Through acupuncture you will see benefits not just physically, but emotionally and mentally as well. Acupuncture can be used to treat back/neck pain, headaches, fertility, digestive conditions, allergies, improved immune system, and so much more. As we head into flu season…YES it is nearly here, let’s take a look at all the ways we can help prevent the flu, and reduce the symptoms and duration. At the core of Acupuncture is the notion that a type of energy known as Qi (pronounced “chee”), flows through energy pathways in the body. Each pathway corresponds to one organ, or group of organs, that manages particular body functions. Achieving the proper flow of Qi is thought to create health and wellness. It boosts the immune system’s production of natural killer cells for up to 3 days after each treatment.
Tips for Boosting Immunity: • EAT RIGHT – Eat warm foods, soups, stews, roasted veggies. Avoid eating cold foods, yogurt, smoothies, salads. • Dress Warm – Keep your head and neck covered, keep your core warm. • Get Acupuncture – Regular acupuncture treatments help support and strengthen immunity. It can provide immediate relief, and reduce the length of infection. • Get regular chiro adjustments – Did you know that those who have regular chiro adjustments will have a 200% greater immune competence? Fall is not the time to skip your appointments! Remember, the sooner you treat it the better!
Almost every week we have a patient come into the office explaining how they injured their rotator cuff. Some do it lifting weights overhead, for others it’s an old baseball or tennis injury. Whatever the difference in the origin of the injury, one thing is common, it’s something that usually lingers for a long time if not initially treated properly and it is NOT normal. The rotator cuff is made up of several muscles that help support and guide range of motion for the shoulder joint. Pain arises when someone injures or overuses the surrounding muscles, tendons, ligaments and joint surfaces.
The rotator cuff is a large tendon comprised of four muscles which combine to form a “cuff” which attaches to the head of the humerus. The muscles that comprise the rotator cuff are:
• Supraspinatus • Infraspinatus • Subscapularis • Teres Minor
These muscles originate from the “wing bone” aka the scapula and together form a single tendon unit that attaches to the humerus. Rotator cuff injuries occur when tendons are impinged by the acromion (part of the anterior scapula).This mechanism is believed to be a major cause of cuff tears in individuals older than 40 years. Rotator cuff injuries also happen after a fall or may be caused by chronic wear and tear leading to degeneration of the tendon. The shoulder is considered a ball-socket joint. It allows the arm to move in many directions. It is made up of the humeral head (a ball at the end of the bone of the upper arm) fitting into the glenoid fossa of the scapula (the socket). The humeral head is kept in place by the thick bands of cartilage and the joint capsule. The joint itself contains a synovial membrane. It is the inner membrane of tissue that lines a joint. The synovial membrane secretes synovial fluid that lubricates the joint. The rotator cuff muscles are the dynamic stabilizers and movers of the shoulder joint and adjust the position of the humeral head and scapula during shoulder movement. Symptoms of rotator cuff injuries are pain in the front of your shoulder that may radiate down the side of your arm. Overhead activities such as lifting or reaching usually hurt and sleeping on the affected side may hurt. The arm may be weak and can cause difficulty with even routine activities such as combing your hair or reaching behind your back. When the rotator cuff is damaged it can produce pain, spasm, inflammation and swelling. All of those ailments restrict movement and mobility. Non-surgical options include anti-inflammatory medication, steroid injections, acupuncture, laser therapy and/or physical therapy.
The aim of physical therapy is to keep the shoulder joint stable by strengthening the muscles of the rotator cuff and to restore full range of motion. Typically rotator cuff rehabilitation takes 4-6 weeks but varies depending on the type of injury and the patient. Some examples of exercises that comprise a rotator cuff program are active assisted range of motion exercises with a wand or stick and strengthening exercises with a theraband to support the shoulder joint. After recovery, these exercises should be continued as a maintenance program 2-3 days per week for lifelong protection of your shoulders.
When a patient comes to our office with a rotator cuff injury, our approach is to first and foremost decrease the pain, swelling and inflammation.Our goal is to assist healing without painful or invasive procedures. If after our evaluation and examination we have the opinion that a condition requires medical intervention beyond the procedures available our office, the patient will be referred to other professionals who offer more invasive procedures such as injections and surgery (But only if absolutely needed!).
In most instances rotator cuff injuries can be remedied rather quickly by the painless, non-invasive procedures available at Monmouth Pain & Rehabilitation. Because of our excellent track record in taking care of these injuries, we receive a great deal of referrals from various physicians in our community.
So while it is true that many rotator cuff injuries evolve into chronic issues, it is usually because from the start they are not treated or allowed to heal properly. At our office we have great success in recognizing and treating the injury properly. With the attention, patience and techniques available in our office it is an infrequent occurrence for this type of injury to cause discomfort beyond the normal time of healing.
When considering a remedy for your rotator cuff injury, Monmouth Pain & Rehabilitation should be your first stop. Give us a call at 732-345-1377. Mention that you read this blog and you will receive a complimentary in-office evaluation (a $245 value).
Summer weather has arrived! How can you skip the gym, spend time outside and still get in a workout? Whether your summer day includes time at the beach, a day in the park or even working in your yard, these tips will ensure that you maintain your fitness.
Tip #1: Keep it simple. Choose activities that don’t require additional equipment or a lot of time.
Tip #2: Recruit those around you to join in the fun, it increases your motivation.
Tip #3: Switch up the exercises daily to keep things interesting and more challenging!
Tip #4: Combine cardio exercises with strength training exercises to get maximum health benefits in less time.
Tip #5: Warm-up for 5 minutes with brisk walking, slow jogging or other light cardio to elevate your heart rate slowly and prepare your body for the workout.
Outdoor Workout Ideas:
*Choose one exercise from each group to make a circuit of 4-6 exercises performed 1-2 minutes each. Repeat circuit 3-5 times.
Cardio exercises: (1-2 minutes of one of the following)
Jumping Jacks, high-knee run/skip, mountain climbers, burpees, skater side to side jumps, etc.
Upper Body Strength exercises: (1-2 minutes of one of the following)
Push-ups, tricep dips, crab walk, overhead press with knee raise, push up to plank arm crawl, etc.
Lower Body Strength exercises: (1-2 minutes of one of the following)
Alternating/walking lunges, body weight squats, squat jumps, high step ups on bench or stairs, side steps with squat, etc.
Core Strength exercises: (1-2 minutes of one of the following)
Plank/side planks or any variation, crunches, lying leg raise/bicycle, seated side to side twists, etc.
Get Summer 2016 off to a healthy start!
Stay tuned for next week’s blog on……Outdoor group fitness opportunities near you!
“Compassion means wanting to do something to relieve the hardships of others, and this desire to help, far from dragging us further into suffering ourselves, actually gives us energy and a sense of purpose and direction.” Dalai Lama in Beyond Religion
Yesterday I was waiting in a strip-mall parking lot to pick up some vegetarian sushi for my daughter. I was sitting in my truck parked in front of the laundry mat. A car pulled in next to me. I observed a disabled man alone and with two canes attempt to get out of his car. I watched his trunk hatch unlock. I understood that he was going to try to get some laundry done. I got out of my truck and asked him if he would like some assistance. He happily said yes.
From his trunk I removed a heavy bag of laundry. The man gave me specific instructions on where he wanted the laundry placed. I took his direction and found his washing machine. I then went back outside an assisted him into the laundry mat. If I were not there, he would certainly have gotten his task completed, as I am sure he had done many times before, albeit with difficulty.
Sitting back in my truck, I felt a sense of calmness come over me. I spend a good part of most of my days as a doctor helping people. And like so many moments when I am serving others, I gain temporary reprieve from the otherwise constant anxiety that I have been suffering with for most of my life.
Living with Anxiety
Those of you that suffer with anxiety understand it is associated with uneasiness, irritation, discomfort, shakiness, nervousness, and worry. And we are not alone. Millions of Americans suffer with anxiety. Unfortunately, many have to resort to anti-anxiety medication to remedy their pain. In fact, approximately 50 million prescriptions are written for anti-anxiety medication in the U.S. each year. About 1 in 6 people suffer with varying degrees of anxiety on a regular basis. These medications have many side effects and are in no way the long-term solution to the problem.
For me, I deal with anxiety by moving. I move incessantly. Those of you that know me personally know I am hard to catch. I walk, run, go the gym, practice yoga and chi gong, meditate, work long hours, play with kids, mediate more, I read, I write, I think about ways to improve my life, my business, and the lives of those I touch, I calculate things, I work out math equations, I surf and snowboard, I sing and play guitar (poorly), I see the psychologist, I pray, I get my neck adjusted, and I’ve even used anti-anxiety medication a few times. I even try to do nothing, but when I do nothing it gets worse. So, I manage.
I have studied anxiety. There are many theories on its origin. Some studies suggest that anxiety is a genetic trait. My mother has suffered with anxiety her whole life and her mother (my grandmother) as well. In fact, my 90-year old grandmother has been on anti-anxiety medication daily for 50 years!
Other theories suggest a learned behavior, a repressed unresolved issue, or I have even seen it explained as ancestral karma. So maybe I am dealing with working out universal laws of cause and effect from not only my own actions , but of those that came before me!
In the book Beyond Religion, the Dalai Lama observes how people in less developed countries worry less and are less anxious compared to those living in the western world. He suggests that perhaps their hardships force them to exercise greater patience and forbearance in life and that this in turn provides greater strength. A greater capacity for accepting difficulties is created without losing an inner sense of calm. Perhaps simply understanding that life comes with difficulties is the first step toward combatting its harm. The next step is the desire to alleviate the suffering. This is compassion.
Compassion is a two way street. The desire to serve others and to act on the intention to relieve their suffering has an immediate rebound effect where you in turn help yourself. I think this is why the best relief I gain from my anxiety is when I am helping others.
This level of compassion has been shown to also help us on the cellular level to improve not only our health, but also our immunity even down to the level of our DNA.
If we all focus a little bit more compassion, compassion to relieve the difficulty and pain and suffering in others, we find that we can perhaps make that leap and find it in us to find the intention to want to help ourselves.
This is one of my favorite quotations ever and has always reminded me how proud I am to be an American. I had this one thumb-tacked to my wall in college for years:
Excerpt from a 35 page speech given by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1910 in France titled “The Man in the Arena”:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
Interestingly, the great Nelson Mandela also gave a copy of this speech to François Pienaar, captain of the South African rugby team, before the start of the 1995 Rugby World Cup,in which the South African side eventually defeated the heavily favored New Zealand men’s national rugby union team.
Every day each of us steps into the arena of life. We sweat, we fight, we fail over and over again. This is life. As some would say, “This is what we signed up for.” And for what? This is the great metaphor for the human experience itself. It is here in the arena that we have the opportunity to cultivate and develop ourselves. It is here in the arena of life that we can serve others. How you chose to be when you are in the arena day in and day out will determine the level of peace you carry in your heart and the happiness you express outward to the world.
I witness this first-hand at Monmouth Pain each and every day. The road to better health and recovery from pain, injuries, and ailments can be a tough one. It can be grueling and require commitment, dedication, and a true desire to feel better. There are low points and times of true exhaustion. I have witnessed a number of patients at their lowest when going through treatment and I have watched those same patients continue to move forward and fight their way to recovery. Success comes very sweet for those that stick with it and accomplish what they set out to do.
Its all sounds so simple, but no one ever promised us it was going to be easy.
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