Civil War of Medicine : East vs. West

Civil War of Medicine: East vs. West

 Many things have changed throughout history and medicine is one of these. Through technical and chemical advances we have stumbled upon many ways to treat conditions that we didn't even know about hundreds of years ago. However, modern medicine is still the small child of traditional eastern medicine. There are many arguments about which kind of medicine is "right" and which is "wrong". I will tell you my opinion on medicine at the end of this article but first lets explore the main differences between the two.

The first documented form of eastern medicine was 5,000 years ago, however it was probably in effect undocumented long before that. Ancient herbalists experimented with mixing leaves and roots to achieve the "perfect state". Eastern medicine focuses on using whole foods to nourish the body and create a "self-healing" experience.  This is not far fetched, as our body is designed to repair and heal itself from something as small as a cut or scrape all the way to cancer. However for this to occur it must be under a "perfect state".  In eastern medicine the body is examined as a whole, each part connected to the rest and each body part falling under an element. Fire, Wood, Water, Metal, or Earth. It is also in the balance of Yin and Yang. These are not mystical elements as many people think they are. They simply represent the blood and the energy. ( Imagine when they were first discovering these things. They had no idea what they were so they just named them Yin and Yang!) Eastern medicine works very quickly, usually only needing 3 to 6 treatments for minor dysfunctions and 3-6 months for major diseases. It is also very cheap, as it doesn't require many tests or machines.

Western medicine blossomed in the 19th century after WW2. Although Greeks and Romans experimented with this approach the second world war marked the start of significant synthetic drugs usage. The western examination separates the body into different sections. If you have a hard time breathing, it must be due to something in your chest. They separate the body under the assumption that a dysfunction is quarantined in one area. In western medicine our Yin and Yang are the equivalent of anatomy and physiology. In this view these areas must be balanced for us to reach the "perfect state". Western medicine has a tendency to take much longer in the cure for simple and complex problems. Many treatments are carried out over several years or even a lifetime. These treatments are also shown to be much more expensive. 

So which one is right and which is wrong? Neither. Just as our bodies need to be balanced, the same is true for our medical system. The emergency medicine provided by western medicine is unmatched by eastern medicine. When your body does unforeseen things, it's good to have a medical system that can save lives very quickly. However it has become a problem that people are seeking this emergency help for non-emergency problems. Several  dysfunctions can be fixed in a few months with the help of eastern medicine. 2.5 million unnecessary surgical procedures are done each year. 700 billion dollars of unnecessary test are done in the US annually. 

There is such a balance and slowly our society is reaching it. Here are some tips to help you find this balance.

Tip 1: Know what you are putting in!

Doctors can prescribe many things to help cover up a problem. From pain pills to suppressants they can put anything in your body to give the illusion that you feel better. Ask your doctor, what is this? What does it do? What are the side effects? Is it worth the risk of these side effects? Are there alternatives? By asking these questions you can decide for yourself if you are willing to put this into your body despite the negative effects. Just because it is prescribed does not mean you have to take it! You can choose to look for alternative answers from someone else!

Tip 2: Seek outside help.

If you are experiencing a non-emergency problem seek out help from a chiropractor, massage therapist, or Eastern medicine doctor. We know our scope of practice and if we can't help we will tell you. However you may find yourself feeling a lot better for a lot cheaper if you seek alternative medicine first.

Tip 3: Respect your body

Your body is a wonderful machine that is self healing. You must provide it essential conditions for it to he in a healing state. Proper exercise, diet, and relaxation are required to help your body heal itself. 

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Our relationship with pain

Our relationship with pain

As I was driving home from dropping the kids off at school, I heard on the radio a doctor speaking about seniors and addictions. He was also speaking about addiction in general and how the majority of addiction stems from our relationship with pain. Although he lightly touched on this subject, I thought it was very intriguing. What is our relationship with pain? 

Let me throw some numbers at you. 5.1 million Americans reported use of prescription pain killers for non-medical purposes. That data was collected in one month. The World Health Organization estimates that approximately 2 million people in the United States alone are addicted to prescription opiates. 3 out of 10 teens do not believe that prescription opiates are addictive. 1 in 12 high school seniors reported past-year non medical use of prescription pain reliever Vicodin. The total number of opiate prescriptions dispensed by retail pharmacies in the US rose from 76 million in 1991 to 210 million in 2010. The abuse of opiates has been on the rise, but why? It's because of our relationship with pain.

When you hear the word "pain" do you see that as a negative word or a positive word? When I was in school we were taught not to use the word "pain" and instead say "discomfort" because when we would say "pain" it triggered a negative response instead of a constructive one. From a young age, we are taught to fear pain, because well, it hurts! It's not fun or enjoyable. We have become a people of comfort. A people so focused on having a good time, that we are now afraid to feel pain whether it be physical, emotional, or psychological. This has also turned us into a people of addiction.

One of the reasons I became a massage therapist is because I wanted to help people be healthy. However after interning at a hospital for 8 months, I discovered that western medicine is doing it all wrong. Yes, emergency medical procedures are vital, and I respect that as a needed part of our society. However, I also saw many people who could have been quickly fixed, but they spent weeks, and countless thousands of dollars on unneeded treatment and drugs. ( Bear with me as my granola crunching hippie side comes out.) I discovered alternative medicine provided a preventative and long term solution to many ailments. 

The use of pain killers is getting out of hand. When I went in to get my wisdom teeth out a year ago, I was prescribed a month worth of Vicodin to help with my pain. On average it takes about three days to recover from getting wisdom teeth out. Doctors more and more are prescribing outrageous amounts of pain killers as compassion treatment. They don't want people to be uncomfortable, so they cover up the pain with opiates, but this only exacerbates the problem. Our bodies feel pain because there is something wrong. It's crying out for help. By taking opiates, it just covers up the discomfort, however the problem is still present. An extreme metaphor would be to take a crying baby and cover it with a blanket and lock it in a room. The problem is still there, but you can ignore it for a while.

So what are our alternatives? Here are some tips to help you transition from covering up a problem to finding a solution!

Tip 1: Find the problem!

When you feel pain, don't try to ignore it! You need to record what you are feeling. Specifically where is the pain located? What type of pain is it? What makes it better? What makes it worse? Bring this information to a chiropractor, massage therapist, acupuncturist, or even a Chinese medicine doctor. As a professional, we know the difference between a problem we can treat and one we can't. I will gladly refer my clients to doctors if I know it's out of my scope of practice. By coming to alternative medicine first however, you prevent unneeded prescriptions and tests. (With all medical emergencies call 911.)

Tip 2: Get addicted to something healthy!

More times than not chronic pain occurs in those who are not leading a healthy lifestyle. If your insides are not healthy your outsides won't be either. Analyze your nutrition, exercise, and relaxation habits. Are you eating good food? Are you exercising regularly? Are you giving your body time to relax and heal itself? Each of these are very important to fighting pain. If you need help, seek out professionals. Personal trainers, massage therapists, and nutritionists are all there to help you feel better. No judgement! 

Tip 3: Educate!

I cannot stress this enough. Educate yourself and your kids! We need to know that there are better alternatives to what we have now! I can't tell you how may times my kids have told me they need pain killers or sleeping pills. Every time I tell them that there are better ways to feel better. Show your kids how to massage their feet to fall asleep, or how to use foam rolling to relieve back pain. The more we know, the better off we are!  

If you are struggling with a drug addiction, call this number or reach out to a local clinic for help.

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What a pain! (Part5)

What a Pain (part 5)

In this final chapter of my five part series on pain management we will be covering nerve compression. If you are feeling an intense pain in your spine, please go see your doctor, as it could be signs of a herniated disk or other serious injuries.

Nerve compression or a pinched nerve is a painful experience. Most pinched nerves happen in one of two places, the neck/ shoulder or the sacrum/ hips. These two areas are homes to some of the biggest nerves in your body. Your sciatic nerve runs down by your hips, and the Axillary nerve runs through your shoulder to your deltoid. When these nerves get pinched, you can feel a localized pain, but it is also very common to feel referral pains as well. For example, many people who have sciatic pain feel it radiate down the side of their leg and into their knee.



Pinched nerves are often caused by muscles pressing into a nerve. Imagine your nerve as a cat, specifically their tail. A healthy nerve can send signals to your brain, like a cat flicking their tail. However, if you apply pressure to them, they will let out a pain signal. The same as if you accidentally stepped on a cats tail. There is an initial OUCH! moment, often followed up with lingering discomfort in the area. That is an example of a momentary nerve compression. Now imagine if you maintained pressure on a cats tail. They would probably get very angry and lash out to try to get you to get your foot off. The same maintains with nerve pinching. The nerve is going to "lash out" or send pain signals to the brain to try to get the pressure removed from them.


A smart teacher of mine used to continuously say, " The body is very smart, but the body is very dumb." The body is smart by sending these pain signals to try to get the muscles to release. However, the body is dumb, because in response to this pain signal it tells the body to protect itself by tightening the muscles around that area. So if the body is being dumb, how do you get rid of this compression? First lets review why there is pressure in the first place.


The pressure you feel is caused my muscles contracting and not letting go. With this motion, the nerve is pushed between two muscles. The body then tells the muscles to protect itself, so they tighten up even more, making a continuous loop of OUCH! However if you can isolate the muscle that is causing the pinching, there are some remedies to help the muscles let go and therefore get rid of the compressed nerve. Here are some tips to help relieve a compressed nerve.


Tip 1: Massage

I know I say it a lot, but I am a firm believer in massage therapy. A massage therapist will be able to easily pinpoint the muscles causing the compression, and can loosen up the muscles to relieve the pressure on the nerve. With maintenance, one massage a month can get rid of a lot of discomfort.


Tip 2: Breathing techniques

Are you a chest breather? If you are, you probably also get migraines or headaches. Practice safe breathing. Our body is made to use our diaphragm to breathe. In fact, that is the diaphragms only job! When you breathe you should be able to see your stomach move in and out, like a baby breathing. We have been taught to use our scalene muscles to breathe so that our bellies don't poke out. However, that leave a huge job to tiny muscles, that happen to sit on top of a huge bundle of nerves. So, as much as possible breathe with your belly not your chest! Watch this informative video on how to breathe!

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What a pain! (Part 4)

What a pain! (part 4)

Welcome to part four of my four part series written on pain management. Today we will be going over dull and achy pains. This type of pain is usually a sign of a long term injury or the healing of an injury. Often times it is hard to describe as anything else but dull and achy. It is the type of uncomfortable pain that makes you want to just sit on your couch all day and become one with the fabric. If you do get up and move, it is always lingering in the back of your mind, and after a while you just get used to it. This pain can often be attributed to chronic pain diseases some of which are listed in the chart below.

You caught me on this one, I don't have some hocus pocus way to magically make your pain go away over night. However, with new daily health techniques you can combat the pain, and make it easier on yourself. About two years ago, I was suffering from ovarian cysts, which caused extreme and constant pain in my pelvis, low back, and stomach. I had been dealing with this kind of pain since I was about 13 years old, and I also suffered from migraines and constant headaches. But after my doctor told me I may have endometriosis or PCOS I decided I needed to make a lifestyle change. After thorough research and partnering with many health gurus, I changed my diet and exercise, and began taking supplements to help my body heal itself. Since I made this change, I have only had one flare up in two years, and I am in better shape than I have ever been in!

Now you have to make the decision, am I done living in pain? If so, here are some helpful tips to begin helping your body heal itself.

Tip 1: Reduce inflammation

It's all about inflammation! When you start to feel achy or dull pains, it is often a sign of inflammation in your body. Depending on your diet, you could be putting food in your body that causes inflammation, such as caffeine, alcohol, red meats, and acidic foods. Look into supplementing these foods with another food. For example, switching from ground beef to ground turkey.  Small changes like this can help reduce the amount of inflammation in your body, not to mention they are healthier alternatives. Below is a list of foods that help reduce inflammation

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Tip 2: Supplements

I am an all believer in the magic of a multivitamin. But Brandi, if I have enough vegetables and fruits in my diet I should have enough vitamins. No. The argument that multivitamins creates expensive urine also doesn't fly with me. Yes, you may have lots of vitamins in your diet, however, they do not equate to your recommended daily amounts. And yes, when you take multivitamins some may end up going down the toilet, but would you rather be running on half full? If you don't believe how important multivitamins are, do an experiment. Track your moods for one month. After that month, take a multivitamin and see if your moods get better or worse. I can almost guarantee they will get better, because your body is now running on a full tank of gas.

Tip 3: Mental health

Your mind is a very powerful part of your body. If you are in poor spirits, it is more likely for you to feel this dull and achy pain. To improve this, try guided meditations 3 times a week. Remember, with this type of pain, you need to fix the inside before the outside can heal. Here is a good guided meditation for chronic pain.

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What a pain! (part 3)

  What a pain! (part 3)

Welcome to part three of my five part series on pain management! If you missed the first two posts, be sure to go back and read them. The previous blog posts will go over soreness and tension. Today we will be going over pinching and stabbing pains in muscles. Please be advised, if you are feeling a pinching or stabbing pain in an area that doesn't feel muscular, such as kidneys, and lower abdomen you need to see a doctor, as these can be signs of very serious conditions.

In reference to muscles, pinching and stabbing pains are fairly common, and very annoying. The feeling of stabbing or pinching comes from a quick muscle contraction. The difference between these two is not subtle, as you can always tell if it is one or the other. A stabbing pain is a quick burst of muscle contractions. In contrast, a pinching feeling is a lingering muscle contraction. When you feel both of these consecutively, it is usually a stabbing pain followed by a pinch. This is the muscle getting "stuck".

In the field of massage therapy, we refer to this "stuck" muscle as a trigger point. Call them what you will, there is a fix for these nuisances! If you experience stabbing feelings this is an early sign that your muscles need some help. Some actions that will help get rid of this is proper daily stretching, drinking plenty of water, and keeping your muscles active. Daily stretching will help stop muscles from tightening up and turning into a "stuck" muscle. Sometimes, our muscles will contract because they are dehydrated. Muscles bring blood to an area by contractions, which is why big body builders get a "pump" or get vascular when they workout. When a muscle is running low on water, it will contract to try to get more blood flow to it so it can hydrate. Therefore, if you drink more water, you muscle won't have to struggle to get blood flow. The same concept goes with staying active. If your muscles are stagnant, it is hard to get blood flow to certain areas of the body. It's very important to keep moving so your  body can get nutrients from your blood. 

If you are experiencing a pinching feeling, it is not too late! There is still hope! A sharp or dull pinch is a sign of a stuck muscle. What this means is your muscle contracted, and then never let go. This results in trigger points or "knots". They can range in size, depending on where they are located in the body and how long they have been contracted. Imagine lifting weights and then suddenly halfway through, you just stop and hold it. Soon your muscle will start to hurt from holding that same position. That is, on a larger scale, how these muscle act. They function perfectly, and then they just stop, and freeze in a contracted state. To get these to let go, you must get it back to it's original position and hold it there. Much like a kindergartner on their first day of school, these muscles just don't want to let go. 

To get muscle to release you can stretch them, apply pressure, and apply heat to the area. By stretching them, it is like pulling a child of their dads legs. But you can't let go right away, or they will just run straight back and grab on again. You have to get them away, and hold them away until they are done with their tantrum. On a muscular level, you stretch the muscle back to it's original position and then hold it there. It takes about one full minute for a muscle to stretch back into it's original position. By applying pressure and heat, you are maintaining a blood flow to the area, and loosening it enough for it to return to the correct position itself. All these options are good ways to take out your own knots, however depending on their severity, you may have to talk to your massage therapist about helping release some of the muscles. 

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What a pain! ( part 2)

What a pain!

Our second type of pain in this five part series is tension. Tension is the feeling of being pulled tight and is usually paired with compression. For example, if you tilt your head to one side, one side of your neck will be in tension, and the other will be in compression.

Muscle tension is very real, and yes, quite  painful. Most muscle tension is developed from overuse, and not using proper stretching techniques. Imagine your muscles as a rubber band. If you use a rubber band that is at room temperature it has no problem stretching. If you use a rubber band that has been heated up, it is even more flexible! However, if you put a rubber band into a freezer, it will snap much sooner than the other rubber bands.

When you wake up in the morning, it is like your rubber bands ( or muscles) are just coming out of the freezer. As you walk around, and move about your day, they start to warm up and become a room temperature rubber band. Between these two points is where most tension injuries happen. This is when it is easy for the rubber band to snap.

Tension injuries can include anything from pulling a single muscle fiber, up to an Achilles tendon rupture. These injuries happen because your body expects a certain amount of strain, but it receives something different, and cannot compensate for the difference. This would be just like someone throwing you a ball that you think is filled with air, but instead it is filled with lead. The sudden change in weight  can make your body use muscles it was not expecting to use. If during this change your muscles are properly warmed up, they can stretch, and are less likely to sustain injuries. However, if they are still "cold" you can experience painful injuries.


One way to prevent tension injuries is to stretch. Although static stretching is fine, I prefer dynamic stretching, as it warms up your muscles better. Here is a video from personal trainer Dan Holguin that shows proper dynamic stretching techniques. Not only are these great to do before exercising, they are also wonderful on a day to day basis to help loosen up stiff muscles.

If you have already experienced a tension injury here are some other tips to help you manage your pain and recover.

Tip 1: Take it easy.

Remember, most tension injuries are caused by overuse. So let your muscles take a break. If you continue to overuse the muscles that are injured, the injury will continue to get worse over time. 

Tip 2: Trigger point work

Ask your massage therapist about trigger point work. Most muscle tension revolves around trigger points. If you can begin to release trigger points in your body, it will help relieve the tension in that area as well. You can also look into cupping and acupuncture which help release muscle tension as well.

Tip 3: Topical analgesics

For immediate pain relief opt for topical analgesics. These are natural alternatives to pain medication, and come with fewer side effects. These are also non-addictive and actually help in the healing process instead of simply covering up the pain. Some of these include BioFreeze, tiger balm, and arnicare. 

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Dan Holguin Fitness

https://www.youtube.com/user/UniquePhysiqueMT

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What a pain (part one)

What a pain (part one)

In the next five blog posts, I will be covering pain management. To begin, we must first classify the types of pain that are most common. Soreness, tension, pinching or stabbing, dull and achy, and compression. These are the types of pain that we will be covering. Although there are several others, these are the ones that I see most often.

 

Today we will be talking about soreness. Soreness occurs in the body when a muscle is held in tension and then released. This causes the muscle to have microscopic tears in it. As the muscle rebuilds these tears, it grows and becomes stronger. This is called muscle hypertrophy. Therefore, the soreness you feel are tiny tears throughout your muscles. These can be caused by lifting heavy objects, going through strenuous exercise, or releasing trigger points. 

To combat soreness, you must remember that we are encouraging our body to heal these micro-tears. The first thing you want to do is drink lots of water. If your body is dehydrated, it is harder for your blood to carry nutrients to your muscles. So stay hydrated!

Second, sit in a bath with epsom salt. Epsom salt is magnesium sulfate, which when absorbed into the body, helps it to heal muscles. If you decide to do a warm bath, it will increase blood flow and get nutrients to the muscles quicker. However, it will intensify to soreness over the next day. If you choose to take it in a cold bath, the soreness will fade due to the constricting of blood vessels. This however is a temporary fix, as it is harder for your body to absorb the magnesium sulfate in cold water. You must decide for yourself which is better suited for your soreness. 

Lastly, keep it moving! I know it may hurt, but you don't want to baby your muscles too much. While it is repairing, you body is very venerable to picking up bad habits. Make sure your everyday actions are not changing due to soreness. Some actions that tend to change with soreness are change in gait, flexion of appendages, and disuse of arms or legs. As your body begins to heal just make sure you are still walking normal, and using your body as you would any other time.

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Don't be so negative!!

Don't be so negative!

Most people think of massage as being all physical. Depending on your massage therapist, bodywork also focuses on the mental and emotional aspects of your body. Many massage therapists refer to these practices as "energy work". Before you turn off your computer screen and mumble about how this is a bunch of mumbo jumbo, hear me out.

The law of vibration states, "anything that exists in our universe, whether seen or unseen, broken down into and analyzed in it's purest and most basic form, consists of pure energy or light which resonates and exists as a vibratory frequency or pattern. All matter, thoughts and feelings has its own vibrational frequency. The thoughts, feelings and actions we choose also have their own particular rates of vibration. These vibrations will set up resonance with whatever possesses identical frequency."- William D. Gann


A massage therapist that specializes in energy work has learned to control their energy to match another persons, while also keeping their own separate energy. This is called grounding. By grounding themselves, they don't pull any negativity from the client, and the client doesn't pull any negative energy from them. It is very similar to wearing a surgical mask. No germs get shared. So how then can they "give" good energy if there is no sharing of energy?

Imagine a garden hose. The hose provides water to plants by pulling water from a tank, and transferring it to the plants. The hose does not become plants, and the plants do not become hose. Through this process however, the plants get what they need to grow.


In this analogy, the client is the plants, while the massage therapist plays the part of the garden hose. Now where do we get the water? As we stated earlier, everything consists of energy. This means rocks, trees, grass, a table, and even your couch. From your surroundings, you can pull "positive" or complimentary vibrations. What a massage therapist does is get a feel for their clients energy, or what frequency they are vibrating at. Then they "pull" a complimentary energy from the surroundings. While this takes much practice, some people are born and raised to be more receptive to energy work.

If you want to improve your skills in energy work, here are a couple tips.

Tip 1: Find a therapist who can do energy work.
Every Luke Skywalker needs a yoda. By finding someone who can help you with energy work, you will be able to learn much faster. They can coach you and help you improve your skills.


Tip 2: Meditate.

Here is a great video for meditations to help your energy. Try doing it as often as possible, but at least once a week!

Feel free to comment below and let me know what you want to hear about!

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Starting out on the wrong foot

Starting off on the wrong foot.

Feet are both your best friend and your worst nightmare. On one hand, they carry your body weight, help you travel from place to place, and keep your body from falling over when you stand. However, on the other hand, they can hold tension and pain, and well, if something is wrong with your feet, then it will most likely affect the rest of your body.

When working with my clients, one of the first areas I will start with is their feet. ( Yes I touch feet for a living. And love it!) Using the same idea we discussed with knees, we can see that gait (the way you walk) and resting stances changes depending on the positioning of the feet. I challenge you to find a way to change the position of your feet without moving any other part of your body. Knees, hips, shoulders, and even neck. These areas will all move to compensate for the lack of balance that occurs when you change your foot positions. 

The positioning of the feet can be defined by one of four actions. 

Pronation, imagine standing on the inside of your foot. 

Supination, like standing on the outside of your foot.

Dorsiflexion, pulling your toes towards you face.

Plantar flexion, or toes into the ground.

Each of these actions has different implications on the rest of the body. If your feet are positioned incorrectly, it is very common for you to have back pain, hip pain, knee pain, shoulder pain, neck pain, and well, just a lot of pain.  Luckily for you, we can help. Plus, the only side effect is better sleep and less discomfort!

Tip #1: Insoles!
Just like with the knees, the first thing you need to do is bring your body back to an equilibrium. I always recommend going and getting insoles. If you can't go to your podiatrist, or if like most people, you don't know one, go to your local big box store and use their Dr.Scholls insole machine. All you have to do is stand on it, and it will tell you where you put most of your weight, and it will recommend the correct insole for you! It only takes about 5 minutes, and it is worth the investment! Your feet will thank you!

Tip #2: Massage those feet!

Home massage for feet is very easy, and doesn't take that long. If you can massage your feet for 5 minutes every night, you will  be able to relieve some of the tension that is holding your feet in the wrong position. If you don't want to touch you feet, or if you don't think you can do it yourself, see your massage therapist. I know it's weird, but we love feet!! Here is a quick video for at home foot massage!

Tip #3: Check your shoes!

Your shoes are very important to foot health! You want to make sure that they are not too tight, but that they also provide support to your feet and ankles! Make sure you have room to wiggle your toes around as well. Lastly, make sure to get new shoes at least every 6 months. If you wear the same shoes every day, they become worn down, and will not provide as much support as they used to after about 6 months.

Feel free to comment below, and let me know any other problem areas you are having so I can address them in my next blog!

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This shoulder is so frozen...

This shoulder is so frozen, it's singing Let It Go!

Frozen shoulder, also know as adhesive capsulitis is mainly characterized as stiffness or pain in the shoulder joint. This is most often caused by a shoulder injury, tissue scarring, and shrinkage of the shoulder capsule. An old teacher of mine used to say," The body is very smart, however, the body is very dumb." This dysfunction is the perfect example of that statement. 

When you experience a shoulder injury, or any injury really, you body goes into a protection mode. It brings the injured part of your body towards your center, to provide protection from it getting hurt again. Notice, all the players below are pulling their arms, or legs in close to their chest. 

However, the normal response once it is healed is to let that body part return to normal positioning. Your body is also dumb though, and much like an over protective parent, it tries to keep that body part from getting hurt by holding it close to their body. This can cause stiffness and immobility in the joint. Over long periods of time, this becomes the arms natural position. The bad part about this is the shoulder loses the ability to move as it is built to.The shoulder capsule then becomes less of a joint, and more of a cast meant to hold the arm in place.


All hope is not yet lost though, as there are ways to make your body act like it's smart self again! Here are some of my favorite tips for frozen shoulder!

Tip 1: Keep it moving!
The biggest part about recovery from frozen shoulder is to keep the shoulder moving. In the late stages of frozen shoulder, it is hard to move at all, but small stretching movements can slowly loosen up the shoulder capsule. The stretches and exercises below are ones that I use on many clients as a daily routine. Always remember, don't push it too far. The trick is slowly stretching, not forced dislocation!


Tip 2: Massage
Massage therapy can help frozen shoulder by facilitating stretching and movement in deeper muscles that can't always be stretched by yourself. It also helps your muscles relax and let go, which will help loosen up the shoulder capsule.

Tip 3: Don't baby it!
If you ever find yourself holding your arm to your chest for no reason, make sure to consciously let it fall back to it's natural position. It is important that you retrain your body where your arm is supposed to go.

Feel free to comment below about subjects you would like to hear about!

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It's okay to not be okay

This is a topic that has been speaking to me this week, and don't worry I will still be posting about frozen shoulder next week, but I am going to get side tracked with this subject today.

It's okay to not be okay. Here is the clip that really brought this subject into my mind. I know it has been circulating quite a bit, but I think it is important to watch. (Sorry for the bad recording. I had to find it, then tape in on my phone.)

What this brings to mind, is all my time working in retail. I sat at a counter all day, and every customer, I would ask " How's it going?" and 99% of the customers would answer with " good" or " doing well". Now, I know you aren't going to spill our heart out at the front counter of a clothing store, but what really bugs me is how easy it is to say I'm good. I'm fine. I'm doing well. We have become a society where it's a failure to not be good. If you are sad, angry, stressed, or upset it is a failure. This is one of the biggest lies our generation has bought into.

One of my biggest successes in my marriage was when I was finally able to open up to my husband and tell him, I'm not okay and I need help. For so long, I trapped sadness and anger inside myself. I did not want to appear that I had anything less than a happy life. I didn't want to be a crybaby. After moving 1000 miles away from my childhood home, changing jobs, and buying a new car I was stressed, homesick, and confused. Had you asked me how I was, I would have answered "I'm fine". Carrying all this stress inside me caused me to feel physically sick and tired. It made me upset and angry and I would have moments where I lashed out because I could not handle it anymore. 

Finally after carrying this with me for months, I was able to let loose. I sat with my husband and cried and let it all out. After this a miraculous thing happened. I was no longer sad, angry, or stressed. I didn't need to lash out at anyone because I was able to slowly vent what was going on. Yes, I still get stressed and angry. However, now that I know it's okay to feel that way, I can let go of it. Honestly, I felt like Elsa, without the really cool dress and hairdo.

The truth is, emotions are the brains way of saying, I need to find a way to get this out! It can let stress out by laughter, tears, or even yelling. These are all perfectly natural ways for your body to let go of stress! Stress is something that can actually cause physical harm to your body if you hold on to it. Here is a quick video that has lots of great info on stress and how it affects you!

And here is another video on why we cry! 

As you can see these emotions are normal human responses to stress! So now, how can we learn to let our stress go and not just be "good"?

Tip 1: Self love

Self love is something I like to focus on in my meditations and with my massage clients. When was the last time you were able to look at yourself completely naked and say, I love me! Yes, the naked part is essential. I'm talking no makeup, no clothes, and hair undone. Just the raw you. It is a practice that I like to do once in a while, especially if I'm feeling down. Look at yourself in the mirror, and start listing positive, non-physical aspects of yourself. Being naked while doing this exercise (though you can do it clothed if you aren't alone) gives it rawness and meaningfulness. It means that you feel this way unconditionally. Not just when your makeup is on point, or when you look cute in your new outfit. It is always. 

Tip 2: Self-awareness

It's important for your body to be aware of what it is feeling. We often become disconnected from our bodies, and ignore big red flags that our body throws us. To do this, sit in a room with as little outside stimuli as possible and just focus on what your body is doing. Focus on your hands, then your arms, then your shoulder, and so on. Think of one body part at a time and just focus on how it feels.

Tip 3: Don't be good!!

Work on being truthful with yourself and those close to you. When someone asks, how are you? Be truthful. You don't need to tell them your life story, but a simple, " I'm kinda feeling stressed out today because my bills are due," works just fine. 

Please leave your comments below, about topics you want to hear about!

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In this neck of the woods...

In this neck of the woods...

Neck pain is well, a pain in the neck. There is a massive amount of muscles, nerves, and blood vessels in the neck, and because of this, there are many opportunities for dysfunction. The necks main function is to hold up your head, which is quite the task for such a small body part. The neck is made up of spine and muscles the help stabilize the head and its movements.  

Imagine it like this, you are holding a 10 pound weight up with your arm straight. Now this weight starts to move side to side, and rotate in all directions. Now do this, all day with no breaks. Your arm is likely to hurt, if not fall off from exhaustion. This is what your neck does everyday! Talk about a thankless job!

So now, lets give all these muscles a much needed vacation! Or at least a break! Imagine you have a needle coming straight out of the top of your head, when you are looking straight forward. Now, point this "needle" forward in front of you. This will cause a stretch on the posterior muscles of your neck, and even some back muscles. When in tension, these muscles can cause headaches and migraines. If you feel discomfort with this stretch, you should also look into giving your neck more support while sleeping, such as a rolled towel under your neck, or an extra pillow to snuggle if you are a side sleeper.

For the next stretch, move you head from side to side, as if trying to touch your ear to your shoulder. This is going to activate your SCM ( short name for a long muscle!). This is a very important muscle in your neck, as it controls many movements that you use on a day to day basis. This muscle is also responsible for most of the pain people feel in the neck. To stretch it out, let your shoulder drop straight down, and then slowly and gently let your neck fall the opposite way. If you want more of a stretch, you can place your opposite hand on your ear to help "pull" your head over. WARNING!! DO NOT PULL HARD ON YOUR HEAD!!  The key to stretching your neck is gentle and slow movements. You can also use a foam roller to help relieve some of this tension. Simply lay with the crook for your neck on the top of the foam roller, and simply look from side to side.

These stretches can significantly reduce the amount of tension in your neck, especially if you are doing them on a daily basis. If you have severe neck pains always follow up with your doctor as neck injuries can be very serious! 

Keep an eye out for next week's blog on FROZEN SHOULDER!

Let's get affiliated with our bodies!