Cogito Ergo Sum: From a Famous Quote to a Practical Health Goal

What does cogito ergo sum mean?

"I think, therefore I am" is the familiar English for cogito ergo sum. In Part IV of René Descartes's Discourse on the Method, it's part of an argument about doubt and the existence of the person doing the thinking. It's philosophy, not evidence that positive thinking cures pain.

Still, reflection is a fine way to start a New Year's resolution, or an ordinary Tuesday. What would you like to make easier, and what's one realistic thing you could try?

What does the research say about New Year's resolutions?

In a 2020 study, Oscarsson and colleagues recruited 1,066 people who'd made New Year's resolutions and randomly assigned them to three levels of support. Of those who answered at one year, 55% considered themselves successful. People with goals about doing something reported more success than those with goals about avoiding something.

These are self-reports from volunteers, and the 55% counts only those who answered. The study randomized how much support people got, not how they worded their goals, so the wording may or may not explain the doing-versus-avoiding gap, and none of it predicts how your own resolution goes. It's a goal-setting study, and it says nothing about chiropractic care.

How do you turn a resolution into a practical health goal?

"I need to be healthier" is hard to act on. Pick something you'd recognize doing:

• "Before my appointment, I'll write down the activity that pain keeps interrupting."
• "I'll ask whoever's treating me how to tell if it's getting better."
• "I'll pick one manageable activity and check in on how it feels."

None of these is an exercise program. The right activity and amount depend on you, and a good goal leaves room for a cold, a rough work week, or a change in symptoms.

Review and adjust your resolution

Pick a day to look back. What happened? Was the task realistic? Do you need practical support, different advice, or an assessment before you keep going? Changing the plan because you learned something is the point.

When pain is what's getting in the way

If pain is part of the problem, bring that goal to a first visit. We'll go over it with your health history and symptoms, then examine you, since the exam is how we look for the cause. We'll talk through what it shows before we recommend anything, and if it doesn't look like a muscle-and-joint problem, we'll say so and refer you for the right medical evaluation.

Whoever you see for pain, a plan worth following starts with the likely cause. It lays out the options, what each one could do for you and what it risks, and says when you'll look at it again. A plan that depends on a guaranteed cure, or on an open-ended promise that more visits will eventually work, is a warning sign.

Our guide to what a chiropractor may help with walks through scope, and the value of health is about choosing a daily priority.

If a sore back or neck keeps derailing your resolution, our front desk can set up that first visit.