Faith Confidence Belief

Still learning!!! I got home last night at two in the morning after flying in from Dallas Texas. One of my partners, Dr. Brown, and I went to a seminar there in an effort to learn just a little more about how to help our patients better. I've known about Parker Seminars for thirty years and have never been. It was great! The whole weekend was about Faith, Confidence and Belief (FCB) in my ability to provide the best health care possible to each and every patient. It was a rejuvenation of my passion in chiropractic. It was an opportunity to be with like minded doctors and learn from them action steps I can do Monday morning with my patients. Several speakers touched my heart with their testimonies and stories from their experiences. The emotion was strong but it is what I needed. Patients are THE reason to show up every day. "Lasting Service is My First Technique". That's a statement you hear over and over again. Each doctor and CA embraces that philosophy of health care. The original chiropractic theory developed over 100 years ago is stressed and discussed and encouraged all weekend. The belief that health comes from within. When the nerve energy from the brain to the body and it's parts gets interfered with because of a subluxation, the parts can no longer function at 100%. A misalignment of the joints of the spine with swelling, spasm, fixation and nerve pressure is called a subluxation. This misalignment can be caused by trauma such as a fall, a lifting injury, an auto accident, wrestling with your sibling as a child,or even just the trauma of coming through the birth canal. Chiropractors CORRECT subluxations! And we have fun doing it. Through a series of examinations and X-Ray we can determine where these subluxations are. With a series of treatments we can correct, stabilize and help rehabilitate them. We need your help as a patient. One, we need your confidence, your cooperation and your time. Two we need your FCB. As I always say, just give me a chance. Let me put to use my LS/MFT. If you have never been to a chiropractor, try it. If it's been a while, get back. Chiropractic is for more than the acute condition, you can use it for maintenance and preventative care. Don't ever listen to an opinion of someone about chiropractic if they have never been to a chiropractor or only went "once". You've heard it..."I went one time and it didn't help me". These folks really don't have right to an opinion about chiropractic. Come to my office and talk with my patients. You'll get the truth. I truly want the chance to help. Thank You to the speakers at Parker for the rejuvenation. Thank You to my current and future patients for you FCB!

A Dog Story

Wow!!! I'm embarrassed when I turn on to blog when I realize that it's been nearly four and a half months since I was on here last. If it wasn't for such a pleasurable evening with our three associates ,"The Associates", I probably wouldn't have jumped on here tonight to write about this story. We were sitting around after a great dinner at Bonefish Grill---man, those bang-bang shrimp!!---and desert, a cake that said "Thanks for all you do". My wife and I had them to our home for a little fellowship. It was a blast and we think they enjoyed it too, So, anyway, we were sitting around sharing stories. I shared one about adjusting a dog one time. This may seem a little bazaar to some but there are many chiropractors throughout the years that have adjusted all kinds of animals. It's strange for me because I don't like dogs, especially big ones. I had a colleague in school that treated more animals than he did people. A little more about him in a minute. So, back in the mid '80s I had a patient that wanted me to check her dog for her. My apologies that I don't remember what breed of dog he was but he was HUGE! On all fours he was a good 2+ feet, on his hind legs he could put his front paws on my shoulders and his head was above my head. That's big!! I'm not a dog fan so I'll admit I was a little scared of this dog. This dog actually had a couple of health issues. One, he had hip displasia. This apparently is a common problem for this breed. Two, which is the reason she wanted me to evaluate him, was that he could not urinate properly. She described that he would have to let his bladder fill up so that he could use his stomach muscles to force the urine out. He would still "dribble" when he ran. She, of course, had taken him to veterinarians with very little help or hope. She actually took him to the UGA veterinarian school. She was told that he had a kidney problem and that he would probably only live about six more months. They had also given indication that there may be a nerve problem in his low back. This is where I come in. She had remembered what I had taught her about spinal misalignment's and nerve pressure and it's effect on the function of the body. I had explained, as I do to everyone of my patients, that the pressure of a leaf put on a nerve root can stop the flow of the nerve supply coming from the brain going to a body part by 60%. She thought, "huh, I wonder if that applies to animals". We had this conversation and she wanted me to evaluate the dog. Remember I'm scared so I called my friend mentioned above in Minnesota. He was going to be in Atlanta that weekend. He asked me to have her meet him at the hotel and she did. After a thorough evaluation he gave the dog his first adjustment. He asked her to tell me to call him. He gave me the advice as to what to do and how to adjust this big ole dog. I started treating the dog immediately. I actually bought an Activator adjusting tool for the owner and showed her what to do. She continued to treat the dog and a year later the dog was still alive. As a matter of fact within just a few weeks the dog was able to urinate normally! That's been over 20 years ago. I trust the dog had a long wonderful life with an owner that truly loved him and went to great lengths to help him be healthy -- even using chiropractic care. Her belief in chiropractic the theory strengthened mine. Thank you to her.
No,I don't treat animals any longer with the exception of one other animal. My cat had seizures. She would foam at the mouth, take off running in circles, run into walls and shake uncontrollably. The vet said she probably would not live very long. So---I got out my trusty Activator and adjusted her. Voila!! No more seizures. She's still alive years later. This chiropractic stuff is really neat. For you those people that are not sure about chiropractic or that believe that it's all in our patients head I think these stories say; "I don't thinks so"
As always, all I ask is give me a chance.

Remembering--On Memorial Day

To my knowledge I have never lost a relative fighting in a war or conflict. I don't know the deep misery that one feels when someone loses a son/daughter, brother/sister, father/mother or any relative. There must be a mixture of emotion of sadness and pride. Grieving at the loss but proud of the willingness to go into harm's way for the sake of our country. There have been hundreds of thousands of young men and women that have died for the right for me even to write these words on a blog. The average age of these fallen soldiers is around 25. My lived dreams and hopes in a family and career for my 54 years has been on the lost dreams and hopes of these heroes. My church does a special service every year to honor all the branches of our fallen military. I cry every year. Just to hear the songs chokes me up. I over heard a grandmother talking about the worry of her grandson going to Afghanistan. By what she said, he is willing to do what's required of him. I believe this is the common thread of all of our service men and women. As Toby Kieth's song says, the soldier doesn't want to die but if dying is what it takes to protect his/her country then let it be. Many of our soldiers don't die but are severely wounded physically and mentally. I remember a patient from 1980 that was a veteran of the Vietnam War. This was not long after the American pull out. Out of honest, heartfelt curiosity I asked what it was like in Vietnam. He went into a blank stare and just sat there for a minute or two and a tear began to roll down his face. He shook his head and said, "Doc, I can't talk about that". I felt bad but thanked him for serving our country. That is something we cannot do enough is thank our military men and women, as well as our veterans, for their service.
On this Memorial Day remember our fallen soldiers. Thank a veteran and service man/women for serving our country. If it happens that they are deployed and have the possibility of paying the ultimate price for our freedom they will know that it will not be in vain and that we do appreciate what they do for us.
John 15:13 says "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends". Christ did this for all of us that we may have eternal life. Thank you to Him.
Again, thank you to all that have paid the ultimate sacrifice for me to be able to share this blog with you and thanks to all of of our veterans and current military men and women for your service.

BELLY FAT-------LOSER!!!!!!

The "Dickie Do disease", I won't explain. The "Dunlap disease", as in "yo belly dun lopped over yo belt!" The spare tire or a pot belly. All of these are names describing Belly Fat. This fat is dangerous because in can leave you susceptible and increase your chances to get diabetes, cancer and heart disease. There is a type of fat called visceral fat which is biologically active. This activity causes hormonal changes leading to inflammation throughout your body, as well as increasing the risk for breast cancer and diabetes. Age, genetics and menopause all play a roll in this belly fat. Of course lack of exercise and poor diet are factors too. Fast food and foods high in carbohydrates and fats are the biggest culprits.
A 40 inch waist for a man and a 35 inch waist for a women put you into this category. So, what do you do to lose this fat, to be a "belly fat loser"? Aerobic or cardiovascular exercise is the starting place. Even moderate exercise can help. 45 minute to an hour 3 times a week or 1 hour 15 minutes of stretching exercise 2 times per week is helpful. Increasing muscle mass with weight lifting is very beneficial because muscle burns calories all the time. Get your diet cranked up with whole grains, fruits and vegetables.
As always, a 1/2 gallon of water per day is great. You can get more information like this from us at Sparlin Health Care from our Mediadoc program, where this info comes from.
If you're not under Chiropractic care, you should be. This is an avenue not only for back pain and injury but a primary way to keep your over all resistance high.
All I ask is that you give me a chance. AND be a belly fat loser!!

Career Days

I spent Friday April 30, 2010 at Park Middle School in Atlanta. That's less than 2 miles from Sparlin Health Care, my office. It's a place ,that unless you drove by there you'd never know there was a school even there. As a matter of fact I actually found it originally, by mistake, as as was driving through that area looking for churches to visit. Churches are good about having Health Fairs, etc., so I go looking for opportunities for myself and the junior doctors to participate. I saw this school and it was like a fortress to get into, rightfully so as to where it's located. I was still able to speak with someone and leave my card. Several days later I received a call to be invited to a health fair. I was unable to attend but sent another junior doctor to participate. It was a good contact for him. A couple of weeks ago they called and invited me back for Career Day. I love doing these because it's a great opportunity to educate not only the kids and teachers as to the benefit of chiropractic care but to encourage these youngsters to chose a career path that they can have fun doing. I teach about what chiropractic is and the education we go through to get our degree and be licensed. I stress to them to choose a career path that they can enjoy and be able to go to "fun" every day and not just "work" every day. Since both Loretta, my wife, and now Rebecca, my daughter, are both educators I take the time to encourage the teaching/education field also. I really believe some of these kids have untapped talents. We all need to encourage them to find their talents and learn ways they can use these talents to determine their career path. This makes it easier for them to go through the process of all the education it takes to reach their dreams. Talking with these kids you can see bright spots and dull spots. You can tell which teachers encourage participation and those that don't. They can't get too much praise and encouragement. Park Middle School is doing a good job with this. I was pleased and proud to be a part of this Career Day. Congrats to them for all they are doing. Keep it up. Maybe one day one of these kids from one of these career days will show up and introduce themselves as Dr. So and So and tell me that he or she chose their career path because of something I said and the encouragement I gave. I pray for all the kids, teachers, administrators and other career speaker/motivators that these career days are positive and that we all get out of them something that is special just for us. Also, Thank You to Camaron! Camaron was my guide and host ALL DAY. You did a great job my friend. Again, thank you.

Ignorance is Bliss

My Mom passed away in May of 1991. She was only 59 years old. I will turn 54 this summer. Your brain starts to think, what about me? Thank you Lord for keeping me in the dark as to the day or hour. My Dad turns 80 this fall. Whew! What a blessing! Having the opportunity to still have him around to ask questions, get support and enjoy memories is wonderful. I don't have that chance with my Mom but lessons from her still come back on occasion. One of the statements she made to one time was, "ignorance is bliss". I don't remember the context it was in or if it was directed at me or someone else. It probably took me several years of my own maturity to grasp what that statement really means. The formal definition of ignorance is a lack of knowledge, learning or information. Not that I should have to give the definition of IS but because of our 42nd President asking the question about its definition I will give it. Actually "is" has a complicated definition, but for our purpose here it means to identify or amplify the "subject". In this case the subject is ignorance. Bliss means supreme happiness, joy or contentment. In other words a lack of knowledge of a particular subject gives you happiness or joy because you have no worries or care of the subject. The subject has no effect in your life so you show no concern for it either way. More importantly you do not have enough knowledge to discuss the subject with any degree of certainty with anyone else. I have a couple of friends that if you here them discussing a subject you can rest assured they know the subject very well or they would not be talking about it at all. This brings me to my point. I have patients that tell me something a well meaning friend or relative has shared with them about my patient's health. I can tell by the info that it is normally some watered down version of something that has been told to them concerning their own health. Sadly there may be different circumstances and conditions going on that don't match up with my patient's condition. Worse is when a well educated physician tells a patient something that I know is totally incorrect concerning this patients particular spinal condition. I surely won't claim that I know everything. There are some things, though, that because of 30 years of experience I feel pretty confident that what I am telling the patient or how I am treating the patient is correct. I believe the information I'm giving my patients is for their best benefit. Another point I'd like to make about ignorance is why we do 2 Health Care Classes a week to educate our patients to the true benefits and knowledge of what chiropractic is. When I graduated in 1980 there were approximately 60,000 chiropractors in our country and 10-12% of the population used our care. Here we are 30 years later and there are 59,000 chiropractors and only 15% of our population are using our care. One of the major issues falls on us. WE have to educate our patients. They are getting educated either way from someone that is ignorant to true chiropractic or getting bogus information from television. I get very frustrated at TV shows that purposefully degrade our profession for no other reason but to perpetuate their ignorance to what we do and to the benefits we offer to our patients health and well being. These people live feeling no malice because of their ignorance. Politely or not, I have made the statement on many occasions "I can help ignorance with education but I can't help stupidity"(someone who has no desire to learn or have the correct information). I'll let you choose which of these is TV or even you.

As always, all I ask is a chance.

NO!! To National Health Care Part 2

Please read the following. This was forwarded to me by a concerned friend. I ask you to read it close and do everything in your power to stop Socialized Medicine that is being touted as health care "reform". The United States has the best Health Care in the world! Yes we need to make health care more affordable to the masses, especially the middle class. BUT--Giving another 1/6 of the American economy to Government control is not the way. The government already controls the VA, Medicare, Medicaid, congressional health care(which is FAR superior to any type of program that would be implemented for the "regular people"),some supplemented health insurances of other government employees throughout the country. You already know how "great" these programs work. There are other ways to help us afford health care without the government ramming socialized medicine down our throat. Go to Herman Cain's website for more info.


This is very frightening. This is not about HEALTH OR CARE. This is about CONTROL!!

Snopes says, "Dr. Fraser has put some time into this,
it is accurate and a good read!!


This is why they meet behind closed doors!


An Indianapolis doctor's letter to Sen. Bayh
about the HEALTHCARE BILL (Note: Dr. Stephen E. Frazer, MD
practices as an anesthesiologist in Indianapolis , IN

This is a letter that was sent to Senator Bayh..
Feel free to copy it and send it around to your
representatives. -- Stephen Frase

The bill has not yet passed and very little has changed.
**********************************************************

Senator Bayh,

As a practicing physician I have major concerns with the
health care bill before Congress. I actually have read
the bill and am shocked by the brazenness of the
government's proposed involvement in the
patient-physician relationship. The very idea that the
government will dictate and ration patient care is
dangerous and certainly not helpful in designing a health
care system that works for all. Every physician I work
with agrees that we need to fix our health care system,
but the proposed bills currently making their way through
congress will be a disaster if passed.


I ask you respectfully and as a patriotic American to
look at the following troubling lines that I have read
in the bill. You cannot possibly believe that these
proposals are in the best interests of the country and our
fellow citizens.


Page 22 of the HC Bill: Mandates that the Govt will
audit books of all employers that self-insure!!

Page 30 Sec 123 of HC bill: THERE WILL BE A GOVT COMMITTEE
that decides what treatments/benefits you get.


Page 29 lines 4-16 in the HC bill: YOUR HEALTH CARE IS RATIONED!!!

Page 42 of HC Bill: The Health Choices Commissioner
will choose your HC benefits for you. You have no choice!


Page 50 Section 152 in HC bill: HC will be provided to ALL
non-US citizens, illegal or
otherwise.

Page 58 HC Bill: Govt will have real-time access
to individuals' finances & a 'National ID
Health card' will be issued! (Papers please!)


Page 59 HC Bill lines 21-24: Govt will have direct access to
your bank accounts for elective funds transfer. (Time
for more cash and carry)

Page 65 Sec 164: Is a payoff subsidized plan for
retirees and their families in unions & community
organizations: (ACORN).


Page 84 Sec 203 HC bill: Govt mandates ALL benefit
packages for private HC plans in the
'Exchange.'

Page 85 Line 7 HC Bill: Specifications of Benefit Levels
for Plans --
The Govt will ration your health care!


Page 91 Lines 4-7 HC Bill: Govt mandates linguistic
appropriate services. (Translation: illegal aliens.)

Page 95 HC Bill Lines 8-18: The Govt will use groups (i.e.
ACORN & Americorps to sign up individuals for Govt
HC plan.


Page 85 Line 7 HC Bill: Specifications of Benefit Levels
for Plans. (AARP members - your health care WILL be
rationed!)
Page 102 Lines 12-18 HC Bill: Medicaid eligible individuals
will be automatically enrolled in Medicaid. (No
choice.)


Page 12 4 lines 24-25 HC: No company can sue GOVT on price
fixing. No "judicial review" against Govt
monopoly.

Page 127 Lines 1-16 HC Bill: Doctors/ American Medical
Association - The Govt will tell YOU what salary you can
make.


Page 145 Line 15-17: An Employer MUST auto-enroll
employees into public option plan. (NO choice!)

Page 126 Lines 22-25: Employers MUST pay for HC for
part-time employees ANDtheir families. (Employees
shouldn't get excited about this as employers will be
forced to reduce its work force, benefits, and
wages/salaries to cover such a huge expense.)


Page 149 Lines 16-24: ANY Employer with payroll 401k
& above who does not provide public option will pay 8%
tax on all payroll! (See the last comment in
parenthesis.)

Page 150 Lines 9-13: A
business with payroll between $251K & $401K who
doesn't provide public option will pay 2-6% tax on
all payroll.

Page 167 Lines 18-23: ANY individual who doesn't
have acceptable HC according to Govt will be taxed 2.5%
of income.


Page 170 Lines 1-3 HC Bill: Any NONRESIDENT Alien is
exempt from individual taxes. (Americans
will pay.) (Like always)

Page 195 HC Bill:
Officers & employees of the GOVT HC Admin.. will
have access to ALL Americans' finances and
personal records. (I guess so they can 'deduct'
their fees)


Page 203 Line 14-15 HC: "The tax imposed under this
section shall not be treated as tax." (Yes, it
really says that!) ( a 'fee' instead)


Page 239 Line 14-24 HC Bill: Govt will reduce physician
services for Medicaid Seniors. (Low-income and the poor
are affected.)

Page 241 Line 6-8 HC Bill: Doctors: It doesn't matter what
specialty you have trained yourself in -- you will all be
paid the same! (Just TRY to tell me that's not
Socialism!)


Page 253 Line 10-18: The Govt sets the value of a
doctor's time, profession, judgment, etc.
(Literally-- the value of humans.)

Page 265 Sec 1131: The
Govt mandates and controls productivity for
"private" HC industries.


Page 268 Sec 1141: The federal Govt regulates the
rental and purchase of power driven wheelchairs.

Page 272 SEC. 1145: TREATMENT OF CERTAIN CANCER HOSPITALS
- Cancer patients - welcome to rationing!


Page 280 Sec 1151: The Govt will penalize hospitals for
whatever the Govt deems preventable
(i.e...re-admissions).

Page 298 Lines 9-11: Doctors: If you treat a patient
during initial admission that results in a re-admission
-- the Govt will penalize you.


Page 317 L 13-20: PROHIBITION on ownership/investment.
(The Govt tells doctors what and how much they can
own!)

Page 317-318 lines 21-25, 1-3: PROHIBITION on
expansion. (The Govt is mandating that hospitals
cannot expand.)

Page 321 2-13:
Hospitals have the opportunity to apply for exception BUT
community input is required. (Can you say ACORN?)

Page 335 L 16-25 Pg 336-339: The Govt mandates
establishment of=2 outcome-based measures. (HC the way
they want -- rationing.)

Page 341 Lines 3-9:
The Govt has authority to disqualify Medicare Advance
Plans, HMOs, etc. (Forcing people into the Govt plan)

Page 354 Sec 1177: The Govt will RESTRICT enrollment of
'special needs people!'
Unbelievable!


Page 379 Sec 1191: The Govt creates more bureaucracy
via a "Tele-Health Advisory Committee." (Can
you say HC by phone?)

Page 425 Lines 4-12: The Govt mandates "Advance-Care
Planning Consult." (Think senior citizens
end-of-life patients.)


Page 425 Lines 17-19: The Govt will instruct and
consult regarding living wills, durable powers of
attorney, etc. (And it's
mandatory!)
Page 425 Lines 22-25,
426 Lines 1-3: The Govt provides an "approved"
list of end-of-life resources; guiding you in death. (Also
called 'assisted suicide.')(Sounds like Soylent
Green to me.)


Page 427 Lines 15-24: The Govt mandates a program for
orders on "end-of-life." (The Govt has a say
in how your life ends!)

Page 429 Lines 1-9: An "advanced-care planning
consultant" will be used frequently as a
patient's health deteriorates.


Page 429 Lines 10-12: An "advanced care
consultation" may include an ORDER for end-of-life
plans.. (AN ORDER TO DIE FROM THE GOVERNMENT?!?)

Page 429 Lines 13-25:
The GOVT will specify which doctors can write an
end-of-life order.. (I wouldn't want to stand before
God after getting paid for THAT job!)


Page 430 Lines 11-15:
The Govt will decide what level of treatment you will have
at end-of-life! (Again -- no choice!)

Page 469: Community-Based Home Medical Services =
Non-Profit Organizations. (Hello? ACORN Medical
Services here!?!)


Page 489 Sec 1308: The Govt will cover marriage and
family therapy. (Which means Govt will insert itself
into your marriage even.)

Page 494-498: Govt
will cover Mental Health Services including defining,
creating, and rationing those services.



Senator, I guarantee
that I personally will do everything possible to inform
patients and my fellow physicians about the dangers of the
proposed bills you and your colleagues are debating.


Furthermore, if you vote for a bill that enforces
socialized medicine on the country and destroys the
doctor-patient relationship, I will do everything
in my power to make sure you lose your job in the next
election.


Respectfully,

Stephen E. Fraser, MD

Migraine Headaches

If you don't get headaches, bless you!! You are missing nothing.Do you think you get migraines:maybe--maybe not.An occasional headache is no fun, but a migraine can literally shut you down. There are normally warning signs when a migraine is coming on. They are called prodromal symptoms. These signs can include visual disturbances called an "aura". There can be tingling or numbness in an arm or leg. There will be pain beneath the eyes and the forehead. Gradually a throbbing pain with nausea as well as light sensitivity and even vertigo (dizziness) will begin. It is believed that fluctuating hormone levels may cause a contraction and dilation of blood vessels in the brain causing the pain we feel as a migraine headache. In the United States it is thought that more women than men have migraines. 18 million as compared to 5 million. This is the type of pain that that keeps people out of work or less productive if they are at work. There are triggers that can set off a migraine. One of those is muscle spasm in the cervical(neck) muscles. Knowing this can help you find a start to getting relief. Many times people resort to heavy duty medication such as barbiturates, narcotics, beta blockers, anticonvultants and serotonin
receptor antagonists. Each of these can have severe side effects, may not be effective and may actually make the migraine worse.
Chiropractors have always been effective with treatment of headaches, including migraines. Spinal misalignment in the cervical and upper thoracic vertebra can irritate nerves, cause muscle tension and swelling as well as trigger mechano-receptors. All of these can cause pain; head pain and headaches.There were articles discussing research by Harvard Medical School. The researchers compared results for physical therapy, massage, and other non-drug options as treatment for headaches. Outcomes showed that chiropractic adjustments helped with tension type headaches that have migraine type symptoms. This type of care has been found to be safe with no serious adverse events in nearly 20,000 patients reviewed.
Here some other suggestions often prescribed by chiropractors: 1) take a warm bath or shower, 2) rest in a dark room, 3) apply a cold compress to the back of the neck or forehead, 4) drink fruit juice, especially tomato juice, 5) massage the face, head, neck and shoulders, 6) take vitamin and dietary supplements such as multi-vitamins, magnesium and B-3.
If you have headaches, see your chiropractor for an evaluation. I believe there is a 95% chance of you seeing the results you would like to see.
This information has been brought to you by our weekly Optimal Health University from May 12-17, 2008.