In Search of Planet X

by DeDe Van Riper

In 1894 an astronomer named Percival Lowell built the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. The stated intention of his efforts was to closely investigate the surface of Mars. Yet shortly after the completion of the observatory his secret ambition turned to discovering what he called Planet X. Based on the orbits of Uranus and Neptune, Lowell calculated that there had to be a ninth planet in our solar system. Though Lowell did not live to see it, Planet X – otherwise known as Pluto - was finally discovered by the Lowell Observatory in 1930 following a series of advances in technology and updates to the telescopes and their corresponding photographic equipment.

In the early days, Lowell pursued his dream in secrecy. Ultimately, however, he made his intentions known to the world. He shared his theories. He explained his math. He demonstrated how something affected the orbits of the other planets. Yet the world still couldn’t “see” it. Even though Lowell died before he “saw” Pluto, he knew that the ninth planet existed. He knew it because he could see the effects of the planet. The criticism of others did not make Pluto any less real for Lowell. He knew it was there, because he could see its effects. In the end, Lowell’s predicted location of Planet X was only off by 6 degrees.

In 1930, when the Lowell Observatory released a sequence of pictures of the night sky taken a week apart, Planet X became “real” for the rest of the world… overnight. Forget all of Lowell’s calculations. Forget all of Lowell’s math. Forget all of Lowell’s proof that Project X existed. It took two simple photographs taken a week apart for the rest of the world to embrace the ninth planet. And embrace it they did. They argued over the name. They argued over the size. They argued over whether or not it “qualified” as a planet. The one thing that was no longer argued was whether or not it existed.

How strange it is that Lowell could demonstrate through math and science that a planet had to be out there… yet it took a picture for the world to accept it?

A year after the Lowell Observatory was built a man named D.D. Palmer began a quest for something that was as equally illusive as Planet X: subluxation. His experience – and that of his son B.J. Palmer – was probably not much different than that of Percival Lowell. He, like Lowell, could see the effects of subluxation. Yet no matter how it was presented, the world did not rush forward to embrace the concept. Chiropractic for all intents and purposes remained – and remains – real for a small percentage of the people in the world.

Yet what might it do for Chiropractic – and the world – if everyone could clearly see what it is that Chiropractors deal with day in and day out; the nervous system and stress. How might the world embrace Chiropractic if it were possible to see how the nervous system responds to stress – and possibly more importantly how the nervous system recovers from it. Subluxations are caused by physical, chemical, and emotional stresses. And in this day and age, we can accumulate a whole lot of those stresses if we are not careful.

Yet as it was with the Lowell Observatory, it is with Chiropractic. The advances that have been made in technology and how it is applied has brought us to the point that Planet X is no longer a mystery and the effects of stress on a nervous system can be watched in real-time.

Lowell didn’t need to see Planet X to know it existed. The Palmers knew that subluxations existed without using any equipment, but I can assure you they would have love to.

So educate your patients on the causes of subluxation and the effects that stress can have on our health and well-being. But don’t be surprised if it takes a picture for them to embrace it.

see things clearly… even more clear than could only see the two pictures of the nervous system. introduced the world to the concept of subluxation. Yet the world did not come forward to embrace Chiropractic maybe as it should. Maybe all these years we have simply been waiting for a picture.

Chiropractic is filled with similar challenges; we see the effects of subluxation but we can’t really take a picture of one. We can see the effects of stress, but we can’t really take a picture of stress.

Or can we?

Chiropractic is the effort to remove the effects of stress; physical, chemical, and emotional. How is it that we can

It has been said that a picture is worth a thousand words. Two pictures taken in 1930 moved the planets. What might the future hold for Chiropractic once the world can see the effects of stress. What might the future hold for your patients as you better teach them about stress; how best to avoid it, how best to cope with, how best to recover from it. Stress can be a good thing – in moderation. Yet it all begins with seeing the effects for yourself. And believing. You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.