Working with One’s Body, Not on the Body

A friend of mine came to spend a few days with my wife and myself, and because she had some issues with her hips and low back, she participated in three Feldenkrais method lessons with me. From her home in another state, she had been receiving traditional physical therapy for this condition with only minimal improvement.

This is the feedback she offered a few days after leaving and returning home-

“Paul, I wanted to share a few things I've noticed. It's been quite eye-opening and comforting to do everything as gently as possible; everyday things like going up and down stairs, sitting down and getting up. I'm angling my legs on stairs and it is such a relief, it's so much easier. I'm keeping the therapy movements easy, no strain and that feels wonderful too. These adjustments are also helpful mentally, as I feel that I am treating myself well and not pushing myself at all. I thought you might be interested in this feedback.”

At the Wellness Station, we provide our patients with Feldenkrais and yoga-inspired movement lessons. Moving with less strain on tissues and joints provides much more comfort and pleasure in all activities of daily living, recreational sports and work requirements. These lessons emphasize moving with ease, whether the movements are considered easy or very challenging. We refer to that which we teach our patients as lessons, not exercises, because in the words of Moshe Feldenkrais,

”When you know what you’re doing, you can do what you want.”

Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome Part Two: An Almost Miraculous Improvement in Comfort and Function!

Don’t Miss Out on the first blog post about Ehlers-Danlos!

Brief Case of Patient with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome:

Susan was 32 years old when she began her Feldenkrais inspired physical therapy sessions at the Wellness Station.  Prior therapy included three different sets of sessions of traditional physical therapy.  Susan said,  “I felt like I was being taught to move in a rigid fashion!”

Her primary concerns were-

            1: Her inability to safely manage weight bearing situation’s

            2: Bilateral lower extremity joint pain.            

She required using a railing to go up and down stairs. She could not safely manipulate up or down any steep inclines.  When climbing more than one flight of stairs, her husband often provided her with support from behind.

After three sessions, she described experiencing minimal discomfort and significantly enhanced weight-bearing confidence. By her seventh session, she was independently going down a very steep embankment to dismantle a fence on her property!          

Susan’s stated, “I now feel like my brain knows how to provide the appropriate actions for my life’s intentions!” She learned to enhance neuromuscular patterns of function for all of her spinal and weight-bearing joints similarly to someone learning all of the keys of the piano to play a tune!

Written by Paul McAndrew, PT, GCFP and The Wellness Station Team

You Can Break the Cycle of Chronic Pain!

It’s All In Your Head: Your Brain & Pain

Many of us who experience pain might feel very offended if we were told that this pain was all in our head. However, all pain, as well as any other sensation, is created by the brain. This is because pain is a perceptual process- the experience of the pain is not actually happening in the part of your body that hurts, but rather it is happening in your brain. Sometimes this perception of pain can be a very useful process (Ouch, I just touched a hot stove, let me move my hand away as quick as possible!), but when it comes to chronic pain, this process can severely impact our quality of life.

In cases of chronic pain, the brain tends to get hypersensitized to the pain until we are in a constant state of high alert. A learning process occurs in which neural pathways involved in pain perception of a certain area (the low back, for example) become strengthened. The neural pathways responsible for chronic pain experience go far deeper than our acute pain pathways, such as in the stove top example. This is because over time, the neural pathways related to the chronic pain will be embedded into the memory and emotional centers of our brain, making chronic pain far more complex than pain from acute injuries.

As with any learning process, we form associations, such as... sitting = pain, long car rides = pain, exercise = pain. These associations can contribute to a self-perpetuating cycle in which we avoid certain activities because of the fear of pain, which decreases our quality of life, thereby contributing to depression, inactivity, limited social participation, and other factors that will actually make our pain worse over time.

How do we break this vicious cycle?!?

Pain is our brain's opinion of how much danger we are in, and we have to change that opinion. Our brain was capable of establishing these detrimental neural pathways that contributed to the chronic pain, and it is just as capable of creating new pathways that will help us get out of this situation. This is because our brain remains plastic for our entire lives, meaning we are always capable of learning. We must learn that we are safe, and that movement of the affected body part is safe and beneficial.

At The Wellness Station, we help those in chronic pain learn that they are safe.

By creating individualized movement programs, we help our clients learn ways of moving and relating to the body in a manner that will drive neuroplasticity. We will help to teach the little person in the control room (aka your brain) that movement can be associated with calm, pleasure, and ease, rather than movement = pain. The movements lessons are designed to help our clients move with greater efficiency to make movement easier and to decrease tension and tissue strain. We will also help with self-care tools necessary to calm down the nervous system to decrease pain sensitivity, and provide guidance regarding management of the psychosocial aspects of living chronic pain.

Do not let pain stop you from living life to the fullest. It is never too late to learn!

Written by Jacob Tyson, DPT - Physical Therapist, RYT-200- Yoga Instructor and The Wellness Station Team

Calm Your Nerves, Heal Your Gut

It may come as a surprise that at the Wellness Station, we are able to help with the gastrointestinal condition known as Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).

While we do not claim to directly treat the gastrointestinal system, many of our clients with IBS and related conditions have found great relief from our approach. IBS is closely related to stress and anxiety- what is going on in the mind and in the gut have a bidirectional relationship. In fact, one study found that 44% of people with IBS had a comorbid anxiety disorder, compared to 8% of people without IBS.

This poses the chicken or the egg question: is my IBS causing me to have anxiety, or is my anxiety triggering my IBS? Regardless of the etiology, finding appropriate ways to manage stress and anxiety can help people avoid flare ups and find relief from the painful symptoms of this disease.

We understand the connection between mental and physical health. There is no clear division between the two, as we are deeply integrated organisms with a variety of systems that depend on each other. In fact, our gut has its own nervous system! The intestines contain around 500 million neurons, which are connected to the brain through a vast network of nerves, including the large vagus nerve which is extremely important for modulating digestions, heart rate, mood, and inflammation.

By calming down the nervous system, we help to shift ourselves into a more harmonious state, which supports long-term health, decreases anxiety, improves digestion, and fosters feelings of well-being. This is a function of the parasympathetic nervous system, which is known colloquially as the "rest and digest" system, as opposed to a highly aroused "fight or flight" state, which is a function of the sympathetic nervous system, the latter of which can trigger IBS flare ups.

We provide interventions to help our clients achieve a parasympathetic state, which may include body scans, meditation, mindfulness, breath work, and gentle movement.

A client of ours (we will call her Tonya to maintain her anonymity) shares the following from her experience with our work together-

"Instruction in meditation and breath control can help turn down the volume on pain by focusing the mind elsewhere. There seems also to be a long-term beneficial effect."

Movement and exercise can be extremely helpful for those suffering from IBS. Regular physical activity decreases stress, promotes healthy bowel function, and certain movements can further assist peristalsis (wave-like muscle contractions that push the contents of the digestive tract towards the exit). This is very useful for those suffering from constipation and difficulty clearing gas.

Tonya shares regarding a movement lesson that has been particularly helpful for her

painful symptoms-

"The move where you lie on tummy and drift legs to side is one of the most consistently gas relieving postures I've ever tried... that whole sequence, from lying prone to massage the belly to drifting legs to thread the needle. Very helpful!"

Here is a video showing the particular movement sequence Tonya is referring to, as well as another movement that has been helpful for people with digestive issues:

In addition to providing strategies to calm the nervous system and engage in mindful movement practices, we can also provide abdominal massage, as well as resources for dietary management based on the current best evidence. Don't let your IBS limit your quality of life any longer- we can help you move past it!

Written by Jacob Tyson, DPT - Physical Therapist, Yoga Instructor and The Wellness Station Team

How To Enjoy Your Garden Without Stressing Your Back

Tips for digging and shoveling dirt to improve body posturing and reduce pain.

• First thing’s first, digging is easiest when the soil is moist.

• A sharpened shovel can be very helpful to diminish required forces.

• Wear good boots to protect your feet pushing on the shovel.

• When digging, throw the dirt to the side of the lowest hand on the shovel. Pivot from your hips to throw the dirt, rather than from your arms alone. If you need to throw the dirt to the opposite side of the low hand, change how you are holding the shovel so that the other hand becomes the low hand. This is extremely important so that you have a base of support, the foot and leg on the side of the low hand , to take your weight and not have your back holding the weight of the shovel!

• Often you can have the lower forearm resting on your thigh and the upper hand pushes down on the handle to use the shovel as a fulcrum. This way, rather than actually lifting the dirt up, you are pushing the dirt up.

Enjoy this beautiful spring and hang out in your garden to nourish your soul more and more!

Stay tuned for an upcoming post on weeding, raking and energy conservation strategies.