Gratitude, giving and fun and how that may change our pain #BePainFree

Thanksgiving is one of our favorite holidays. We love it when the families get together. Even though we might not be able to agree on even the simplest things, such as which football team to cheer for, just that act of getting together is so heartwarming. Plus there is a lot to be said for a holiday that brings together good food, great company and giving thanks.

The holiday season also puts everyone in the giving mood. In addition to getting gifts for family and friends, for some of us it may be the time of year when we focus a little bit more on our charitable giving.  It’s also the time of year when we, in spite of our busy schedules, try to volunteer. And don’t we all seem to have a little more fun during the holidays? Holiday get togethers, holiday parties, fun activities for kids of all ages abound. Is it any wonder that this time of year is a favorite for us? 

Every Thanksgiving, and every day we find just so very much to be thankful for. Last year I mentioned to you that we were ever so grateful for the safe arrival of our baby Christian who continues to be such a joy to us. This year at Thanksgiving we are grateful for our new baby.  Before you all start knitting us little hats and booties, (we appreciate so much your wonderful gifts, thank you!)  let me just say that we did not have another child  J but rather we opened up a new 2^nd office in the Farmington area. This was one of those times when things came together in a divine way and we are now blessed to serve an additional community - for that we are truly grateful.

So I know what you are thinking: “OK Dr. Shepherd, what does this have to do with me and my pain?” Well I was just getting to that: Even though this season has the potential to be a wonderful experience, there is also the potential for it to be a stressful time, and I can attest to this personally. I have patients who tell me that this time of year results in an increase in their headaches, neck pain and back pain! Maybe there is something simple that can go a long way to help? What if we all focus on gratitude, giving and fun during this holiday season, and watch how it changes our pain for the better.

Please let me share the results of some research on this topic with you. I know we all have heard about people who have achieved great changes in their lives and health which they attributed to changing their attitude to one of gratitude. We've heard of people changing horrendous conditions in their lives or beating terrible illnesses like cancers, and some information out of Harvard Medical School and studies out of University of California and University of Pennsylvania have shown that an attitude of gratitude does impact our physiology. In one study, 10 weeks of gratitude resulted in fewer visits to a physician. In another study, various treatments were compared and gratitude had the greatest impact and the effects lasted at least a month.

The studies suggest it so let’s try it out! Will you join us? From today until Jan 1^st 2016, let’s focus our attention on the things in our lives that we are grateful for, the acts of kindness that we give and receive and the fun things that we can do safely this holiday season. Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/saporitochiropractic and post about things you are thankful for, random acts of kindness – given or received - that mean something to you, as well as any fun uplifting heartwarming holiday stories that you may have to share. Please use hashtag #BePainFree.

Wishing you all a happy holiday season and a completely pain free 2016!

Dr. Shepherd

Do you have a pain free mindset? ...Step 3 to being pain free

Do you have a pain free mindset? ...Step 3 to being pain free

Thanks so much to everyone who gave us feedback on the last 2 articles. If you missed our articles so far about how to live pain free, just go to www.saporitochiropractic.com and click on "blog" to get caught up! 

So… we were talking about the 3 step process that we have found works wonders for patients with musculoskeletal pain. That includes patients with acute pain or chronic pain, back pain or neck pain. Most readers absolutely were on board for Step 1: Physical Medicine Modalities.  Most readers agreed that they could see how using those techniques would make a difference. Step 2 also was well received. It was interesting to see that some of our readers even shared their own stories about how changing their lifestyle: diet and exercise, posture and ergonomics also helped them. That takes us to step 3 – having a pain free mindset.

Many years ago when I worked at a clinic in southern Connecticut, I had the privilege of treating 2 patients who were in the same minor traffic accident and suffered whiplash. It’s interesting to note here that the 2 patients were reasonably young, appeared in good health overall and had no complications. One of the patients was just a glass half empty kind of guy. Very stressed, worried, pessimistic. The other gentleman was very positive in his outlook. Perhaps the most positive person I’ve ever met to tell you the truth. He was very optimistic about the outcome of his treatment. Well, we treated them as we usually would patients with whiplash, and both patients had spinal imaging done which they brought in to us. Within about 2 weeks Mr. Optimism was pain free, had restored his ranges of motion and mobility and was able to return to playing on his sports team. His pessimistic friend however, did not fare as well. He did get better, but it took quite a bit longer. Last I heard he also quit playing for the team he loved because he felt limited by the possibility of his pain returning. And here’s the most interesting part of this story: Do you remember me mentioning that the patients brought in their imaging?  Mr. Optimism had a significant spinal defect! Mr. Pessimism on the other hand had a beautiful spine and healthy looking muscles and soft tissue.

I’m not saying that the patients’ attitudes were the only factors in their recovery, but that particular incident really got me thinking, so I started my own little anecdotal study. I started looking at how patient’s attitudes to pain and their outcomes correlated, and almost to the person I could predict what patients responses to treatment would be. This led me to look at the literature. I had to find out if anyone had actually studied this and what results they had found. What I saw just amazed me. Most of the studies that I saw looked mostly at patients with chronic conditions such as cancers and how their outcomes varied with their attitudes. It seemed that positive thinking was really a factor to be considered and not just airy fairy baloney!

A study that caught my attention recently, and which I now share with patients all the time, was one which showed that being stressed is worse for you than being obese, diabetic, smoking 15 cigarettes per day and being an alcoholic. It’s not easy to not to be stressed out about pain. After all, it is…well…pain. But from what I have seen in practice over the years, even though it may seem as if the pain will never go away, it’s as one of my mentors always says: “It’s just as easy to think an optimistic thought as it is to think a pessimistic thought.” And both my experience and the studies appear to agree, it’s worth thinking positively.

Patients who stop telling the story of: “Pain is just another part of getting older,” or “I’ve always had this pain,” and instead choose more optimistic thoughts tend to be the ones who use step one and step two of the be pain free process to free themselves of their musculoskeletal pain once and for all.

Regards in health,

Dr. Shepherd

Yes you can live pain free: Step 2

Thanks so much to everyone who read last month’s article. Thanks very much for all your feedback. If you missed our article last month, just go to www.saporitochiropractic.blogspot.com to get caught up! So… we were talking about the 3 step process that we have found works wonders for patients with musculoskeletal pain: acute pain or chronic pain, back pain or neck pain. Step 1 looked at Physical Medicine Modalities and most readers agreed that they could see how using those techniques would make a difference. Many of our patients who do particularly well however take their treatment protocol a little further. They also incorporate lifestyle changes that make a big difference in their pain.

Ergonomics

When I was in chiropractic school I remember one of our professors telling us: If you are treating in the correct way but are not getting the results you expect, look at the patient’s ergonomics. Have you ever sat in an uncomfortable chair or slept in an uncomfortable bed and paid for it the next day? Can you imagine the damage done when someone sits like that or sleeps like that every day for months, sometimes even years? For some patients, it may be that their work station needs to be reorganized. Their chair may need to be adjusted/changed, the computer screen may not be at the correct height, they may need a foot rest or there may be something else in the work environment contributing to their pain. Some of our patients who work in a more manual setting may find that getting into certain positions or using certain tools repetitively may be the culprit. The wrong kind of pillows and mattresses can contribute to neck and back pain as well. Sometimes just making a little change in one of these areas makes all the difference.

Food and pain

When patients come in with pain we always ask questions about their diet. Often patients come in expecting a quick adjustment and are a little surprised to find that diet and pain could be even remotely related! The truth is that some mainstays of the Standard American Diet promote pain and inflammation. For some, increasing the intake of Omega -3 fatty acids is a great idea. Some studies show that foods from animals as well as some grains and seeds may be associated with increased inflammation. Having a plant based diet has been proven to be anti-inflammatory. For some patients adding some anti-inflammatory substances such as green tea, resveratrol, vitamins C and E, curcumin as well as certain compounds found in some fruits and vegetables have been shown in some studies to act on the same pathway as NSAIDS and COX-2 inhibitors to reduce pain!  Most patients will benefit from reducing pro-inflammatory substances from their diets, essentially stopping the pain even before it starts! Patients with an inflammatory condition such as a musculoskeletal injury should consider how what they are eating may be affecting their recovery!

Posture

I have a confession to make. Before I went to chiropractic school I had great posture and hardly ever had back pain. Studying for hours, sitting in classes all day, sitting at the computer for hours, using laptops, tablets and smart phones were all convenient but they have all played a part in ruining my posture and introducing me to the world of back pain! The same techniques that I use for myself are the ones I recommend for patients: I have found that working to change poor postural habits, retraining neuromuscular patterns and using rehabilitation exercises and other such techniques go a long way to reduce pain. Yes your mom was right! Do sit up straight!

Exercise

There was a study published in the journal of the American Medical Association a couple of years ago that showed that daily exercise for patients suffering from arthritic changes was more effective for many patients than NSAID medication. I have also seen studies and proven in practice the benefit of a prescribed exercise program using rehabilitation exercises for many patients with chronic pain.

These are just of a few of the lifestyle changes that some of our patients found helpful in getting to pain free. Next time I’ll give you the secret sauce, the icing on the cake so to speak of living pain free. You will be surprised; it’s not what you’re thinking. You are going to like it and I can’t wait to share it with you!

Regards in health,

Dr. Shepherd

You can live pain free! Part 1

HI! 
This article was in the paper this month. Not sure if you saw it but just in case you did not and you are interested have a look:

You… yes you, can live Pain Free
– A three step process

As chiropractors we see patients in pain all day every day. Most of the patents who come in to see us have some kind of musculoskeletal pain: Back pain, neck pain, headaches, joint pain, muscle pain… The center of disease control (CDC) says that 80% of Americans will have back pain, they weren’t even factoring in any other kinds of pain, just back pain! So as you can imagine we see a lot of patients! Some come in, in the early stages of their painful condition and through a few treatments feel completely better and never even think of their painful condition ever again. That of course is ideal!

Many patients though come in with chronic pain, pain they may have been dealing with for months, even years, and for those the idea of living pain free can seem very far off; Impossible even. Some cannot imagine a time before they had pain. Many have no hope of ever being pain free ever again. Chronic pain can be debilitating, lead to depression and other health problems and so it’s definitely something that needs to be addressed in a big way.

The kind of musculoskeletal pain that we treat in office tends to be a warning sign that something is WRONG. We have found that treating the source of the pain instead of masking the symptoms is preferable for long term resolution and for a pain free life.

Of course the best way to remain pain free in the long term is to stop the pain before it starts, or at least catch and treat with it early, but for the patient already in chronic pain, this recommendation is less than satisfying and in my mind I can see that patient getting ready to turn the page… But wait, there’s more!

Here’s the deal, should you have musculoskeletal pain, start by getting a thorough physical examination. Go to your healthcare provider – that is, your chiropractic physician, internal medicine or primary care provider. We are all specially trained to diagnose these conditions. Even though many cases of back pain do end up being easily treated, once in a while back pain can be a sign of something serious going on inside, so check in and get checked out.

If you suffer from chronic musculoskeletal pain, the good news is that most patients can live pain free just by employing a simple 3 step process. In the almost 20 years that I have been in healthcare, my experience has been that: taken together, these steps provide results. Today let’s talk about step 1:

Using physical medicine techniques to treat musculoskeletal pain.

In office we have found that physical medicine is AMAZING when it comes to stopping the pain. Let’s start with joint manipulation which as a chiropractor is obviously one of my favorites. Many patients who have never been treated in this way may be nervous because they’ve heard of chiropractors “cracking the back!” Well, I’m with you people! If someone wanted to CRACK my back, I’d be more than a little hesitant. So please let me allay your fears, nothing is cracking! What’s really happening here is the joint is being taken to the end of its natural range of motion. This helps with muscle spasms, reduces pain and improves ranges of motion. You may hear a clicking or popping sound as the gasses escape the joint, but nothing whatsoever is cracking! Other physical medicine favorites of mine include rehabilitation exercises and soft tissue manipulation (many patients think this feels more like a massage.) Then there are modalities such as heat, cold, ultrasound, cold lasers and electrical stimulation which help to reduce pain, improve muscle function and promote healing. Other devices such as durable medical equipment, braces, supports and orthotics are also tremendously helpful when used in the correct way as part of a physical medicine protocol.

Physical medicine has a lot to offer and the results continue to astonish many patients, however, I have to say that the patients who do the very best are the ones who also incorporate steps 2 and 3 in the - “Live pain free system.” Step 2 looks at lifestyle interventions, and I know what you are thinking: “Change my lifestyle? WHAT?!!! Who wants to do that? And how will that help anyway?” Well, I’m glad you asked! Why don’t we pick up there next month, same time same place and all your questions will be answered.

Regards in health,
Dr. Shepherd

Health and Vision Boards

Up until recently I had no idea what a vision board was. Just like everyone else I would write my New Year resolutions in a list and I would find that by March- April I would be struggling to keep them, and those were the ones I remembered!

Then one day my dear friend Chloe White invited me to a Vision Board workshop that she was hosting. A little research revealed that this was something recommended by Oprah :) , so I went, I loved it and I was hooked! I've been doing them ever since and I have noticed that sticking to my resolutions is so much easier when you have a visual, and lots of fun!

So, if you have never heard of vision boards, you are probably wondering what they are and what a workshop entails. Basically I would define a vision board as a collage of pictures that represent your intentions. In the workshops that I have attended, we had lots of fun leafing through magazines and cutting out photos, words and images that represent what we would like our lives to look like for the coming year. We used scrapbooking pages as the backing and just glued what we had cut out right there onto the board. Adding photos of self, family and other meaningful things completed the vision board and then it was hung in a place where I could see these images daily as a reminder of my intention.

As a funny aside, at the vision board workshop that I went to recently, we had just had a severe snowstorm and everybody was putting photos of beach vacations on their boards! What fun!

So what does that have to do with health and wellness you may ask? Well, statistics show that most Americans have health and wellness goals within their top 5 New Year resolutions. Achieving these goals can be easy and fun when you set these goals to pictures. Do you aspire to eat more healthily this year? Find those words or images that say that to you and put that on your board! Do you want to achieve more fitness? Put words or photos representing that! This year my vision board has images representing me getting more rest and relaxation, improving my time management and running that race in Hartford that I love! Now that my intention is set to photos, photos that I see every day, I'm sure I'm well on the way to achieving them.

Would you like to make your very own vision board? Please join us in office on March 30^th 2015 for our intention setting open house. It will be hosted by Chloe White who is an expert.  It will go from 5:30-7pm. There will also be a Foam Roller Workshop and Aromatherapy Workshop as well as complimentary massages with Angelica Macaraeg LMT. To attend please just RSVP to 860-589-1491.

Are you SUPERMOM?

· How can we have less stress and better time management skills?

· What are the best nutritional choices for our  families?

· How can we attend to our self care without taking away from other aspects of our lives?

If these questions resonate with you, then you are not alone and you are cordially invited to participate in the: Being SuperMom Bootcamp

 Complimentary introductory workshop date: Thursday, March 26th, at 6pm

Dr. Shepherd, a mom and a physician specializing in holistic health and wellness, will be presenting all seven not to be missed high content, step by step tele-workshops. The boot camp includes:

·  - 7 seminars and all the seminar materials,

·  - Your own personal Q&A time during “open office hours,”

·  - One complimentary personal clinical nutrition get acquainted session.

- In addition you will be given access to our private Facebook group of truly SUPERMOMS who provide the kind of support every mom deserves and needs.

Janet Johnson your local business writer and CEO of

www.Manufacturingadvances.com says about The Mini Mommy Summits™ :

“ …I go, go, and go.  I do this because I care so much for my clients and want the best for them.  … when

I'm in this mode, I tend to put myself last.  As a parent of two little kids… maintaining my health and energy is very important to me.  … [Dr. Shepherd] always reminds me to take care of myself first and gives me strategies on everything self-care: from simple daily stretches to nutrition guidance.   This mindfulness has made such a huge difference in my life.  Now, I have enough energy to do everything I need to do BECAUSE I take care of my health first. The Mini-Mommy Summit is a can't-miss.  It would be a blessing to your life if you attended.” 

                                                 Please register now as spaces do fill up:

 Just call 860-589-1491 or Email drdaviashepherd@hotmail.com

The Mini Mommy Summits™

Healthily navigating the supermarket aisles

I am a great advocate for preparing as many meals as possible at home and saving eating out for special occasions. In many cases this can be a healthier prospect, however so many patients seem to have so many questions when it comes to healthy quick and affordable meal preparation and most of the questions seem to surround what to buy at the market.

Having questions surrounding supermarket shopping is universal and its no one's fault that busy parents want clear cut answers when it comes to making the correct nutritional choices for their families.

Some of the recurrent questions surround reading labels, whole grains, gluten, low fat vs. low carb, which processed foods are ok, when to go organic, fresh vs canned foods and so on. If you have ever been concerned about these issues then you might want to take advantage of a resource that our patients love: Shopping with Dr. Shepherd.

We shop from the local supermarket (we don't even have to go to a speciality health foods market.) The program provides help making a nutritious meal plan for the week, making a healthy shopping list and then making the healthiest choices that the local market has to offer. In addition, I share some of my healthy recipes that even picky kids may love. (I should know, my 4 year old is perhaps the pickiest!)

As you can imagine, we can only do a few of these sessions, so if you are interested, please call the office at 860-589-1491 today to reserve your appointment. Think of registering a friend with you. If this does not speak to you but you can think of someone who may be interested, please do pass the information along. If you have questions or concerns, do call us in office and we will be happy to help.

Can chocolate help your pain?

Let me start by saying that i'm not sending you out on a candy binge! With that out of the way, please let me share some sweet news!

I recently came across a study that was published in the Journal of Neuroscience. (Just a little of my light reading :) that showed that when rats had a bulb lit under their cage they lifted their paws due to pain. Seems pretty straight forward right? I'm not a rat but I think I'd lift my paw too. Then they gave some rats chocolate and lo and behold the rats took longer to lift the paws. It seems as though the chocolate blunted their pain response in the brain and was providing some analgesia. Chocolate contains a number of compounds that are actually good for us, including a compound called anandamide which blocks pain temporarily. Interestingly enough though, in this study, while they were unable to reproduce the results with a number of other compounds that they tried, they saw a similar response to pain when the rats were given water!

OK so here are my takeaways from this:

 1) This study was done in rats so please don't break out the candy bars whenever you feel back pain, instead, maybe have a glass of water and definitely call your chiropractor.

2) This study may also be giving us some real insight into our so very complicated relationship with food! Wow!

Here are some real benefits of eating chocolate, dark chocolate without a lot of sugar and milk added in that is:

1) Chocolate is rich in antioxidants and studies show it is able to improve cardiovascular health!

2) Dark chocolate may increase satiety and decrease cravings, making it a probably the best part of a healthy diet!

3) Some studies show that the flavonoids in chocolate increase nitric oxide production. This may lead to many benefits including improved insulin regulation, improved blood flow to the brain and muscles and of course, possibly helping patients with ED?

4) This one I think is stating the obvious, but I'll mention it anyway: Studies show that chocolate helps reduce levels of stress hormones. Reducing stress hormones usually = more happy! I can definitely appreciate that benefit!

5) The benefits of chocolate seem to be never ending. From making you smarter in the short and long term,  controlling diarrhea, possibly having an effect on cancer and  alzheimer's to suppressing coughs and protecting your skin, including chocolate in your diet seems like a win win proposition!

So what to do with the leftover valentines day chocolates? Maybe an ounce or two of dark chocolate daily may be just what the doctor ordered!

Love and Pain

Hope you had a great Valentine’s Day! February is the month of love so I thought it might be a good opportunity to talk about something a little different from our usual subject matter but no less relevant to our overall health and wellness. We have mostly shared about topics such as mechanical neck and back pain and how our diets affect our pain and overall health and wellness.  May we talk a little about how the quality of our relationships affects our health and may even impact our pain?

Sometimes patients come in with neck pain, headache or back pain as their chief complaint but once we start treating and talking in the office, stress with relationships at work, relationships at home, with friends, family and even with self comes up as a major contributing factor. Sometimes, patients don't even realize until they start talking about it that these issues were bothering them so very much.  While some patients benefit from talking to a trained therapist, many just need a non judgmental listening ear.

Studies show that stressed relationships can contribute to various negative health effects including increasing the risk of having a heart attack. Studies also show stress to be worse for us than diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity or smoking.

Having worked in health care for almost 2 decades I see the effects of stress on patients’ health almost daily. Here are a couple of suggestions for keeping your relationships healthy, reducing your stress and even maybe improving your pain:

1)      Don’t take your important relationships for granted. Make time for them every day.

2)      Stay away from negative people. Spend your time with people who are uplifting.

3)      Do fun stuff with your loved ones. Family togetherness cannot be over rated.

4)      Talk to and listen to your loved ones.

5)      Be mindful of your stress and don’t “take things out” on your loved ones

6)      Make new friends: Get a hobby, join a class, volunteer all these things help us stay connected.

7)      Be gentle with yourself. Sometimes we can be our worst critics and all by ourselves cause our stress to skyrocket.

Please share your comments about this article and any of our other articles in our Facebook community: www.facebook.com/SaporitoChiropractic. We look forward to hearing from you and having you join us! 

Being Supermom

I have so many amazing things to tell you about today!

I’m certain you will agree with me that Moms are the cornerstone of our communities and that when Moms are strong and well supported the whole family and community at large benefit!  Well, over the past year we started the Mini Mommy-Summits to provide resources for our local Moms. Our community of Moms all seemed to have the same concerns: How can we have less stress and better time management skills? What are the best nutritional choices for our families? How can we attend to our self care without taking away from other aspects of our lives?

Most moms if they are anything like me feel like they are always rushing, being reactive instead of being proactive. Add to that concerns about the health and wellness of the family, not enough sleep let alone self care, and you have a real conundrum! What we have learned is that it doesn’t have to be that way. Imagine instead the utopian life where everything is planned and happens according to plan. The family is healthy in every way, and taking time to take care of Mom is always ok. Let’s face it though, the Mom who has things this much under control seems to be more the exception than the rule, and it’s no one’s fault. This just doesn’t seem to be something we talk about much and no one has been teaching us how to do this as Moms.

What I’ve discovered is that there are 7 steps to being a veritable SuperMom. I know this because, believe it or not, there was a time not so long ago when I was not so Super J. What I found is that applying the same things I learned in Chiropractic school and the things I learned while pursuing my master’s degree in clinical nutrition could be applied to my own life, and may in some ways have saved my life. That was truly one of those “healer heal thyself” moments!

So this takes me to my amazing good news: Mini MommySummits will be hosting our 7 week – “Being SuperMom Bootcamp” starting in March! We will be sharing EVERYTHING that has worked for us in 7 convenient teleclasses. Plus we will give access to an amazing Facebook group of Moms just like me who share their joys and triumphs, get help with their concerns and just generally support each other in a fantastic way. You may know someone who wants to be a part of this movement! I know I see one in the mirror every day. For more information about how to join us, just call us in office (860-589-1491) or e mail me:drdaviashepherd@hotmail.com – put SuperMom in the subject line! I can’t wait to hear from you!

Massage and Your Health

Therapeutic touch has been used for thousands of years in many different cultures. The power of touch can relieve pain and relax the receiver, aiding in the healing process. There is no doubt that massage is an effective treatment for achy muscles, but until recently, the way it worked was a bit of a mystery.

A researcher at McMaster University in Canada ( Mark Tarnopolsky,) had such excellent results from massage that he authored a study looking into why massage works so well. What his research found is what many patients experience daily: muscles that were damaged healed faster if they were massaged! In this study, muscle biopsies showed that massage actually turned on genes that promote healing and reduce inflammation!

Many people still think that massage is only a luxury – to the contrary, studies show that massage therapy can improve our health and wellbeing by: increasing circulation, releasing endorphins, improving range of motion and reducing adhesions and scar tissue.

Almost everyone loves a nice relaxing massage. Angelica our resident massage therapist certainly can do your typical relaxing massage but she specializes in relieving chronic pain and stress. Call or stop in today to pick up massage gift certificates for yourself and your loved ones.

We are open today to see you, for as long as we can. Please call.

Dear Patients and all of our Saporito Chiropractic family, 

Please be safe out there in this upcoming Blizzard. Listen to the early warning and be as prepared as you can be. We are open today to accommodate any and all our patients who would like to get in before the storm hits. If you have any questions or concerns about your appointments, we are here for you in office so please do call us at 860-589-1491. Again, please be safe.

With Gratitude,
Dr. Shepherd

In light of the upcoming snow here's an article we published last year that you might find useful:

Your snow shoveling technique may be killing your back?

We have had a few inches of snow recently with more on the way! With the snow has come a flurry of patients complaining of neck and back pain. As nice as it is to catch up with our patients that we haven't seen in a long time, in many cases, the pain could be avoided by adopting different and better snow removal techniques. Lets talk a little bit about how to remove snow in a way that reduces the risk of back pain.

1) Use a snow blower, get help or get professional snow removal
For many of our patient's who may already have serious back injuries, who may be elderly or otherwise indisposed, using a snow blower, getting help or using a professional service may be the best way to go.

2) Use the correct tools
There is evidence that using the ergonomic shovels can be beneficial when shoveling. Some shovels have curved handles. Others have handles with adjustable lengths. What this means for you is that there is less bending while shoveling which takes a lot of the pressure off the back. Opting for a shovel that is smaller and lighter is also advantageous.

3) Now it's time to warm up...
Yes! Before going out there to shovel you do need to warm up your cold muscles to prevent muscle strains. Take 5-10 minutes to warm up your neck, back and shoulders, low back and leg muscles with some gentle stretches. Don't forget that when your muscles are warm they are less prone to injury.

4) Proper lifting technique
Proper lifting technique is a theme that seems to be repeated in a lot of our articles. Whether it lifting while shopping, fall clean up or snow removal, the rules are the same: Try to do as little lifting as possible. If you can push the snow out of the way that is preferable. If the snow is piled high, take it a little at a time from the top. When lifting anything including a snow shovel face the thing you are lifting head on and bend at the hips and knees lifting with the legs and buttock muscles. Focus on small light loads for lifting. Be sure your grip of the handle is appropriate for you and hold the shovel you have lifted as close to your center of gravity as possible. Finally, avoid reaching and tossing.

5) Take breaks
I think this piece of advice is the one my patients find hardest to follow. It may also be the most important. Doing repetitive tasks for extended periods is the surest way to cause damage to muscles and joints. As much as we all want to just "get it done," it's better to take a break for a minute or two for every 5-10 min of shoveling. Mixing up tasks may also be helpful in relieving the stress put on joints by repetitively doing the same thing.

Be sure to use proper lifting techniques this snow season, this will help you to stay safe, happy and healthy!

Dr. Shepherd

If it speaks to you...Please join us for yet another gratitude challenge?

My dear friend Janet has challenged us to do another gratitude challenge. She pointed me to the above link for inspiration. So here goes:

For the next 30 days please do this with us yet again! Lets take a few minutes per day to just stop and post here what we are grateful for.

Today I can truly say I am grateful for all of you! We wouldn't be able to do any of this without you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!

With sincere gratitude,
Dr. Shepherd

Prenatal Massage - Note from Angelica Macaraeg LMT

NEW YEAR, NEW BLESSINGS!!! 

With that being said, CONGRATS TO ALL THE MOMS & DADS To be!!! I know about a Dozen couples too many to name.  May God Bless you all that are expecting with Your Bundles of Joy. 

Pregnancy can be an exciting time for women and VERY STRESSFUL.  The Women's body go through many changes In the course of 9 months.  #PrenatalMassage #PregnancyMassage can be Very Beneficial️

️BENEFITS :

• relieves muscle spasms, muscle cramps, back ache, stiff neck, Myofascial pain in the lower back, Neck, hips & Legs

• reduces edema or swelling

• relieves headaches 

• better sleep

• Relaxation, reduction of stress

• Enhances the pliability of skin and underlying tissues 

• Provides support for the new mother w/ physical and emotional strains of mothering 

• Decrease levels of the stress hormones of norepinephrine 

• Can assist inducing labor

10OFF YOUR FIRST PRENATAL MASSAGE 

BOOK AN APPT TODAY AND "EXPERIENCE A TOUCH OF HEAVEN" WITH ANGELIC TOUCH MASSAGE THERAPY! 

Your health and wellness: Happy National Hug Day – How hugs improve your health!

Here’s my challenge to you today: Can you give away 20 hugs today? Then going forward how about seeing how many hugs you can give away every day? OK, so I'm not sending you out to hug random strangers. That would just be weird, not to mention…unsafe! There are however so many reasons that hugs are a great idea and a lot of the reasons have to do with your health!

1)      Hugs have been shown scientifically to increase the levels of the hormone oxytocin in the body. This tends to lead to feelings of attachment, connection, trust and intimacy. Not bad! I’d say we could all use a boost of that hormone, don’t you?

2)      If you are the parent of a toddler or small child, work those hugs! Psychologists say hugs improve children’s behavior by reassuring them of love.

3)      Social effects of hugs: Hugs increase social bonding, increase happiness and decrease stress.

4)      More health benefits: Hugs improve heart rate, decrease blood pressure and decrease the levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

All this from a free hug!!

Need more reasons to hug? Studies now show hugs help ward off depression and boost immunity. So go ahead, take full advantage of the benefits of national hug day today…and every day for that matter!

Sending you hugs and blessings,

Dr.Shepherd

Money magazine weighs in on which alternative therapies are worth your money:

January is typically one of those months when our patients mention taking a closer look at their finances; This could be as a result of holiday expenditure, the upcoming tax deadlines or for some of our patients it may be when their high deductible health plans reset. This leads a lot of patients to trying to cut expenses and sometimes health expenses unfortunately have to be considered. Today I happened to look at one of the office's "Money" magazines and was surprised to see a cover story about alternative medicine. I quickly flipped to the article interested to see what they had to say about chiropractic.

Its nice to see that more and more the health benefits of chiropractic are being noticed and it was also refreshing to see that the cost benefit is being appreciated also. The article notes that research shows chiropractic adjustments "...helpful for low back pain." They recommend that you see a licensed accredited chiropractor (obviously.) And they inform their readership that visits are generally covered by insurance and can also be payed for with tax free dollars from a health savings or flexible spending account.

The article also positively mentions acupuncture and naturopathy as well as biofeedback.

For the new year please keep making your health and wellness a priority. There is after all, only one you!

Regards in health,
Dr. Shepherd


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