How long does it take to get better? Depends on what damage was done. Are your joints jammed up or did something tear or break? There are numerous assessment exams and diagnostic tests ie. X-rays or MRI to figure out what has happened to you. Strains/Sprains can heal in 12 weeks if it is a simple sprain/strain. If there are multiple layers and planes of tissue that are involved, it could take years. There are other considerations like age, body type, nutrition, and stages of disease that would obviously interfere with healing. Stress plays a big role too. The best case scenario is to do an exam to see if there are any red flags and treat the chief complaint or what hurts most. Chiropractic care usually addresses the entire body so your body can heal correctly and efficiently. For example, if a patient is involved in a car crash that damages their neck, the chiropractor would work mainly on the neck, but the upper back, low back and pelvis need to be adjusted as well to support the foundation of the body and to support the healing of the entire body. Once adjustments begin whether 2-3x/week or more frequently depending on the injury, exercises must be done to transition the body back to normal function. The patient starts with range of motion exercises to reestablish soft tissue coordination across each joint and among each joint above and below it. Mild stretches can be done to bring the body back to symmetry and further reduce stress on the body. Stay with the program to heal faster. But remember, like a cut takes time to heal so do deeper tissues in your body. Nature does have its limitations. Fast healing can neglect quality so slow healing is probably best, don’t rush it or you will have to pay later. Every injury has its complexity and individuality depending on the trauma. Did you just hit the dirt or were you in a car crash that you didn’t see coming. If you’re lucky you are in good shape and you will heal fast, if you are not in shape it could be a long time to get humpty dumpty back together again. Stay in shape and see your chiropractor.
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Ergonomics is Economics
It is amazing how far we have come isn’t it? What’s ergonomic? It is the position you put your body in that puts the least amount of stress on the body while working or doing repetitive tasks. The quote, “He who will not economize will have to agonize.”-sums it up. You have to conserve and minimize the use of certain muscle groups in the body. For example: If you continue to lift things just by bending forward and picking them up, eventually your back muscles will let you know you are doing it wrong. Lifting with your back straight and using your upper legs is much more economical and is less likely to cause injury in the long term.
Another place where people get into trouble is sitting at a desk or work station. Typically, you shouldn’t feel discomfort or strain while sitting or standing without movement. All items…
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Broken Bone Club
- Splinted and leaving ER = Tough Guy
My 5 year old son fractured his tibia skiing on Friday. It was educational for me since there were no signs that there was a fracture. There was no swelling, no redness, no bruising, and no deformity. There was only pain. He was only in pain when he moved it. Apparently this is common for pediatric fractures.There was no fracture to the fibula and his growth plates were intact. Gratitude is due.
Union of pediatric diaphyseal tibial fractures occurs in approximately 10 weeks. Non-union occurs in 2% of cases according to:
J Am Acad Orthop Surg, Vol 13, No 5, September 2005, 345-352.
The fracture is splinted for the first 3-4 days to monitor for compartment syndrome and swelling. Then we get a perfect blue cast of the whole leg for 4 weeks, then another lower leg or half-cast for the remaining 6 weeks.
The biggest problem is teaching a 5 year old how to use crutches. I guess we’ll start slow with flat surfaces and build up to stairs. Heal fast little man. You will be stronger for going through this.
Present
You ever wonder where the best place to be is. Working from the present helps to make that realization better. Where are you now and what are you doing. First thing to do is be aware of all of your senses. There are two senses I’ve found that are more helpful in feeling present. The first sense to work on is hearing or listening. Notice that in quiet places appreciating the silence or even the smallest of sounds you can feel most present in conciousness. When you develop the listening then you can move on to feeling. What do you feel when you are silent, or in nature, or in a room of people for that matter. The idea here is to focus your conciousness on being present and not in thought or actually controlling your thought. As you allow your mind to run through thoughts you can snag some negativity which if persistent can make you feel bad. When the thoughts run catch yourself and focus on hearing and feeling. This is all a lesson in appreciating your senses. There are many experiences that if you savor them will instill joy into your life and deeply calm you. Watching a sunset, looking at a flower, listening to a creek, even the taste of potatoes and salt. Be there!
“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” – Mathew Broderick as Ferris Bueller
Harmony and Balance
Are you bombarded by distractions? Or is it, distractions are bombarding you. I like the passive myself. It is hard to stay out of a constant scan or search mode. Phone calls, junk mail, e-mail, etc. are constantly vying for attention. Focus leads to a peaceful state when you just block out the chatter. What are the best focuses? Meditation is the best, but reading can be a great focus too. Movies and even work can give you that focus you need to overcome the exponential increase of distractions. Sometimes you need to create your own bombardment though. I like to listen to music on my ipod, watch tv, and read the paper at the same time. It drives the people around me crazy. At least I’m not bored. That’s how I control the ADD. Other people focus by training or rock climbing. Nothing helps you focus more than pain or the probability extreme pain. I think it all comes down to finding something to feel or see or hear that is beautiful or interesting, so you don’t get bored because if you don’t focus, distractions will focus your attention for you.
Chiropractic and Blood Pressure
A recent study has just shown how a specific chiropractic treatment can help reduce blood pressure. WebMD did a great article on it.
You can also view the Good Morning America, GMA, clip on youtube.com.
The specific type of chiropractic treatment that was used in this study is called NUCCA. NUCCA stands for National Upper Cervical Chiropractic Association. This treatment specifically addresses the top vertebra in the neck, which is called C1 or the first cervical vertebra, and is positioned at the base of the skull. X-rays are used to determine the exact position of C1 and where the best position of C1 should be to balance the head over the body. There are many nerves, especially the end of the brain stem and start of the spinal cord, as well as many blood vessels passing through C1. The idea is when the C1 area is balanced, the blood flow and nerve pathways through and around C1 are optimized and working properly. Chiropractors call this being at ease. This ease or relaxed state allows the nerve signals or messages and blood flow to get to the brain without interference. The body needs a certain amount of blood pressure in the blood vessels of the body and especially in the blood vessels of the brain in order to get nutrients and oxygen to cells. The brain has sensors throughout the body to make sure the brain and body get what they need through the blood flow of the body. If the body is not getting enough oxygen to the brain, then there are processes in the body that can increase the blood pressure so the brain can get what it needs. The problem being a blood vessel only has so much strength and if your blood pressure gets too high, worst case scenario, a blood vessel can burst. If a burst vessel happens in the brain it is called a stroke. If the C1 is in the wrong position and causing pressure in the base of the skull, the brain must raise the blood pressure to get what it needs. When the C1 is in the right position, the blood pressure doesn’t need to be as high to get nutrients and oxygen to the brain.
So, don’t throw out your blood pressure medications just yet. People who are on blood pressure medications need to be taken off of them slowly and a person’s blood pressure must be monitored consistently to make sure the blood pressure stays in the normal range. Changes in the body take time and may need a period of transition to stabilize.
This is a great study to show how chiropractic can influence many aspects of health. I saw a great chiropractic shirt the other day saying,”Health – now available without a prescription.” Chiropractic and Blood Pressure, great job NUCCA.
Taking out the Trash!
Have you ever detoxified your body? It’s not fun, but you feel better afterward. Generally, the body will detoxify itself eventually. Kind of like having a hangover the day after drinking. Eventually you feel better. There are many types of toxins though. The problem is the body can’t get rid of them all and most of the time there is an accumulation or backlog of toxins in everyone. So, to help with the process there are many different methods. There is the clean each organ method, ie. colon, liver, kidneys. This method is the least expensive, but it can take a lot of time and effort. There are herbal recipes to clean out each organ. The idea is to clean from the outside in so, colon, liver, kidneys, in that order. Another consideration is timing. Sometimes cleansing slowly is the best method. Too fast can make you feel ill, like the hangover thing. The next method is fasting. No eating or just drinking juice for 5 to 10 days. This method is the most challenging. When was the last time you missed a meal? The idea is that if the body is not processing your food then it is cleaning house. From what I’ve read, it takes at least 72 hours to get to the point where your body is starting to process the wastes that have accumalated in the body, in other words,”taking out the trash.” You can also get help from a therapist. Colon Hydrotherapy treatments along with a soft food diet including colon cleansing drinks can detoxify you in as little as 10 days, but it can cost $1000. If you have silver amalgam fillings in your teeth, your body likely has an accumulation of mercury or heavy metals in the cells of your body. To detoxify heavy metals you need to bring out the power tools, just kidding. It does require some more extensive treatment though. Chelation is one method of detoxifying heavy metals. Contact your closest natural medical doctor for this one, an HMD or OMD possibly. If you want to make a go at it yourself, there is a company called Kelatox that has a great product. It takes at least 30 chelation treatments or at least 90 days of the Kelatox product to eliminate heavy metals from your body. Good luck! Taking out the trash can bring about more energy and clarity into your life. It takes some time but, you won’t be sorry.
Not tonight I have a headache
Someone asked me what causes headaches. Depends on what kind of headache. There are six common kinds 1)vascular, 2)cervicogenic, 3)hormonal, 4)toxic, 5)traumatic, and 6)sinus. 1)Vascular headaches, meaning they have to do with the blood vessels or blood pressure within the vessels, are the migraine or cluster type. Vascular headaches are sharp or pounding usually on one side of the head. This is caused by the blood vessels inability to expand and contract properly. Vascular headaches can be triggered by many things like allergies, stress, or misalignment. 2) Cervicogenic, meaning originating from the neck, are what I see a lot. This is what causes tension headaches, in my opinion. The neck becomes more unbalanced with misalignment, stress, or injury. This unbalance causes asymmetric muscle tension where the neck is tighter on one side compared to the other. The tight side is working much harder than the relaxed side which creates pain and discontent. The body is meant to be symmetric with equal tension on both sides. 3) Hormonal headaches occur more often in women. The pain is usually in the back of the head. Chiropractic can help with these, but it always best to be checked for estrogen/progesterone/testosterone/cortisol imbalances. 4)Toxic headaches are the ones that feel like a hangover. Toxicity can come from your kidneys, your liver, your colon, or anywhere that your body accumulates toxins. Toxins include chemicals, heavy metals, food material stuck in your colon, or anything that accumulates in your body that isn’t being used or can’t get out. 5) Traumatic headaches are caused by a blow to the head or even a whiplash injury. A person may have a mild concussion from an injury. This is where the brain has hit the inside of the skull and is bruised. Concussions can cause a headache but, also include difficulty concentrating, fatigue, and memory loss. This is also called a MTBI, mild traumatic brain injury. 6) Sinus headaches are caused by colds or allergies. The pain is usually behind both eyebrows or in the cheek bones, and can also cause your teeth to ache. Headaches can take a lot of energy. Don’t let headaches get you down. Chiropractic can benefit all types of headaches. It helped me.
What The?
Have you ever had one of those pains. You know what I mean. The ones that might go away if you wait long enough. I saw a quote the other day. The five most dangerous words, “It will probably go away.” People get pain for many reasons. If you think you have enough awareness in your body to determine whether the pain is not bad, beware. If you have a sudden shooting pain you are in trouble, so get it checked out. If you have a gradually increasing pain, get it checked out. If you have a pain that you have never had before, get it checked out. Most of the pain that can be ignored comes from having done more physical work than you are accustomed to, Weekend warriors and Home Improvers you know who you are. If the pain comes with movement it is most likely a muscle, tendon, or ligament strain/sprain. Use ice or heat and your favorite over the counter pain-reliever or anti-inflammatory. If you have pain without movement you better get it checked out. Evaluate whether it is getting worse or better and rate the pain from 0-10 with 0 being no pain and 10 being screaming. Anything above a 5 get it checked out immediately, anything under a 5 for more than a few days get it checked out. Remember pain is sending your body a message. Don’t try to suppress it if it is getting worse find out what’s wrong. What The?
The Shoulder
Yep! We are talking about the joint where your arm attaches to your body not the non-verbal communication someone gives you when they are mad at you. Did you know there are 50 different muscles that attach the shoulder girdle to the torso. This makes for a complicated mechanical system. That’s why it is imperative to have all the bones that make up the arm, shoulder girdle, and neck be in the right alignment or proper groove for motion. The arm can move in multiple combinations of front, back, out, in, rotating out, and rotating in. If the joint is out of alignment one area of muscles may be working harder than another area which will cause soreness. The muscles around the shoulder that you probably have heard of are the rotator-cuff muscles. The rotator cuff muscles attach the upper arm to the socket on the side of the scapula (shoulder-blade). If you can’t move your arm in a certain direction then it is most likely caused by a damaged rotator-cuff muscle. If you have just done something you don’t normally do, ie. painting, hammering, swimming, or any other forms of swinging your arm with something in your hand, and now you have some pain, this may be overuse. If you have fallen on your shoulder and it is not moving right or pain is there even without movement there may be some joint damage. Either situation can be helped with chiropractic. At least a proper evaluation would be in order. If the pain is so extreme 10 out of 10, then there may be a fracture. Get it checked at the ER.
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