Lessons from Playing the Trumpet

From the sixth grade through some of my undergraduate studies, I played the trumpet in band. It was enjoyable to play as a group of different instruments. Each instrument in the band had its own unique sound and by itself was pretty but as a diverse group, amazing things were be accomplished. One of the hardest parts of playing music in a group of unique instruments, is being able to play "in-tune." If just one instrument was slightly off center of tone (or out of tune), the whole group suffered in accomplishing its goal to bring powerful music to the audience. But when we were all in-tune, we were able to communicate powerful emotions through the pieces of music we played. In order to stay in-tune with the group, I had to constantly modify how my lips sat in the mouthpiece based on how I heard the group play and by listening to how my trumpet contributed to that sound. Each musician is incredibly important to the band and each was responsible for continually playing in-tune for the betterment of the whole band.

So how does all this apply to my current career path? Well lets compare the band to the nervous system in your body. Each of the instruments are individual nerves. The conductor in the front orchestrating the instruments is the brain, and the audience receiving the communication from the band is the rest of the body. Just like in the band, if a nerve cell is not "in-tune" it cannot produce the communication that the whole system is trying to convey. All systems are effected is some way to this one nerves inability to adapt and be in-tune with all the rest of the nerves in the "band." So since one or more of these nerves are out of tune it is impossible to get the intended message from the conductor (brain) to the audience (body).

This simple analogy has shown the objective that I will have in my chiropractic practice. I will be striving to help strategies for the nerves of the body to stay in-tune by increasing harmony and decreasing nerve tension so that the brain can better communicate with the body. Stay "tuned" (pun intended) for more on these subjects.

-Mike E