Advance Physical & Aquatic Therapy_Neck Pain and Stress

Advance Physical & Aquatic Therapy_Neck Pain and Stress

The Advance Bulletin The Newsletter About Your Health And Caring For Your Body

Advance Physical & Aquatic Therapy

Julie Jorgensen OFFICE MANAGER StaffSpotlight

Fall is finally here! When you feel that first crisp breeze, you know that summer is gone and fall is in the air. Every season has its upside; however, autumn has a particular beauty to it. I will trade in my flip flops any day for a cool fall day with my family at our local pumpkin patch! I am happily married and a mother of two busy boys and we reside in Aldan. I have been here at Advance since we opened in December 2009. Along with Advance, I co-own a small business called Mason Chic with my business partner Ashley. We have a business that makes all natural soy scented candles and by far fall is our favorite scent list. Pumpkins, Apples, Cedar and Fallen leaves are among the crowd favorites. We take pride in our work and the art of candle making and invite anyone to check us out. I challenge you all to seize the day! Plan a family outing, take a long drive, just go for a walk. Fall is here for such a short time, enjoy it in all its beauty. Happy Fall Y’all!

Advance Physical & Aquatic Therapy

INSIDE: Is It Possible To Live Without Neck Pain & Headaches? Here’s What You Need To Do When Your Regular Treatment Plans Don’t Work Anymore The Advance Bulletin The Newsletter About Your Health And Caring For Your Body

• Relief For

Neck Painand Headaches • Patient Success Spotlight

Quote of TheMonth:

Do you suffer from frequent neck pain and headaches? People literally live on acetaminophen and Ibuprofen for years because they constantly have a nagging headache, induced by muscle spasms in the neck. A concern with those who have frequent headaches, is an underlying neck problem that may go untreated. The Cause of Most Headaches Headaches can range from minor nagging pains, to full-blown migraines that knock you off your feet for a day or two. Any headache, whether tremendous pain or not, should be a warning sign that the muscles in your spine and neck may be too tight

and tense. Prolonged muscle tension may cause you to feel stiff and achy. One may feel pain in the shoulders, neck, upper back and even radiating out to the upper arms. Most people who have headaches complain about having neck and shoulder pain. The most intense pain usually lies directly in the back and upper sides of the neck. The pain then radiates into the shoulder area. This is why many people who have headaches treat themselves to frequent neck and shoulder massages. Physical therapy can help you to relieve the tightness and tension in your muscles, helping you live a happy, pain-free life.

“People don’t notice whether it’s winter or summer when they’re happy.” Anton Chekhov

advanceaquaticpt.com

Are You Looking For Relief FromNeck Pain &Headaches? The neck can be a hidden and debilitating source of headaches. Very often neck pain and headaches go hand-in-hand, leading to a miserable time coping with every day activities. According to the National Institute of Health Statistics neck pain and headaches are the second most common formofpainexperiencedbyAmericans,with 59% reporting it affected their enjoyment of life. Headaches are often grouped under the term “cervicogenic headache” meaning that the primary source is from the neck. problems, arthritis, muscular stress and even prior surgeries, the wear and tear on this critical region of your body can prove too much, resulting in pain. It is also possible that you may develop a narrowing of the spinal canal itself. Since the spinal cord runs through the spine, a narrowing of the canal or where the nerves exit, can lead to a condition named spinal stenosis.

There ismuch thatcanbedone to treatneck pain and headaches. Our expert physical therapists have years of experience helping people with neck pain and headaches. By finding the root cause of your neck pain and headaches we can relieve your pain quickly, reduce the need for medication and get you back to the activities you enjoy. Discover how our team of specialists at Advance Physical and Aquatic Therapy can eliminate your neck pain and headaches allowing you to live a happy, active and pain-free life. Call today for more details!

If you are experiencing these symptoms talk to us about how we can help

There are well mapped out patterns of headaches that come from the different parts of the neck, shoulder and upper back areas. The discs between your bones (vertebrae) and joints in the upper neck often contribute to headaches. Even headaches located in the forehead or behind the eyes are often referred pains stemming from problem areas in the neck and base of the skull. The joints connecting the top three levels of the neck handle almost 50% of the total motion of the entire neck. This means they absorb a lot of repetitive strain. These joints bear the main load of the weight of the head (about that of a bowling ball). With fatigue, poor posture, injuries, disc

• Difficulty turning your head from side to side • Pain at the area where the neck and the upper back meet • Poor posture • Neck or shoulder pain that interferes with your sleep • Stiff neck • Pain when reaching for objects overhead

advanceaquaticpt.com • Limited ability to exercise • Unable to work due to pain • Neck pain that radiates into your shoulders Being Grateful is Good For You! GRATITUDE AND HEALTH

Feeling thankful can improve your health in both direct and indirect ways. Some research shows that the experience of gratitude can induce a sense of relaxation, improve the immune system, and decrease blood pressure. But grateful people also tend to cultivate better health habits, like eating more nutritious food, exercising, and avoiding risky behaviors. In addition, the optimism that stems from gratitude can create a healing attitude: research shows that people with optimistic attitudes have better outcomes after medical procedures. GRATITUDE AND JOY Robert Emmons, an internationally renowned scientific expert on gratitude, has found that acknowledging the good in life has a tendency to amplify positive emotions, such as joy and contentment, because it helps us slow down. “I think gratitude allows us to participate more in life,” he says. “We notice the positives more, and that magnifies the pleasures you get from life.” Consider the last time you had a good cup of coffee—did you pay attention to the warmth of the cup on your hands, or the feeling of pleasure as you took the first sip? It’s easy to ignore these small moments of positivity in our day as we rush from one activity to another, but stopping to appreciate them makes them more powerful.

“We notice the positives more, and that magnifies the pleasures you get from life.”

GRATITUDE AND RESILIENCE Practicing gratitude can also make you better equipped to handle the difficulties of life that inevitably arise. In fact, according to Emmons, it’s an essential part of the process of healing from trauma. Even despair can be mitigated by the experience of appreciation for the good, however slight it might be. Many survivors of the Holocaust, when asked to tell their stories, remember most strongly the feelings of gratitude for food, shelter, or clothing that was offered to them. This sense of thankfulness for the small blessings helped them maintain their humanity despite experiencing a horrific tragedy. Many people with life-threatening illnesses also report decreased distress and increased positive emotions when they practice gratitude. Recent MRI studies have mapped the gratitude circuitry in the brain, which activates a sense of reward, fairness, and decision-making—all aspects that help facilitate survival and post-traumatic growth.

Breakfast Recipe

“I feel like I have improved 100%!” Patient Success Spotlight

ENGLISHMUFFIN BREAKFAST SANDWICHES INGREDIENTS 6 English muffins, sliced in half 6 large eggs 6 slices Cheddar cheese 6 slices deli ham Salt and freshly ground black pepper INSTRUCTIONS • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. • Grease 5 ramekins, or a jumbo muffin tin and place on a cookie sheet. • Crack one egg into each ramekin. • Pierce egg yolk with a fork and very slightly beat.

“I feel like I have improved 100% since I started here. My neck was so bad I wasn’t able to move my head at all, I couldn’t drive before, now I can drive. I was having trouble reaching into the cupboard, doing everything such as reaching into the washing machine, cleaning floors was impossible... now it is much much better and I thank everyone here at Advance, very, very much! -Violet S.

• Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. • Bake eggs for 12-15 minutes or until set. • Remove from oven and allow to cool.

• Run a knife around the edge of ramekin (or muffin tin) to remove eggs. • To assemble breakfast sandwich, layer one half of each English muffin with one slice of cheese, one slice of ham and a cooked egg. • Top with other half of English muffin. • Wrap sandwich in plastic wrap and place in the freezer. • To reheat, place in microwave for 1-2 minutes, or until warmed through.

advanceaquaticpt.com

Relieve Pain In Minutes Try this movement if you are experiencing neck pain.

www.simpleset.net SCAPULAR RETRACTION Stand tall, shoulders relaxed. Pull shoulder blades back and down. Don’t hunch your shoulders. Hold for 8 count, repeat 8 times. Relax Your Shoulders

Have YouMet Your Out-of-PocketMax? Have you met your annual Out-of-Pocket Max? If you have, your therapy may be free. How do you check to see if it has been met? You can call your insurance and ask them or you can call us and we will gladly check your benefits for you. Advance Physical & Aquatic Therapy