Your brain and body are always talking
Have you ever wondered how you manage to walk across an uneven footpath, catch something falling off a table or balance on one leg?
You don't consciously tell every muscle what to do. Yet somehow, your body coordinates all those movements. Behind these everyday actions is a fascinating communication network involving your brain, nerves and muscles.
We caught up with Dr Dominic to explore the connections between the nervous system, breathing and Dynamic Neuromuscular Stabilisation (DNS).
Q: How does your brain know what your body is doing?
Quite a lot happens behind the scenes.
Imagine stepping off a kerb and realising the ground is slightly lower than you expected. Before you've had time to think about it, your body is already adjusting.
How does it know what to do? Your brain, spinal cord and nerves are constantly exchanging information. Signals from your muscles, joints, skin and senses help your nervous system understand where your body is and how it's moving.
This built-in awareness is called proprioception. It's one reason you can touch your nose with your eyes closed without having to look for it.
Q: But what does breathing have to do with it?
More than you might think. Your diaphragm is best known as the main muscle involved in breathing. But it also works with other muscles to help support your trunk as you move.
And breathing has another connection: your nervous system.
Think about how you breathe when you're rushing to meet a deadline. Your breathing might become faster or shallower, and you may notice tension creeping into your shoulders.
Now compare that with taking a few slow, comfortable breaths when you're relaxing. Slow, controlled breathing can influence the body's stress response and may help some people feel calmer.
That doesn't mean breathing exercises automatically fix muscle or joint problems. But breathing, muscle activity and movement coordination are closely connected.
So, if breathing and movement are connected, what can we learn from how our bodies first developed these skills?
Q: What can babies teach us about Dynamic Neuromuscular Stabilisation (DNS)?
Think about a baby learning to roll over. Nobody hands them an exercise programme. Over time, they begin lifting their head, rolling, sitting, crawling and eventually standing.
Along the way, their nervous system and muscles develop increasingly coordinated movement patterns. This developmental process helps explain the thinking behind DNS, a movement-based approach Dr Dominic incorporates into his chiropractic practice.
DNS draws inspiration from early childhood movement development, using exercises that focus on breathing, posture and trunk stability.
And here's the surprising part: some exercises might look remarkably simple. You may find yourself lying on your back, adjusting the position of your arms and legs, and paying attention to your breathing.
It might not look like much. But the idea isn't necessarily to make the exercise harder. It's to explore how your muscles, breathing and movement work together.
Q: How does DNS fit into chiropractic care?
Chiropractic care isn't necessarily just about spinal adjustments. For Dr Dominic, DNS offers another way to explore breathing, movement coordination and stability as part of a broader chiropractic approach.
It's all connected.
The next time you reach into the back seat of your car, lift a shopping bag or turn around when someone calls your name, think about everything happening behind the scenes.
Your brain, nerves, muscles and joints are working together, while your breathing continues in the background. It's a conversation happening inside your body every day, even when you're not paying attention.
Curious about DNS? Speak with Dr Dominic at Carter Chiropractic to learn more about his approach and whether DNS-based exercises may be suitable for you.