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Pets On the Bed Leads To Back Problems

You’ve probably heard the expression - "The shape you’re in determines the shape you’re in..."

What is the likelihood that with your golden retriever or a couple of nice furry little cats lying on the bed with you...you’re going to be able to sleep in a nice straight line?

                                    Probably nil to none.

The reason is or the rather the trouble is is that, probably quite unconsciously, (does anybody sleep consciously...?) You’re going to sleep in some contorted shape or another all night so as to avoid rolling over onto the dog.

A patient was just in the office this evening complaining about her lower back continuing to bother her. She expressed to me that she always does everything I tell her to do at home to help herself.

Then I asked her about her sleeping position and that's when she revealed to me that she sleeps with her two dogs on the bed and that they really "rule" the bed - she has to twist herself into a prettzle so as to not disturb the dogs.

Here’s an experiment I want you to do to help me make my point:

Lay on your back with your right arm pushed as far under your back as you can reach - maybe reach all the way under your back so you can touch your left hip and now lay that way for a half an hour. Don’t move - just lay that way.

OK, now get up and... how does that arm and shoulder feel NOW!?!?

Now imagine sleeping all twisted up to avoid running into the dog all night and you can now stop wondering why your back hurts in the morning.

Answer: If you can’t keep the pets off of the bed then keep them outside the bed room. Close the door and get used to them laying outside the door whining - they’ll eventually get used to the new rules in time and stop.

What Your Posture Says About Your Golf Game

Have you ever noticed how the guy standing in line ahead of you has his head tipped to one side or one of his shoulders is tilted up a little bit higher than the other one? Looking more closely you might even notice that one of his hips is also raised up above the level of the other one and maybe even one foot is flared out.

Some people might notice these things and just say "So what... or who cares?..."

What is significant about your posture is that it is something of a window into your performance.

If you’re a golfer and one takes it at least somewhat seriously you’ll want to keep reading this -

When you’re playing golf (or many other sports for that matter), your form is all-important. In golf for example, it is of utmost importance that when you bring the golf club behind you preparing to swing at the ball, that you be able to rotate your shoulders a full 90 degrees to the right and then as you swing at the ball you must be able to swing fully through 180 degrees to the left.

That said, if your left hip and / or left shoulder is elevated above the level of the right one - you can’t bring your shoulder or the club fully to the right as you prepare to swing at the ball.

Can’t be done.

Sure - you can force it but you won’t do it properly. If it doesn’t actually hurt you it will, at the very least, be hindering and throwing off your swing.

And when you then bring your hand (and club) down as you swing - you are forced to twist your arms and hands and... you slice

If your left shoulder is elevated above the right one - that means that your neck is most likely inclining (maybe only slightly), to the left.

That means that when you swing the club to hit the ball and also rotate your head while you swing...you’re at risk of injuring your neck because your neck is leaning to the side while you’re attempting to rotate it.

Yes - you might be able to do it (and you probably do it every Saturday), but it will likely be hindering and, at the very least, throwing off your swing.

How's your swing? Is it so good and consistent that you can afford to have anything at all wrong with it?  

And these are just a few of many different postural imbalances that are possible -

How do you think imbalances like these will affect your game? ...your back ?

How is it affecting the speed, power and consistency of your swing?

Also - If you cannot (mechanically) swing as far as you want to, but you try and go for it anyway - do you think there’s a chance you’ll pull something and hurt yourself?

You betcha - this is where a majority of golf related back injuries come from.

Imbalances first - poor scores and injuries later

Wonder-Drug for Back Pain?

People frequently ask if there is some magic potion or wonder drug to "fix" their back pain.

                                       Good News! There is -

It’s called motion.

Unfortunately, those who need it most don’t get nearly enough of it so they want a pill to compensate for it.

I wish I could package some "motion" into a tiny little pill and sell it - I’d make millions

The really simple beauty and true essence of chiropractic care is that it restores lost motion.

Simply put - The chiropractic adjustment restores movement (moveability) to a spinal bone that has become "stuck" and out of alignment with it’s neighbor.

It is being "stuck" out of alignment that causes all of the problems.

You can eat a bottle of Motrin. You can go get a massage. You can go to the gym and work your butt off or you can go run a marathon. You can go see a Psychiatrist for a year and a half. You can go for surgery and have the "bad" parts removed. You can even go talk to the "Man on the Mountain"... and you’re still not going to be able to make it "un-stuck".

None of those things free a stuck bone.

It requires a small thrust from the outside to set a bone that is "stuck"...back in motion.

Pretty simple-

Yet a majority of people are still looking for the cure for so many common problems in a bottle of pills or under a moon-rock someplace.

Is Pain a Reliable Indicator of Whether You Have a Problem?

How many people go the doctor when they’re feeling well...like, just to keep feeling well?

Reality is - Pain is the number one reason we go to the doctor but if there's no pain - who goes?

If it ain’t broke why fix it?

What would happen if you just never took your car in for maintenance?

- Never took it in for oil changes, tire rotations, new air filters, etc....

What would happen if you never took your dog for her shots?

Who hasn’t slammed their finger in a door or drawer - hurts like the dickens for sure but...

any real lasting damage there? Not really

And then - How many guys age 50 have never had a prostate check-up but think it’s perfectly normal to get up 3 -5 times every night to go the bathroom?

How many women have never had a breast exam because they’ve never felt any discomfort in their breast?

How many people walk around with their back out of alignment, leaning to one side, their one hip or shoulder higher than the other, one leg turned out, thinking all the while that that’s ok because it doesn’t hurt them?

I had a broken filling several years ago. It didn’t bother me for a long time, so I didn’t do anything about it.

Then one day it did bother me - a lot. At that point, because of the amount of decay that had accumulated, I needed a root canal and a crown.

If I had just fixed the broken filling early on, the bill would have been about $200 and the tooth would have been in much better shape.

Instead, I paid about $1000 for the root canal and another $650 for the crown and the tooth is - well, it’s in the back and I can’t see it

Too bad it didn’t hurt more when the first filling broke.

Very often I see people in the office who have a long-standing back problem that didn’t begin to hurt until there was so much nerve, muscle and organ damage that their care program was much, much longer than it would have been if they had only just come in a few years ago.

Why Older Golfers Can't Still Get Great Scores

Why can’t older golfers with years more golf practice / experience still get great scores?

Do you know the primary difference between a 25 year-old golfer and a 50 year-old golfer?

It’s all about the difference in flexibility.

The 25 year-old has not had as many injuries to his lower spine as the 50 year-old has...

He has not had time to lose the flexibility of his lower spine due to scarring of the muscles and ligaments that now inhibits and restricts the spine of the 50 year old.

Is there any hope? or Should I just get rid of my clubs now?

The answer is a big YES to the first question and NO to the second -

There is more than hope and Keep the clubs...

With our method of Flexion / Distraction Therapy much of that lost flexibility gets restored.

I guarantee it won’t make you 25 again but it has consistently restored much of the flexibility

in other golfers that they had when they were much younger -

So - you may expect the same or similar results.

Do you like to win? Is the score something that’s important to you?

If so, then try this - call us (845-297-6688), make an appointment and get 6 Flexion-Distraction sessions and see the difference.

The cost is $65 per session. It is Not covered by most insurances. The first session is strictly for evaluation purposes to determine eligibility for the program.

Yes, you can shop around and maybe find similar for less somewhere else but you won’t find my technique (that I have developed, including the exercises I will show you to enhance the results), anywhere elsewhere for less.

Give us a call - You’ll be hitting 20-30 yards further, more accurately, and consistently with just 6 sessions.

Back Pain From Stressing, Sedentary Work

Jacqueline came in to see me this week with the complaint of neck and back pain.

     Not from any injury...

                                  But, from life...life at work actually

She works at the insurance desk in the office of a local M.D.

It obviously doesn’t matter where she works - it could be really at a desk in any business.

                             Neck and back pain do not always require an "injury" to begin.

Sometimes it’s the environment that is causing the problem -

* Jacqueline has an air conditioning duct right over her head causing her to have cold air blowing on her neck all day.

* Her computer monitor isn’t exactly right in front of her but slightly off to one side, and it is the wrong height for her and the chair she is using so she must sit with her head turned to one side and tipped up a bit all day long.

* Her work is totally sedentary and she gets few breaks to stand up, walk around and loosen up.

* Her work is very stressing, tense and very demanding.

* For her part - she is substantially out of shape and de-conditioned. Poor muscle tone / conditioning leads to musculo-skeletal imbalances which lead to random, diffuse and sometimes unexplainable aches and pains.

Sometimes a person will report they feel like they’re falling apart and everything hurts for no "apparent" reason.

In this case the work environment completes the equation for neck and back pain:

air-conditioning + poor /sedentary work posture + stress + poor conditioning = neck & back pain

                                       What to do to fix the situation?

* Move the desk or move the AC duct to another place in the ceiling.

* Schedule breaks or change of activities to force movement and change of postures.

* Change the work station to improve regular work postures.

* Get a handle on the stressing parts of the job.

* Start getting regular exercise - improve over-all conditioning & get into shape.

Do You Want the Best Health Care or the Cheapest?

In today's economic environment the BIG question is what do you want: The Best Health Care or the Cheapest?

The following quote is from Seth Godin’s Blog - entitled: "On the road to mediocrity":

"Along the way, we settle.

We settle for something not quite right, or an outfit that isn't our best look, or a job that doesn't quite maximize our talents. We settle for relationships that don't give us joy, or a website that's, "good enough."

The only way to get mediocre is one step at a time.

You don't have to settle. It's a choice you get to make every day."

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/typepad/sethsmainblog/~3/cmeWYmOdKnQ/on-the-road-to-mediocrity.html

On that score - Is the care you’re getting for your back problem "good enough"?

                      Are you "OK" with just mediocre?

...Suppose you just found out you had lung cancer. Would you seek care with your family doctor or would you go to the biggest and "bestest" cancer research center hospital you could find?

                                                    ie.: Sloan Kettering in NYC????

Or, would you seek the cheapest care? Maybe Vassar Hospital in Poughkeepsie?

It’s a pretty good hospital - I've been there myself so I know. It's clean, close by, not too expensive, nice nurses, you can park for 50 cents an hour... Try to find that in NYC!   Not bad huh?

But, would the price of care for your cancer even enter into the decision at all?

So, with your back problem - why would you feel you have to settle for less than the best here?

Oh, maybe your HMO only allows 5 visits to the chiropractor in a year’s time.

                               Is that good enough for you ? Are you actually happy with that?

What if you need 5 times that amount of care to fix your bad back?

... And your co-pay is $35 ?

Certainly you can find a chiropractor who is willing to take your case for $15 per treatment....Do you think for a minute you’re going to get the quality of a $35 or $50 treatment for 15 bucks?

This is just a thought: Assuming he has the same operating costs and expenses that every other business has - How long do you think he will be in practice collecting fees that low?

Another thought: If he doesn’t think he’s worth more than $15 for a professional chiropractic treatment - Would you? Or rather - should you?

Again - Is the care you’re getting for your back problem "good enough"?

Are you "OK" with just mediocre?

Health Improvement Economic Stimulus Coupons

1

- In an effort to help where and whenever possible this "coupon"

is good for $10.00 off the cost of any one (1) chiropractic service (either examination, adjustment or adjunctive physical therapy), when rendered in our office between June 18, 2009 and June 30, 2009 during regular scheduled office hours.

* It is not to be used in combination with or conjunction with any other offering and it is not redeemable for cash.

* Please print and present it at the front desk when arriving for your office visit.

2

- This coupon is good for $50 off your first / initial order with the

                  Take Shape for Life weight-loss program

if the order is placed with our office before June 30^th. This offer is not to be used in conjunction with or combination with any other offer. It is not valid for second or follow-up orders and it not redeemable for cash.

* Please print and present this coupon when arriving for your weight-loss program consultation.

Low Back Problems Hurt Golf Scores

Don’t Blame your Golf Clubs....

If you’re not hitting the way you should be... or maybe the way you would like to be -

                     It’s not the club’s fault.

A big reason why many golfers don’t hit well, with speed, power and most importantly - consistency

is that their lower back is too tight and inflexible.

It is too tight and inflexible because of all those injuries you’ve had (even minor ones are a factor), over the years have caused scarring of the muscles and ligaments that hold the lower back together.

Scars are "replacement" tissue that is tighter, stiffer, less flexible and more resistant to stretch and mobility than the tissue it replaced.

When you swing your driver you’re supposed to be able to bring the club up behind your right shoulder with your shoulders rotating back to a point 90 degrees clockwise (viewed from the top), from the direction your hips were facing.

Then, when you swing to hit the ball you’re supposed to rotate your shoulders through180 degrees counter-clockwise so that your shoulders are now facing a point 90 degrees counter-clockwise from your hips original (pre-swing) position.

If your lumbar (lower back) joints are so restricted that they cannot rotate freely to 90 degrees right and then through 180 degrees to the left you are not going to be able to hit the way the pro’s do - no matter what you spent on your clubs.

You may pull it off and get away with it once in a while but you won't do it consistently.

You’re more likely to hurt yourself trying. Tight muscles and ligaments tear when they’re suddenly and rapidly over-stretched as in swinging a golf club...

The problem isn’t the club- it’s the power behind the club that’s the problem (YOU).

The remedy for this problem is Lumbar Mobilization with Flexion Distraction Therapy. This therapy utilizes a special type of treatment table to gently restore motion and flexibility to the individual spinal joints. Even a few treatments can make a huge difference.

After a treatment most people say they feel so loosened-up and flexible that they feel like they’ve been "lubricated".

Many say they not only feel 10 -15 years younger - they’re also hitting like they did when they were much younger.

Stop blaming your clubs and call for an evaluation to see if this will help you hit better.

Back Pain From Poor Posture Habits

                   But I didn’t even lift anything...

I hear people say this all of the time.

They come in with an aching lower back and swear they didn’t lift...thinking that’s the only way to hurt the lower back.

It’s true that the best or easiest way to hurt the lower spine is to bend and lift something incorrectly but, that said....

More lower back injuries happen from sedentary activities such as sleeping or watching a ball game than from being busy and doing something specific to hurt it.

Sitting or sleeping in the wrong position causes enormous stress on the sacro-iliac joints and over time, this stress causes the joint’s ligaments to weaken and lose their ability to restrain or hold the joint in the proper shape.

Once weakened, there is little left to hold it together properly and in the right shape and alignment.

Then all you need to do is bend over to pick up your sock and it can shift out of alignment and then -    back pain is not far behind.

                                       How do you avoid this?

 Sit up straight, on your bottom, shoulders back  (though not rigidly like you're in the military), and get up often and move around. Avoid sitting  / slouching and putting your weight on your tail bone - It's not intended to be a weight-bearing bone. 

 Sleep straight, on your back on a firm bed (not a firm bed with a pillow-top), and with a pillow under  your knees.