Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Treatments

By: Dr. Corey Finan BSc., DC, CCSP, RMT, ART

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) is a condition in which the patient feels pain, numbness, tingling and other symptoms that can be uncomfortable or painful in the hand and arm. It is caused by the compression of the nerve in the carpal tunnel, hence it’s name. The carpal tunnel is a narrow passageway on the palm side of the wrist. The issue is related to the median nerve which goes from your forearm and through the carpal tunnel passageway to your hand. It is responsible for sensation in your hands as well as muscle function. When this nerve is irritated, or the passageway is narrowed, then we feel the symptoms of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

Causes can range from arthritis and inflammation, workplace factors such as computer work and working with tools where repetitive motion is required. Obesity is a risk factor, and females tend to suffer from this condition more often than men.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome will usually start off progressing in a gradual way. The most common symptoms include the following:

Tingling and Numbness – this could be in your hand or in your fingers and is often felt in the thumb, index, middle or ring fingers. The sensation may travel from the wrist and even into the arm. You may feel these sensations when the hands are outstretched doing something such as holding a newspaper or book, or a smart phone.

Weakness – You may feel like your hands are weaker than usual. This could be due to the numbness and the issues that are happening in the median nerve.

Preventative Measures:

Other Things to Consider: 

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome can occur in anyone, but there are some things that you may want to look at first before thinking you have CTS.  First, there is a much more common cause for numbness and pain in the hand / fingers, and that is Cubital Tunnel Syndrome, which is a nerve entrapment in the elbow where the nerves enter the forearm.  Often repetitive strain at the hand and wrist can cause the muscles in the forearm and elbow to become tight, and thus compress the nerves to your hand.  Another important caveat would be to consider whether conservative care would be a better alternative for you, or if surgery may be the way to go. A trial of conservative care, specifically Active Release Therapy (ART), may prevent the need for surgery.  You can easily determine that by doing a Diagnostic Ultrasound of the Median Nerve at the Carpal Tunnel.  If the nerve is enlarged, you can be certain that it is inflamed at the tunnel.  This would indicate that the decompression surgery typical of CTS surgery would be of benefit to you.  However, if the nerve is of normal size, then you should not do the surgery, and seek conservative care and look elsewhere in the body for the problem.  These are simple guidelines that can help you determine which direction to go.  All of the Doctors at AST can order the Diagnostic Ultrasound imaging and can interpret the results and give guidance as needed.

Treatment From Our Clinic

If you think you may be suffering from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, our clinic has several treatments that might benefit you. Active Release Techniques for one can be very helpful to treat this syndrome. The practitioner will evaluate your mobility and tightness of the area which will usually be due to the presence of scar tissue. By using manual pressure, the practitioner can break up the scar tissue to lessen the pressure on the median nerve, resulting in a reduction in symptoms. Many people can find relief in just a few treatments!  There are several forearm muscle stretches and exercises that we can teach you to help remove some of the symptoms, and more importantly keep them at bay once you improve.  We also provide IMS which can help with pain relief in the forearm muscles, and Graston Technique which is an instrument assisted soft tissue treatment designed to help break down scar tissue and release tight muscles.  Shockwave Therapy and Laser Therapy can also be additional therapies that can speed recovery.  We have seen hundreds of cases of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome over the years with most resolving successfully in a relatively short period of time.

If you believe that you might be suffering from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, please give us call to book your appointment.

*This blog is not intended to officially establish a physician-patient relationship, to replace the services of a trained physician, naturopathic doctor, physical therapist or chiropractor or otherwise to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Plantar Fasciitis: Could You Have It?

By: Dr. David Westmacott, DC

If you know the term Plantar Fasciitis, you have probably had it, or know someone who has.

A Person Suffering From This Condition Will:

What is Plantar Fascia?

The plantar fascia functions as a  “bowstring” that connects the heel bone to the ball of the foot and toes in order to maintain the arch of the foot. It experiences tension that is approximately 2 times a person’s body weight when the heel lifts off the ground with walking. Increased tension on the planter fascia due to tight calf muscles, flat feet or high arches, prolonged standing or walking on hard surfaces, being over weight, improper warm up, or sudden injury, causes irritation at the attachment of the plantar fascia to the heel bone.

The Injury Cycle Is As Follows:

Micro tears in the fascia’s attachment to the heel bone, due to increased tensile stress, causes inflammation to occur, and dense, fibrotic scar tissue is formed as part of the normal healing process. Scar tissue is a “glue like” substance that is resistant to stretch. The normal elasticity of the fascia is decreased, causing pain and compromising the overall function of the fascia. The fascia can no longer do its job of maintaining the arch of the foot.

Treatment

The key to eliminating Plantar Fasciitis, is to break down the fibrotic scar to restore the normal elasticity and pliability of the fascia. This allows proper arch support and thus normal foot mechanics. Tight calf muscles must also be stretched out to reduce strain on the plantar fascia.

Active Release Therapy, (ART) is a soft tissue treatment system that releases scar tissue from injured muscles, tendons and fascia, and is performed by the practitioner to release the scar tissue at the heel. Tight calf muscles are stretched by the practitioner using a combination of ART combined with deep tissue massage. In order for plantar fasciitis to heal, the scar tissue must be broken down.

Another treatment that is often successful is Shockwave Therapy which has proven to be helpful for many chronic conditions. This therapy uses acoustic waves with high energy peaks that interact with tissue, causing effects such as accelerated tissue repair and cell growth, pain relief, and mobility restoration.

What Else Can I Do?

Switch to low impact activities such as cycling, swimming or deepwater running to reduce stress and irritation of the plantar fascia. Walking through the pain can worsen and prolong the condition.  Proper footwear with good arch support and cushioning must be used.

Athletic taping can help speed healing by protecting the fascia from re-injury. Finally, by massaging and stretching the bottom of the foot and calf muscles before getting out of bed each morning, the typical heel pain with the first few steps can be reduced causing less irritation at the heel.   The calf muscles should also be stretched 3 to 5 times during the day.

Plantar Fasciitis can be prevented by maintaining the flexibility of the plantar fascia and calf muscles with a regular stretching program. Good quality footwear with arch support and cushioning are essential. Consider talking to your doctor or chiropractor about the benefits of orthotics. At Active Sports Therapy you can speak with your chiropractor about having your feet scanned on our Footmaxx Orthotics machine to help determine if orthotics could be part of your treatment plan.

Help From Active Sports Therapy

The doctors and practitioners of Active Sports Therapy have had great success in the treatment of Plantar Fasciitis. It is essential to be treated for this condition, if you have it or think you may have it, as soon as possible to prevent an easily treated case from becoming a long term, debilitating problem.

*This blog is not intended to officially establish a physician-patient relationship, to replace the services of a trained physician, naturopathic doctor, physical therapist or chiropractor or otherwise to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Change Your Core and Change Your Life

By: Dr. Corey Finan DC and Ellen Rossiter, PT

What is the “Core”

The “Core” in human terms is used to describe a series of musculoskeletal tissues that function together to provide a rigid structure by which the torso is able to transmit power from the upper body to the lower body and vice versa. Together they comprise most of the muscles, ligaments, and tendons of the body in some manner.

This area of the body is integral to human movement because in order for an individual to product correct motions and actions (walking, running, throwing, etc) there must be a fixation point on the axial skeleton that can provide stabilizing action for the extremity muscles to move from.

The core muscles are made up of the muscles from the whole back, including deep rotator muscles that stabilize the spine and long muscles that stabilize one’s torso. Of course, everyone has heard of the abdominal muscles too, and their contribution to the core. These include Transverse Abdominus, Rectus Abdominus, and the Abdominal Obliques.

Most people forget this aspect, but there are also muscles from the hip that contribute to the core, including the Psoas and the Adductors in the front, and the Gluteal Muscles and Hamstrings in the back.

Another important group of muscles that play a role are those of the Pelvic Floor which form the bottom of the pelvis and contribute to overall intra-abdominal pressure creation.

Perhaps the most important muscle involved in core control is the Diaphragm.

Functional Stabilization

As you can see, there are many muscles that make up and contribute to the ‘Core’ that we all hear so much about and if one muscle (even part of one, such as with a trigger point) is dysfunctional then the entire stabilizing function is disrupted and the quality of movement is compromised.

So Why Does My Back Hurt and How is it Related to My Core?

Here are a few reasons why one might experience back pain from an issue with the core:

And here are some more specific examples:

Sitting

 Previous injury

Workouts

Pregnancy

What Can You Do to Ensure a Strong Core?

A great place to start is with your breathing! That diaphragm muscle that we mentioned above is both a muscle of respiration and a postural muscle. Correction of a faulty respiratory pattern is actually integral to the success of any rehabilitation program that aims to address the movement system.

Here is how you might practice and strengthen this muscle and pattern:

It sounds simple but it really can take some practice to ensure you’re doing this right. Once you’ve mastered this first step to building your core, you can move on to more challenging groups of exercises. Did you know that you can book in with your chiropractor or physiotherapist if you think your core is related to your back pain or movement issues? They can assess where you are at and help to build a safe and effective set of exercises to help you change your core, and change your life!

*This blog is not intended to officially establish a physician-patient relationship, to replace the services of a trained physician, naturopathic doctor, physical therapist or chiropractor or otherwise to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Supplements and Stress

By Kira Greasley, BA, CHNC

Did you know that a moderate amount of stress is beneficial! It can stimulate motivation and even protect the body from infection. However, chronic stress should not be ignored as it can contribute to cardiac, digestive, immune and mental health disorders. It is also important to keep in mind that how and what a person perceives as stressful is subjective to the individual. Getting to the root cause to assess and understand where your ‘Stressors’ are coming from and trying to eliminate or at least minimize your exposure to them will benefit you emotionally and physically.

One area that everyone has control over is the food you consume. Poor quality food is a very common source of the stress reaction in the body. This includes regularly ingesting foods you are sensitive to as well as consuming non organic foods (why? pesticides, herbicides, fungicides,  and fertilizers to name a few makes for a messy chemistry experiment in your body), processed foods, GMO foods, and high glycemic foods such as sugar, refined carbohydrates and flour.

So what can YOU do? One thing is, when it comes to food, I have this simple rule; stay to the outside of the grocery store and if it hasn’t had a life, it is not going to give you life. Secondly, since stress burns through many key nutrients such as B Vitamins, Zinc and Vitamin C, it could be important for you to supplement with the following:

When choosing a supplement, they should be 3rd party tested, contain no fillers or additives and be free of gluten dairy and soy. Expensive does not always mean better and cheap is just that. It is always best to speak to a knowledgeable professional at a vitamin & supplement store in your area.

**It is important to always consult your ND or MD/healthcare provider before starting anything new to ensure that the supplements are the right choice for you and will not interact with any medications you may be on.

**Supplementation is not intended to replace any current medications you may be on for anxiety or mood disorders. Again. It will be important to discuss these additions with your physician so that you may be monitored and medication doses adjusted as needed.

Best Sleeping Positions for Pain Relief

By: Riley Weiler, MRU Practicum Student at AST

Sleep, like pain or injury, is unique to each individual. Most people have that ‘go-to’ sleeping position, whether that be on your back, side, stomach, or some type of combination. No matter what your preference is, if you’re finding that you frequently wake up feeling stiff and sore, keep reading for 3 tips and tricks to a better night’s sleep!

Keep it Neutral

Spinal alignment is definitely something to consider if you are experiencing discomfort from your sleeping position. The best way to reduce discomfort is to keep the spine as neutral as possible. This means trying your best to keep your natural alignment all the way from your head/neck, down to you hips/buttocks. Keeping neutral alignment also requires you to be mindful of major areas like your shoulders, hips, and knees. Having your spine straight does not mean you have to sleep on your back, stiff as a board. It just means doing what you can to reduce those awkward arches that go hand-in-hand with each sleeping position.

Fill in the Gaps

Pillows can be a saving grace when it comes to correcting your alignment during sleep. Often times there are ‘gaps’ in our sleeping positions that can cause awkward bends in the spine, resulting in excess pressure on the spine and supporting musculature. This excess pressure can be quickly reduced by filling the gap with a pillow.

Stomach Sleepers: Try sleeping with a small pillow under your stomach and hip area. This will relieve some of the pressure on your lower back by reducing the excess amount of curve that occurs when lying on your stomach.

Back Sleepers: Place a small pillow under your knees. This helps maintain the natural curve of the lower back and pelvis.

Side Sleepers: Body pillows are a great option to help your alignment when sleeping on your side! You can place the body pillow between your knees to reduce the amount of strain on your hips and back from the upper leg. You can also use the upper portion of the pillow to ‘hug’ which should reduce misalignment in the shoulders and prevent twisting in the upper back/neck.

Avoid Sleeping in 'Extreme' Positions

Avoid positions where muscles are either under extreme tension or contraction. For example if you are using a pillow that is too soft, your head will sink in, causing one side of the neck to be under constant contraction, and the other to be under constant tension. This position irritates the muscles in the neck and the cervical spine. When we wake up and quickly straighten our necks without warming up those muscles or considering the position we were sleeping in, we rapidly stretch the muscles that have been in a contracted position all night, and shorten those that have been under tension resulting in feeling stiff and sore or possibly injuring yourself. Try to be extra aware of your sleeping positions if they could be an ‘extreme’ position, and be a little cautious when jumping out of bed in the morning!

Remember, sleep is different for every single person! Try not to get too hung up on feeling like you have to sleep a certain way if you are struggling with lower back pain. Most people’s sleeping positions change throughout the night while they are tossing and turning, but these simple corrective tips could help here and there. If you are interested in further sleeping tips, refer to our earlier blog post about choosing the right pillow here.

*This blog is not intended to officially establish a physician-patient relationship, to replace the services of a trained physician, naturopathic doctor, physical therapist or chiropractor or otherwise to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.  

Masks and Your Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ)

By: Michelle Nay, Physiotherapist

Over the past year, most of have found ourselves in a situation where we are required to wear a mask for long periods of time throughout the day. One issue that physiotherapists are seeing trend upward is that patients are coming in with complaints of jaw pain and headaches. It turns out that for some people, the wearing of masks can make their jaw, or temporo-mandibular joints (TMJ), tense up which can also lead a person to experience headaches.

Tips for Mask Wearing

Here are a few tips that I give my patients to help reduce their TMJ/Headache pain or to help minimize the potential of emerging pain and issues in the future:

Relax that Jaw

Your jaw should be relaxed at rest, this means:

When wearing a mask try not to tense your jaw or push your jaw forward to hold your mask on - those elastics are designed to keep it on, so let them do their job!

Check Your Ear Loops

Ear-loops that pull and tug on your ears are another reason why wearing a mask can cause TMJ/Headache symptoms. They can cause pain that can be felt from your ears, across your jaw and into your face - all within a short period of time. Compression through this area from too- tight ear straps or goggles that do not fit well can cause facial pain and headaches. When choosing a mask for yourself, ensure that the straps fit snug and comfortable, but not tightly. There are a wide variety of masks available today, so find a brand that fits well, and invest in a handful.

Be a Nose Breather

Finally, masks might prompt us to breathe through our mouths instead of our nose. When we breathe through our mouth the jaw is held slightly open and this can cause tension to develop in the muscles around the jaw. At rest, we should mainly be breathing through our nose so our air is filtered and warmed.

Furthermore, the sinus passages connected to the nose make nitric oxide, a gas that helps your body get more oxygen. Nitric oxide also has powerful antiparasitic, antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial properties, which can be a line of defence against microorganisms.

I hope this provides some helpful insight into managing TMJ/Headache pain related to mask-wearing. Try to keep a smile on your face when your mask is on too!

Please book an appointment at Active Sports Therapy if you think you need help with diagnosing and treating TMJ. There are several different treatments we offer that can help greatly with your TMJ symptoms.

*This blog is not intended to officially establish a physician-patient relationship, to replace the services of a trained physician, naturopathic doctor, physical therapist or chiropractor or otherwise to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.  

Focus on Your Weaknesses and Build Your Foundation

By: Sarah Kuindersma, MAT Specialist

As many of us find ourselves forced to step back from the sports and recreational hobbies we love, right now is a great time to take some time to focus on our body movement fundamentals so when organized sports re-open, you can go in ready to play. With that said, here are Sarah’s suggestions for preparation, rebuilding, and doing your body some good as we head into this next year.

Focus on Your Weaknesses

Now is a great time to assess, work on and fix the weak areas in your training which could include any muscle imbalances and weaknesses that are identified. We've all heard the expression, “You're only as good as your weakest link,” and it's true that it’s often the little things that make a big difference overall. For example, if your glutes aren't firing efficiently, any activity you do will place more stress into your low back, creating stiffness and a decrease in performance. This could mean, for example, less power in your running stride. Therefore finding a way to build your glutes can help to solve or prevent future issues.

Build Your Foundation

Look at this year as an opportunity to build or rebuild a solid foundation. Some of us might have experienced some losses due to lack of activity, and now might need to ‘Get back to the basics.’ Your body stores information in the central nervous system and every time you learn a new movement, a motor pattern is actually integrated and stored. These movements become automatic and are fine-tuned by unconscious feedback that your body is storing as you are learning something new. The saving of motor patterns effectively makes the neuromuscular system much more efficient when the body is exposed to similar demands. For this reason, we do not have to think about a movement like walking, riding a bike, or throwing a ball, we just know! Without basic joint mobility and strength, it will cause to many inefficiencies, so it would be the equivalent to trying to build a house without ever knowing how to use the tools.

Check out Sarah's YouTube channel for some movement ideas, from basic exercises to sport-specific movements, here. If you'd like specific mobility drills to improve your game make sure to book an appointment to have it tailored to your needs and goals. 

How can an MAT Specialist help you identify and focus on your weaknesses and build your foundation?

A problem related to muscular imbalances occurs over time when we are exposed to stress, trauma, or overuse. The resulting inflammation on the body will bring about a less efficient muscular system and diminished neuromuscular function. In other words, your ‘saved’ faulty motor pattern when drawn upon can lead to injury or a loss in the proper power of the motion itself. This transformed communication between the nervous system and the muscular system can lead to altered mechanics which, in turn, can trigger symptoms relating to muscle tightness, pain, and many other physical complaints. 

Active Sports Therapy offers M.A.T.®(Muscle Activation Techniques), which is a way to assess and correct an individual’s muscle imbalances. M.A.T. ® is designed to re-establish the communication pathways between the nervous system and the muscular system in order to restore muscle contractile capabilities.  Having an M.A.T. specialist assess your mechanics can help you learn more efficient ways of moving and lower the chances of a future injury. You can also learn how to train more efficiently for your limitation.  If you would like to learn more about whether M.A.T.® might be right for you please contact us to  schedule a free meet and  greet with specialist Sarah Kuindersma.

A Naturopathic Doctor's Favourite Apps for Health

By: Dr. Gayle Maguire, B.SC, ND

There are many apps out there today that are designed to assist you with your health and wellness in different ways from sleep, to anxiety, to homones. Dr. Gayle frequently encourages patients to embrace technology to help them achieve their health goals and has compiled a list of her favourites.

Kindara -  a great fertility and hormone tracking app. It tracks all the important markers a naturopathic doctor or informed patient would like to know, and is easy to use and share!

Migraine Buddy - this highly-rated app can help patients track and identify triggers, with the goal of eventually learning to prevent their migraines.

mySymptoms Food Diary & Symptom Tracker is also a great option for digestive symptoms.

MyFitnessPal - a great start for those first looking to understand their caloric intake, macronutrients, and exercise.

Insight Timer - thousands of free guided meditations from highly educated professionals to help manage stress, mood and sleep. Awarded Time Magazine's App of the Year.  It includes areas for children, relationships, leadership, interviews, and so much more!

Sleep Cycle - an inexpensive and insightful app to track sleep. Please note that those with sleep issues may not be advised to sleep with their device, or with any lights at or during sleep time, though a short sacrifice to track sleep may be beneficial for some.

Sanvello for Anxiety, Depression & Stress - this app uses cognitive-behavioural therapy techniques and mindfulness to track and cue users to take care of their mental health. You can even set reminders to drink more water, which is great for our physical health too, but can help users increase their self-care.

Talk to your medical or naturopathic doctor for personalized medical advice. These apps are not endorsed by Dr. Gayle, nor does she receive compensation in any way for reviewing these apps. Some benefits may reimburse for subscriptions so check with your insurance provider.

*This blog is not intended to officially establish a physician-patient relationship, to replace the services of a trained physician, naturopathic doctor, physical therapist or chiropractor or otherwise to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.  

Improved Treatment for Headaches with Active Release Techniques

[vc_row][vc_column width="1/1"][vc_column_text]Any headache sufferer knows that headaches can be among the most frustrating and debilitating health problems. When headaches develop they often interfere or prevent many of our most basic daily activities such as using the computer, reading, carrying on a conversation, and even thinking. To make matters worse, studies show that treatment for headaches top the list for conditions in which patients are most dissatisfied with their care.

Now for the good news, a treatment technique known as Active Release Technique (ART) is proving to be a very effective method to treat many common types of headaches.  Through ART treatments, many headache sufferers are now able to finally get a handle on their headaches and get back to living their lives.  But before we talk about how ART works so effectively we first need to understand how headaches develop in the first place.

Understanding Headaches

There is a common perception that the cause of all headaches is in the head itself, which seems like a logical assumption since that is where the symptoms are.  However, there is now a firm base of scientific evidence that suggests many of the most common types of headaches may actually be generated in the muscles, joints, and nerves of the neck.

When talking about the neck, we are actually talking about the upper portion of the spinal column – the cervical spine.  The cervical spine consists of 7 small bones call “vertebrae” stacked on top of each other.  By themselves the joints of the cervical spine are not very stable, so to protect the region, a complex system of muscles surrounds the spinal column to control movement and protect the area from injury.

Not only do these muscles need to move and protect the cervical spine, but they also must control the weight of the head.  The head and neck have a unique anatomical relationship in that the larger, heavier head – which weighs about 10 pounds – sits atop the thinner neck.  This essentially represents an inverted pendulum, to topple over. This places a high demand on the neck muscles to both support and control the weight of the head, while at the same time ensuring adequate movement and stability of the joints of the cervical spine. This complex process requires each muscle to be adequately strong, flexible, and coordinated, and as long as this is the case the neck remains protected and healthy, and will not generate headache symptoms.

How do problems in the neck lead to headaches?

The interesting fact is that muscle and joint dysfunction in the cervical spine has actually been shown to cause headaches through a process known as referred pain. The referred pain phenomenon is a complicated neurological process, but simply stated, referred pain is a process that causes pain to be felt at a location other than where the problem is occurring.  Other examples of referred pain can be seen during a heart attack, when pain is felt in the left arm, or with a disc herniation in the low back, which causes pain to be felt down the leg.

Scientific studies have shown that when problems in the muscles and joints of the neck occur, they often refer pain to the head, causing symptoms such as ache, throbbing, pressure, burning, even stabbing pain. In many cases there can be some ache or tension in the neck that occur along with the headache symptoms, but in many cases there are no noticeable symptoms in the neck at all.

How do problems in the neck lead to headaches?

There are many situations that can develop which will affect the health and function on the muscles and joints of the neck. For example, poor or prolonged postural strain that occurs with computer use and many desk jobs, repetitive use with certain sports, muscles imbalances, lack of stretching or strengthening, or previous injury such as car accidents (even minor accidents with little or no injuries that occurred at the time) can all lead to muscle tightness, weakness, and a lack of coordination of the cervical spine muscle – muscles that are critical to maintaining the health and function of the head and neck region.

Over time this strain develops into what is known as micro-trauma. Simply stated, micro-trauma is very small scale damage that occurs in the muscles, tendons, joint capsules, and ligaments in response to small levels of strain. In many cases this micro-trauma is not painful, but damage still need to be repaired. The body responds to micro-trauma in a predictable way – by laying down small amounts of scar tissue to repair the area. Unfortunately over time this scar tissue will build-up and accumulate into what we call adhesions. As these adhesions form they start to affect the normal health and function of the muscles and related joints. In fact, they will often lead to pain, tightness, stiffness, restricted joint motion, and diminished blood flow. This places even further strain on the neck muscles, which in turn leads to even more micro-trauma. Essentially a repetitive strain injury cycle is set-up causing continued adhesion formation and progressive cervical spine dysfunction.

The Nerves and Their Role in Headaches

Although strain of the muscles, tendons, and ligaments themselves can be responsible for tension-type headaches through the referred pain phenomenon, they may also cause headaches if they compress or entrap the nerves that supply the head. As the nerves exit the spinal cord they travel through small openings in the spinal column, then pass through and between the muscles that surround the cervical spine, and continue on to supply distant structures such a muscles, joints, skin and blood vessels.

Many of these nerves travel down the arm (which is why neck problems often cause arm pain) but some of these nerves actually travel up to supply the back, side, and top of the head.  Under normal circumstances these nerves should be able to move and slide between the surrounding muscles. However, when the neck muscles become tight and there is an accumulation of scar tissue adhesions in the around the muscles it is common for these adhesions to affect the nerves.  In many cases the adhesions can cause the nerves to become “stuck” to the surrounding muscles and other structures. Instead of the nerves easily gliding between the muscles they become stretched and irritated.  When nerves become irritated symptoms are usually generated in the area that the nerve travels to – in this case, the head.

How Can Headaches Be Treated?

The Traditional Approach

            The most common approach to treating headaches is medication to reduce inflammation, block pain, or relax muscles that may be causing headache symptoms. In the case of chronic or recurrent headaches, sometimes doctors will prescribe stronger prescription medications to help fight the headache symptoms. In some cases, even more invasive measures such a joint blocks are used, whereby an agent is injected into the joint to block the referred pain and other symptoms.

The main reason that medications fail to provide long-term resolution for headaches is that they fail to address any underlying problems of the muscles, nerves or joints of the neck that are causing recurrent headaches.  Instead, they address the symptoms of the headache and simply cover up the underlying issues in the neck – issues that if not addressed will continue to cause problems. As a result many people become reliant on medication to accomplish relief of their headaches.  This is not only a temporary fix that is only covering up the problems, but it also increases risk of side-effects and dependency on the medication.

Unfortunately, muscle tightness, scar tissue adhesions, nerve entrapments, and abnormal joint movement cannot be seen on x-rays or advanced imaging. This is because the water density of the scar tissue tends to be quite similar to the surrounding tissues.  These problems in the muscles, joints, nerves and ligaments can, however, be felt or tested with the hands of a properly skilled practitioner, as scar tissue has a very unique texture. A thorough history and clinical examination is usually sufficient to give the clinician enough information to diagnose the problem.

ART: Our Approach – A Better Solution

ART stands for Active Release Techniques. It is a highly successful hands-on treatment method to address problems in the soft tissues of the body, including the muscles, ligaments, fascia, and nerves.  ART treatment is highly successful in dealing with headaches because it is specifically designed to locate and treat scar tissue adhesions that accumulate in the muscles and surrounding soft tissues. By location and treating the soft-tissue adhesions with ART, it allows the practitioner to, 1) breakup restrictive adhesions, 2) reinstate normal tissue flexibility and movement, and 3) more completely restore flexibility, balance, and stability to the injured area and to the entire kinetic chain.

You can think of an ART treatment as a type of active massage. The practitioner will first shorten the muscle, tendon, or ligament, and then apply a very specific pressure with their hand as you actively stretch and lengthen the tissues.  As the tissue lengthens the practitioner is able to assess the texture and tension of the muscle to determine if the tissue is healthy or contains scar tissue that needs further treatment. When scar tissue adhesions are felt the amount and direction of tension can be modified to treat the problematic area.  In this sense, each treatment is also an assessment of the health of the area as we are able to feel specifically where the problem is occurring.

An additional benefit of ART is it allows us to further assess and correct problems not only at the site of pain itself, but also in other areas of the kinetic chain, which are associated with movement compensations and are often contributing factors to the problem. This ensures that all the soft tissues that have become dysfunctional and are contributing to the specific injury are addressed, even if they have not yet all developed pain.

One of the best things about ART is how fast it can get results. In our experience, many patients respond very well to ART treatment, especially when combined with the appropriate home stretching and strengthening exercises. Although each case is unique and there are several factors that will determine the length of time required to fully resolve each condition, we usually find a significant improvement can be gained in just 4-6 treatments.

If you think that ART for your headaches could be an option, please reach out to us for an appointment by calling 403-278-1405 or email mail@activesportstherapy.ca.

*This blog is not intended to officially establish a physician-patient relationship, to replace the services of a trained physician, naturopathic doctor, physical therapist or chiropractor or otherwise to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.  

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Acupuncture for Stress Relief

[vc_row][vc_column width="1/1"][vc_column_text]By: Dr. Vikki McGuire, DTCM and Dr. Wanda Duong DTCM

Stress is a natural reaction to the world and experiences that we are a part of and every single person will feel stress occasionally be it from work, finances, relationships or anything else, the body’s response will be the same; elevated stress levels sending the body into fight-or-flight mode. The difficulty arises when a person has elevated stress levels that are persistent to the point where it begins to take a toll on the body and starts to show up in different people in different ways.

Stress when ignored can manifest into both physical and/or emotional symptoms. It is usually only then that we start to question why we feel a certain way. Stress is a silent burden that affects us all differently, and if stress is an issue for you, just know that you’re not alone. The ‘fight or flight’ response that we experience during a stressful situation was meant to solve short-term problems, but if we are left in this ‘fight or flight’ state of being (sympathetic nervous system dominance) numerous health concerns can begin to arise. Some people may struggle with sleep issues and others might find that anxiety and depression are interrupting their life and draining their energy. Another person might notice that they’re catching colds during more stressful times throughout the year.

If this is the case for you, it might be a great opportunity to discover the benefits of acupuncture and Chinese Medicine to help rebalance your body and mind and to get you back to a happy and healthy life!

Symptoms commonly associated with stress can include:

In more severe or long-term cases, stress may increase your breathing rate, increase your heart rate or your blood pressure, and consequently put your cardiovascular system at risk of a severe illness (e.g. heart-attack or heart disease), so it’s important to do whatever you can to help manage your stress.

How acupuncture can help with stress levels:

Acupuncture is a treatment where fine needles are placed into certain points in the body that will help to stimulate nerves, muscles, and connective tissues. With regards to stress directly, there is evidence that shows that acupuncture therapy can decrease the body’s overall stress response and in some cases, help reverse the effects of it. Each of us has something called the parasympathetic nervous system which is basically the good state your body is in when you are in a relaxed state. This is a great state of being, and it is where we want to live, unless of course, you are actually in danger! Working with the flow of energy in the body, acupuncture can help bring back flow to areas of the body that may be obstructed or are experiencing an imbalance. Many people experience a very peaceful feeling immediately after an acupuncture session. Acupuncture works in both curative and preventative ways when it comes to your stress and is just one way Traditional Chinese Medicine Doctors can help with this issue.

There are many conditions addressed in Traditional Chinese Medicine are actually the result of stress manifesting in other areas of the body, so even if you don’t think your condition is related to stress, it might be worth taking a closer look with a full assessment from a DTCM.

Book in with one of our Traditional Chinese Medicine Doctors to go over all your health concerns and to find out if acupuncture could be right for you.

*This blog is not intended to officially establish a physician-patient relationship, to replace the services of a trained physician, naturopathic doctor, Dr TCM,  physical therapist or chiropractor or otherwise to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.  [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]