Finding Alignment in Gratitude: A Thanksgiving Message from Align Chiropractic

Thanksgiving: A Time to Reflect, Realign, and Reconnect

As the holiday season begins, Thanksgiving reminds us to slow down, gather with loved ones, and reflect on what truly matters. At Align Chiropractic, we believe gratitude and health share a powerful connection, and both are about alignment.

Gratitude aligns your mindset. Chiropractic aligns your body. Together, they create balance that helps you function and feel your best.

Gratitude and the Nervous System

When you practice gratitude whether through reflection, prayer, or simply appreciating the small thing, your nervous system responds. It shifts from a stress state (fight-or-flight) to a healing state (rest-and-digest).

This same principle applies to what we do in chiropractic care. When structural shifts like the Atlas Displacement Complex interfere with the nervous system, your body stays in a state of tension and overdrive. Correcting those shifts allows your brain and body to communicate clearly, reducing stress and improving function just like gratitude clears mental “interference.”

So, whether you’re giving thanks or receiving a structural correction, both help your body move toward balance and healing.

The Weight of Holiday Stress

The holidays are joyful, but they can also bring physical and emotional strain. Long car rides, hours in the kitchen, and the stress of planning can take a toll on your spine and posture.

Here are a few simple ways to protect your structure this Thanksgiving:

• Take movement breaks. Get up and stretch every 30-60 minutes during travel or cooking.

• Watch your lifting posture. Whether it’s the turkey or the toddlers, bend at your knees, not your back.

• Breathe deeply. A few slow breaths can reduce tension and improve oxygen flow (especially when your spine is properly aligned).

• Stay hydrated. Even mild dehydration can make muscles and ligaments more prone to stiffness.

Small actions keep your structure balanced and your body functioning well throughout the holiday season.

Thankful for Our Align Chiropractic Family

This Thanksgiving, we’re incredibly thankful for you - our patients, families, and community who trust us with your health. Each day, we have the privilege of helping people move beyond temporary relief and toward lasting correction and wellness.

You remind us that true health isn’t just about how you feel, it’s about how well your body functions when it’s properly aligned.

A Season for Realignment

As the year winds down, take time to reflect, recharge, and realign physically, mentally, and emotionally. Gratitude strengthens the heart; alignment strengthens the body. Together, they prepare you to move into the new year with energy, balance, and resilience.

From our family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving from Align Chiropractic!

Align Chiropractic, Cleveland County’s Only Structural-Based Chiropractic Office
Helping families move beyond temporary relief toward long-term correction and lasting wellness.

📍 Located in Kings Mountain, NC
🌐 www.alignnc.com
📞 Call us today to schedule your next structural correction and stay aligned through the holidays.

Webster Chiropractic Technique: How Structural Correction Supports a Healthier Pregnancy

Pregnancy is one of the most remarkable transformations a woman’s body will ever experience. Every system from structural, hormonal, to neurological adapts to support new life. But with these rapid changes often come new stresses on the spine and pelvis. The Webster Technique is a gentle, specific chiropractic approach designed to support a mother’s structural alignment during pregnancy so that her body can function and adapt to these miraculous and wonderful changes at its very best.

Understanding the Webster Technique

The Webster Technique is a specialized chiropractic protocol that focuses on the alignment and function of the pelvis, sacrum, and surrounding ligaments during pregnancy. It was developed by Dr. Larry Webster, founder of the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association (ICPA), after observing how pelvic misalignment could contribute to discomfort and sometimes affect how a baby is positioned in utero.

Rather than being a “baby-turning” technique, as it’s sometimes misunderstood, Webster is a maternal structural correction method with the goal of restoring proper balance and motion to the pelvis and supporting structures so that the uterus has the optimal environment for baby’s growth and positioning. The technique primarily focuses on the sacroiliac joints, sacrum, and round ligaments. When the sacrum (the triangular bone at the base of the spine) shifts or loses normal motion, it can create torsion or tension through the connected ligaments and muscles. This imbalance can distort the shape of the pelvic opening and create tension within the uterine ligaments.

Imagine a tent held up by ropes. If one rope is pulled too tight, the entire tent leans. Similarly, if one round ligament or pelvic joint is under extra tension, the uterus can twist slightly, affecting both comfort and baby’s room to move. Correcting these structural imbalances helps even out the tension so that the body can function in a state of balance.

Structural Correction vs. Symptom Relief

Many expectant mothers seek chiropractic care when they begin to experience back pain, sciatica, or hip discomfort. While Webster-certified chiropractors certainly help with those symptoms, the purpose of care goes far deeper. At Align Chiropractic, we focus on structural correction—that means identifying and correcting underlying shifts or imbalances that interfere with the body’s ability to function as designed.

During pregnancy, the hormone relaxin increases joint mobility to accommodate a growing baby. Combine that with postural changes, such as the forward shift in weight and the softening of pelvic ligaments, and it’s easy for structural shifts to develop. These shifts can alter how the pelvis supports the uterus, and in turn, how the uterus supports the baby. Through precise structural correction using Webster protocols, the goal is to restore balance and allow both mom and baby to experience optimal function, not just temporary comfort.

Research on Webster and Pregnancy Outcomes

While every pregnancy is unique, studies and case reports suggest that women under regular chiropractic care often experience improvements in comfort, labor efficiency, and overall well-being.

A study published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (JMPT, 2002) reported that women receiving chiropractic care during pregnancy experienced a 25–31% reduction in labor time compared to those who did not receive care. Another study found that 84% of women receiving Webster care reported relief from pregnancy-related back pain. While chiropractic care isn’t a treatment for fetal positioning, better pelvic balance and nervous system function can often create conditions that naturally allow for optimal fetal positioning.

A Holistic Approach to Prenatal Care

At Align Chiropractic, we view pregnancy care as more than symptom management. It’s about optimizing structure and function to create the best environment for both mom and baby. That’s why every new patient begins with a Structural Exam. This detailed analysis helps us measure and monitor progress, evaluating spinal alignment, pelvic balance, and neurological integrity. From there, we use Upper Cervical and Webster protocols to gently correct the structural foundation and verify that changes are holding over time.

Expecting mothers often notice more than just reduced pain. Many report better sleep, easier breathing, improved digestion, and a greater sense of balance as their pregnancy progresses. These are signs of a body functioning closer to its design.

When choosing a chiropractor during pregnancy, certification matters. The Webster Technique requires post-graduate training through the ICPA to ensure doctors understand the unique biomechanics of pregnancy and the appropriate protocols for each trimester. As Webster Certified Chiropractors, Dr. Jennifer Hickman and Dr. Sean Hickman are trained to provide care that is both gentle and specific, designed to support structural and neurological balance through all stages of pregnancy.

Natural Ways to Support Immunity this Winter

As the days grow shorter and colder, our bodies instinctively crave warmth, rest, and nourishment. Winter invites us to slow down and rebuild from the inside out. Supporting your immune system naturally is all about consistent, intentional choices that help your body stay balanced and resilient.

Immunity from the Inside Out: Nourishment

This is the season for warm, grounding foods like soups, stews, and roasted root vegetables. Broths made from whole ingredients are rich in minerals and collagen, which help replenish tissues and support a healthy gut. Garlic, ginger, and turmeric have been trusted for generations for their protective properties. Garlic contains natural sulfur compounds like allicin that help the body defend against unwanted microbes while also supporting healthy circulation and detoxification. Ginger warms and stimulates digestion, helping the body absorb nutrients more effectively and easing the sluggishness that can come with colder weather. Turmeric offers deep, cell-level support through its active compound curcumin, known for calming inflammation and supporting joint comfort.

Rest & Restore

Sleep is your body’s best immune regulator. A study from the National Institutes of Health found that when adults had their sleep reduced to about 6 hrs/night instead of about 7.5 hrs) over six weeks, there were measurable changes in immune cell production! Most adults should aim for 7-9 hours of uninterrupted sleep per night. Evidence suggests that short sleep duration (under 6-7 hours) is linked to greater susceptibility to infections. Plan to go to bed and wake up at roughly the same time each day even on weekends to align your sleep with your circadian rhythm.

To foster a better night’s rest, create a simple, sustainable nighttime routine that helps your nervous system unwind. Dim the lights, turn off screens, and take slow, full breaths. Gentle movement during the day, such as yoga or walking can also prepare you for a restful sleep and keeps your lymphatic system active to support detoxification.

Structural Correction & Immunity

Structural correction in the spine can play a supporting role in immune health through its effect on the nervous system. The spine houses and protects the central nervous system, which in turn governs communication to the organs and immune tissues. When vertebral misalignments, commonly called subluxations in chiropractic terms, are present, nerve pathways may be under interference, limiting efficient signaling. Some studies report that when spinal manipulation is applied, immune‑related markers shift. For example, one research article noted that a single spinal correction was associated with increased production of interleukin‑2 (IL‑2), a cytokine involved in T‑cell activation. Another study found that participants who had regular chiropractic care showed “200 % greater immune competence” compared to non‑care individuals.