By Dr Janine Kinahan
We tend to think of chiropractors for the obvious things — a sore back after lifting, a stiff neck, a sports injury, pain that won’t shift. Physical stress, physical fix. But most of the stress your body carries each day isn’t from a single moment. It’s from sitting for hours, hunching to eat, scrolling with your head tipped forward, and the quieter weight of feeling disconnected from the people around us. We were built to connect, and that gets so much harder when we’re stressed — which is exactly when we need it most.
Now have a look at the shape your body is in right now. Shoulders rolled forward, head tipped down, chest closed. It’s the same shape you’re in when you drive, eat, work at a desk, sit on the lounge, scroll your phone, and even sleep. We almost never get out of it. And here’s the part most of us miss: that shape isn’t just a result of stress — it’s a signal. Your nervous system is the wiring between your brain and your body, and it’s constantly reading your posture. Folded forward, shallow breathing, tight neck — your brain reads that as we’re getting ready to run. So it does what it’s built to do: turns up the stress hormones, including cortisol. The shape you’re holding all day is quietly keeping the stress switched on.
Cortisol is useful in short bursts and costly when it lingers. It changes how we digest, how our organs work, how clearly we think, and how well we remember things. Think of the last time you spoke in public — stepped off the stage and couldn’t quite recall what you said. That’s cortisol.
Here’s the thing — you’re not in pain while any of this is happening. Pain is what shows up later, when your body has been adapting for so long that it can no longer cope. What if we started looking after ourselves before the pain arrives? Some of the most useful things cost nothing. Get your eyes on the early morning sunlight — even five minutes outside before the day starts. That early light helps your body wind cortisol down at the right times and sets up the sleep hormones you’ll need that night. Take the kids outside, even when it’s cold — especially when it’s cold.
Stepping out of your comfort zone in small, manageable ways (a cold shower, a chilly walk) actually trains your body to handle stress better the rest of the time. Lie on your back on the floor with your arms out wide for a few minutes and let your chest open. Move often, and move in lots of different ways — walk, stretch, squat down to pick something up instead of bending, roll your shoulders back. Variety is what your body is looking for. Movement is life.
This is one of the places chiropractic care fits. We work with the nervous system — the wiring that decides whether your body stays revved up or settles down. When your joints move well, your nervous system gets better information, and a body getting better information is better resourced to adapt. To a desk job. To a hard week. To the world. That’s what chiropractic is really about — helping you adapt. Adults, children, and — something I care about particularly — the smallest humans navigating their very first adaptation, life after birth.
Stress isn’t going anywhere. But the shape you live in, the light you start your day with, the way you move, and the care you take of your nervous system — these are all things you can choose. Start before the pain arrives.
Dr Janine Kinahan is a Bathurst chiropractor with post-graduate training in paediatrics and women’s health care.
