During our undergraduate years most of our time and energy is spent learning the ‘hard’ sciences of anatomy, neurology, biochemistry and spinal biomechanics. We eagerly focus on the skills and techniques that address the malfunctions that have produced the people’s maladies.
Over my career as a chiropractor, principle to many associates and coach to a large numbers of chiropractors, I have noticed a pattern. New graduates have a major focus on the ‘problem’ that the person has, whether an allopathic concern for symptoms, syndromes and diseases or the chiropractic concern for subluxations. They say, “I just want to treat/adjust people and get them well”.
A drive to technical excellence leads a chiropractor to learn many techniques, tools and tactics to discover the best ways to sort out people’s ‘problems’ but often despite this their practice doesn’t grow and they get frustrated.
This frustration often leads to more study into the details of how to deal with the person’s problems. This takes a toll on the spirit and livelihood of the practitioner. I would contend that this preoccupation with technical skills and focus on the person’s ‘problem’ is responsible, in part, for the steady decline in the numbers of people chiropractors are servicing individually.
It’s not about too many chiropractors or too much opposition (whatever that is).
The key is that people are more than their ‘problems’.
What is useful in the implementation of the art and science of chiropractic is consideration for the person who HAS the ‘problem’. People are not diseases or subluxations.
It may be worth asking:
- How many more excellent results could you get if you addressed the person who HAS the disease or subluxation?
- How many more lives could you influence if you addressed the person who has the disease or subluxation?
- How much better could your practice and professional experience be if you address the person who has the disease or subluxation?
This may be the difference between an AVERAGE chiropractor and an AWESOME chiropractor, an AVERAGE adjustment and an AWESOME adjustment, an AVERAGE practice and an AWESOME practice.
The biomedical model likes to factor out all variables when applying its science. This, in theory is possibly a good idea, but when dealing with the human being is very difficult and quite imprecise. External, immeasurable influences such as the placebo are seen as a nuisance – something to be eliminated and separated from the ‘real’ business of the doctor.
In short, placebo means – to please. The word placebo comes from Placeblos – “I shall please”, from the Latin placere, to please. Now who in a healing environment would not want their patient to be pleased with their care, with their health, with their life?
The studies tell us that the placebo is a significant component of the healing encounter. (Some say up to 70%). The placebo has been shown in various research to lower Blood Pressure, decreases pain, speed healing and recovery from illness and operations and be a major factor in symptom and pathology reduction.
Learning to utilise the placebo can be a major step forward in practice. Your patients don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care and when they do know how much you care it can be like magic – when they feel understood and heard it is as if a power switch has been turned on.
Your intent (which stems from the clarity of your philosophy) and your certainty (which stems from your knowledge of your technique) coupled with your ability to connect with and communicate with your patients provides them with the environment that opens them up to the powerful influences of the placebo.
Remember, it is a person who seeks you out for care – not a disease, a syndrome or a subluxation complex.
