Blind Dog Helps Others See Better Days!

4 Aug

Sometimes real life is better than any Hollywood movie.  This might be one of those moments…

He was a nameless dog, born without eyes, serving a life sentence in a terrible puppy mill.  Who knows how much longer this particular golden retriever would have suffered — or even been allowed to live — if it wasn’t for one special person.

Enter Joanne George.

  • Certified with the Certification Council for Pet Dog Trainers in 2003
  • Professional member of the Canadian Association of Professional Pet Dog Trainers
  • Therapy Dog Evaluator for St. John Ambulance
  • Training professionally for over 15 years
  • Veterinary Assistant for over 20 years
  • Educated in Canine Behavior

Joanne rescued the golden retriever and named him Smiley.  She quickly noticed something was very wrong with her new dog.  Smiley was very introverted and scared, which wouldn’t be unexpected for a dog in his situation, but there was more…

Smiley was born without eyes, yet his eyelids were open and this appeared to be causing him a great deal of pain.  Joanne arranged for a veterinarian to help close Smiley’s eyelids.

As soon as this happened, Smiley’s pain subsided and he started to come around.

Joanne paired Smiley with a deaf Great Dane named Tyler.  Tyler is high energy, and the two hit it off.  Tyler immediately raised Smiley’s energy and spirits.

“Tyler was so bouncy and crazy and happy-go-lucky and [Smiley] turned into the same dog,” George told ABC News.  “He came out from underneath the tables where he was always hiding.”

As soon as Smiley started to interact with people, his shyness melted away.  Not only did he tolerate being around them, but he became very friendly, even with strangers he’d just met. Joanne spotted a gift in Smiley and started taking him to hospitals and schools to visit people who needed some cheering up.

There was one patient in a nursing home named Teddy whom no one visited and hadn’t been known to speak during his stay.  The staff at the nursing home said they had never even saw him smile.  That was, of course, until Smiley came along.  Joanne recalls, “(Teddy) smiled and laughed when Smiley got into his vision.  It was so touching to see we had made a difference… a big difference in this man’s life.”

The therapy work Smiley does is quite amazing, especially with children. Joanne adds, “It’s very touching when they see how he was born different and it’s ok to be different and you can still overcome things.  Their confidence level goes right up.”

Smiley’s biggest message is that whoever you are and whatever circumstances or situations you are in, you can always overcome them.  You can always be happy.  You can always smile.

Is There a Secret to Success and Happiness?

3 Aug

Webster’s Dictionary defines a secret as something kept hidden from others or something that is known to only a few people.

While real secrets probably exist, most of the “secrets” for success and happiness come from knowledge that is more common than we think.  In reality, we just choose to ignore or not act on such knowledge, as demonstrated in the fable called The Lion and the Mouse…

A lion was awakened from sleep by a mouse running over his face.  Rising up angrily, he caught him and was about to kill him, when the Mouse piteously entreated, saying:  “If you would only spare my life, I would be sure to repay your kindness.”  The Lion laughed and let him go.  It happened shortly after this that the Lion was caught by some hunters, who bound him by strong ropes to the ground.  The Mouse, recognizing his roar, came and gnawed the rope with his teeth and set him free, exclaiming: “You ridiculed the idea of my ever being able to help you, expecting to receive from me any repayment of your favor; now you know that it is possible for even a Mouse to confer benefits on a Lion.”

The moral of this story is:  No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.

Pretty simple, right?  One can call this a “secret to success and happiness.”  Doing acts of kindness will not only enrich other’s lives, but they will also enrich yours.

Let’s be honest… Everyone already knows that.  YOU already know that.  So, how is it a “secret” if everyone already knows it?

You see, there is a big difference between not knowing about something versus choosing not to do something about it.  If we are honest with ourselves, we know what the right thing to do is most of the time.  We just choose not to because it is too hard or we are too lazy or whatever the reason may be.

So, maybe the definition of a “secret” should be “the right thing that most people choose not to do.”

Think about it.  How many random acts of kindness have you done today in which you cannot see any immediate personal gain?  This week?  This month?  This year?

For most people, the answer to that question is a sobering realization.

It is never too late to start.  It is never too late to be the lion.  Or the mouse.

Stop reading this and do a random act of kindness in the next five minutes. Make up your mind you are going to do one every day for the next week and see what happens in your life.

You won’t be disappointed.

Sincerely,
Dr. Binder

Can Stress Contribute to Your Back and Neck Pain?

30 Jul

In a study that looked at stress and how people who seek chiropractic care perceive it, researchers wrote that psychosocial stress, “…pervades modern life and is known to have an impact on health. Pain, especially chronic back pain, is influenced by stress.” Here, ten different chiropractic clinics reported results tallied from 138 patients who were given questionnaires about stress and its association with their current condition.

Of interest, more than 30% categorized themselves as being “moderately to severely stressed,” and over 50% felt that stress had a moderate or greater effect on their presenting complaint. Further, about 71% of the patients felt that a stress management approach would be useful to help them cope and 44% were interested in taking a “self-development program to enhance their stress management skills.”

The study concluded that: 1) patient perceptions are known to be important in management approaches and treatment outcomes; 2) in this study, about 1/3 of patients presenting perceived themselves as being moderately or severely stressed; and 3) interventions that reduce stress or the patient’s perception of being stressed may be an important and valid “intervention” in patient management.

So, how do doctors of chiropractic do this? First is pain management, which is often at the core of a current heightened stress level, as it can push the stress level “over the edge.” But just managing pain doesn’t always work by itself, and doctors of chiropractic will often intervene with nutritional recommendations such as educating the patient about an “anti-inflammatory diet,” and the use of vitamin and/or herbal approaches specific to stress management, including specific nutritional approaches to balancing neurotransmitter levels. Other approaches may include the use of various calming techniques that can be employed at times when patients are “stressed” and can be used during the day during these “stressful moments.”

There are even “calming apps” to help de-stress and clear the mind available for your smartphone! Just as there are apps to measure your steps, calories, or METS burned during the day, these apps are specific for calming and reducing stress! Here are the names of a few that are FREE for you to investigate and consider (Web, Android, or iOS): MindMeister, Breath2Relax, White Noise Lite, Calm, Diaro, Headspace, Relax, Guided Meditations, and more. Give one of these a try as it is clear we all focus far too little on stress management!

We realize you have a choice in whom you consider for your health care provision and we sincerely appreciate your trust in choosing our service for those needs.  If you, a friend, or family member requires care, we would be honored to render our services.

Whiplash – “Will This Ever Get Better?”

29 Jul

Whiplash (or WAD – whiplash associated disorders) can be defined by a sudden movement of the head and neck beyond its normal range of motion resulting in pain and stiffness and less often, numbness and tingling in the arms and hands. Prognosis is a term associated with a predicted outcome of a condition with the passage of time, either with or without treatment. A condition is considered “stable” when symptoms aren’t changing and are not likely to change significantly over the next several months to a year. In general, recovery may depend on the severity of the injury. Usually, minor whiplash injuries will resolve completely within approximately one to two weeks, moderate whiplash injuries within approximately four to eight weeks, and severe whiplash may or may not completely “resolve.” Rather, severe whiplash may result in a chronic condition which may lead to a permanent reduction or a complete loss of certain functions. There are “risk factors” that can result in either a prolonged recovery or just a partial recovery, regardless of the degree of injury which makes the process of prognosing whiplash cases challenging. Let’s take a closer look!

There have been many published studies that have looked at the long-term prognosis of whiplash injuries using different approaches. For example, one study reported that reduced cervical range of motion was able to predict those less likely to fully recover after one year.

Another study broke down acute whiplash patients into seven risk levels using one-year work disability (total number of days missed from work) as the main outcome measure. The age of injured subjects ranged from 18-70 years and injuries varied between WAD 1 to 3 (WAD 1 = Pain but no loss of motion, primarily soreness; WAD 2: Loss of motion and muscle tightness/pain; WAD 3: Same as WAD 2 but WITH neurological problems like numbness &/or weakness in the arms due to nerve injury). The study evaluated a total of 483 women and 250 men within ten days of their motor vehicle collision (MVC). At the end of one year, a total of 605 participants completed the study and were given a “RISK SCORE” which included: a) initial neck pain/headache intensity; b) the number of non-painful complaints; and c) active cervical range of motion. When researchers compared the patients’ RISK SCORE at the one-year mark to their work disability (number of sick days), they found a direct correlation between lower scores and lower work disability and higher scores and greater work disability. They concluded that this could be a valuable tool to assess a patient’s ability to return to work following WAD injuries.

It’s worth noting that many studies have found no association between the amount of damage to the vehicle and the patient’s risk for a poor outcome.

We realize you have a choice in whom you consider for your health care provision and we sincerely appreciate your trust in choosing our service for those needs.  If you, a friend, or family member requires care for Whiplash, we would be honored to render our services.

Neck Pain – The MOST Important Exercises (Part 2)

27 Jul

As stated last month, exercises that focus on improving posture, flexibility, strength, and coordination are important for creating a well-rounded cervical rehabilitation program. Our discussion continues this month with stretching and strengthening exercises.

STRETCHING: Since our neck muscles have to hold up our 12 pound (~5.5 kg) head, it’s no wonder why our neck muscles seem to be tight almost all the time. Here are two ways to stretch the neck: 1) You can simply drop the chin to the chest, look at the ceiling, try to touch your ear to your shoulder (without shoulder shrugging) on both sides, and rotate the head left to right and vice versa (six directions). 2) You can use gentle pressure with your hand and assist in the active stretch by gently pulling into the six directions described in #1 by applying “over-pressure” at the end-range of motion (staying within “reasonable pain boundaries”).

STRENGTHENING: Most people have a forward head carriage, meaning their head normally rests in front of their shoulders. The further forward the head sits, the greater the load on the muscles in the back of the neck and upper back to hold it up. This position promotes a negative spiral or “vicious cycle” that can lead to many complaints including (but not limited to) neck pain, headaches, balance disturbances, and in the long-term, osteoarthritis. There are two important groups of muscles that require strengthening: the deep neck flexors and deep neck extensors.

1)    The deep neck flexors are muscles located directly on the front of the cervical spine and are described as being “involuntary” or unable to be voluntarily contracted. Hence, we have to “trick” the voluntary outer “extrinsic” (stronger) muscles into NOT WORKING so the deep, intrinsic ones will contract. You can do this by flexing your chin to the chest and pushing your neck (not head) back over your shoulders into resistance caused a towel wrapped around the back of the neck. If you feel your chin raise towards the ceiling, you’re doing it WRONG! Keep the chin tucked as close to the chest as possible as you push your neck (not your head) backwards. If you’re doing it correctly, your chest should raise towards the ceiling as you push your chin down and neck back. Try it!

2)    The deep neck extensors are strengthened in a very similar way EXCEPT here you DO push the back of HEAD back into your towel while keeping your chin tucked tightly into your chest. Do three reps, holding each for three to five seconds and switch between the two for two to three sets.

We will finish this discussion next month with important coordination exercises!

We realize you have a choice in whom you consider for your health care provision and we sincerely appreciate your trust in choosing our service for those needs.  If you, a friend, or family member requires care for neck pain or headaches, we would be honored to render our services.

Fibromyalgia – “How Do I Know I Have It?”

23 Jul

Fibromyalgia (FM) is a condition where widespread generalized pain limits a person’s ability to function, sometimes to the point of complete disability. This month, we’ll look at identfying markers that may be used to determine whether a patient has FM or not.

Chronic pain that arises from the muscles and joints affects nearly 20% of the adult population, with the highest percentages found among females and those in lower income brackets. It is very challenging to determine “the cause” of chronic pain, probably because it is influenced by and interacts with various physical, emotional, psychological, and social factors. Several studies have reportedly shown that the levels of certain neurotransmitters (chemicals that help our nerves transmit information) including serotonin, glutamate, lactate, and pyruvate are elevated in patients with localized chronic myalgias (like FM) and therefore may be potential biomarkers for various conditions causing chronic pain. Unfortunately, elevations in these potential markers are not specific or unique to FM.

However, researchers have identified muscle alterations in in fibromyalgia / chronic widespread pain patients. More studies are needed to confirm these findings before they have the potential for use as a diagnostic criteria for FM.

For the time being, in order to establish a diagnosis of FM, we must rely on the following:

1)             The presence of widespread pain by using the “Widespread Pain Index” or WPI.

2)             Determining the severity of the symptoms by using the “Symptom Severity Score” or SS score of which there are two parts:

  •  Scoring fatigue, waking unrefreshed, and cognitive symptoms using a 0-3 scale, 3 representing the most severe or disturbing of these daily functions.
  • Adding up additional symptoms associated with FM, resulting in a 0-3 range depending on the number of the “other symptoms.”

Using the WPI and the SS scores, FM can be identified if one of the following two situations has been presend for three or more months:

WPI score > 7 and SS score > 5
WPI score between 3 and 6 and SS score > 9
If you, a friend or family member requires care for Fibromyalgia, we sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence shown by choosing our services!

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