Ways Stress Can Affect Your Health
We all deal with stress from time to time, with some periods of our lives being more stressful than others. Everyone handles stress differently; some can cope with stress better than others, and some give in to the slightest bit of stress. Some use positive coping mechanisms like exercise and meditation, while others use negative coping mechanisms like substance use or other destructive behaviors. With all this increase in stress over recent years and decades, modern medicine has demonstrated within the past few years the effects stress can have on our physical and mental health, both long-term and short-term.
Tips for Relieving Jaw Pain
Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) pain is common across all age groups and occupations. Whether you work at a computer, play contact sports, or are a world-renowned opera singer, the TMJ can be the source of much frustration. We use our jaw constantly throughout the day while talking, chewing, or trying to prop our head up on a Zoom call. Good jaw mechanics are essential.
Why You Should Try Dry Needling The Next Time You Are In Pain
Trigger point injections have been around since the 1940s, but dry needling has recently become the latest craze. Why? What is dry needling? And how could it help me?
Dry needling has many different philosophies and approaches. Some practitioners will perform trigger point dry needling, others will perform dry needling with needle retention, and some will even use dry needling with electrical stimulation. Ultimately, dry needling, no matter what form it is utilized in, triggers an inflammatory response to the tissue, promoting blood flow and healing.
How Much Do You Know About Back Pain?
Many people throughout their lives have encountered back pain. In fact, as many as two-thirds of adults will be affected by back pain at some point in their lives. Anyone that has had to deal with back pain knows how difficult it can be. However, back pain comes with difficulty in determining what treatment options are best, what will happen if I can’t work, and what can I do to make sure this back pain doesn’t happen again.
Common Injuries in the Aging Athlete
More and more health care providers are seeing an increase in “Boomeritis,” a term coined by Nicholas DiNubile in 1999, referring to the musculoskeletal injuries that the aging athlete in the baby boomer generation, 1946-1964, are experiencing. This group of athletes is the first generation to grow up exercising and continue exercising well into their 70s. The musculoskeletal injuries in Boomeritis include tendon, muscle, and ligament tears and stress fractures. While these injuries can happen at any age, physiologic changes with age make this generation more susceptible to developing these problems.
Can PT Solve My Chronic Back Pain?
Chronic low back pain is extremely prevalent and the leading cause of disability in industrialized countries. Chronic low back pain is defined as pain lasting more than three months. 10-20% of those who experience low back pain develop chronic low back pain, and there are numerous reasons for this. Many commonly prescribed treatments such as supportive back braces, electrical stimulation, acupuncture, injections, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications only provide short-term relief. They have no evidence to support their use for long-term management.
Team USA Olympians to Watch in Beijing Winter Olympics
It’s Olympics time again! Due to COVID, the Summer 2020 Olympics were postponed to 2021, and it is already time for the winter 2022 Olympic Games held in Beijing. Olympic athletes train year-round for their chance to compete on this world stage. Due to this intense training schedule, injuries do occur. Let’s look at some Team USA athletes to keep an eye on when you watch the winter games this year!
Using 3D Printers for Affordable Prosthetic Solutions
As therapists, we often treat patients using our repertoire of exercises, but occasionally, we are presented with a mega challenge. It’s important at these times to think outside the box and challenge ourselves to tap into outside resources and use cutting-edge technologies available. I’m excited to share with you how I’ve been able to help one of my patients with the help of my community and advanced technology. Warning: This content contains sensitive imagery.
