Are you worried about making it through the holidays because of pain? Are you dreading the hours of cooking and serving knowing that you'll be 50 but feeling 80? Here are the top 3 things you can do to start healing today so you can face the holidays without fear or anxiety over how you'll be feeling afterwards.
#1 Know Pain, Know Gain
Pain is your body's alarm system going off. It can go off for several reasons. One of the main reasons that pain happens, especially when you have been dealing with it for a while, is that your body's alarm system is on high alert. It could be that you used to be able to sit in a car for hours but now are suffering after 30 minutes(or less), or that you can't put something in the cupboard without agonizing shoulder pain, or that even bending over and getting something out of the oven or dishwasher is misery. What we now understand about pain, is that it can happen with or without changes that can be found on an MRI or X-Ray(and many don't need either to start treating or learning how to treat themselves). Learn more about that here. We also know that we can do things like sitting, which can't injure us, but still have pain. Want to learn more about how to know if your alarm system is extra sensitive and a main cause for your pain and limitation? Learn more here.
#2. Start trying to make time today for exercise
I know that for many of us, the thought of going to the gym is intimidating to say the least. I'm not talking about that...in fact, with as little as 8 minutes of getting your heart rate up through walking, you can begin to reduce pain levels naturally. For those suffering for years of chronic pain, try even just 4 minutes, it may be one to two trips up and down the driveway then rest. Try doing that for 2-3 times per day. Wondering if it is safe to exercise, learn more here.
#3. Plan ahead and Pace Yourself
I don't know about you, but in addition to watching my 4 girls open presents, my other job Christmas morning is making the 6 dishes we committed ourselves to before we though about how long it would take to make them. More often than not, many people who have difficulty standing in a kitchen for more than 15 minutes because of their back, knees, or hip find themselves for hours on end cooking, cleaning, and trying to keep a happy face on knowing that they are in for hours if not days of suffering through New Year's and beyond. So, this Christmas (or Hanukkah) plan ahead. Those yeast rolls you are making by hand do great out of the freezer or fridge and can be done a week ahead of time and still taste great(the same goes for most cookie recipes). Keep your time for exercise, even if it is just 10 minutes of walking, strengthening, or stretching. Just that is good enough for knocking pain down by giving that stress an outlet. Learn more strategies here.
Need Results faster than that? Want to know what the next step is to getting back to doing what you love without shots, surgery, or dangerous painkillers? Click here or the FREE CONSULTATION button at the top of this page to schedule your absolutely free Total Body Diagnostic Test. This is your chance to get your questions answered about what you are dealing with by a Doctor of Physical Therapy as well as learning the true causes of your pain through a thorough movement exam, and get a treatment diagnosis including what you need to do to beat your pain and limitation.
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