The Holidays, Stress & How Chiropractic Care can help

The Holidays, Stress & How Chiropractic Care can help

The holidays are here! 

That means homes filled with family and friends, lots of food, laughter, and stress!  Stress during the holidays can come on for different reasons, maybe you have family coming to spend the holiday at your house.  You may or may not get along well with the family that are coming, this could cause stress. Stress can produce tension, which in turn could cause a misalignment of the spine.  When we get "stressed" the tight muscles can pull on the spinal bones causing improper nerve function leading to pain, loss of motion and sometimes muscle spasms.  Help reduce the pain of stress by getting a regular adjustment during the holiday season. Teachout Chiropractic & Wellness Center will help keep your spine aligned so you feel better all around.

Are you traveling to family?

You could be driving or flying, both can cause pain in your back.  Sitting too long in a car or airplane will cause stiffness.  Stiffness can be helped with both chiropractic care and massage.  Try getting adjusted before you leave for your travel destination, this will help keep your back feeling great.  Also, when traveling make sure to get up and stretch every two(2) hours minimum to help keep you flexible.  If this is going to be difficult to do, take a tennis ball with you and try putting it behind you as you start to feel your muscles tighten up. This will help self-massage those muscles to keep you flexible.  Make sure to have your appointment scheduled for your return home with Dr. Eric Teachout or Dr. Brian Malloy to get you back in alignment, and to keep you feeling great!

Shopping

Shopping is probably the biggest cause of stress during the holidays.  Finding the right gift for that special person, or the difficult parent.  Fighting the crowds to get your kids, nephews, and nieces those special gifts; what a headache this can be!  Stress and tension headaches are no fun.  How can a chiropractor help with this type of headache? A chiropractic doctor can align the neck and do some muscle work to help release that tension. The misalignment is caused when the muscles are tight and push or pull the vertebra out of place. When the misalignment is corrected with a chiropracitc doctor it not only will help relieve the headache but will also relieve some of that tension and tight muscles.  Give Teachout Chiropractic & Wellness Center a call and treat yourself with not only an adjustment, but a little bit of muscle work too!

Let's talk about the low back.

What does the low back have to do with the holidays?  Maybe you take the family to pick out and cut a fresh Christmas Tree.  What about climbing up and down a ladder putting out those decorations, pulling the decorations out of the attic. The lifting, bending, and twisting of these things can strain your low back.  Help avoid that strain and possibility of "throwing out" your back by getting adjusted by Dr. Eric Teachout or Dr. Brain Malloy before you start.  Make sure to using proper lifting techniques when getting those boxes or totes down.

What is the proper technique for lifting?

  • Keep your head in a straight line with your spine.
  • Keep your back straight
  • Bend your knees, not your waist!  This helps keep your center of balance and lets your legs do the lifting.  When you bend at the waist it puts unnecessary stress on the low back and effects both the muscles and the spine.
  • When squatting make sure to keep your feet shoulder width apart.
  • Keep the object as close to your body as possible and gradually straighten into a standing position.
  • Avoid twisting.  Twisting can stress your spine and lead to serious injury.  Keep your feet, knees and torso all pointing in the same direction.
  • Call for help if the box or tote is heavy.  Lifting a heavy object without help can cause you to hyper-extend your low back.

Have an upset stomach?

Think about all that food you are eating and the affect it has on your body.  During the holidays it is normal for your "normal diet" to change.  These changes can cause you to have indigestion, or heart burn, maybe even constipation or diarrhea.  Many of these symptoms can be helped with chiropracitc care.  Your stomach must digest these new foods, and this causes the body to work harder than normal by changing the way it works.  These changes can go smoother when the body is in proper alignment.  Your chiropractic adjustment will help keep your digestive system regulated and things moving smoothly.  Keep in mind that after the holiday season is over it's a great time for a good detox.  Teachout Chiropractic & Wellness Center can help you chose the right detox program that best fits your needs.

New Years Resolution?

It seems that a popular New Years Resolution is to start a new exercise program, or to get on a new weight loss program.  We at Teachout Chiropractic & Wellness Center can help you with that also.  Our Fat Loss Program will take those unwanted pounds of fat off and we will teach you how to keep them off!  We will help guide you towards the best exercise program for you.  You will have your own fat loss coach throughtout the entire process of losing weight.  Exercise is a great way to help relieve stress. When you exercise, your body produces endorphins in your brain, and these act as natural pain killers. By exercising to reduce stress it also helps you sleep better at night, getting a good night's sleep is important in reducing stress.  If for some reason you are physically unable to exercise, try meditation, or just stretching.  Dr. Eric Teachout can help with stretching exercises as well as balance exercises, he is a certified posture exercise professional.  Why not get started with your exercise program before New Years?

What are you waiting for?  Give Teachout Chiropractic & Wellness Center a call today and get started on reducing your stress this holiday season!