March 2004

Battered women in our practices

by Dr. Leslie Bedell

This month, I asked Dr. Leslie Bedell, vice‑chair of the WCA Council on Women's Health, to share her expertise on chiropractic care for battered women. I think you will find her insights helpful. -- Dr. Madeline Behrendt

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How many women visit chiropractic offices complaining of chronic headaches, neck and upper back pain, unrelenting muscle tension, anxiety, depression, digestive complaints, and hormonal imbalances? We all have female practice members who present with such concerns.

Our examination will reveal vertebral subluxations in various areas of the spine, and after receiving chiropractic adjustments, many of these women will progress towards health. But, what about the women whose progress is inconsistent, who appear in our offices over and over again with the same symptoms and subluxation patterns?

Because of these women in my practice and my own personal experience, I began to ask myself if there was something I was missing in these women's histories that was blocking their healing process. I started to educate myself and found resources in the areas of communication, mind/body healing, recovery, and chiropractic techniques that provided answers as to why they could not break through their unhealthy patterns. It came as no surprise when I discovered that most of them were victims of "battering," or what the CDC now terms "Intimate Partner Violence" (IPV).

Battering is the establishment of control and fear in a relationship, a series of behaviors ‑‑ including intimidation, threats, psychological abuse, isolation, or violence ‑‑ to coerce and control the other person. Violence may not happen often, but it remains as a hidden (and constant) terrorizing factor. IPV affects 2,000,000 women in the U.S. every year, and includes all races, ages, incomes and religions.

As chiropractors, we know that subluxations are caused by the "3 T's": toxins, traumas, and thoughts. A chiropractic case history asks questions about the various physical injuries that a person has experienced, past medical treatments including medications, family history, and dietary patterns. But also important is the emotional arena, and questions that relate to the "thoughts" component of the vertebral subluxation, including feedback on family stresses.

Battered women in abusive relationships are ashamed of their situations and usually don't answer the case history questions honestly. Often, they will minimize the effects of the abusive incidents and try to change the subject when questioned. This is where a chiropractor can explain the impact of such stresses on the nervous system and begin to form a bridge of trust and understanding to his or her practice member who is being battered.

A battered woman lives a life permeated with fear that hampers her ability to see choices she might make to enhance her situation. She spends most of her energy trying to survive daily living rather than finding a way out of the abuse. Because the abuse is usually a secret kept from her family and friends, this fear is stuffed into her body and locks her in a cycle of fight or flight. She will begin to experience many other physical and emotional symptoms unless she is given permission to release some of that fear in a safe place. Our offices can be that first safe place for these women.

Battered women hear countless negative and degrading messages from their abusers that eventually became repeated tapes in their own heads. Messages of being worthless, ugly, stupid, incompetent, a bad mother, a poor partner, a burden, affect their neurochemistry, creating a dynamic of "learned helplessness" and associated dis‑ease throughout their bodies.

As chiropractors re‑evaluate regularly for changes in vertebral subluxation patterns, they can recognize inconsistent responses to care. And a chiropractor may be the first to identify the "Red Flags" of IPV and communicate the effects of the abuse to a battered woman. Through chiropractic adjustments, a battered woman can experience her body responding in a positive way. The stored memories of past traumas and abuses hidden in layers of survival patterns begin to release their tension and influence on her well‑being.

A chiropractor who is an empathetic listener and a good educator can offer these women a vitalistic approach and resources that can empower them to make new choices.

As the IPV lifestyle can be severely subluxated, I believe chiropractors have the opportunity to become a major force in helping curb Intimate Partner Violence, not only in the U.S. but also the world.

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I want to thank Dr. Bedell (agapechiro@msn.com) for providing this important information. She will be speaking at the 2004 WCA Summit and discussing key issues related to IPV including: IPV Red Flags, how a battered woman presents (physically and emotionally), which chiropractic techniques are recommended, communication, and much more that you'll not want to miss. We look forward to seeing you in D.C.

(Dr. Madeline Behrendt is chair of the WCA Council on Women's Health and associate editor of the Journal of Vertebral Subluxation [JVSR]. An author and speaker, she is committed to connecting women to chiropractic and chiropractors to women, and may be contacted at drmadeline@drmadelinedc.com)