To Our Community,

Cape Ann Community Chiropractic plans to follow the guidance of state and public health officials. At this time, I am proceeding as follows:

• Disinfecting all door handles and other “high-touch” surfaces on a regular basis between visits. Patients are no longer signing themselves in to avoid sharing pens.
• Patients are being asked to remove shoes upon entering the office.
• Tables are being disinfected with isopropyl alcohol, hydrogen peroxide or lysol followed by soapy water in between each visit.
• I am wearing a mask and fresh gloves with each patient. Your choice to wear a mask is based on your own comfort level.
• Purifying the air with natural, non-toxic methods.
• There is hand sanitizer available at the front desk for all to use.
• State and public health officials have indicated that the risk to children and young to middle-aged adults is low. We encourage our patients who have immune-compromising conditions to use the precautions they need, and ask anyone with even mild symptoms of illness to stay home.
• Scheduling more time between appointments in order to prevent social interaction and allow extra time to thoroughly cleanse the space.
• Decreasing home-visit fees and waiving late cancellation fees temporarily.

It has often been the case, in difficult times, that my chiropractic office has been a vital resource in the communities that I have served. As I have heard from so many this week, that continues to be true.

Outside of Cape Ann Community Chiropractic, I’ve cancelled my other work and social obligations. We celebrated my son’s 4th birthday yesterday at my new practice space with a small group of immediate family and one friend’s family. He didn’t notice any difference in what our plan for his birthday had been. He didn’t care that we took the candles off the cake before he blew them out, didn’t notice that there were few people and fewer hugs going around. Our children are looking at how we handle difficult situations outside of our control, I’d like to play above the line.

I’m going to take this as an opportunity to cut back and tune into what is really essential in all aspects of life. So many of us have piled on so many obligations that we’re unable to truly wind down and heal as effectively as we should, and getting through the upcoming may seem impossible. I see this in practice on the 3-technology scans I use every day: There is an epidemic of people locked into the “fight or flight” side of the nervous system, run down, losing their vitality and resiliency, and unable to cope with any additional stress. Now we’re all forced to slow down, so let’s make the best of it: get out in nature, exercise, play games, make art, listen to music, learn something new, practice self-care, and be present with those closest to us. Let’s come out on the other side better and stronger.

The conversation in our house is about how smart the body is, rather than sending the message that we’re broken and germs are the enemy. We are teaching that we need to have distance from others because this is a new virus that is going to make doctors too busy to take care of everyone if our bodies all try to learn how to fight it at once. When they do learn, because our bodies are so smart, we will handle it like any other sickness. We are being cautious, not fearful.

I will be in the practice by appointment on Tuesday and Thursday mornings and evenings, and Saturdays until noon. My boys may in the back office with snacks and Netflix due to the new constraints on childcare, but I’ll be available.

Thank you for continuing to choose and trust Cape Ann Community Chiropractic. It is a sincere pleasure to serve you. I know that many of you are experiencing big changes physically, emotionally and socially. Please reply to this email if I can be of assistance. We need one another more than ever on days like these.

Yours Truly,

Dr. Erin O’Maley

PS: Here is what I hope to be helpful information about your neuro-immune function and chiropractic care. Please forward this email to someone who could use any of this help.

INFORMATION ABOUT THE IMMUNITY AND THE NEUROLOGICAL SYSTEM https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2562609/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11121511
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7901868

These studies show an increase in immune cell count following an adjustment:
https://chiromt.biomedcentral.com/…/10.1186/1746-1340-16-5
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1719112
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1373431

In another elegant study by Selano et al, “The Effects of Specific Upper Cervical Adjustments On The CD4 Counts of HIV Positive Patients'” (Chiropractic Research Journal 1994; 3(1): 32-39), the effects of six months of regular chiropractic care on the immune system function of HIV patients was measured. At the end of six months of care, the patients who had received regular adjustments had a 48% increase in the number of CD4+ T cells (p=0.06), whereas the patients who were not adjusted had an 8% decrease in CD4+ cells. (This article is not readily available on the web, but copies are available

Dr. Dan Murphy compiled some very interesting data regarding the use of chiropractic care during the Influenza Epidemic of 1918. According to the statistics. influenza patients who were under chiropractic care rather than medical care during this epidemic had significantly higher survival rates. Chiropractic care was first linked to improved immunity during the deadly flu epidemic of 1917 and 1918. The funny thing was: Chiropractic patients fared better than the general population. This observation spurred a study of the field. The data reported that flu victims under chiropractic care had an estimated .25 percent death rate, a lot less than the normal rate of 5 percent among flu victims who did not receive chiropractic care.

A study from 2011 proved that spinal adjustive care increases IgA levels by 139%. The study surveyed these boosted IgA levels in a stressed population of people. Blood measurements were assessed before and after spinal adjustments and compared to a control group determined to be experiencing the same significant stress. Those receiving spinal adjustments experienced an average increase in IgA of 139% compared to the group that did not receive adjustments.

The study performed by the chief of cancer prevention at New York’s Preventive Medicine Institute and professor of medicine at New York University – Ronald Pero, Ph.D. In his 3 year study, Dr. Pero found that the 107 chiropractic patients had a 200% greater immune competence than people who had not received chiropractic care and in fact a 400% greater immune competence than other people who had cancer or other serious diseases. Further, he found that the immune system superiority of those under chiropractic care did not diminish with age. Dr. Pero commented, “I have never seen a group other than this chiropractic group experienced a 200% increase over the normal patients. This is why it is so dramatically important.” Specifically, the study demonstrated that the cells responsible for engulfing and destroying viruses, bacteria, parasites, and cancer cells are anywhere from 2 times to 4 times more active in people who get regular chiropractic care. Scientifically the study demonstrated that the “phagocytic respiratory burst of polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) and monocytes were enhanced in people that had been adjusted by chiropractors.” Later it was commented by other parties that the study should have taken into account the diet of the patients.

INFORMATION ABOUT LIFESTYLE CHOICES THAT INCREASE IMMUNITY
https://www.health.harvard.edu/…/how-to-boost-your…
https://www.webmd.com/…/10-immune-system-busters…
https://www.huffpost.com/…/why-people-who-pray-are…