The Sequence of Healing: Your Body Needs an Order of Operations
Let’s talk about the sequence of healing—because yes, your body has a sequence, and no, you don’t get to skip steps just because you’re impatient. If you’re expecting instant results, I encourage you to relook at things from a neurological perspective- that being that health does not happen overnight, nor does disease and dysfunction. Healing happens in a very particular order, and understanding that sequence can help you stop freaking out when things don’t magically get better overnight AND from spending $$$$ all your vacation savings on endless appointments and providers to focus on ONE BIG HEALING BOSS- the Nervous System.
Step 1: Central and Autonomic Nervous System Function (a.k.a. The Command Center)
Before anything else in your body can even think about healing, your central and autonomic nervous system (CNS & ANS) need to be in working order. Think of this as your body’s motherboard. If your wiring is fried, your operating system is going to run like a 1998 car engine trying to power a 2025 super car. The CNS controls everything—your movement, your organ function, your ability to have a coherent conversation. And let’s not forget the autonomic nervous system, which decides whether you’re chilling in parasympathetic “rest and digest” mode or running from an imaginary saber-toothed tiger in sympathetic “fight or flight” mode. If your nervous system is stuck in stress overdrive, you can forget about real healing. And remember, these systems are quite primal meaning they are designed to scan the environment and keep us alive so sometimes, they get stuck in overdrive from very stressful situations or events, priming our brain to prefer stress mode.
Step 2: The Motor System (a.k.a. How You Actually Move)
Once your nervous system has decided to function like its meant to again on the foundation, your motor system can start coming back online. This includes all the muscles, joints, and movement patterns that have been offline while your body has been busy just surviving. Ever had that experience where your back suddenly “goes out” and you end up walking like a rusty robot? That’s because your body didn’t prioritize smooth movement when it was too busy trying to make sure your heart kept beating. But now that your nervous system has caught up, your muscles, joints, and movement patterns start to get the memo. This is when adjustments, movement exercises, and all those weird mobility drills actually start working the way they’re supposed to.
Step 3: The Immune and Digestive Systems (a.k.a. Now We Can Talk About Gut Health)
With your body’s wiring and movement systems back on track, now it has the bandwidth to start repairing your immune and digestive systems. This is third order NOT first order like it is in so many functional camps. If you’ve been dealing with chronic bloating, food sensitivities, or an immune system that panics at the sight of a dust particle or environmental “allergens”, this is where you finally start to see improvement. Your gut and immune function are incredibly energy-dependent, meaning your body won’t prioritize fixing them until it’s no longer in full-blown survival mode. So if you’ve ever wondered why your food intolerances haven’t gone away despite your best efforts at eating kale, juicing, drinking endless bone broth, and taking 2390822 supplements—this is why.
Step 4: Higher-Order Brain Function (a.k.a. Welcome Back, Intelligence)
Now that your body isn’t spending every waking moment trying to keep you from keeling over, your brain can finally get to the good stuff—like focus, creativity, problem-solving, and emotional regulation. If you’ve been walking around in a perpetual brain fog, struggling to remember why you walked into a room, or feeling like every decision requires the mental energy of a NASA launch, congrats! This is the part of healing where you start feeling like a functional human again. Remember, this one takes time. Plan to integrate chiropractic care into your routine and enjoy the process as this higher order reorganization often takes the most time!
The Bottom Line
Healing is a process. It’s not linear, it’s not instant, and it doesn’t care about your schedule. If you want lasting results instead of quick-fix band-aids, you have to respect the order your body follows. First, your central and autonomic nervous system has to be regulated. Then, your motor system comes back online. Only after that can your immune and digestive systems get their act together. And finally—finally—you get to experience the joys of higher cognitive function without feeling like a malfunctioning robot with chronic brain fog and forgetfulness.
So, take a deep breath, trust the process, and for the love of healthy brain cells—get adjusted.