The known, the unknown and the predictable

While teaching chiropractic seminars I meet many chiropractors and some of them write to me with questions. Today I received the following question from a chiropractor in Japan: “Today I have a question. I am seeing someone with varicosis around her knee. It is said that damaged venous valves will never be restored. Cannot damaged venous valves really be restored at all? Can the innate intelligence restore damaged venous valves? If you have an idea about a suggesting book or article, please let me know.”
I would like to share the answer I gave him with you: We never know exactly what the healing capacity of any particular organ or system will be in any particular patient. However, the body has remarkable abilities that science cannot reliably predict. As an example, I remember that when I was in college we were taught that it is a scientific fact that nerves and other highly specialized body tissues have no healing capacity at all. That arrogant assumption has subsequently been proven wrong and the scientific consensus is that nerve tissues do have certain healing potentials. Applied to the case at hand, we may not be able to know what the capacity of the person is to restore damaged venous valves. However, that lack of knowledge has no impact on our clinical decision making because the objective of that person’s care relates to a greater concern than just the damaged venous valves. The greater concern has to do with improving that individual’s ability to function.
When we approach a case such as the one you describe it is necessary to consider what is and what is not predictable. It is reliably predictable that if the person has vertebral subluxation (VS), then they have nerve interference, which diminishes their ability to function well. It is also predictable that if they keep their subluxation, then they will continue to have interference in their ability to function – and this includes interfering with their ability to heal. This predictable interference may include the known problem, with the venous valves, but it may also include other existing, yet unknown problems in other tissues and systems. Moreover, even in the absence of known and unknown conditions, the individual deserves the opportunity to live free of VS.
It is also predictable that a precise spinal analysis followed by a specific chiropractic spinal adjustment can correct the vertebral subluxation. This is clinically measurable and predictable; and it is verifiable by doing pre and post checks. It is also predictable that with correction of VS, the individual will express more of their innate potential. It will do so according to the priorities of the body; and the body innately knows what is in its own best interest. What remains unpredictable is if, how and when the symptomatic condition you asked about will change. Again it must be stated that our clinical decision making should be unaffected by the unpredictable, especially when there exists a compelling reason to continue doing predictable analysis and correction of the person’s vertebral subluxations. The predictable outcome is that the individual will express more of their life’s time free of the interference of vertebral subluxation.