The reductionist model of the body forms the basis of conventional medicine. This approach has resulted in breakthroughs in understanding the minutiae of cellular physiology and biochemistry, as well as the development of heroic interventions, such as pharmaceutical, surgical, and radiological methods. However, it has not delivered on the promise of improved general health or quality of life. I believe that this contradiction is the direct result of ignoring the emerging science, which demonstrates that the entire body—every cell, organ, and system—is intricately interconnected structurally, neurologically, and physiologically. Over the course of more than 40 years in practice, I have been obsessed with determining the underlying source of biomechanical dysfunction. To that end, I studied numerous forms of therapy and eventually discovered a way to utilize the language of the body to uncover some of the deepest, “hidden” layers of injury and how to gently release them to restore the body’s inherent state of balance and optimal well-being.
Based on sound scientific principles, this approach appears to provide the ability to access information directly from the tissues of the body to precisely locate areas of injury and dysfunction, according to very specific, measurable structural and electromagnetic evidence.1 Just as damage to the heart or the brain may be discerned through electromagnetic measurements (ECG, EEG), we have discovered that similar changes can be detected in all body tissues because of alterations in somatic structure resulting from injury.
I borrowed the title for this article from a video created by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, in which the effect of car crashes on the human body is discussed in detail. In fact, I show this video to our students to help them understand how impact injuries affect the human body. These concepts also apply to many of the inevitable bumps and bruises that I refer to as “life on planet Earth.”
Walking on two legs has provided us with tremendous advantages, but one of the main trade-offs is that the upright, bipedal posture has made us more vulnerable to the laws of physics, namely gravity, inertia, and momentum. As a result, we begin the assault on our bodies—slipping and falling on the ground or stairs and bumping into various objects and each other. We also tend to engage in activities that put us at further risk for injury, such as high-speed and contact sports, motor vehicle collisions, etc.
Simple physics tells us that a structure with a higher density will absorb the force of an injury to a greater degree than a structure with a lower density. For example, if you strike a pillow with a hammer, there will be practically no sound and little or no evidence of the assault, given that the force is easily dissipated by the loosely arranged structural elements of the filling material. In contrast, striking a piece of wood, such as a tabletop, will make a lot of noise, since the more closely packed molecules will bounce off each other, setting the surrounding air molecules in motion that cause the eardrum to vibrate more vigorously. Because of its greater density, the wood will clearly and permanently demonstrate the effects of the “injury.”
One of the densest substances on the planet is water. For this reason, a water-filled balloon tends to explode on impact with the ground, due to its tightly-packed molecular structure, which makes it a non-compressible substance. This is why impact injuries tend to be absorbed by certain organs, such as the spleen—think “internal injuries” (see Figure 1)—as well as the contents of the cranial vault. These fluid-filled areas tend to rapidly expand on impact, transferring the force to the organ and surrounding structures (e.g., rib cage, thoracic spine).
As a chiropractic student, I noticed that certain osseous structures on one side of the body were larger than their counterpart on the other side. This observation was later verified by research at the University of California.2 These changes in bone size are the result of injury (impact or strain), which are absorbed by its dense, mineralized fascial (collagen) elements. This led me to the conclusion that these types of changes in vertebrae might appear as misalignments (subluxations) when evidence suggests that they are more likely because of asymmetrical enlargement of one portion of a vertebral segment or segments.
Being licensed as a chiropractor and a naturopath has provided me with a unique perspective on various conditions encountered in practice. Early in my chiropractic studies, I began to question why we needed to treat the same area repeatedly. I thought that if we were truly addressing the cause of the problem, it should not keep coming back. As I pursued additional studies in osteopathy, I began to notice that some very gentle approaches seemed to have beneficial results. At the same time, I noticed that the unilateral enlargement of osseous structures, such as the tibial plateau or the distal femoral condyles, which I had noticed in prior years, appeared to literally “shrink” before my eyes with the application of these gentle approaches. This startling outcome seemed to be accompanied by almost immediate pain reduction and improved biomechanical function. In certain cases, we were able to verify these findings radiologically.
As a naturopath, I was also interested in how these structural changes might influence physiology. For example, I had noticed that several cases of cardiac arrhythmia seemed to resolve after treatment of the rib cage and upper thoracic spine. Subsequently, these improvements were clinically verified by Dr. John Page, MD, Ph.D. (former associate professor of epidemiology at Harvard University). Additional findings of normalized cholesterol and liver enzyme levels following treatment of the thoracolumbar region were confirmed in both human and animal specimens. Positive outcomes have also been achieved in cases of hypertension, snoring (associated with splenic injury), incontinence, ED, and dysmenorrhea.3
Similar injuries can occur with a concussion, where impact leads to the transmission of energy to the osseous and fluid components of the cranial vault (see Figure 2). Alterations to the shape of the skull appear to cause mechanical stress to the meninges and neurological and vascular elements. Treatment has been shown to restore the shape of the cranium, resulting in significant improvement in neurological findings and general clinical presentation. These results prompted Dr. Norman Doidge to suggest that Matrix Repatterning be implemented as a “first intervention” for head injury in his recent best-selling book.4 After reviewing several remarkable recoveries using this form of treatment, Dr. Doidge commented, “I view it as prudent to have a Matrix assessment after a blow to the head...Observing such cases has led me to hope that one day Matrix Repatterning will be routinely applied in hospital emergency departments.” In addition, we have recently been invited to collaborate on a study to investigate the use of Matrix Repatterning to alleviate hypertension, with a researcher at a major teaching hospital in Toronto, Canada.
A growing body of evidence shows that common injuries can have structural and physiological consequences at the most profound levels of the body. These changes appear to contribute to many conditions affecting quality of life and even serious illness. As responsible clinicians, our responsibility is to seek the most effective ways to alleviate suffering and offer our patients the means to overcome these limitations, relieve pain, and help achieve a state of optimal well-being. By applying sound scientific methods to address these issues, we have the opportunity to become central partners in the healthcare delivery system and enjoy the satisfaction of knowing that we are providing the highest level of care possible.
Dr. Roth is a graduate of the University of Toronto, Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, and the Ontario College of Naturopathic Medicine and has studied osteopathic medicine at Doctors' Hospital North, Columbus, Ohio. He is the developer of Matrix Repatterning and is the Director of Education at the Matrix Institute in Toronto. Dr. Roth has presented seminars at numerous hospital and university-based symposia throughout North America. He is the co-author, with Kerry D'Ambrogio PT, of Positional Release Therapy (Elsevier, 1997), and the author of The Matrix Repatterning Program for Pain Relief (New Harbinger, 2005). His work is also featured in the Brain's Way of Healing, by Dr. Norman Doidge (Penguin, 2015).
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