Blog Archives

Neck pain and posture

7/11/2024

Neck pain will affect 7 out of 10 people in their lifetime and can be quite painful. The most common types of neck pain include:

muscle pain or spasm
nerve pain
bone or facet joint pain
referral or radicular pain

If you have neck pain, you might have been diagnosed with any of the following:

herniated disc or prolapsed disc
spinal stenosis
degenerative disc disease or bone spurs
osteoarthritis
whiplash
facet syndrome
fibromyalgia

It's important to remember that the diagnosis doesn't tell us what caused the problem or how to fix it. Let me explain...

Lets say you have neck pain and were diagnosed with a herniated disc. That's great information to have, but it doesn't tell you what caused the herniated disc. You can treat the herniated disc, but if you don't find and fix the underlying cause of the herniation you're just kicking the bucket down the road.

0 Comments

Plantar Fasciitis and Plantar Fasciosis

7/11/2024

0 Comments

Plantar Fasciitis and Plantar Fasciosis are two commonly diagnosed foot issues in people who have foot and heel pain. Plantar fasciitis means inflammation of the fascia of the bottom of the foot. Plantar fasciosis means degeneration of the fascia of the bottom of the foot. Fascia is a connective tissue that permeates the entire body including muscles, bones, nerves, and organs and helps provide structure and support to the tissues of the body. The plantar fascia is the connective tissue that runs along the bottom of the foot from the heel to the toes. The plantar fascia or plantar aponeurosis is a thick and strong band of connective tissue that helps support the arch of the foot both allowing normal pronation and supporting normal supination during gait and other movements.

When the foot is pointed straight ahead and moving as designed, the plantar fascia will be pain free and healthy. However, when the foot isn't aligned correctly and/or the foot isn't moving optimally, these dysfunctional movement patterns can create stress, pain, and damage to the plantar fascia.

0 Comments

Does a joint replacement surgery fix the problem?

7/1/2024

0 Comments

Joint replacement surgeries are growing in number every year with the most common surgeries being total knee replacement followed by total hip replacement. Surgeons will also perform shoulder joint replacement, elbow joint replacement, wrist joint replacement, and ankle joint replacement. When a joint, that most likely has osteoarthritis along with joint space narrowing and osteophytosis, is replaced in surgery, the joint might be new but reason why the joint became arthritic is not addressed. Joint replacement surgery treats the symptom of joint damage but not the underlying reason for the joint damage.

Osteoarthritis, joint space narrowing, osteophytosis, swelling, stiffness, and pain are all symptoms of a joint that is not aligned and moving as it was designed. Every joint in your body from your ankle to knee to hip to spine to shoulder to elbow to wrist etc is designed to align and move in a certain way. When the bones that form a joint are aligned as they are designed and can maintain that alignment as they move, the joint will stay healthy and maintain smooth cartilage and pain free movement.

However, when the bones that form a joint are not aligned correctly, they will not be able to move correctly, and this misalignment will cause wear and tear of the joint surfaces over time which can lead to osteoarthritis and pain. Posture alignment therapy is effective at helping you realign your bones and joints to decrease the wear and tear and pain you experience. Whether you are considering a joint replacement or have already had a joint replacement, posture alignment therapy is a must if you want to function and feel your best.

Contact me for a free posture evaluation on Zoom today.

0 Comments

Knee osteoarthritis and posture

7/1/2024

0 Comments

Knee joint osteoarthritis affects 365 million people worldwide and is the knee is most frequently affected joint. Symptomatic knee osteoarthritis affects 13% of women and 10% of men over 60 years old. Knee osteoarthritis typically features joint space narrowing, osteophytosis, pain, stiffness, and disability. Knee osteoarthritis most commonly occurs in one knee and not both. Knee osteoarthritis typically gets worse over time, often progressing from mild to severe over a period of 10 years.

The key to both preventing knee osteoarthritis and slowing down or stopping the progression of knee osteoarthritis is to address the postural and movement imbalances that are causing it. Posture simply means the alignment of bones and joints in the human body. The human body has eight major load joints that are designed to align vertically and horizontally with each other. When the joints of the body are aligned as designed, the joint surfaces are also aligned as designed. This means as we stand, walk, run, and jump the force of gravity is distributed evenly and optimally across the knee joint and cartilage. All movement in this case strengthens the cartilage of the knee and protects the knee from damage.

If the load joints are not aligned there will be increased pressure, friction, and stress placed on a certain portion of the knee joint which will lead to wear and tear of the cartilage over time. This wear and tear is what leads to osteoarthritis, joint space narrowing, osteophytosis, stiffness, swelling, and pain. The only way to stop the wear and tear is to realign the load joints of the body.

Posture alignment therapy is effective at restoring proper load joint alignment, muscle strength and flexibility, and movement patterns. As postural alignment is restored, knee pain will decrease and function will return.

Contact me for a free posture evaluation on Zoom today.

0 Comments

Neck pain and posture

Plantar Fasciitis and Plantar Fasciosis

Does a joint replacement surgery fix the problem?

Knee osteoarthritis and posture

About Matt Whitehead

Archives

Categories

WHAT OUR CLIENTS HAVE TO SAY