find an office near you. 

Your family's healing journey doesn't have to feel this hard. Sometimes, you just need to start at the right place—the foundation.

The Real Reason Stretching Isn’t Fixing Your Baby’s Torticollis

If your baby's head is stuck tilting to one side, you've probably been told it's just a tight muscle. "Stretch it out, do some tummy time, and wait it out," they say.

But here's what most pediatricians won't tell you: torticollis isn't just about tight muscles. It's about what happened to your baby's nervous system during birth.

You're Not Alone in This Journey

We see this pattern week after week. A mom comes in exhausted, holding a baby who cries during every diaper change, struggles to nurse on one side, and can't seem to get comfortable no matter what position you try. The pediatrician noticed the head tilt at the 2-month checkup, referred you to physical therapy, and sent you home with stretching exercises that make your baby scream.

Those stretches aren't working because they're treating the symptoms, not the root cause. And while you're waiting and stretching, that subluxation in your baby's upper spine is affecting far more than just their neck. It's impacting their ability to eat, sleep, drain fluid from their ears, and hit developmental milestones.

Nathan's Story: From Struggle to Thriving

Let me tell you about Nathan. His mom brought him in after a traumatic emergency C-section left him with torticollis, plagiocephaly (flat head), digestive issues, and eczema covering his face. He was locked up from his neck all the way down to his lower back. The tight neck muscles caused ear misalignment, leading to repeated ear infections that began at just a few months old.

Nathan's occupational therapy wasn't helping. He was even fitted for a helmet to correct the flat spot on his head, but he still looked miserable and uncomfortable all the time. He couldn't hit his milestones because his entire system was stuck in overdrive.

Within the first month of Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care, Nathan's digestive issues and eczema cleared up. By month two, everything changed. He started sitting up, crawling, pulling himself to stand, and he hasn't had an ear infection since starting care.

Understanding Torticollis: It's More Than Meets the Eye

1. Torticollis Is a Neurological Problem, Not Just a Tight Muscle

When doctors diagnose torticollis, they're looking at the obvious sign: your baby's head tilts to one side with their chin pointing the other way. They see tight muscles and a limited range of motion. But what they're missing is what's happening underneath.

Torticollis happens because of subluxation. Subluxation has three parts:

• Misalignment within the neurospinal system

• Abnormal tension or fixation within these neurospinal segments and regions

• Neurological interference and imbalance, where the nervous system gets stuck sending stress signals instead of calm, coordinated ones

Think of it like a computer with too many tabs open. When your baby's nervous system is overwhelmed with stress signals from that subluxation, everything slows down or crashes. Their body can't coordinate properly, muscles stay tight, and they're stuck in fight-or-flight mode.

2. Birth Trauma Is the Most Common Cause

The amount of pulling, twisting, and pressure placed on a baby's head and neck during birth interventions is significant. Forceps delivery, vacuum extraction, and even C-sections can create subluxation in the upper cervical spine.

Add that to difficult positioning in the womb, being stuck in the birth canal, or a long labor, and you've got what we call the Perfect Storm. These layers of stress compound on each other, and the result is a nervous system that can't regulate properly.

3. Why Stretching Alone Doesn't Work

Physical therapy stretches work on the muscles, but they don't address the subluxation that creates the tension in the first place. It's like trying to push a car with the parking brake on.

Many parents tell us the stretches make their baby cry and seem to make things worse. That's because when the nervous system is stuck in stress mode, any additional discomfort just adds to the tension. The body fights back instead of relaxing.

When you release the subluxation first with gentle chiropractic adjustments, the nervous system can finally calm down. Then the stretches and positioning exercises actually work because the parking brake is off.

4. The Hidden Consequences of Unresolved Torticollis

Here's what concerns us most: when torticollis isn't fully resolved at the neurological level, it doesn't just go away.

That subluxation can contribute to:

• Ear infections because tight neck muscles affect Eustachian tube drainage

• Respiratory infections like croup and RSV because the body can't move mucus and secretions properly

• Developmental challenges as kids grow, including gross motor delays, fine motor challenges, sensory processing issues, and even ADHD

The foundation wasn't stable, so development gets harder at every stage.

There's Hope: A Gentle, Effective Path Forward

If your baby has torticollis, you don't have to choose between painful stretches and just waiting it out. There's a gentle, effective approach that addresses the root cause.

Advanced INSiGHT scans can pinpoint exactly where the subluxation is located and determine its severity. Then, with safe and gentle adjustments, the tension can be released and balance restored to your baby's nervous system. Parents often see changes within just a few visits.

Sometimes our little ones just get stuck in stress mode, and when we ease that nervous system tension, everything can shift.

Ready to Help Your Baby Thrive?

At Apex Family Chiropractic, we believe your baby deserves to feel comfortable, develop on track, and thrive. And you deserve to feel empowered and supported on this journey. We want to help. Don't wait for torticollis to resolve on its own; give us a call today to schedule a consultation for your baby.  

If you are not local to us, check out the PX Docs directory to find an office near you. We want to help your baby get unstuck and start thriving.

The Truth About Stress During Pregnancy

You're exhausted. You're worried. And now someone's telling you to "just relax" for your baby's sake—as if you haven't tried that already.

Between the nausea, the fear, the financial pressure, and everyone's unsolicited advice, you're barely holding it together. And honestly? The guilt associated with being stressed may feel worse than the stress itself.

You know something about this chronic stress isn't right, but no one's explaining what's really happening inside your body—or inside your baby's developing brain.

Here's what most doctors won't tell you: that umbilical cord isn't just delivering nutrients and oxygen. It's creating a connection between your nervous system and your baby's developing nervous system. When you're stuck in stress mode, your baby's nervous system learns that this stressed state is "normal" during the most critical window of brain development.

This isn't about blaming you. This is about understanding fetal programming—how what you're experiencing right now is creating lasting patterns in your baby's nervous system that can affect their health trajectory for years. And more importantly, what you can actually do about it.

Your Nervous System Is Teaching Your Baby's Nervous System

The umbilical cord is so much more than a nutrient delivery system. It's the electrical connection between your nervous system and your baby's. When stress hormones like cortisol stay elevated in your body, they cross the placenta and flood your baby's developing brain.

Your baby's nervous system is being programmed right now. If you're stuck in sympathetic dominance—that constant "fight-or-flight" mode—your baby's nervous system learns this as baseline normal.

Think of the nervous system as the air traffic controller for every other system in the body. If the air traffic controller is stuck in panic mode, everything else malfunctions.

Research published in Development and Psychopathology found that infants of mothers with the highest stress levels showed 22% higher stress reactivity. These babies were more easily upset, harder to soothe, and showed poorer recovery from stress. That pattern was established during pregnancy, before they ever took their first breath.

Fetal Programming Creates Lifelong Patterns

Fetal programming means permanent changes. During pregnancy, your baby's amygdala (the fear center of the brain) develops larger and more reactive when exposed to chronic stress. The HPA axis—your baby's stress response system—gets programmed with a hair-trigger baseline.

Think of it like building a house on a cracked foundation. You can't remodel a house on a cracked foundation and expect it to be stable. Your baby's nervous system foundation is being built right now, and chronic stress creates cracks in that foundation before they're even born.

The vagus nerve, the main nerve of the parasympathetic system, develops its tone during pregnancy. Poor vagal tone from prenatal stress can affect digestion, heart rate, inflammation, immune function, social engagement, and emotional regulation for years to come.

Children whose mothers experienced chronic stress during pregnancy have higher rates of ADHD, anxiety, Sensory Processing Disorder, and even physical health issues like asthma and allergies. This isn't bad luck or a coincidence. It's fetal programming.

Understanding the "Perfect Storm"

For many families, the "Perfect Storm" begins before pregnancy even starts. Fertility struggles. Multiple rounds of IVF. Months or years of emotional weight, hormonal medications, financial strain, and relationship stress. By the time pregnancy finally happens, the nervous system is already depleted.

Then pregnancy adds its own layer of stressors: physical discomfort, fear about the baby's health, anxiety about labor, financial pressure, work stress, and relationship challenges. Your baby is developing in this environment.

Here's the hard truth: they don't grow out of it. They grow into other challenges.

Colic at two months becomes chronic constipation at six months. Constipation becomes sensory sensitivity at 18 months. Sensory issues become ADHD signs at age five. ADHD becomes anxiety by age ten. The nervous system dysfunction that began during fetal programming manifests differently as the brain develops through various stages.

You Can Help Your Nervous System Regulate—Starting Now

Here's what you need to hear: You can't eliminate every stressor. That's impossible, and it's not your responsibility to somehow create a stress-free existence while growing a human being.

However, you can help your nervous system shift from sympathetic dominance to parasympathetic function, creating a calm, regulated internal environment that supports healthy fetal development.

How Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care Can Help

Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care works at the foundational level. Gentle, specific adjustments help release the "parking brake" on your nervous system, allowing it to shift out of survival mode and into a state of regulation.

Advanced technology like INSiGHT scans provides objective data about your nervous system function:

• Heart Rate Variability (HRV) measures the balance between your sympathetic and parasympathetic systems

• Surface Electromyography (sEMG) shows where your nervous system is holding tension

• NeuroThermal scans detect areas of dysregulation

These scans track improvements in your nervous system function—often before you even notice symptom changes.

When you're regulated, your baby learns regulation. This is your window of opportunity. Pregnancy is when the foundation gets built. What you do now affects not only your pregnancy experience but also your child's lifelong health trajectory.

A Real Story: Catherine's Fifth Pregnancy

Let me tell you about Catherine. This was her fifth pregnancy, but only her second under Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care.

Her previous pregnancies without care were filled with unrelenting heartburn, sciatic pain, crushing fatigue, and overwhelming stress.

This time? She got adjusted 2-3 times a week throughout her pregnancy. Even though this was the oldest she'd ever been during pregnancy, she felt the best out of any of them. Her nervous system stayed regulated. Her symptoms were minimal. She had the energy to keep up with her other kids. She slept great. Her heartburn was manageable.

The neurological scans lined up exactly with what she was feeling. Her adjustments were tailored to what her body was showing. And just weeks away from baby number five, Catherine said this was the most confident she'd ever felt heading into labor and delivery. She knew her body was ready because she'd kept her nervous system regulated throughout the entire pregnancy.

You Have More Control Than You Think

At Apex Family Chiropractic, we understand that your baby's nervous system is developing right now. Your nervous system teaches your baby's nervous system. The intervention you pursue now—addressing nervous system dysregulation at the root cause level—affects your child's health trajectory for years to come - and we want to help!

You have more control than you think. Not by somehow eliminating all stress from your life (impossible), but by helping your body regulate despite it. So do not hesitate to reach out to us today to schedule a consultation. 

You deserve to feel supported. So if you are not local to us, check out the PX Docs directory to find an office near you. Your baby deserves a calm, regulated foundation. And it's not too late to start creating that environment right now.

How To Raise Healthy Kids Naturally

Your child has been sick six times since September. You've tried everything — vitamins, essential oils, probiotics, even that expensive immune booster your friend swears by. But nothing seems to work. The antibiotics clear one infection just in time for the next one to start. You're exhausted, your child is miserable, and deep down you know there has to be a better way.

Here's what nobody's telling you: You're doing everything right, but in the wrong order.

It's like trying to remodel a house while the foundation is cracking. No matter how beautiful the upgrades, nothing will hold if the base isn't solid. The same is true for your child's health. You can add all the supplements and remedies you want, but if their nervous system — their foundation — is stuck in stress mode, nothing else can work properly.

The truth is, your child is stuck in a pattern that can be shifted once you understand the right sequence.

The Medicine Cabinet Shuffle

If you're like most parents we see, you've been caught in what we call the "medicine cabinet shuffle" — trying remedy after remedy, therapy after therapy, with limited results. You've been told your child will "grow out of it" or to just keep adding more interventions.

But here's what the research shows: children who receive antibiotics before age two are more likely to struggle with asthma, respiratory allergies, eczema, celiac disease, obesity, and ADHD later in life.

Now, let's be clear: antibiotics aren't inherently bad. They can absolutely be lifesaving. The problem is we're treating the symptoms without ever asking why the immune system is struggling in the first place.

It's like having a bucket with holes in it. You can keep pouring water in, but until you patch the holes, you'll never fill the bucket.

Your Child's Nervous System: The Air Traffic Controller

Here's the game-changer that most parents never learn: Your child's nervous system is like the Air Traffic Controller of their entire body — it coordinates every other system, especially the immune system.

When the nervous system is stressed and stuck in "fight or flight" mode, it cannot coordinate proper immune responses, digestion, or sleep. This is why supplements and remedies often fail — you're trying to boost a system that's fundamentally dysregulated.

Why Most Approaches Fail

Most parents are taught to attack the symptoms, not address root causes. It's like pushing a car with the parking brake on — therapies and remedies can't work when the nervous system is locked in stress mode.

The "Perfect Storm" of modern childhood — prenatal stress, birth interventions, early antibiotics, and environmental toxins — creates a stressed nervous system from day one. Without addressing this neurological stress first, you're just managing symptoms, not building health.

The Four Pillars (In The Right Order)

When you get the foundation right first, everything else can finally fall into place. Here are the four pillars that support your child's health — and they must be addressed in this specific order:

1. Sleep Comes First

Sleep is when the body does its deepest healing and immune system regulation. Consistent poor sleep in children contributes to immune problems, focus challenges, anxiety, and depression. If your child isn't sleeping well, nothing else you do will be as effective as it could be.

2. Exercise and Play

Movement isn't just about burning energy. Exercise and play activate brain pathways critical for learning, immune response, and nervous system regulation. When kids move their bodies, they're literally training their brains and immune systems to function better.

3. Clean Eating

This means focusing on nutrient-dense foods while minimizing processed sugars and chemicals. But here's the relief: 80/20 consistency beats perfection. You don't need to be perfect. You just need to be consistent enough that your child's body has what it needs to thrive.

4. Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care

This is the key that unlocks everything else. Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care helps restore balance to the nervous system, releasing that parking brake so all your other efforts can actually work. When the Air Traffic Controller is functioning properly, everything else falls into place.

Building Real Resilience

The goal isn't just to stop the current cold or infection. The goal is to build real resilience — to help your child's body handle whatever comes its way without constant illness.

When you address the nervous system first and follow the four pillars in order, you're not just managing symptoms. You're giving your child's body the foundation it needs to heal itself and stay strong.

Your Next Step

If you're ready to stop the endless cycle and build your child's health from the foundation up, it's time to take a different approach. At Apex Family Chiropractic, we understand that your child doesn't need more labels or medications — they need their nervous system to shift from stressed to regulated. We are ready for your call, so please don’t wait to contact us today to schedule a consultation for your child. If you are not local to us, check out the PX Docs directory to find an office near you. 

It's time to stop pushing that car with the parking brake on. When you release it, you'll be amazed at how naturally your child can thrive!

The Missing Piece to Helping Your Child’s Chronic Illnesses

The Missing Piece to Helping Your Child’s Chronic Illnesses

As a parent, you want nothing more than to see your child thrive. You've probably spent countless nights worrying when they struggle with sleep, meltdowns, focus issues, or mysterious health problems that seem to have no clear cause. You've likely tried everything your pediatrician suggested, maybe even worked with specialists, yet somehow you still feel like you're missing a crucial piece of the puzzle.

What if I told you that the key to unlocking your child's full potential might be hiding in plain sight within their own body? The secret lies in something called nervous system regulation—and understanding it could transform your approach to your child's health and well-being.

Jake's Story: From Explosive Meltdowns to National Champion

Let me share Jake's story with you. When Jake turned 2.5, his parents watched their sweet, smiling little boy transform. Suddenly, he began experiencing intense tantrums, crying spells, and explosive angry reactions that seemed to come from nowhere. When triggered, his anger would escalate quickly—yelling, stomping, calling himself "stupid," and sometimes even hitting himself.

His parents felt helpless. With every outburst, they grew more desperate. They had conversations with pediatricians, attended weekly therapy sessions, sat through countless school meetings with teachers and social workers, navigated 504 plan discussions—all while longing for peace for Jake and hoping to bring calmness back to their family.

After an especially explosive event at a martial arts competition, Jake's family knew they needed a completely different approach. They had heard about Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care from a friend and decided to take a chance.

The transformation didn't happen overnight, but with consistency and time to help rewire and regulate Jake's nervous system, they began to see remarkable changes. After about 3-4 months, Jake's mom noticed he appeared calmer. He began using his words to express his feelings instead of reacting explosively. He was less anxious, less combative, and less intense overall.

But here's the most incredible part: Jake went on to compete in the AAU National Karate Tournament, where he took home two gold medals—becoming a National Champion in two events! The same child who once struggled with explosive anger had learned to channel his energy and emotions in a completely different way.

Understanding Your Child's Nervous System: The Foundation of Health

So what exactly happened with Jake? To understand this transformation, you need to know about nervous system regulation—something that affects every aspect of your child's health but is often overlooked in traditional healthcare approaches.

What Is Nervous System Regulation?

Think of your child's nervous system as the master control center for their entire body. It helps keep everything balanced and stable, ensuring that every bodily system can communicate effectively and work in harmony. This state of balance is called homeostasis.

When your child's nervous system is properly regulated, everything functions optimally:

• Basic functions like sleeping, eating, and digestion work smoothly

• Advanced functions like controlling inflammation and managing immune responses operate effectively

• Mental, emotional, and cognitive health remain stable and resilient

When Things Go Wrong: The Signs of Dysregulation

When your child's nervous system becomes overly stressed and imbalanced, it enters a state called nervous system dysregulation. This can manifest in many different ways, often starting with disruptions to basic health functions.

Early warning signs you might notice:

• Difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep

• Digestive issues or irregular eating patterns

• Mood swings or emotional instability

• Low energy or hyperactivity

• Trouble with emotional regulation

If you're seeing these challenges in your child, they're not character flaws or behavioral problems—they're signs that your child's nervous system needs support.

The Autonomic Nervous System: Your Child's Internal Thermostat

The key to understanding nervous system regulation lies in something called the autonomic nervous system. This system controls and coordinates all the major functions of your child's body, managing trillions of cells almost entirely on "autopilot."

The autonomic nervous system has two main branches:

The Sympathetic System ("Fight or Flight"): This kicks in during times of stress, danger, or high activity. It's designed to help your child respond to challenges, but it's not meant to be constantly activated.

The Parasympathetic System ("Rest, Relax, and Regulate"): This is where the magic happens. When this system is active, your child's body can rest, repair, restore, and regulate itself.

The Vagus Nerve: This crucial nerve is primarily responsible for activating the "rest and regulate" response. If your child has any damage or dysfunction in their vagus nerve, their nervous system will struggle to find balance and regulation.

The Perfect Storm: How Dysregulation Develops

Nervous system dysregulation doesn't happen overnight—it often develops through what experts call "The Perfect Storm" of stressors and challenges.

In infancy, this might look like:

• Difficulty nursing and eating

• Trouble soothing and sleeping

• Being colicky and fussy

• Acid reflux or constipation

• Skin issues like eczema

As children grow, you might see:

• Chronic ear infections

• Respiratory and immune system struggles

• Difficulties with motor planning and developmental milestones

• Challenges reaching age-appropriate developmental markers

Eventually, a dysregulated nervous system can manifest as:

• Big emotions and frequent meltdowns

• Attention and focus challenges

• Sensory processing difficulties

• Behaviors that look like ADHD or autism spectrum characteristics

Factors That Can Contribute to Dysregulation

Understanding what can contribute to nervous system dysregulation empowers you to be more aware and proactive about your child's health:

• Birth-related stress: Difficult pregnancies, birth interventions, or traumatic birth experiences

• Environmental toxins: Exposure to chemicals, pollutants, or other harmful substances

• Physical trauma: Falls, accidents, or even repetitive strain from things like heavy backpacks

• Emotional stress: Family changes, school pressure, or social challenges

• Poor nutrition: Diets high in processed foods or lacking essential nutrients

• Lack of movement: Sedentary lifestyles that don't support healthy nervous system development

Taking Action: What You Can Do as a Parent

The good news is that nervous system dysregulation isn't permanent. Your child's nervous system has an incredible capacity for healing and adaptation when given the right support.

This is where Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care comes in, and this is what {INSERT OFFICE NAMES} does best. Like what helped Jake, we advanced scanning technology, INSiGHT Scans, to identify areas of nervous system stress and then gentle adjusting techniques to help restore balance.

This approach doesn't rely on medications or invasive procedures. Instead, it works with your child's natural healing capacity to help their nervous system return to a state of regulation and optimal function.

Your Child's Potential Is Waiting

Imagine a world where your child can face life's challenges with resilience, focus with ease, and truly thrive. That's the power of a well-regulated nervous system. Your child doesn't have to struggle with ongoing health issues, behavioral challenges, or developmental delays.

You don't have to wait for problems to worsen or accept that "this is just how your child is." Nervous system regulation can be supported and optimized at any stage of your child's development, so don’t wait to call {INSERT OFFICE NAME} today! If you are not local to us, check out the PX Docs directory to find an office near you. 

You have more power than you might realize to influence your child's health and well-being. By understanding nervous system regulation and taking proactive steps to support it, you're giving your child one of the greatest gifts possible: the foundation for lifelong health, resilience, and success.

Do Infants Grow Out of Colic?

Do Infants Grow Out of Colic?

What do fussy babies and kids with ADHD have in common? The answer might surprise you—and empower you to take action.

If you're a parent dealing with a colicky baby, you've probably heard these words from well-meaning healthcare providers: "Don't worry, they'll grow out of it." But here's what no one is telling you—babies don't just grow out of colic. They grow into other challenges.

The endless crying, the back arching, the sleepless nights that leave you questioning everything you're doing as a parent—these aren't just difficult phases that magically disappear. They're your baby's way of communicating that something deeper is happening in their nervous system.

The Truth About What Happens After Colic

Every week, parents walk into healthcare offices with seven-year-olds struggling with sensory issues, ADHD, or anxiety. When practitioners dig into these children's histories, there it is—they were colicky babies. The same stress that caused endless crying at three months old is now causing meltdowns at seven years old. The labels changed, but the underlying problem never left.

You're not imagining the connection, and you're certainly not failing as a parent.

Why Everything You've Tried Hasn't Worked

If you're reading this, chances are you've already tried everything—eliminating dairy from your diet if you're breastfeeding, keeping detailed food journals, trying every colic drop and remedy on the market, adjusting feeding schedules, and following countless pieces of advice from family, friends, and online forums.

You're exhausted, overwhelmed, and probably wondering what you're doing wrong. Here's the truth: You're not doing anything wrong. You're just missing the most important piece of the puzzle.

The Real Root Cause Goes Deeper Than Digestion

Most people think colic is purely a digestive issue—gas, indigestion, food sensitivities. While these symptoms are real and distressing, they're only part of the story. The digestive system is completely controlled by the nervous system.

Think of your baby's nervous system as their internal air traffic controller. This system coordinates every function in their tiny body. When that controller gets stressed and overwhelmed, everything starts backing up—digestion, sleep, emotional regulation, and development.

The vagus nerve, often called the "master nerve," travels from the brainstem all the way down through the neck, controlling the esophagus, stomach, and intestines. When birth trauma or stress affects this nerve, digestion literally gets stuck.

This is why we need to change how we think about colic. Instead of seeing it as a mysterious condition your baby will "grow out of," understand it for what it really is: STUCK.

• Baby gets stuck in the birth canal during delivery

• Stress gets stuck in their nervous system

• Digestion gets stuck

• Your baby stays stuck in distress

The Hidden Trigger No One Discusses: Birth Trauma

Here's a pattern that's impossible to ignore: nearly 100% of colicky babies have experienced some form of birth intervention—C-sections, forceps delivery, vacuum extraction, or labor induction. These interventions, while sometimes medically necessary, create physical stress on the upper neck area where crucial nerves originate.

But the stress often begins even before birth. The umbilical cord acts like a direct connection, transferring your stress during pregnancy to your baby's developing nervous system. If you experienced anxiety, physical discomfort, or stress during pregnancy, your baby's nervous system was already on high alert before they even arrived.

The physical tension from birth gets stuck in two key places: the upper neck area and the middle back. This explains why colicky babies arch their backs and stiffen their necks—they're literally trying to stretch out the tension, just like you might do after sitting at a desk all day.

Your baby is communicating through their body language that the problem isn't in their stomach—it's in their spine and nervous system.

The Progression Every Parent Should Know About

Here's the timeline that plays out for countless families when the underlying nervous system stress isn't addressed:

• Colic (0-6 months): Crying, digestive issues, sleep problems

• Chronic ear infections (6-18 months): Repeated infections requiring antibiotics

• Speech delays (18-36 months): Late talking or unclear speech

• Sensory processing issues (3-5 years): Over-sensitivity to sounds, textures, or environments

• ADHD/anxiety (5-10 years): Difficulty focusing, emotional dysregulation

Each stage involves the same stuck stress pattern affecting your child's nervous system—it just shows up differently as they grow and develop. The colic didn't disappear; it transformed into new challenges.

Making matters worse, all those antibiotics prescribed for recurring ear infections can disrupt gut health, while other medications may increase nervous system stress. Now you have a child heading toward emotional and behavioral challenges, and traditional therapies may feel like pushing a car with the parking brake still on.

What Your Baby's Body Language Is Telling You

When your baby cries inconsolably and arches their back, they're not just expressing discomfort—they're giving you valuable information. That back arching isn't about gas or reflux; it's your baby's instinctive attempt to release tension in their nervous system.

Just as you might stretch your neck and back after a stressful day, your baby is trying to relieve the physical tension stored in their spine and nervous system from their birth experience.

Understanding that colic isn't something you have to just "wait out" is the first step to helping your child heal and thrive. Your baby isn't broken, defective, or unusually difficult—they're stuck in a stress pattern that can be addressed.

The earlier you address nervous system stress, the faster children heal. This is because of neuroplasticity—the brain's amazing ability to form new connections and patterns, especially in infancy and early childhood.

Taking Action: What Parents Can Do

Trust your instincts. You know your baby better than anyone. If something feels off, don't let anyone dismiss your concerns with "they'll grow out of it."

Look for practitioners who understand the nervous system connection. Seek providers who look at the whole child, not just individual symptoms. Ask about their approach to addressing nervous system stress and birth trauma.

Consider the birth experience. Reflect on your pregnancy and birth experience. Were there interventions? Stress during pregnancy? Extended labor? This information can provide valuable clues.

Think beyond quick fixes. While symptom management has its place, focus on finding practitioners who want to address root causes rather than just managing symptoms.

Document patterns. Keep track of when your baby is most distressed, what seems to help, and any family history of similar challenges. This information can be valuable for healthcare providers.

Your Child Deserves More Than Labels and Management

Your baby doesn't need more labels, more medications to manage symptoms, or parents who feel helpless and exhausted. They need their nervous system to shift from a stressed, stuck state to a balanced, thriving state.

When that stuck tension from birth gets addressed properly, families often see remarkable transformations. Babies who once cried constantly become content and happy. Sleep improves. Digestion settles. The whole family dynamic can shift.

The Bottom Line for Parents

You are not failing. You are not overreacting. You are not "just anxious new parents." You are advocates for your child, and your instincts matter.

Your child isn't broken—they're stuck. And with the right approach, they can get unstuck. At Apex Family Chiropractic, we understand that colic is often a nervous system issue masquerading as a digestive problem, and we know how to address it appropriately. Hope, answers, and help are available, and we want to provide that for you, so don’t hesitate to give us a call today! If you are not local to us, check out the PX Docs directory to find an office near you. 

The earlier you take action to support your baby's nervous system health, the better their outcomes will be—not just for colic, but for their overall development, learning, behavior, and emotional regulation as they grow.

You’ve Tried Everything for Speech… Here’s What Everyone Overlooks

You’ve Tried Everything for Speech… Here’s What Everyone Overlooks

You've been there. Sitting in yet another speech therapy appointment, watching your child struggle through the same exercises you've practiced countless times at home. You've followed every recommendation, invested thousands of dollars, and dedicated hours each week to speech drills and muscle exercises. Yet here you are, months or even years later, with your little one still struggling to communicate clearly while other children their age chatter away effortlessly.

If this sounds familiar, you're not alone—and more importantly, you're not missing anything as a parent. The gap isn't in your dedication or your child's effort. The missing piece is that nearly 1 in 12 U.S. children ages 3-17 experience voice, speech, language, or swallowing disorders, and the vast majority are receiving the same traditional approach that focuses on the "output"—the speech muscles and sounds—while completely missing what's happening "upstream" in the brain and nervous system.

The real problem isn't that your child needs more speech drills or muscle exercises. The problem is that stress and interference within their nervous system is disrupting the very foundation of how speech develops and functions.

Meet Coen: When Everything Changed

Let me tell you about Coen, whose transformation perfectly illustrates what we're talking about. Before finding Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care, Coen had a severe speech delay with difficulty initiating sounds and very little sound production. His parents were exhausted, searching everywhere for answers beyond traditional speech therapy because everything they read stated that "Coen's struggles were neurological in origin."

They kept asking themselves, "There must be some way to stimulate his nervous system!" When they finally found a PX Doc trained in neurological care, the scans revealed exactly what they suspected—there was a disconnect with how Coen's nervous system was processing information and coordinating actions like movement and speech. His parents said, "Looking through his scans and talking with the doctors, it all made sense why he was struggling and why progress had been very slow."

Then came the breakthrough. About two months into neurologically-focused care, "it seemed like a switch flipped for Coen. He started producing way more sounds than before. He began initiating sounds and words on his own without prompting from others... lately, he has just been talking away!"

Today, Coen has gained about three years of progress in just three months and has finished speech services, having met all his goals in record time.

Understanding How Speech Actually Works: The Three-Step Process You Need to Know

Here's what most parents (and even many providers) don't understand: speech production is a complex, sequential 3-step neurological process.

Step 1: Input

First, sensory and auditory signals are received by the brain. This includes hearing sounds, feeling the position of the tongue and mouth, and processing visual cues from watching others speak.

Step 2: Integration

The brain processes and integrates this information, creating a plan for how to coordinate all the different muscles needed for speech.

Step 3: Output

Finally, the brain sends coordinated signals to speech muscles to produce the desired sounds and words.

Here's the crucial insight: While most people assume speech delays stem from muscle problems in the output stage, the real issues typically occur "upstream" in the brain and nervous system's input and integration phases.

When subluxation and nervous system dysfunction interfere with these early stages, no amount of muscle exercises or speech drills can fully compensate for the neurological breakdown happening in the brain. This is why your child can work so hard in speech therapy but still struggle—you're working on step 3 when the problem is in steps 1 and 2.

The Real Culprits: Understanding Subluxation and Its Impact

Subluxation refers to misalignment and neurological interference within the nervous system that disrupts brain-body communication pathways. This interference:

• Affects nerve signals controlling speech muscles

• Leads to difficulties in motor planning (apraxia)

• Creates abnormal muscle tone and coordination issues in the mouth, face, and respiratory muscles

The connection to birth: Birth interventions like forceps, vacuum extraction, and C-sections can physically injure the delicate upper cervical area and brainstem regions that house critical nerves controlling speech and communication. Even "normal" births can create stress on these vital areas.

The Vagus Nerve: Your Child's Communication Highway

One of the most critical—yet often overlooked—factors in speech development is the vagus nerve. This nerve controls the vocal cords through its recurrent laryngeal branch, and when it's not functioning properly, it leads to:

• Problems with vocalization, pitch, volume, and speech clarity

• Difficulty with the precise coordination of breathing and swallowing required for clear speech

• Dysregulation of the autonomic nervous system keeps children stuck in "fight or flight" mode

When the vagus nerve is not working properly, it keeps your child's nervous system in a stressed state, which further exacerbates speech and communication problems. Your child literally cannot access their full communication potential when their nervous system is stuck in survival mode.

Why Speech Delays Signal Deeper Developmental Issues

As a parent, it's important to understand that speech is a complex function that develops only after more foundational milestones have been achieved. These include:

• Nervous system regulation

• Gross motor coordination

• Gut-brain health

• Basic sensory processing

If your child's brain and body are still working on these foundational "projects," they simply don't have the neurological resources available to focus on higher-level functions like speech, socialization, and emotional regulation.

This explains why many children with speech delays also struggle with:

• Digestive issues

• Sleep problems

• Sensory processing challenges

• Missed gross motor milestones

It's all connected through the nervous system. Recognizing this connection empowers you to address the root cause rather than just managing symptoms.

Taking Charge: A Different Approach to Your Child's Speech Development

Understanding the neurological foundations of speech development puts you in the driver's seat of your child's health journey. Here's how a neurologically-focused approach addresses the real root causes:

Step 1: Identifying the "Perfect Storm"

This begins with examining your child's case history, particularly birth trauma and early life stressors that create neurological dysfunction. You know your child's history better than anyone—trust your instincts about what might have contributed to their challenges.

Step 2: Advanced Neurological Assessment

Specialized INSiGHT Neurological Scans can precisely locate and measure subluxation and nervous system dysfunction that conventional providers cannot detect. These scans provide objective data about how your child's nervous system is functioning.

Step 3: Gentle, Specific Care

Through gentle, specific neurologically-focused adjustments, proper nerve function and brain-body communication can be restored, allowing your child's natural speech development to finally unfold as it should.

Your Role as an Empowered Parent

You are your child's best advocate. If traditional speech therapy isn't producing the progress you know your child is capable of, trust your instincts. You have the right to:

• Ask questions about the neurological foundations of your child's speech challenges

• Seek providers who look at the whole child, not just the symptoms

• Explore care that addresses root causes rather than just managing effects

• Expect real progress, not just slow incremental changes

Your child's struggles are not a reflection of your parenting, their effort, or a lack of trying hard enough. They may simply need a different approach—one that addresses the neurological interference preventing their natural abilities from emerging.

Moving Forward with Hope and Purpose

Every child has an innate drive to communicate and connect. When that drive seems blocked or delayed, it's often because something is interfering with their nervous system's ability to coordinate this complex process.

At Apex Family Chiropractic, we understand that the neurological foundations of speech development doesn't mean abandoning speech therapy—it means ensuring that your child's nervous system is optimized so that traditional therapies can be more effective.

The breakthrough your family has been searching for may be closer than you think. It might just require looking at your child's speech challenges through a different lens—one that honors the complex, incredible connection between the nervous system and communication. So if you’re ready to dive into the true root cause of your child’s speech delays, please reach out to Apex Family Chiropractic today! If you are not local to us, check out the PX Docs directory to find an office near you. 

Remember: You know your child best. Trust your instincts, ask the deeper questions, and don't settle for "this is just how it is" when your heart tells you there's more to the story.

Why Nothing Seems to Work for Your Anxious, Overwhelmed Child

Why Nothing Seems to Work for Your Anxious, Overwhelmed Child

Your child melts down over the smallest things. They can't sleep. They refuse to go to school. The tantrums are getting worse, and you're walking on eggshells, never knowing what might set them off next. You've tried behavioral programs, therapy sessions, and maybe even medication, but nothing seems to stick. In fact, everything you try seems to make their anxiety and aggression worse.

You're not alone, and you're not failing your child.

4.4 million children in America struggle with anxiety, and the numbers are climbing every year. What most parents don't realize is that their child's anxiety isn't a behavioral problem that needs to be managed - it's a neurological problem that can be solved.

Damon's Story: From Despair to Hope

When 8-year-old Damon started having self-harming thoughts and refusing to go to school, his mom, Natia, felt hopeless. His emotions were coming out as anger and aggression, and things were getting progressively worse for his entire family.

Damon had already been through a behavioral program, but his mom felt like everything she tried was making his anxiety and aggression worse. She was worried about what school would look like and how he would adapt as he got older.

But when they discovered the real root cause wasn't in Damon's head - it was stuck in his nervous system - everything changed. For the first time, Natia felt heard and hopeful. There was no judgment; they felt understood and finally had some answers as to why Damon was struggling. And even better, there was a solution.

Understanding Why Your Child's Nervous System Gets "Stuck"

Here's what you need to understand: your child's anxiety isn't a character flaw or behavioral choice. It's their nervous system stuck in a constant "fight or flight" state, unable to access the "rest, digest, and regulate" mode that's essential for emotional well-being.

When the nervous system is out of balance, even simple daily activities can feel threatening to your child's brain and body, triggering anxiety responses that seem disproportionate to the situation. This stuck state is caused by subluxation - stress and tension that builds up in the nervous system and interferes with proper brain-body communication.

Think of it this way: your child isn't choosing to be anxious or defiant. Their nervous system is literally unable to find the "off switch" for their stress response.

The Perfect Storm That Creates Childhood Anxiety

Subluxation buildup often starts earlier than you might think:

Pregnancy: Maternal stress hormones cross the placenta and impact your baby's developing nervous system. This isn't about blame - it's about understanding that stress affects developing systems in ways we're only beginning to comprehend.

Birth Trauma: Interventions like C-sections, forceps, or vacuum extraction can create physical trauma to the delicate upper neck and brainstem area, where crucial nerves are housed.

Early Childhood: Falls, illnesses, emotional stress, and even frequent antibiotic use continue to add layers of stress to an already overwhelmed nervous system.

Without addressing these root causes, children don't simply "grow out of" anxiety - they often grow into more complex neurological challenges.

The Vagus Nerve Connection Most Doctors Never Mention

Here's the key piece most healthcare providers miss: the vagus nerve is your child's "brake pedal." It's responsible for activating the calming, healing side of the nervous system, which allows them to self-regulate and feel safe.

When subluxation interferes with vagus nerve function, your child loses access to this natural calming mechanism, making it nearly impossible for them to settle down on their own.

This explains why traditional behavioral approaches often fall short - they're trying to teach coping skills to a child whose nervous system is physically unable to access the calm state needed to use those skills effectively. It's like trying to teach someone to drive while their brakes don't work.

Taking Back Control: How to Address the Real Root Cause

As a parent, you have more power than you realize. The first step is understanding that your child's struggles stem from a neurological imbalance that can be measured and addressed.

The PX Docs network utilizes advanced INSiGHT Scans that can detect and measure the presence and severity of subluxation and nervous system dysfunction in your child. These scans show exactly where stress is stuck in your child's nervous system and help create a personalized plan tailored to their unique needs.

Through precise, gentle chiropractic adjustments, Neurologically-Focused Chiropractors work to release stuck stress from the sympathetic nervous system, activate the vagus nerve, and restore balance to the nervous system as a whole. The goal is to help your child's body learn when it's safe to relax and when it's appropriate to activate the stress response, giving them access to both sides of their nervous system.

Imagine your child being able to:

• Handle everyday stressors without complete meltdowns

• Sleep peacefully through the night

• Go to school without the morning battle

• Communicate their needs instead of acting out

• Access their natural ability to calm down and regulate

This isn't just wishful thinking - it's what happens when you address the neurological root cause instead of just managing symptoms.

Your Next Step Forward

If this all sounds familiar to you, know that you're not powerless in this situation. Your child's anxiety isn't a life sentence, and you don't have to resign yourself to years of behavioral management and medication trials.

At Apex Family Chiropractic, we understand the neurological basis of childhood anxiety and have the tools to measure and address nervous system dysfunction. We utilize advanced neurological scanning technology, INSiGHT Scans, and take a comprehensive approach to nervous system health.

Your child's healing journey starts with understanding that their struggles are real and, most importantly, can be addressed. So if you are ready to advocate for your child's neurological health and help them access the calm, regulated state they deserve, don’t wait to reach out to Apex Family Chiropractic today.  If you are not local to us, check out the PX Docs directory to find a PX Docs office near you. 

You know your child best. Trust your instincts, ask the hard questions, and don't settle for "they'll grow out of it" when your parental intuition tells you there's more to the story.

Your child's nervous system has an incredible capacity for healing and adaptation. Sometimes it just needs the right support to remember how to find balance again.