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Sleep Positioning! Best Sleeping Position

One of the most common complaints I hear from patients is that their sleep is disturbed by their pain symptoms, or that they’re waking up with increased pain in the morning.  Sometimes pain symptoms make it difficult to fall asleep, and other times they wake us up at night when we try to roll over in bed.  Pain during sleep often occurs because we position our bodies in ways that lead to increased joint compression or improper muscle positioning.

Sleep is vitally important to the body’s healing process, which makes it a top priority in many of my treatment programs.  So I’m going to give you some tips that will help get your body into a more optimal alignment while sleeping, and hopefully reduce pain and discomfort in your body. 

For Side Sleepers:

You’ll need 2 pills and a small rolled up face towel

First, lay on your side and place the small rolled towel at your waistline. That will help keep your spine straight while laying on your side. 

Next, place a pillow between your knees.  That will help keep your hip bones aligned within their socket. 

Lastly, before placing the pillow under your head, slide your bottom arm forward as far as you can so that your weight is on the back of your shoulder blade rather than on the tip of your shoulder.  Now, the pillow can be positioned under your head but also between your neck and shoulder for optimal support.  By doing this, you protect your neck and shoulders from compressing on joints, tendons and nerves. 

You can see a demo on my Instagram page here: Best Sleeping Position

For Back Sleepers:

You’ll need 2 pillows and 2 small rolled up towels (or very small pillows)

Lay on your back, place a pillow under your head, and the other under your knees.  That helps keep your spine in a neutral position. 

Now take a small rolled up towel to place under each of your elbows.  By doing this, you’ll keep your shoulder joints in a more neutral position because it centres the head of the arm bone in the shoulder socket.  This relieves any pressure that would otherwise be placed on the tendons running through the shoulder.  It also stops any muscle pull that can be placed on the neck when the shoulders are in an altered position. 

You can see a demo on my Instagram page here:

SLEEPING POSITIONS: BACK EDITION

What is Osteopathy?

As the general population has a misinformed notion of what osteopathy is, or its definition, it’s best to talk about its principles and what us practitioners can do using these principles. The common thought is, “the study of bones”; or how to affect change to bones.

Osteopathy is the study of the human body’s anatomy and how to understand the body as a whole and how to help facilitate a better healthy lifestyle. Under the classical teachings of the founder of Osteopathy, Dr. Taylor Still, there are four basic principles. The first principle is that the body is a dynamic unit of function. In essence, your body is one unit; simply put, everything is connected. The second principle is that the body can self-heal and self-regulate naturally. Third principle is that structure and function are interrelated. Meaning, with proper alignment of the layers of the body and its structures will allow for the body to function as it was designed to. The last principle, as osteopathic practitioners we use the prior three principles to discern for a rational treatment approach.

Osteopaths are NOT considered healers, however are facilitators in improving the health and structure of the body. If the structure of the body is not aligned, due to age, posture or injury, problems can arise. However, if the body is put back into its proper structures with the hard/soft tissues combined, then the body will be able to take care of itself accordingly. Similarly, if a house is built without proper structured foundation, problems will occur such as electricity, plumbing, ventilation etc. The same ideology can be applied to the human body. Our duty is to find the problem, fix it, and leave it alone.

The Pelvic Floor: What is it?

Men and women both have a very important group of muscles called “The Pelvic Floor”. These muscles have several very important functions that most people don’t realize. These include (but are not limited to) gastrointestinal function, reproductive functions, urinary and fecal continence (not having any urinary or fecal leakage with sneezing, coughing, etc), low back and hip stability, support for our abdominal organs, and proper breathing and respiration. With everything that the pelvic floor does for us, it’s a wonder that more people don’t know about it!

Unfortunately, since we rely on our pelvic floor so much, it also leaves room for dysfunction of various sorts. All of these following conditions have a significant relationship to pelvic floor function/dysfunction:

• Urinary/Fecal Incontinence
• Overactive Bladder
• Pain with intercourse or pain with urination/bowel movements
• Diastasis Rectus Abdominis
• Low back, Hip and Pelvic Pain
• Pelvic Organ Prolapse (feeling pressure or bulging on the pelvic floor)
• Interstitial Cystitis
• Many more!

Some of these conditions are more likely to occur in women during or after pregnancy, but many can occur in both men and women at any time. Unfortunately, not many people know that physiotherapy can help and end up seeing several doctors and specialists with little to no improvement.

Conservative management IS out there and for most conditions, some simple exercises and lifestyle modifications can make the world of a difference. So if you or anyone you know struggles with pelvic floor dysfunction, find a pelvic floor physiotherapist – you won’t regret it!

BENEFITS TO EARLY ACTIVITY

🏊🏼‍♂️🤾🏽‍♀️ Early lifestyle habits – and their benefits – established early in life are carried forward into adulthood. And of course, one of the most powerful ways to teach children to be active is to lead by example.  ⛹🏻‍♂️🤽🏽‍♂️

According to The American Council on Exercise, here are 10 of the top reasons that kids should get plenty of exercise:

1. Kids who are deliberately active tend to continue an active lifestyle as an adult.

2. Exercise and activity manages and maintains a healthy body mass index.

3.  Exercise optimizes muscle, bones and joints over a lifetime.

4. Involvement in team sports boosts the development interpersonal skills.

5. Exercise Improves the quantity and quality of sleep.

6. Academic performance is higher in kids who engage in regular physical activity compared to their sedentary counterparts.

7.  Better self esteem has been noted in kids who exercise compared to sedentary individuals in the same age groups 

8. Management and prevention of various health conditions with either a childhood or adult onset (e.g., heart disease, diabetes, obesity, hypertension) and promotes health.

9. Improved overall mood and emotional control. Decreased prevalence of anxiety and depression.

10. Enhanced motor development, motor control, coordination, balance, agility and injury prevention 

Gardening Tips To Avoid Aches And Pains

Long days of glorious sunshine make us yearn to get outdoors and into the garden. The problem is that common gardening activity, such as digging, planting, weeding, mulching, and raking can cause stress and strain on muscles and joints. Here are a few suggestions that might help restore the joy of gardening and prevent injuries:

· Warm up by walking briskly for 10 minutes.

· Avoid staying in one position too long to avoid stiffness or cramping.

· Use proper body mechanics when you pick something up or pull on something, such as a weed; Bend your knees, tighten your abdominals, and keep your back straight as you lift or pull things. Avoid twisting your spine or knees when moving things to the side; instead, move your feet or pivot on your toes to turn your full body as one unit.

· Minimize the amount of bending and twisting you do through any joint. For instance, keep your wrist straight and use your shoulder muscles to pull and lift rather than bending your wrists backwards when pulling things.

· Be in tune with your body and respect your pain. If you feel achiness in any body part, try taking a break to stretch in the opposite direction. For example, if you’ve been bending forward and your lower back aches, slowly stand up and gently lean backwards a few times.

· Use appropriate tools and equipment. Consider what you need to improve your grip, to minimize carrying, and to avoid bending and reaching. Long handled tools, kneeling benches, carts on wheels, enlarging the grip on the handles, ratchet pruners, and lever handles on faucets are
all worth some consideration. Also, use a garden cart or wheelbarrow to avoid injury with lifting/carrying. Be sure to keep your core engaged and a straight back when using the wheelbarrow.

· If you already have a condition such as arthritis, it is advised that you prioritize and plan your garden. Figure out what is really important to you and what can be eliminated or delegated to someone else. Could you use automatic sprinklers? Would it help to have raised flowerbeds to minimize bending? Hoe weeds instead of pulling them if your hands hurt.

· Pace yourself. Plan to rest for 10 minutes every hour. Take a rest before you get tired. Use a timer if necessary. It’s so easy for time to fly by without knowing you’ve been gardening for longer than you should!

For similar tips and tricks, follow our facebook page Physiotherapy Delivered and Instagram @physiodelivered

To Squat or Not to Squat

Every once in a while, I’ll get a patient with a history of knee pain who has been advised by someone to not squat. This always takes me by surprise because to squat is natural and functional!Think of these three movements:

•Getting in/out of a chair
•Getting in/out of a car
•Getting on/off a toilet

 

All of these movements require a squat to varying degrees so to avoid squatting is nearly impossible on a daily basis! Squatting (when done correctly) helps keep the load off the spine and lowers risk of injury. This is why I always work on achieving a good squat with my patients who have a history of knee, hip, ankle and back pain.

If you’re not comfortable with squatting or experience pain, here are some variations on a squat to make them easier of harder:

1. Shallow squats holding on to a counter

2. Chair squats using the arm rest for support

3. Chair squats without arm rest support

4. Air squats

5. Weighted Squats

Common mistakes with squats:

1. Not sticking the bum out far enough, which causes the knees to go past the toes and the the heels to lift up

2. Not keeping your torso upright and hinging too much at the hips. Always try to keep your shoulders facing forward instead of the ground.

3. Letting your knees turn inwards or “buckle”.

By Spruha Vaishnav, PT