How Does a Tens Unit Work on Muscle Spasm- Pain comes from electroechemical impulses relaying the pain message. A TENS unit interrupts this pathway. T.E.N.S stands for Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation. It is often used to treat low back pain and neck pain. Tens units use a low voltage electrical current to induce pain relief. Continue Reading Article
Neck Exercises- Learn effective neck stretches and strengthening exercises for the cervical spine
End Neck Pain by Improving Posture- How Proper Posture Improves Your Spine Relieving Nerve Pressure- How does posture have anything to do with neck pain?--Neck pain comes from pressure on the nerves. How does this happen?--Usually pressure from a misaligned neck spine. When your spine is misaligned (some call that subluxated) it does not move like it should and in turn creates inflammation in that area. Either out-of-alignment spinal vertebrae (spinal bones) put direst pressure on nerves or the inflammation, or built up degeneration causes the pressure. Continue Reading Article
How to Reduce the Chances of Getting A Stiff Neck- A Stiff Neck.... Horrible especially when you wake up in the morning and realize that it is going to be one painful day. You are stiff, your neck hurts, you cannot turn your head, even brushing your teeth hurts. We get questions about how to treat a stiff neck all the time. Continue Reading Article
How To Avoid Neck Pain While Doing Abs- If you do your Abdominal crunches correctly with proper form, there is no reason to suffer from neck pain or sore neck. One of the biggest mistakes that people make is that involve there neck muscles while doing these exercises- that is a NO-NO. Bringing your head and neck forward puts unnecessary pressure on the neck and it is not healthy. So when you do your abdominal crunch look at the ceiling.Continue Reading Article
"I’ve had back problems and had to have physical therapy and tablets since 11. Even though my back is not as bad as it once was, when I do get some back pain is there anything I can do to ease the pain? "
The simple answer to this question is to exercise your lower back: Make it as strong as you can.
What is an example of an exercise that strengthens the lumbar area? The bird dog exercise: See picture below.
Basically, you get on all fours first.
Then balance to put the right hand up, then bring the left leg up. Hold this position for 10–15 seconds.
Repeat this by bringing up the left hand and extending out the left leg.
Repeat this 5 times to start
This exercise will not only strengthen your lower back but it will also strengthen your core muscles. I remember doing this for many workout classes at my local gym. It is also a great exercise for your gluteus maximus muscles as well. Who knew that just one exercise would work your stomach, your lower back, your butt, and your thighs.
You may have to start this exercise by only bringing up one arm or bringing up one leg. Then add the 2nd component of raising the opposite limb and side. Also, its better to do a few bird dog stances, than doing a whole bunch but with the wrong posture.
If you get good at this exercise, there are many advanced versions of the bird and dog exercise. It is powerful in many ways. Practice makes perfect.
Tonight I caught up on one of my favorite shows on AMC called Better Call Saul by Vince Gilligan. In this episode Jimmy,the main character (aka Saul Goodman - its all good man :)) goes mall walking with his senior citizen friends. My husband and I had a good laugh...
Mall walking is quite popular. It's a great way to get your cardio in and get your daily work out. No matter if there is a thunderstorm, hail, high humidity or snow you are shielded from everything if you mall walk. Also it's a very safe type of sport because there's other people around mall walking. You are never by yourself. Even bathrooms are usually in a close proximity and very clean. In fact, both of my sisters who recently had babies both do stroller walks with their buddies every Tuesday in their favorite mall. Not only do they get to sight-see, they get to talk with their friends, and they get their exercise in, and their babies are relaxed.
Walking, especially brisk walking has a bunch of health benefits, namely: 1. less risk of diabetes 2. lowered risk of heart disease 3. lowered risk of stroke 4. lowered risk of cancers 5. it enhances your mood and well being 6. it lets you sleep better at night 7. improves cognitive and brain function 8. increases your energy levels 9. improves bone health (walking is a great weight bearing exercise).
You may be doing the majority of your shopping on Amazon but there will always be a purpose for malls in America. My favorite mall of all time is Square One in Mississauga Canada... did a lot of steps there is my younger days !
Hello PainRelief4life readers ! I am happy to announce that next week I will be 28 weeks pregnant. This is a milestone for my husband and I because we had some really bad luck in the past with our pregnancies. To say that we are beyond excited is an understatement.
However, I would be not be completely honest with you with I didn't share that this time around there have been some unexpected aches and pains- things i did not have with my other experiences, but I am not complaining too loudly.
Low Back Pain
Upper Back Pain
Knee Pain
Foot Pain and Achiness
Charlie Horses in my legs
Numbness and Tingling in my legs and Feet
Sure I can say that I have gone from my usual 130 lbs to 152 lbs, but whose checking, expect my OB office? Pregnancy throws off so many things in your body and I can understand that it puts a lot of added stress to ones body. Also hormones that are normally not at high levels also make a difference to ligaments in your body.
So where do these aches, pain, numbness, tingling really come from? Well, as the pregnancy progresses the uterus keep growing and sometimes can put added pressure onto nerves that innervate the lower legs. This can cause the numbness and tingling sensation that sometimes feels like there are ants crawling up and down your legs and toes.
What about the back pain? For myself the pain has been in my upper back and the lower back. One the reasons is that my posture is very "off". The mere act of carrying a baby creates a sway back when I walk. I cannot help it. Doing this over and over again puts added stress on the spinal system and that means real aches and pains. Back pain can also be caused by loosening of the ligaments.
Finally the knee pain, ankle pain and the foot pain. Just recently I got out of bed and complained to my husband that my right knee was aching. Again my body is not used to 150 lbs on my frame. The added weight puts more stress on knee joints and ankle joints. I have also noted swelling and particular pain points in my feet. Again, another byproduct of the added weight.
So what can be done alleviate all of these pains. The list seems kind of long of all the discomforts I am experiencing !
Get adjusted regularly by a chiropractor. They have techniques, and special tables to accomodate big pregnant woman in their offices ! The chiropractic adjustment can ease pressure off of nerves, and put you into proper alignment. Lots of pain relief with this age old treatment.
Wear comfortable shoes. Flat shoes, not heels.
Watch your weight. The more weight one gains during pregnancy the more pressure is put on the body. Also keep in mind, the harder it will be come off once you deliver the baby
Takes breaks. Don't be afraid of putting your feet up and just relaxing on the couch or sitting on a chair. Don't stand for long periods of time. This extra standing just puts more pressure on knee joints and ankle joints.
Sleep on your side at night and keep a flat soft pillow in between your knees. This takes pressure off of the lower back and pelvis area. It actually feels really good to sleep like this. Another great idea is to sleep with a body pillow at night. These long pillows are made especially for pregnancy and can help you get a very comfortable sleep.
When sitting use a lower back support. This makes a huge difference. A back support will support your lower and upper back and keep you from slouching. This improvement in posture will put less pressure on your spinal column and nervous system
Drink a lot of water.
Use a hot and cold pack for therapy- a warm heating pack can help relax the muscles of the back and feels so wonderful too. A cold pack can help lower back ligament pain.Get a cold pack that covers your low back and mid back well. I have found that keeping this in the freezer ready to go is the key for pain relief.
Don't be afraid to stretch a little before going to bed. This will help ease the muscle cramps and lessen the "charlie horses" that occur at weird times at night. For me drinking more water has helped with these pesky leg cramps that are a 10/10 on the pain scale. Mind you, it means more trips to the bathroom- but I would do that any day than experience a leg cramp in the middle of the night. Also watch your diet. Eating things high in potassium such as bananas can help leg cramps.
Whether it's back pain, neck pain, even leg pain, stretching can work wonders. Why does this work wonders? It increases your mobility, allows inflammation to better dissipate, and it makes the muscles feel better.
Massage may also help break up these muscle adhesions. We want those tight areas to continue to stay loosened up though. So make stretching part of the regular routine. Keeping yourself loose and Mobile will keep pressure off the nerves.
What is a muscle strain or a muscle sprain? That's a good question! First some background:
Attached to all the bones are ligaments. Muscle that connects bone to another bone is a ligament and are often composed of thick bands of cartilage. Muscle that connects to bone is called a tendon.
A muscle strain involves injury to the muscle or tendon. Usually these are acute in nature that occurs when you overstretch or over contract. They often occur in response to a tear, twist or pull of the muscle . This will usually be accompanied with pain, muscle spasm and weakness.
A muscle sprain involves injury to the ligaments. This occurs when the ligaments stretch or tear. A muscle sprain will often present itself as a pain, swelling, instability and pain with movement. They occur with a traumatic event such as a fall, or blunt force trauma to the area. The surrounding joint is displaced from its normal alignment.
Essentially part of the muscle gets a slight tear. This injury causes an inflammatory response (part of the body's healing mechanism), which intern may cause so swelling. A complete tear is referred to as a "tear" and not just a strain or sprain. Something that is completely separated from a tear may have to be surgically repaired.
So that sprained or strained area may be red from inflammation or heat, and may be swollen also. If it's a joint like a wrist or ankle you may visualize the swelling whereas in the spine you may not but you may feel heat.
Back Pain? Neck Pain? Shoulder Pain? - You may have tried everything and no treatment is working. So what about getting an injection? Yes, this my be a viable way to get some relief. Typically you will want to try medication, therapy, chiropractic care, even acupuncture, 1st. Is severe pain still present?
Your doctor may send you to an orthopedic or neurological consult. Surgery isn't usually what your PCP is thinking here. The doctors he's referring you to most likely perform a lot of pain injections. Now, don't get me wrong, if there is evidence possibly saying "surgical consult", then that's what you'll go for.
However, in many cases pain injections in the form of epidural, steroids, and the like, may help you to get out of pain, and get back to normal.
Keep in Mind that the result of getting a pain injection may only be temporary. Those injections are only a medication. They are given in a stronger dose and possibly injected directly to the necessary area. Like any other mediation it may wear off, your body becomes somewhat tolerant to it, inflammation returns, all of the above, and/or spinal misalignments may be the root cause.
Also, like any other medication, they should not be continuously given due to some nasty side effects. Steroid injections often weaken the bone, which can end up being a worse condition than you are dealing with. I recall years ago how the doctor may give a number of these shots every year. I remember someone who had six in less than a year. Now they actually only allow three per year. This gives us a little warning not to abuse these shot but to use them to precipitate healing, which should be continued with another therapy.
Rather than being uncomfortable there are so many products out on the market that will help you be more comfortable. I am talking about positioning bolsters, rolls and wedges.
They come in all shapes and sizes. Cylinders, Round Logs, Half Circles, Wedges, and Bolsters. They often composed of foam so that they hold their shape when you put weight on them. They also come composed of fiber fill as well, which makes them much more comfortable. One example of this is a very comfortable cylinder roll called the Jackson Roll. Here is an example of someone using this roll under their neck.
They can be used behind the lower back, under the knees, under the arms, for the feet and many other areas of the body. Great for when you have a pinched nerve in the neck or lower back, after surgery, or if you want to be comfortable when you are in pain.
Often times these positioning wedges will comes with positioning straps that will not tear or fray. These are important because they keep the positioning wedge in place.
There are so many different types of exercises you can do at home. In fact, if you watch late night Tv- you can could probably pick up a few gadgets, home dvd's, and exercise apparatus. Over the years, we have tried Jillian Michaels, The Beast, PX90, balance balls, a treadmill, and free weights. I can honestly say that I still use a lot of the elements of our "home"gym.
Well recently I discovered something new called the Rumble Roller- great for relaxtion of muscles, soft tissue work, and deep tissue massage. This weird looking foam roller is great for working out trigger points, tight muscles, muscle knots and adhesions. These rollers do not have a smooth surface but have soft spikes that are spaced less than two inches apart. These special bumps work to improve blood flow and tissue flexibility. You can roll in different ways and also vary the pressure that you apply with the rumble roller.Also with the rumble roller you can get different types of massage to your muscles by going back and forth or rolling side to side. Both techniques work the muscles differently.
This is something you can add on to your home workout routine and use it on many different muscles such as:
Quadriceps Muscles
Iliotibial band (IT Band)
Hamstring Muscles
Neck and Upper Back Muscles
Low Back Muscles
Calf Muscles
You can work on deep muscles, and stretch the muscles and fascia. The Rumble Rollers actually comes in two sides and two levels of support (or density): Regular and Compact, and Regular Density or Extra Firm. Check out the different types of Rumble Rollers at the Arc4life.com
Today I want to Highlight the Bed Wedge Positioning Pillow. I personally used this foam pillow while I was on an extended period of bed rest for my pregnancy. This pillow is also great for post surgical procedures where you have to remain upright, and also for acid reflux. Here are three ways you can use the bed wedge:
Under Your Knees: Use for sleeping on your back
Under Your Upper Back, and Neck Area: Use for reclining
I was recently at a birthday party this past weekend where I met a pro athlete who was a former snow boarder. He told me how he had sustained injury to his neck, midback and lower back multiple times. He mentioned that chiropractic, physcial therapy and massage therapy were key in keeping him pain free now. Another therapy that he was a big fan of is non surgical spinal decompression. Non surgical spinal decompression is often for patients who suffer from a herniated or a bulging disc. This treatment can help treat symptoms in the neck, midback and lower back. Patients who suffer from sciatica, numbness and tingling, arthritis, neck pain, arm pain, and leg pain have been helped with this treatment.
Check Out our list of Doctors who have this revolutionary treatment in their offices across the USA:
