Pain Relief

April 11, 2012 Pain Relief

How Can I Keep My Diagnosis From Creeping Into My Belief System?

Reader question…

“My energy levels are not what they used to be and I have physical limitations. I’m curious how much those physical limitations are simply ‘labels I’ve accepted from a doctor’ or if I can overcome them? We’re talking weak heart and poor lung function due to years ago childhood heart surgery. I think I’ve done extremely well but am afraid of a mindset that may gel into rigidity! How does one deal with doctors ‘who see a statistic’ and how do I avoid the resultant ‘statistic diagnosis’ from creeping into my belief system?”

This is such a thorny question. On the one hand, a medical diagnosis can provide relief, peace of mind and the sure knowledge of what is actually going on in your body. But, it also has a dark side. Once you have a medical diagnosis for the symptoms you are experiencing, it’s very easy to fall into the trap of letting your condition define the scope of what’s possible.

First, it’s important to know that most diagnoses, especially for pain-related conditions, are simply names for a group of symptoms. Tendonitis, for example, simply refers to inflammation in a tendon. It does not explain why the tendon became inflamed in the first place, or what is causing continued inflammation. It’s simply the process that’s happening in your body. Scoliosis just refers to a sideways S-curvature of the spine. The diagnosis does not explain how it happened, only that it is present in your body.

Second, most doctors – certainly not all, but far too many – have only two tools with which to treat you: pharmaceutical drugs or surgery. Lifestyle recommendations, dietary changes and targeted exercises or stretches that go beyond the very basic recommendations are outside of most doctors’ knowledge base, unless they choose to specialize in such things. I have seen many people with movement aberrations, pain, stiffness, inflexibility, limited range of motion and physical instability regain a healthy, flexible, strong body that is pain-free by seeking alternative methods of healing.

Physical limitations are real, I’m not doubting that, but you honestly have two choices. On the one hand, you can accept the label and all the limitations that go with it. On the other, you can look at the label, accept that this may be your current state for now and then commit to finding a solution, keeping an open mind about what might possibly make you feel better. There really is no in between. You’re either working to feel better or staying the same, and attitude is really the key.

Your body is your own laboratory and you –only you – know what’s best for it. Diagnosis isn’t a label, it’s a question, an opportunity to discover how good you can really feel.

March 21, 2012 Pain Relief

How to End Leaky Gut Syndrome Naturally and Recover Your Clarity, Focus and Vibrant Energy

What is Leaky Gut Syndrome?

Leaky Gut Syndrome is condition whereby your intestinal wall becomes damaged, allowing large molecules of partially digested food to enter the bloodstream. When these molecules come into contact with healthy tissue, they cause an immune response called dietary leukocytosis which puts an excessive strain on your immune system. Now your body is busy cleaning up after your last meal instead of performing its normal function of keeping your body healthy.

What Causes Leaky Gut Syndrome?

Leaky gut syndrome is caused by a diet high in refined sugars and starches (white sugar, white flour, etc.), chemical food additives, drugs (birth control pills, antibiotics, antacids, NSAIDs), microorganisms, nutritional deficiencies and diseases. Basically, anything that irritates your intestine, including a high stress lifestyle, can result in leaky gut syndrome. Overgrowth of yeast, called candidiasis, is another main cause of leaky gut syndrome and results from a diet high in sugar.

What Are the Symptoms of Leaky Gut Syndrome?

If you have leaky gut syndrome, your body’s immune system is now busied with haz-mat clean up, resulting in you feeling fatigued, achy and foggy-brained. If you find yourself experiencing flu-like symptoms, achy joints, brain fog and fatigue after meals, you likely have leaky gut syndrome.

What’s worse, since leaky gut syndrome causes systemic inflammation throughout the body, it puts your joints at risk for arthritic conditions and can worsen already existing arthritis.

How Can I Cure Leaky Gut Syndrome Naturally?

In order to cure leaky gut syndrome, you need to heal your intestinal lining by nourishing the cells that regulate the digestion of food, enterocytes. A natural amino acid called L-Glutamine is the best nutrient to help these cells regenerate and is an important nutrient for maintaining muscle mass. Studies have shown that L-Glutamine can help to heal stomach ulcers, and it also increases water absorption into the gut wall, helping the whole body to stay hydrated and flush toxic waste out of the system.

Food sources of glutamine include cabbage, beets, beef, chicken, fish, beans, and dairy products, but for treatment of leaky gut syndrome it’s best to take L-Glutamine in powder form for optimal bio-availability. It tastes mild and can be dissolved directly in water or masked with a little bit of juice. Most vitamin and supplement suppliers will carry L-Glutamine supplements.

There are no side effects of taking L-Glutamine, but taking too much can result in an upset stomach. And, of course, you should check with your doctor if you’re taking other supplements or medications, or if you have a health condition.

March 14, 2012 Pain Relief

The Secret to Eliminating Gas, Bloating and Indigestion, For Good

image courtesy of stock.xchng user pelsen1961

Do you notice a heavy, bloated feeling when you eat? Do you frequently suffer from gas, bloating and indigestion? Here’s a tip that will help you not only eliminate digestive issues but also get way more nutrition out of your food.

Whenever possible, youʼll want to consume your vegetables raw and uncooked. Heating food above 115 degrees Fahrenheit destroys the enzymes in the plant. Enzymes break down the food inside your body and make the nutrients available to your cells.

Your body does produce enzymes on its own; however lifelong habits of eating over processed “dead” foods (like corn chips, white bread, tortillas, crackers, cookies, hydrogenated fats and oils, etc) take an enormous toll on your bodyʼs ability to produce enzymes. The older you get, the fewer enzymes you have available to help you break down food.

Lactose intolerance is, in fact, an enzyme deficiency. Lactose is a sugar in milk that requires the enzyme lactase to break it down. Most people donʼt produce lactase and, thus, are lactose intolerant.

If you find that eating raw produce is difficult at first, I suggest you supplement your meals with a few capsules of plant based digestive enzymes. You can purchase these at any health food store – just ensure that they are plant based.

In fact, if you want to boost your detoxification results, take enzymes even if produce isnʼt a problem! They will help to digest any food residue hanging out in your digestive tract and fermenting. This happens when food is incompletely broken down, causing gas, bloating and indigestion. Digestive enzymes will give you back that light, free feeling in your belly!

February 8, 2012 Pain Relief

Are You Eating The Number One Best Anti Inflammatory Food For Pain Relief?

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Certain foods containing natural anti inflammatory compounds can fight inflammation in your body and relieve pain, all without the use of drugs. Even better, many anti inflammatory foods make delicious additions to your meals, livening up your diet and healing your body all in one fell swoop.

The mother of all anti inflammatory foods is actually a spice called turmeric. Turmeric is a bright yellow-orange colored spice that is frequently used in Indian curries. It has a warm, peppery flavor that is slightly bitter. Turmeric has been used as a healing spice in Ayurvedic and Traditional Chinese Medicine systems throughout history due to its powerful effects on the body, which go far beyond just pain relief.

Health Benefits of Turmeric

While turmeric may best be known for its natural anti inflammatory compound curcumin that’s responsible for reducing muscle and joint pain, the bright yellow root has many other physical benefits. Turmeric is a powerful detoxifier and anti oxidant food. During one study, rats fed turmeric showed a dramatic increase in two liver detoxifying enzymes, suggesting that daily ingestion of turmeric may help mitigate the effects of dietary carcinogens (like pesticides, residue from plastic, and preservatives).

Turmeric has also shown promise in slowing the progression of neuro-degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and multiple sclerosis, although researchers aren’t sure how the anti inflammatory spice functions in this regard. And turmeric has an additional litany of health benefits, from lowering cholesterol to cardiovascular protection.

With anti inflammatory effects comparable to over the counter drugs such as Motrin and none of the unsafe side effects, it makes sense to include turmeric as an integral part of your diet.

Tasty Ways to Eat Turmeric

Turmeric is perhaps most delicious when cooked up in a savory curry. Just make sure you use pure turmeric powder to make your curry as tests done on curry spice blends have shown that their content of turmeric is minimal, so you won’t get the full benefit.

Sprinkle turmeric on egg dishes, use it when sauteing vegetables, mix it into a homemade salad dressing or veggie dip. You can also use fresh turmeric root, which looks a lot like ginger root and is available at many health food stores, in vegetable juice in place of or in addition to ginger.

When I started drinking green veggie juices chock full of ginger, another powerful anti inflammatory food, and turmeric, I noticed pain relief within three days. Consuming fresh turmeric has the added benefit of keeping all the delicate enzymes intact, the full function of which we don’t fully understand yet. I have noticed that consuming whole foods in their raw, unadulterated form usually yields the most potent results.

Want more pain relief tips and tricks? Enter your name and email below for free instant access to my 5 secrets to a flexible, pain-free body.

January 25, 2012 Back Pain

Why Does My Mid Back Hurt When I Look Down?

Do you have middle back pain when you look down toward your toes? Do you feel tension and strain between your shoulder blades?

Pain in the mid back between the shoulder blades is quite common. But massaging your aching muscles won’t get rid of your middle back pain.

It’s logical to want to rub the part of your body that hurts because it seems like that’s where the problem is. But to really get an understanding of what’s going on in your mid back, we need to take a more holistic view.

Related:

Why Does My Mid Back Hurt? Common Causes

First of all, we need to understand the two kinds of tight muscles: those that are locked short and those that are locked long.

Muscles that are locked short are just that – muscles that have contracted and won’t let go. Locked long muscles, on the other hand, are being stretched, usually by the muscles that are locked short. They’re hanging on for dear life to keep you in some semblance of balance.

This is usually what’s going on in cases of middle back pain. The muscles on the front of your shoulders and chest are super tight, pulling your shoulders and back forward and stretching the muscles along your spine.

Those muscles in your mid back and along your neck are already being pulled to the greatest length they can manage. Rubbing them won’t help because they’re being stretched and literally can’t let go.

4 Keys to Fixing Middle Back Pain for Good

Your mid back pain is a result of tight shoulder and chest muscles — NOT tight back muscles. Usually people who suffer from middle back pain actually have weak back muscles, so back strengthening exercises can help.

In many cases, weak core muscles and tight hip flexors are also pulling your rib cage down, causing your shoulders to round into the classic computer hunch.

To get relief for your middle back pain, work on opening up the front of your body. Stretch your hip flexors and your chest muscles. Work on strengthening your core.