General Problems
Stress & Tension
Stress and tension results because of years of abusing or neglecting your body and health (poor posture, accidents, lack of exercise, emotional stress, poor diet) Over time, they can negatively affect your day-to-day life. The spine is particularly vulnerable and its dysfunction can lead to musculoskeletal and organic complaints.
Long before you experience any symptoms or external signs of poor health, you will begin to cause imbalance in the body itself. Imagine a tower that is supported by wires and braces. If the tension isn't correct, in time it can begin to lean or worse it may collapse. A chiropractor is specially trained to detect early signs of stress, and using spinal adjustments and other techniques, your chiropractor can treat many of the common problems we experience.
How Well Do You Adapt to Stress?
Not all stress is bad. A 20-minute workout for a fit and trim 65-year old is good stress. The same workout for an out-of-shape 35-year old would likely be bad stress! ?Depending on your body’s ability to adapt to stress, you will have a different reaction than others that experience the same stress. Whether your body considers stress good or bad is largely a function of how well it can adapt to it. Ultimately, this capacity is based on the condition of your nervous system. ??Stress is part of everyday living. In fact, a stress-free life would be boring! Life is enjoyable when we have ample resources to experience and overcome the stresses we face. ??If you lack the reserves to adapt to stress in a healthy way, it takes a toll. If your body reacts by “tripping a circuit breaker,” causing vertebral fixations, chiropractic care is likely to help.
How can stress affect my spine?
Think of your spinal cord as a guitar string. The greater the tension, the higher the note. Your nervous system has “tone” as well. With each stressor, your body tightens up, like bracing yourself for a tight curve on a roller coaster. The weakest joints of your spine are forced out of their normal position. Like the shrill notes from an over-tightened string, your body loses its capacity to respond to the full range of human experience. And ill health can result. ?
Can chiropractic care solve all my stress?
Of course not. Much of the emotional stress we experience is largely self-induced. Imagine how much pain and suffering result from attaching inappropriate meanings to events in our lives. Or the constant burden we experience by not forgiving others. Stress is a natural part of life. Chiropractic care can’t eliminate stress, but it can help increase your capacity to adapt to it.
Arthritis
It is understandable why many people who experience arthritis-type joint pains and aches reach for the aspirin or other conventional pain reliever. The problem is, these medications can be really rough on your stomach, and they also do nothing to slow the progress of your arthritis. There are other steps you can take, including the use of antioxidant supplements, to reduce cartilage degeneration and keep your joints from stiffening up.
What is Arthritis?
The most common form of arthritis is osteoarthritis, also known as degenerative joint disease. Over time, this condition produces a gradual, age-related deterioration of joint cartilage (the smooth, gel-like cushion between bones that reduces friction and absorbs shock). As the disease progresses and the cartilage continues to break down, exposed bone ends rub together and may develop growths, called spurs. Then, when the joint moves, the spurs grind against each other, causing pain and joint instability. Osteoarthritis can affect any joint, but it is most common in the fingers, knees, ankles and feet, hips, neck, and spine.
Osteoarthritis often begins gradually, with mild joint stiffness and pain that usually occur in the morning or after exercise and are relieved by rest. In some people, symptoms remain mild or even fade away. In others, however, the condition grows progressively worse and can become severely disabling. Affected joints may become deformed and gnarled. Because pain and stiffness may limit movement and exercise, the muscles surrounding the joint can become weaker, causing even more discomfort and stiffness.
Osteoarthritis is among the most common of age-related diseases, and now affects some 16 million Americans. By age 40, nine out of 10 people show some signs of arthritic changes on X-rays, and many go on to develop joint pain and stiffness. Though osteoarthritis is neither preventable nor curable, fortunately its symptoms are controllable.
What Causes Arthritis?
The breakdown of joint cartilage that characterizes osteoarthritis may be the result of years of wear and tear on the joints, but impairments in the body's ability to rebuild cartilage also seem to be involved. Other factors that play a role in the disease include genetics (osteoarthritis tends to run in families); obesity, which may increase a person's risk of developing arthritis in weight-bearing joints, such as the hips, knees, and back joints; and a congenital imperfection in joint structure.
Injury or overuse of a joint can speed up the development of osteoarthritis. This often occurs among athletes and dancers as well as people whose jobs involve constant repetitive movements, such as typists, pianists, and machinists.
Treatment and Prevention
Nothing can cure osteoarthritis, but nutritional supplements, the application of heat or cold to affected joints, exercise, and weight loss can improve the function and flexibility of your joints, and perhaps even slow the progress of the disease. Conventional over-the-counter pain relievers, such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen, can be very helpful in decreasing joint pain, but they do produce side effects and can cause problems in long-term users. ??One alternative, especially for those with chronic arthritis pain, is periodic chiropractic treatments. Although the pain-relieving effects may be transitory, these sessions can be very beneficial for those who find that drugs or supplements are insufficient or have unacceptable side effects. ??Even though osteoarthritis isn't preventable, you can often at least delay the onset of the disease and reduce its severity by maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly, and avoiding, if possible, repetitive motions that can stress your joints.
Foot Pain
The most obvious symptoms of trouble are foot pain or dysfunction (limping, favoring one foot or the other, inability to put weight on the heel and/or the toes). Foot pain can be due to ill-fitting, inappropriate footwear that cramps your feet; injuries that keep you from walking well--or at all; sprains which stretch or tear ligaments (which connect bones); and stress fractures of bones in the foot, which can result from accidents or overuse while engaging in sports or exercise. Just as foot disorders may originate elsewhere in the body, problems experienced in the feet can cause difficulties in other parts of the body. Your feet are extremely complex structures composed of bones, joints, ligaments, muscles, tendons, nerves, blood vessels, and skin. They are also subject to injuries and problems caused by normal wear and tear over years of supporting the weight of your body and making it possible for you to stand, walk, run, and jump.
How can foot problems endanger parts of your body?
Foot pain and dysfunction caused by illness or injury can force you to modify your gait (the way you walk) and create significant stresses on the joints of your legs, hips, and lower spine. Your feet are the foundation for your entire body. When they suffer from pain, misalignments, malformations, and malfunctions, your whole body is placed in jeopardy. Even without pain, foot dysfunction can cause your whole body to overcompensate, which can lead to back pain and even headache, not to mention the emotional stress of discomfort and limitations on movement that can spread from the feet upward.
Who suffers from foot problems?
No one is safe from foot problems. But older or overweight individuals, diabetics, and serious athletes and dancers who place great demands on their feet are more prone to foot disorders. If you are troubled by chronic or recurrent foot pain and/or dysfunction, you would be wise to consult a chiropractor, who has experience relieving such pain and preventing it from causing even more painful and disabling joint, muscle, connective tissue, and nerve problems in any part of your body.
What can chiropractic do?
A chiropractor can help you overcome foot and ankle problems that can lead to additional problems in your legs, hips, or lower back. Your chiropractor will employ a number of diagnostic tests, including examining your gait and foot function, and take a thorough history to assess the nature of your foot problem. He or she will palpate (move) your feet and ankles to measure any limitations in range of motion, to identify what is causing your pain, and determine the best course of treatment or if referral to a specialist is needed. Chiropractic adjustments of your feet--and elsewhere in your body, as required--can restore function and relieve pain. As a result, your body structures can be relieved of or protected from painful disorders stemming from or causing your foot problems. In addition, your chiropractor may recommend custom shoe inserts (orthotics) to help solve some of your foot problems and can provide nutritional and lifestyle counseling that could help reduce biological and psychological stresses on your body as a whole, improving your overall well-being, including your foot health.
Headaches
Nerve irritation is the leading cause of headache pain for many sufferers. Are you tired of taking medication for headache pain that does not go away? Find out how many Canadians are finding a more permanent solution for their headache pain naturally.
There are an estimated 4.5 million Canadians that suffer from severe, recurring attacks of migraine and tension headaches. They spend upwards of $40 million each year on over-the-counter and prescription drugs in their search of permanent relief. For some, the medication works. Unfortunately for many the relief obtained is temporary at best. A cycle of headaches and medication often occurs without any lasting relief found. If you think this describes your pain then there is good news for you.
Recent studies link headache pain to nerve irritation. Muscle contractions interfere with the sensitive fibers at the base of the neck that lead to the brain and spinal cord. This muscle tension often plays a contributing factor in headache pain. Another study conducted by Dr. Wright found that the vast majority of migraine headache sufferers have misalignments of the spinal vertebrae in the neck that place pressure on the spinal nerves.
Chiropractic treatment of headaches is two-fold:
The first approach is to remove pressure on the nerves caused by spinal misalignments. ?the second approach is to reduce tension in the neck muscles to minimize nerve pressure due to tight muscles. ??This strategy works for many headache sufferers, not only in our office but also in several studies. One such study, conducted by the government of New Zealand found that the majority of people who suffered from spinal misalignments experienced headache relief or their condition improved through chiropractic care. And in follow-up studies of the same patients it was found that many were still without recurring headache pain two years later. ??Of course, not all headaches can be helped with chiropractic care. But, if you suffer from persistent migraine or tension headaches you owe it to yourself to come to the office for an exam and consultation. If Dr. Beitel cannot help you she will tell you, and she can refer you to another health care professional that can help.
Anti-Aging
With science finding ways to increase human longevity, ever-greater numbers of older people will be trying to cope with age-related complaints and enjoy not just a longer life but a healthier one too.
As we age, our bodies naturally change and become more prone to certain health problems. From middle age on, most of us may experience alterations in our skin, eyesight and hearing, teeth and digestion, which we associate with old age.
Worse, older people are far more likely than younger individuals to develop such serious disorders as arthritis, osteoporosis, hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis), high blood pressure, hernias, thyroid and kidney problems, diabetes, Parkinson's disease and various forms of cancer.
Why should I be concerned about aging?
Everyone should be concerned about how the aging process affects them and their loved ones, including their older friends and relatives and even their children – whose longevity and wellness when they are older may depend to a great degree on how their health is protected while they are young.
Your vulnerability to the various ailments associated with aging is a product of the interplay between your individual characteristics (your physical condition, genetic heritage, age, gender, marital status, and even your occupation) and the environment in which your body functions. That environment includes your diet and lifestyle, what stresses your body is exposed to – including smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, drug usage, overexposure to sunlight and pollution, insufficient exercise, emotional stress and untreated health problems.
That's why it is so important to take preventive measures to arrest or even reverse the most devitalizing aspects of aging. Anti-Aging is really about taking steps to protect the quality of your life by not allowing the aging process to take the life out of you – slowly or, worse, suddenly. And chiropractic can help you protect yourself and the people you care about.
What can chiropractic do?
Chiropractic philosophy and practice are ideally suited to helping older people live longer and healthier lives. Because chiropractors are committed to health maintenance, preventing disease, and promoting lifelong wellness, they can give members of the aging population the health care they need for continued longevity and an enhanced quality of life.
You probably know of men and women in their seventies or older who look, feel and act years, even decades, younger than they are. That's how we all want to be: as active and vital as we've been in our thirties and forties. Chiropractic enables you to remain active, permits your joints, muscles, and nerves to function appropriately, free of pain that could prevent you from remaining active, feeling fully alive and more youthful, even as your age increases.