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Month: August 2018

Whiplash Symptoms and Associated Disorders

Whiplash Symptoms and Associated Disorders

For some people, whiplash symptoms can be so minor that they go away within a couple days. For others, the symptoms can become varied and chronic, ranging from severe pain to cognitive and emotional problems.

Whiplash symptoms might manifest immediately following the acceleration-deceleration accident, or they can take a few hours or days to appear. Oftentimes the exact underlying cause remains unknown for some whiplash symptoms despite today’s best diagnostic techniques. Due to the potentially high number and varied complexity of whiplash symptoms, they are sometimes collectively referred to as whiplash-associated disorders.

Common Whiplash Symptoms

Some of the most common symptoms of whiplash include:

    • Neck pain. The pain could range anywhere from mild to severe. It might be located in one spot or general area, or it could also radiate down the shoulder into the arm and/or hand. Typically, neck pain from whiplash is caused by ligament sprains or muscle strains, but it can also be caused by injuries to discs, nerves, joints, and/or bones.
    • Neck stiffness or reduced range of motion. Reduced neck mobility could be from pain, tightening of a muscle, or a mechanical problem, such as with a joint.
    • Headache. A neck muscle tightening, or a nerve or joint of the cervical spine becoming irritated could cause headaches.
    • Neck instability. This whiplash symptom commonly results from stretched or torn soft tissues, such as ligaments. Although, it could also be caused by a fracture.
    • Shoulder and/or upper back pain. If the neck’s soft tissues, such as muscles or ligaments, are torn or strained during whiplash, then sometimes that pain can also be referred to other soft tissues in the upper back and shoulders.
    • Radiating tingling, weakness, or numbness. Sometimes whiplash can cause one of the neck’s spinal nerve roots to become compressed or inflamed, which can lead to cervical radiculopathy symptoms of tingling, weakness, and/or numbness radiating down the shoulder, arm, hand, and/or fingers. Typically, cervical radiculopathy is only felt on one side of the body, but in rare cases, it can be felt on both sides if more than one nerve root is affected.

Anywhere from just one whiplash symptom all the way up to numerous symptoms can present at once. Symptoms can also come and go at various times.

Other Whiplash Symptoms and Associated Disorders

Other whiplash-associated disorders can include:

    • Dizziness. Whiplash-related dizziness could be from neck instability or even a concussion (mild traumatic brain injury).
    • Vision problems. Blurry vision or other visual deficits could result from any number of causes, including concussion or damage to a nerve. A vision problem could also contribute to dizziness.
    • Emotional changes. A person might become more irritable, anxious, or even depressed. It can be hard to know if these changes are due to a concussion, post-traumatic stress syndrome, pain from the neck injury, or stress from the accident’s aftermath which could include litigation, financial worries, and/or the involvement of loved ones who were also injured.
    • Ringing in ears. Also called tinnitus, this ringing or buzzing in one or both ears can range from intermittent and minor to constant and highly distracting. Any number of problems from whiplash could lead to tinnitus, such as an injury to the part of the brain that controls hearing, nerve or vascular damage, jaw injury, or even stress.
    • Trouble getting good sleep. A person might find it difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep. These problems with sleeping well and waking refreshed could be due to various whiplash-related factors, such as pain, stress, or concussion.
  • Fatigue. Lack of energy could be related to difficulty sleeping, depression, stress, pain, concussion, or various other causes.
  • Memory and/or concentration problems. It’s possible for someone to develop cognitive symptoms after a whiplash injury. These troubles could involve difficulty with memory or thinking. Sometimes these symptoms start shortly after the injury, or they might not show up until hours or days later. Cognitive problems could be from a brain injury, or perhaps they could be related to various types of stress.
  • Challenges with chewing, swallowing, or speaking. Sometimes trauma to muscles around the jaw can cause chewing or yawning to be painful.
  • Difficulty swallowing. Injury to the larynx or esophagus could make swallowing painful or more difficult.

This article was written by Zinovy Meyler, DO and is shared from the following website: https://www.spine-health.com/conditions/neck-pain/whiplash-symptoms-and-associated-disorders

Spinal Health During Pregnancy: What Mothers-to-Be Should Know

Spinal Health During Pregnancy: What Mothers-to-Be Should Know

It’s no secret that having a child (especially for the first time) means big changes in the lives of the new parents. But even before the baby arrives, big changes are already underway in the pregnant mother’s body—changes that usually make it possible for her to carry her developing child for nine months and to give birth safely when the time comes.

As a woman’s pregnancy progresses, the combined effects of these physical changes become clearer. Some may simply be awkward, inconvenient or uncomfortable while others can be very painful and even debilitating.

Since no two women experience pregnancy in quite the same way (and no two pregnancies are exactly alike), it’s impossible to create a comprehensive, one-size-fits-all guidebook. However, it is possible to describe in more general terms many of the physical changes that occur and to recommend ways that expectant mothers can help protect their health and maintain their quality of life. The remainder of this article will highlight some issues related specifically to spinal health during pregnancy and offer some useful suggestions.

Pregnancy is hard on a woman’s entire musculoskeletal system, but it’s particularly hard on her back. This is because of a combination of changes that adds to the stress placed on her muscles, bones, and joints while at the same time changing her posture and making her less stable on her feet.

  • WEIGHT GAIN is one of the most obvious changes associated with pregnancy. While the amount of weight a woman actually gains can vary substantially, a woman with a normal BMI prior to becoming pregnant can expect to be carrying 25 to 35 additional pounds by the time she gives birth. This means that a typical woman (her average weight in the U.S. is 156 pounds) will be about 20% heavier when she delivers her child. That’s 20% more weight for her back to support.
  • POSTURE also changes significantly as a woman’s pregnancy progresses. So not only is she carrying more weight over time, she’s also carrying it differently as her center of gravity moves forward. This shift places additional strain on the muscles and connective tissues of the woman’s lower back.
  • PELVIC STRESS increases along with the baby’s weight throughout a woman’s pregnancy and often becomes more intense during the third trimester as the baby drops in anticipation of labor. This can trigger sensations ranging from general heaviness and pressure to debilitating pain. It can also result in additional postural changes and reduced activity.
  • HORMONES that are released during pregnancy (including one appropriately called “relaxin”) make cartilage, ligaments and other soft tissues more flexible in preparation for childbirth. While this additional flexibility is critical when the big day comes, it can affect a woman’s stability when standing or walking and can also cause her joints—including those in her back—to feel “loose” or “wobbly”.

If you’re pregnant and experiencing pain in your back or pelvis, you should know that you’re far from alone. Between 57% and 69% of women complain of lower back pain during pregnancy and roughly 80% report pelvic pain of some sort. However, you should also know that there are some things you can do. Maintaining a healthy weight, paying attention to your posture and staying active can all contribute to a healthy, more comfortable pregnancy and an easier delivery. Consult your healthcare provider to find out which types of exercises might be most helpful to you in maintaining your strength and mobility at each stage of your pregnancy. A growing number of health clubs offer low-impact yoga and in-pool fitness programs designed especially for expectant mothers.

Managing the discomfort and aches and pains of pregnancy is important. However, many women (and too many healthcare providers) assume that these things are just part of the experience. Perhaps that’s why only about 32% of women report these types of symptoms to their primary doctor and only about 25% of primary doctors recommend seeking treatment for the pain.

The good news is that larger numbers of healthcare professionals are starting to recognize the value of chiropractic care and massage therapy in addressing pregnancy-related symptoms both before and after childbirth. Chiropractic treatments can be particularly effective for pregnancy-related back pain, with the majority of women reporting immediate relief or relief after just a few visits. In a small study of 17 women:

  • Sixteen of 17 (94%) saw clinically important improvements in low back pain with chiropractic care.
  • The average pain rating went down from 5.9 to 1.5 (on a scale of 0 to 10).
  • It took an average of 1.8 visits and 4.5 days to get clinically significant relief.
Building a Better Workout: Muscle Confusion 101

Building a Better Workout: Muscle Confusion 101

Whether you train seriously or have a more casual interest in personal fitness, you’ve probably heard the term “muscle confusion” at some point. Muscle confusion has been strongly associated with several at-home workout programs over the past few years (P90X is probably the best known), but the underlying training principle is much more than just marketing. In fact, it’s been producing results in one form or the other since it was introduced in the 1970s.

While there’s been a lot of debate—and, yes, confusion—in the fitness world about the general concept, much of it has to do with exactly how the term is defined and the best techniques for actually applying the idea. There’s very little meaningful disagreement about why muscles need to be challenged in different ways in order for them to continue to develop.

Over time, muscles stop responding to the same workouts with the same improvements. This is because muscles naturally adapt if they perform the same types of exercises, with the same amount of resistance, for the same number of repetitions, on the same days, week after week. At some point, they simply no longer have to grow in size or strength to accomplish what’s expected of them. This is known as a workout plateau.

The goal of muscle confusion is to take the “routine” out of a workout routine by challenging the muscles in a variety of ways that encourage them to continue adapting. This is one way to avoid or minimize plateaus. Muscle confusion falls into a category of workout techniques known as periodization and more specifically, non-linear periodization. This technique changes each week’s workout sessions to focus on different muscle properties in order to achieve specific gains in size, power and stamina. These changes also tend to burn more calories, which aids in weight loss and weight management.

Muscle confusion workouts typically use traditional strength-training exercises such as the bench press, lat pull-down, biceps curl, triceps extension, leg press, leg curl and leg extension. However, these workouts “mix them up” in at least three important ways:

  • Varying the amount of resistance from heavy to light
  • Changing the number of repetitions in each set
  • Altering the speed or pace at which the exercises are performed

A simplified example of a muscle confusion workout program might include one day a week of heavy lifting with one to four repetitions per set. The next workout day, a medium resistance might be lifted at a faster speed with one to four repetitions. The third workout day of the week, a lighter resistance might be lifted between six and 10 times starting out at a faster pace and slowing as muscle fatigue sets in.

In addition to changing the amount of weight, number of repetitions and speed involved in performing individual exercises, some experienced trainers increase the amount of muscle confusion even further by changing the order of the exercises themselves and varying the amount of time between sets.  The change in exercise sequence can be used to pre-fatigue certain muscles (for instance, by performing the triceps extension before the larger-muscle-group bench press), while a reduction in time between sets (perhaps from two minutes to 30 seconds) can be used to accelerate the break-down in muscle tissue that stimulates repair and growth. Of course, no matter which muscle confusion variations are used, the usual precautions about warming up, exercising through a full range of motion and cooling down properly all still apply. And it’s always important to allow enough time between workouts for muscles to recover.

Beyond athletic performance and looking better in a swimsuit, there are lots of good reasons to consider a weight training program. Strong, healthy muscles help to support your frame, reduce wear-and-tear on your joints and keep the body in proper alignment. Plus, researchers have discovered that building lean muscle mass can increase metabolism, which helps with weight loss and weight maintenance since muscles use more calories to sustain themselves. They’ve also found that building more muscle mass (and bone mass) throughout your early adulthood and middle-age years may translate into a lower risk of disability and a healthier, more active lifestyle in your 60s and beyond.

A well-designed weight training program—perhaps built with ideas like muscle confusion in mind—can have many benefits that last a lifetime. But remember to talk with your chiropractic physician or other healthcare provider before you begin any new fitness program, especially if you haven’t been active in a while, are recovering from an injury or illness or suspect you may have health problems. As experts in helping patients recover, maintain and improve their musculoskeletal health, we can work with you to develop a well-rounded program that achieves your goals while reducing the risk of injury. Just call or visit the office today to learn more!

Taking Responsibility for Your Health

Taking Responsibility for Your Health

We had to share a great blog post today from elsewhere on the web! We hope you will read and enjoy!

No one else is responsible for your health and your body, except for you.  No-one knows your body like you do.

You simply cannot delegate your health to anyone else and still expect to stay vibrantly well and healthy.

If you don’t take personal responsibility for creating your health, here is a very frightening, but real possibility… the results you get in your health are going to make someone else happy, but not you!

Food companies want you to become addicted to their highly refined, highly processed fake foods.  Diet companies want you to eat their diet foods. Big pharma wants you to be on prescription drugs.

These profit-driven companies are very happy to take your money but they will not take responsibility for the quality of health that you experience. If you hand over your health to them, in the hope that their illusory advertising promises are real, you may be faced with the possibility of living out a life filled with disease, food addiction, frustration, stress, anxiety, and unhappiness…

Taking responsibility for your health gives you food freedom.

You can create an incredible sense of ‘freedom around your food’, when you begin to look at your diet and your health.  When I awoke to the concept of taking responsibility for the food I ate and the thoughts I had, I started making vastly different choices for myself. I started reading food labels and studying them. I started getting proactive; asking different questions, shopping differently and eating differently.

Here are three things you can do today to begin taking responsibility for your creating your health.

1. Create an enjoyable and sustainable relationship with food.

When I began to heal my body, I knew I was going to make some changes to the way I ate, along with the way that I treated myself.   I spent time dedicated to finding a way of eating that would be sustainable for me, based on my goals, food preferences, and lifestyle.

I asked myself the question, “Can I see myself eating like this tomorrow, next week and even next year?” When I found a style of eating that worked for me, I kept it and continued to refine it as my health journey progressed.  With a few minor adjustments along the way, it is still the way I eat today – almost 12 years later!

Take care to eat foods that are as close to their natural state as you can, (with minimum intervention by man or machines and no ikky added chemicals).  Primarily I ate a plant-based diet, high in whole grains, vegetables and fruits diet that were local, seasonal and organic where possible.

Along with eating sustainably, another thing that worked for me was moving away from the idea of deprivation. Since I loved food, I knew that I needed to change my focus from the rhetoric of dieting dogma and the idea of total elimination to something far bigger and more exciting.

2. Integrate my little-known but powerful ’80-20 Rule’.

While I was searching for a way to eat that allowed me to enjoy my food and still be healthy I stumbled upon the concept of ‘the 80:20 Rule’ and I decided to apply it to what I was learning about food.

Simply put, I began to eat about 80% real, natural foods and 20% lightly processed foods. This allowed me the flexibility to enjoy healthier versions of all of my favorite foods. I loved eating nutritious food that was good for me, tasted delicious and fulfilled and satiated me.

Today I wouldn’t want to eat or live any other way!

3. Take responsibility for detoxifying your body gently.

Another key distinction was that I started paying attention to the quality of food.  I started to notice that some food was more processed and higher in toxicity than others.  I began to favor food that was less processed and therefore had fewer toxins in it. As I reduced the toxic load I was ingesting, it allowed my body to begin its’ own natural process of detoxification and self-healing.  As I began the process of gentle detoxification, my energy levels surged and to my delight, my waistline began to reduce…

Over time, I stopped eating all fake foods. This included processed and manufactured foods such as fast-foods, artificial flavorings, colorings, preservatives, additives, processed and refined white flour, white sugar, high corn fructose syrup (HFCS) or glucose-fructose syrup and all dangerous trans-fats.

You don’t have to make radical changes overnight (in fact I recommend that you don’t!).  Instead, take your time to explore and find healthier substitutes for your favorite “fake foods.”  Make your changes slowly but surely.  Take baby steps to begin cleaning up your diet.

How to get started.

You do not have to be a medical doctor or a dietician to know how to get healthy or to take positive steps in the direction of taking responsibility for your wellbeing.

There are so many easy things, that anyone can do, that can radically transform your life, just like it did mine.  Remember that claiming back your health is journey. Just take one more step, and then another. Make the choice to take responsibility to find what foods work for your body and enjoy the process of carving out your personal path to vibrant health and wellbeing.

I did it, and I know that you can too.

Today’s post was written by Katrina Love Senn and has been shared from the following website: http://www.katrinalovesenn.com/index.php/articles/natural-health/82-who-is-responsible-for-your-health