Welcome to the Allergy Belt

“Are you sick?” 

“Oh, not really. It’s just these allergies.” 

Did you know that there is a simple, homeopathic method to possibly alleviate some of your allergy symptoms if you are a person who is overly bothered by the pollen? Honey. But not just any honey. It needs to be local. And it matters when it was harvested. Before going any further with this possible remedy for your symptoms, it is important that we do a little thinking about this. We are all breathing the same air around here. Some people are bothered by the pollen and some are not as much. People who are reacting to the pollen in the air do not have a honey deficit or a medicine deficit. Their body is just overreacting to pollen and treating it like it were a germ. The good news is that there are lots of treatments out there to help your body learn to recognize pollen better and not get thrown off so badly that you are wiped out with “allergies.” Chiropractic, acupuncture, probiotics, and other techniques can help your body recognize the difference between pollen and germs over the long term. 

But in the meantime, or if your reactions to pollen remain severe, you may want to try taking some local honey, since it is made with pollen, and introducing it to our bodies does help to alleviate allergies in a lot of people. The key is to be able to find out exactly when the honey was harvested. You want to take honey that was made with the same pollen you are affected by. So if you experience pollen allergy symptoms most severely in March and April, you would want to consume honey that was harvested around May of the previous year, and you would want to begin taking it before the onset of symptoms, maybe around February. So get to know your local honey seller so you can find out exactly when and where the honey was harvested. We love the folks over at Polk’s if you want to give them a try! 

And of course, if you’re not working on getting healthier in general, your body is going to have more reactions to more stressors, so it’s a good idea to begin getting chiropractic care for your general health. You’d be surprised how much less the pollen will bother you when your immune system is working optimally! Why not set up a wellness evaluation with us so we can get you on the road to optimal health this week?

Five Reasons to Try Chiropractic in 2014

by Will Forrester

A few years ago my family and I stumbled onto chiropractic care, and we’ve never felt better. If you’re looking to get healthier, feel better, or just want some relief from a problematic area, here’s five reasons to try chiropractic care in 2014: 

1. Neck and Back Pain Slows You Down and Makes You Miserable. If you’re reading this blog then chances are you’ve got some neck or back pain. That’s what drives most people to investigate chiropractic care in the first place. And that’s a good thing—because it works. It’s a New Year. Would you like to finally get some real, tangible relief in that neck or that back that is giving you trouble? Regardless of how bad of shape you think you may be in, chiropractic care can certainly improve if not significantly improve your functioning. Imagine getting to go for a whole day, or a whole week without back or neck pain? That’s a New Year’s Resolution we can help you actually reach. 

2. You’ll Have WAY Fewer Headaches. Maybe you’re not thinking about headaches now, or maybe you’ve got a splitting migraine as you read this. Either way, most people have occasional headaches or even chronic problems. Did you know most headaches are tension and stress related, many times due to neck tension. Guess what? You get some good chiropractic care, and studies show you will have fewer and less severe headaches. Some of our patients literally don’t get headaches anymore. 

3. Your Nervous System Affects EVERYTHING. Chiropractic is actually about aligning the spine, in other words, the central nervous system. Yes, we help align bones as well, but the magic is that your nervous system carries all that information back and forth so your body can repair and heal itself. When you’re out of alignment, it’s like a computer that has all sorts of bugs and maybe even had coffee spilled on the keyboard a time or two. It just doesn’t run as fast as it should and gets locked up sometimes. At Ranicki Chiropracitic, we want your nervous system to function as smoothly as a brand new Mac laptop (or PC if that’s your preference)! When your body is communicating well, all your internal organs will work more smoothly. We have lost count of the number of patients who initially came in for help with a back or neck problem, but after receiving care found that their acid reflux or asthma or kidney or hormonal problems or depression also significantly improved. 

4. You’ll Have More Energy. And when your bodily systems are all working together more smoothly, you know what happens? YOU FEEL AWESOME! Have we discovered the fountain of youth? Well, not exactly, but the truth is that most Americans are way more tired and worn down physically than they should be at their age. Chiropractic care will serve as a boost to your energy level as you put into practice other healthy life habits. What if 2014 was the year that you actually felt like getting out of bed, going after life with gusto because you knew you had the energy to tackle whatever was before you? 

5. The Adjustments Really Do Feel Great. Why should you give chiropractic a try this year? If you really need another reason, here’s one more. The adjustments really do feel great! Now if you’re in severe pain starting out, you might not get that “ahhh” feeling initially. But give us a few weeks, and you’ll see why more and more Americans love their chiropractor. They know how to help relieve tension and stress in a way that’s going to help you for years to come. 

6. The Atmosphere at Ranicki Chiropractic Is Peaceful and Positive. Okay, I know we said 5 Reasons, but I can’t resist giving you one more reason. If you haven’t stopped by Ranicki Chiropractic and Wellness Center, you owe it to yourself this year to at least come by and meet Dr. Ranicki and the incredible wellness team. They are super friendly, always positive and helpful, and the atmosphere they have created is a breath of fresh air. It’s one of the highlights of my week to get to lie on the adjustment table, hear the aquarium water bubbling, listen to gentle meditative music that calms my spirit, and then get to chat with the amazing staff. They never fail to offer a smile, an encouraging word, and positive advice for how to get and remain healthy. If you want to have an awesome 2014, get into an environment like Ranicki Chiropractic where you’re going to be motivated to be your best self. And get some people on your team like Dr. Ranicki who will make you want to stay on the path to true health and wellness.

More Than Just Backs and Necks

by Will Forrester

The other day I was having lunch with two dear friends, and one of them asked me if I was still going to see Dr. Ranicki. I enthusiastically said that yes indeed I was. This prompted the other one to ask me why I was still going. I simply said that I have never felt better, and continuing to go seems to help me stay near optimum health as far as I can tell. 

I said, “For instance, I used to battle sinus problems on a near constant basis. I was always taking Sudafed or Clairitin D or something for sinus headaches. And then periodically I would get sinus infections. Since I have been going to Dr. Ranicki those problems are basically gone.”

I could tell that she didn’t quite follow me. I could tell she was wondering what in the world spinal adjustments would have to do with sinus problems. So I elaborated. I didn’t begin going to Dr. Ranicki for help with my sinuses. As I’ve written about before, I was battling some very painful sciatica. Whenever you go see Dr. Ranicki for an adjustment, he always asks how you are doing and has a conversation with you while he is doing the adjustment. During that time he offers a world of helpful health and wellness advice. During the course of one of my visits—this was after my sciatica had begun to improve some and I was beginning to really believe in the value of chiropractic care, Dr. Ranicki unlocked a key for understanding chiropractic for me. 

He said, “Will, you were experiencing severe pain in your leg, but you understand that actually there was nothing actually wrong with your leg. The problem was in your lower back, where your spine was being pinched. Even though the actual problem was in your back, it caused your leg to become extremely tight, so much so that the muscles would not even work properly.

“If a problem in your spine can make it where leg muscles do not respond and work as they should, wouldn’t it logically follow that other parts of your body could also be harmed if they were not communicating well with the central nervous system? What if, instead of the nerves going to your leg that were not working well, what if they were nerves to your kidneys or to your heart or to your lungs? Can you see how spinal adjustments can have an affect on all sorts of organs of the body, more than just the mechanical structure?” I don’t know why, but on that day it dawned on me how chiropractic might serve to help all sorts of health problems one might experience. 

I think more than anything else, this is why for the past two years I have just felt so very much better than I had the previous thirty-four years of my life. It’s not just that I experience less lower back or leg pain. I have fewer headaches. I threw all my sinus medicine away. I don’t need it anymore. Do I get a sniffle from time to time? Sure. But it sure doesn’t seem to linger on, and I have absolutely no interest in hitting the medicine aisle anytime soon.

Sick Care vs. Stay Well
Will Forrester

This time of year used to wreak havoc on my sinuses.  Allergy season.  I would start getting that headache and get that tickly feeling in my throat, and I wouldn’t waste any time.  I would head right over to my local pharmacy or grocery store and hit the section just like this display below.  

And if you’re like me, you’ve tried some or all of these medicines.  They all make miraculous claims, and some do seem to help with symptoms for a while.  And they also tend to make competing promises on how much or little they will affect you “on the side.”  People even intentionally take these medicines to help them stay awake or go to sleep, because that is how they function.  

But a funny thing has happened to me since I started receiving chiropractic care and implementing some of the health and wellness suggestions from Dr. Ranicki.  I don’t take these medicines anymore.  

It’s not like I ever decided to stop taking sinus medicines, decongestants, antihistamines and the like.  I just don’t need them anymore.  I still live in the same house.  I still breathe the same air.  Yes, cutting the grass still makes me sneezy for a day, but it doesn’t turn into a sinus infection anymore.  

I used to buy huge quantities of these medicines, and I went through them like candy.  The other day I decided to clean out my medicine drawer and I realized that every bit of my medicine had now expired.  Somehow, I don’t think I’ll have to replace them.  


What makes me sick today isn’t allergies, thanks to chiropractic care.  What makes me sick is the advertisement at the top of that display pictured above.  It says, “Stay well.”  

Stay well.  Really?  Am I supposed to believe that if I’m well and want to stay that way through “allergy season,” I need to purchase and begin taking medicines, which are proven to cause other health problems when taken over long periods of time?  Are we really to believe that people who look and seem to be as happy and healthy as this couple pictured here are happy and healthy because they take allergy medicines?

Of course we know this is all just marketing, but marketing is powerful.  We call the medical and pharmaceutical industry “health care,” when in fact it is and should be called “sick care.”  

I definitely did not look for a chiropractor because I had sinus problems or allergy problems.  But I know the truth.  I used to spend a lot of money on Sudafed and the like, and now I can spend that money on things that actually keep me healthy and happy… things that help me to STAY WELL.   

It seems that when you’re actually well, you don’t need quite so much medicine.  Stop by Ranicki Chiropractic and Wellness to learn how you can get well and even stay well or visit their website.   Even through allergy season.