The Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research – published a study titled The Effects of Chiropractic Care on Individuals Suffering from Learning Disabilities and Dyslexia: A Review of the Literature where it was concluded chiropractic care has benefited those with learning disabilities and should be included in a multidisciplinary approach to treat affected individuals. The research was a literature review by the Swiss chiropractor Yannick Pauli, who is President of the Swiss Chiropractic Pediatric Association and who specializes in the care of children suffering from learning and behavioral disorders.

Learning disorders affect anywhere between 3% – 10% of school-aged children in the U.S. The numbers vary depending on the exact criteria that we use. And it is certainly true that individuals with these disorders often suffer from low self-esteem, low levels of motivation, loss of interest in school, academic difficulties and often have problems in social functioning.

Dr. Pauli suggest that any positive effects on learning disabilities may have something to do with improving function in the cerebellum. Most books will tell you that the cerebellum is simply involved in motor coordination, posture and balance. But that has long been known to be a limited view. Amongst mammals, humans have the largest cerebellum relative to the rest of the brain, and it is involved in coordinating not just motor functions, but also sensation, language, emotion and social functions.

Learning disorders primarily originate in the brain, hence they are central nervous system dysfunctions thought to be triggered by nerve interference or cranial and vertebral misalignments called subluxations. Dr. Pauli concluded spinal misalignments “alter the quality and quantity of neural inputs to the central nervous system and result in an asymmetric function of brain hemispheres, thus preventing the achievement of temporal coherence between the two hemispheres”.

“The only source of constant stimulation to the brain comes from the spine and the postural muscles constantly adjusting to the force of gravity…. If the daily physical stresses of life cause misalignments in the spine — called vertebral subluxations by chiropractors — the brain is not adequately stimulated. This can cause problems throughout the body.”   

                                   – Dr. Yannick Pauli, President of the Swiss Chiropractic Pediatric Association 

Hence it’s believed a reduction of spinal misalignment through chiropractic care may restore proper joint and central nervous system function and improve motor balance overall. However also effective in treating children with learning disabilities is an area wherein I specialize, Craniosacral therapy.

Some of the causes of so-called “learning disabilities” include nutritional deficiencies, unbeknown toxic foods, yeast, parasite infections, and environmental pollutants. All of these other factors can be addressed but the results will still be unsatisfactory until the misalignments in the cranium and spine are corrected. Therefore, it is essential when treating children with learning disabilities that cranial adjusting (cranio-sacral therapy) be included in the treatment protocol.

Subluxation Principle

The principle of subluxation in the spine is that misaligned vertebrae pinch on peripheral nerves, causing either pain or malfunction. This principle also applies to the head (cranium).

Cranial misalignments can cause:

• Pressure directly on the brain interfering with its ability to function.
• Pressure on the nerves coming to and from the brain; interfering with communication.
• Decreased blood supply to the brain, further impairing its function.

These factors produce a brain that is unable to function at its full potential.

The brain misinterprets the messages coming from the peripheral nerves in response to various stimuli and sends inappropriate messages back to the various parts of the body. This results in bizarre behavior, incorrect answers, misinterpretation of instructions, and totally unrelated reactions to information.

Important Facts About the Cranium

• The bones in the cranium do not fuse together.
• They are joined together via sutures (outline of the plates of bone comprising the head that attach together at the seams of individual cranial bones) that remain movable.
• The sutures cannot be pulled apart but these bones of the cranium can jam up, overlap or compress together.

The birthing process is the major cause of skull misalignments. Instrumentation used in the birth process such as forceps, suction, and vacuum extraction can misalign the soft cranial bones. As well as a C-section and overzealous pulling on the neck and head during delivery.    

Other causes of cranial misalignments are head injuries from falling while learning to walk, hitting the edge of a coffee table or hard chair, and tumbling down the stairs. Blows to the head with instruments such as: a swing, baseball bat, ball, shovel, hockey stick, a punch, a kick or any other impact to the head can do damage as well.

Sports injuries work related accidents and habitual poor sleeping positions can also cause misalignments of the cranium. Many people reported the onset of such conditions as: learning disabilities, Autism, ADD, ADHD, and headaches, directly corelated to a head injury. Reach me if you would like to have a deeper discussion on how Craniosacral therapy can possibly help your child with a learning disability or challenge.  

Alex was born in March 1972. At the age of 7 he started to experience frequent headaches with all the conventional symptoms of a Migraine headache. His particular headache resulted in him experiencing auras, nausea and sensitivity to light with no particular trigger to the onset of the migraine.

After years of treatments, therapies and medications, his headaches were no better and Alex continued to experience them all throughout childhood and into young adulthood. Some years the headaches would come monthly, some years every two to three months and some years weekly. His headaches were incurable, there was nothing that could alleviate the symptoms and head pain. Until he experienced cranial manual therapy, which resulted in the complete eradication of his life-long Migraine Headaches.

At the age of 16 Alex noticed a mild deformity in the right side of his ribs, a slightly lower right shoulder and the experience of constant lower back pain. Although mild, a diagnosis of Idiopathic Adolescent Scoliosis had been labeled.

At the age of 18 he was involved in a serious car accident that exacerbated his lower back pain. Throughout the years Alex had tried a multitude of conventional treatments but continued to suffer on and off with lower back pain, even throughout Chiropractic school and beyond.

In 2015 and fifteen+ years out of Chiropractic school, Dr. Kaminsky participated in his first and life changing Craniosacral Therapy seminar and he was fascinated, intrigued and hooked. It all made sense, he was immediately astute to its methods and since that first seminar, and as a result of trading sessions of Craniosacral Therapy with his colleagues, his back pain subsided and till this day has never returned.

Dr. Kaminsky decided to enhance his skill-set to better serve his patients. He began reaching out to other craniosacral therapists, cranial osteopaths, and many types of leading practitioners from various fields for advise and consultations He also enrolled in Upledger continuing education seminars with a focus on mostly hands-on manual and alternative therapies.

And, as he gained knowledge with his own health issues, he has learned to help more and more patients achieve great health results.

Dr. Alex Kaminsky is headache free and low back pain free, and has committed himself to a life of learning, teaching and treating patients. His emphasis is on the patient’s stored patterns of the body and each individual healthcare needs.