“I wanted to be a happier person.”

Happiness is not only a state of mind. It’s a state of body and spirit, because you feel sadness, doubt, disappointment, anxiety and fear in every cell of your being when things are not right. People’s eyes never lie and when the hole is so deep, it becomes a near impossibility to “think” your way out. Usually thinking makes it even worse. I’ve been in that hole more times than I care to imagine and, personally, without my various chiropractors/mentors/counsellors over the last 10 years, my body and mind would have given up the fight a long time ago.

When I really began to understand the power of chiropractic and its influence on the brain, I started a presentation with “a change of physiology is faster than anything you can think yourself into”. A perpetual state of no joy in whatever form it manifests, at a fundamental level, has come about through the brain (frontal cortex) no longer firing on all cylinders. It’s been worn down through so much stress and one event after another that it’s become nothing more than a sparkler in the rain. Neurochemistry depletes. This then starts affecting energy levels, gut function, immune function, and outward behaviour. For more, go to Mental Wellness.

I’ve never felt it right to say that people should be happy in spite of their circumstances. I think that’s bollocks. Circumstances have a massive impact on our mental health when they’re beyond control. But what one can do is seek out help and strategies to navigate through to the other side. The good news is, is that the cortex can have jumper leads hooked up to it and restarted. The journey to happiness can be short circuited in spite of one’s thinking mind – but it is the thinking mind that will continue the momentum. Chiropractic, amongst other things, can be a catalyst if we understand how the brain and spine works.


I was lucky enough to hear Neil talk to some of our staff about handling stress in the work place and his approach to chiropractic health care. What Neil explained about working with the nervous system wasn’t an approach I had heard of before and it interested me.

I have previously been to chiropractors with the occasional stiff neck and sore lower back discomfort. I wasn’t unwell when I started a program at Spinewave Wellness Centre in November but I wanted to be a happier person.

Three years ago my 76 year old mother passed away after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer 3 years previously. It was a very emotional time with Mum going through surgery and then chemotherapy knowing she had terminal cancer. I took over the role of mother/father in caring for Mum and supporting Dad who at 79 years had just retired. I was working full time and trying to organise the future for Dad and myself. I coped because you do, but it did take its toll with my emotional state (I was always crying) and over time various stomach upsets were arising.

After a few months of treatment with Neil I was feeling happier and coping with life’s challenges a little less stressfully and I haven’t had any stomach discomfort at all. I continue to see Neil.

I always look forward to my early morning appointment with Neil who has always been easy to talk to, very gentle in his technique and totally professional. Pip is always very relaxed and friendly and we always have a quick chat about what has been going on or coming up. Being involved with Spinewave is a very easy positive process.

Thanks Neil and Pip.

Lynda Williams.