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Nursing is the profession most affected by back pain
Yes, more than office workers who sit with poor posture all day; more than construction workers who manage heavy equipment; more than any other profession, nurses are the ones stuck with back pain. Reports and statistics consistently show that, among the different varieties of nurses, they collectively miss the most days of work due to back-pain related complaints. As an office of chiropractic, this concerns us and we want to know why nurses are so at risk.
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Understanding muscle tension
Muscle tension means: a condition in which your muscles are semi-contracted for an extended period of time. It is most often caused by mental stress, which constricts blood vessels, reducing circulation and therefore oxygenation to the muscles. When circulation is hampered, oxygen has a hard time and waste products have a hard time getting out, leaving you with muscles that feel tighter and opening the door to muscle spasm and pain. What parts of your lifestyle are contributing to muscle tension?
Factors that contribute to muscle tension
- Exercise: boosts oxygen supply to the muscles and stretching helps to prevent muscles from becoming overly tight or shortened.
- Sleep: As you sleep, the body supplies muscles with more oxygen to help breakdown lactic acid; if this doesn't happen, excess lactic acid contributes to the formation of trigger points.
- Diet: Certain ingredients affect muscle tension. Among the best things you can do are: reduce caffeine intake, and make sure you are getting enough vitamin B12 and calcium.
- Keeping stress down: mental stress translates directly to muscle tension. Pain in the muscles can then cause mental stress and the cycle will perpetuate itself.
Dispelling muscle tension
Chiropractic adjustment helps to alleviate painful pressure on nerves and boosts circulation. We release muscle knots with trigger point therapy and treat myofascial pain with instrument-assisted release. All of these modalities are intended to open up areas of tension to an influx of blood which carries fresh oxygen and nutrients that help dispel tension and allow you to move freely. If you are interested in living a life with less muscle tension, call us to schedule an appointment today.
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Shoulder Pain Is A Common Complaint
Encompassing four joints and a host of supportive muscles, tissues, and ligaments, the shoulder joint is among the most complex in the human body. Arguably the most used joint in the human body, 1 in 2 people will experience pain in the shoulder at some point in their life, and most shoulder pain will resolve itself within a matter of days. If not, it could be time to seek treatment.
When should you seek treatment for shoulder pain?
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If the shoulder pain does not resolve itself in less than a week.
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If the same pain recurs in the same location
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Loss of range of motion
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Loss of strength
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Swelling or bruising around the joint
As is the case with any condition involving the human body, the sooner you get a proper diagnosis, the sooner you can get appropriate treatment, and the sooner the issue will resolve itself.
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Tailoring a treatment to your specific back pain
Your back pain is completely unique and your treatment should be too! This should not be such a radical statement to read but it is at odds with the idea of allopathic treatment, where the same drugs and the same surgery is used to treat every case. The truth is, every diagnosis is different, so we take a different approach that detects the underlying cause of your condition and follow it up with a multi-dimensional plan for treatment that seeks to improve your body's ability to heal itself without the necessity for surgery or pharmaceutical aid.
Read more: Dynamically Treating Back Pain with Flexion-Distraction
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Because of their shock-absorbing role in the human body, one of the structures most vulnerable to injury during an automobile accident is the intervertebral disc. The net force generated by a car collision is often enough to create a bulge or tear in the annulus fibrosus, resulting in a herniated disc. The discs most likely to suffer injury are the bottom two discs in the spinal column. We have a wealth of experience rehabilitating herniated discs sustained from auto accidents. The most common symptoms that point us toward investigating a herniated disc are stiffness and pain in the local area and a reduced range of motion.
For all but the most severe of herniated discs, the body will usually heal itself if given the proper time and attention. This is where we come in: our plan for your injury will be implemented in phases: our first priority is to reduce your pain. Chiropractic adjustment restores mobility to the joints and alleviates direct pressure to the nerve, allowing you to move without the usual limiting pain. We utilize hands-on techniques that boost blood flow in the region and help heal muscles that may have become strained.
Our office will document all of your injuries and establish a treatment plan that gets you back to health as quickly as possible. Call our office in Houston (713) 520-9330 to schedule an appointment. The smallest comfort we have to offer is knowledge of what happened to your body during the accident.