Discussion about Quadripalegics with Tim

When I first met Tim we had a discussion about quadripalegics (quad).  While Tim is not a quad he presents similar traits.

I had the priviledge of working on a quad many years ago (for just a few sessions).  What I do not understand is how their injury manifests the way it does.  Usually quads have a direct injury to the cervical spine (neck area).  Many quads have the use of their upper bodies - some from the hips up, others from the chest up; other limited use in the arms; organ functions, etc.  What they all have in common is the loss of their legs.  Why is this?

After pondering for a long time I have come to the conclusion that it is the velocity and direction of the injury which creates the various disabilities among quads.  The primary protector of the cervical spine is the hyoid muscles (neck muscles).  Do not kid yourself - these are thick, thick muscles whose primary  job (I believe) is to utlimately protect the cervical spine.  The remaining parts of our spine - thoracic, lumbar and sacral - are surrounded not only by muscles; but ligaments, organs, etc.  These parts of the spine have a greater protection barrier.

The velocity it takes to break through the hyoid muscles and damage the spine itself is great!  It is a humbling and honorable experience to participate in a dissection of the human body - what better way to understand how tough the materials we are made of.  Do not kid yourselves - we are made up of some pretty cool, substantial materials!

The bottom line is:  it is the velocity and angle of injury to the cervical spine which will decide the trauma role of the rest of the spine.  The greater the velocity the more of the spine will be involved.  Think of it as this great, great pressure hitting your body and trying to disperse.  The most logical route of dispersement is downward, sideways and/or globally.

When the pressure is so powerful and spreads trauma - where does this energy go?  I believe our spines are like a tree with branches or vertebrae sticking out.  Think of a tree getting hit at the top with such startling power and sending the energy downward towards the lower branches/trunk.  Just like the spine, it is this velocity that will collapse the vertebrae.  As we globally remove pressure what happens to the lower vertebrae/branches? 

We learned from Tim he suffered a substanial head injury in his youth - which is most likely the culprit of his condition today.  I always hear people say how resilient children are.  Do not kid yourself - they and their bodies may not be as resilient as you might think.  Children do not know any differently on how their body should feel then what they feel. 

If your child suffers a major trauma in their youth; get them some body work.  Western medicine generally works on the location of injury; not the global or impacted area of trauma.  Injuries come down to "time and pressure".  If the body is not reset to a state of symmetry, over time the body will continue to generate pressure.  The repercussions of this can be endless and manifest in many ways you would never dream of.