chronic low back pain and parkinson’s disease: is there a link?
CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN AND PARKINSON’S DISEASEWHAT ARE THE COMMON DENOMINATORS? Far too many people believe that it’s JUST PLAIN DUMB LUCK OR BLIND CHANCE that leads to whatever health issue they happen to be dealing with. This is generally true whether it’s CANCER, DIABETES, CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN, or just about anything else you […]
low back pain and the differences between muscle and fascia in nociception
Muscle or Fascia Which is Responsible for Your Pain? When we look at the THREE TYPES OF PAIN, Type I (simple nociception) is not only the most common, but is also the type that people have the best chance of recovering from (see link). Not to be confused with PROPRIOCEPTION (extremely important in fascia, and […]
mindfulness -vs- fascia: vox takes on pain
IS MINDFULNESS REALLY THE ANSWER TO MOST CHRONIC HEALTH ISSUES AND PAIN? Brian Resnick recently wrote an article for Vox called 100 Million Americans Have Chronic Pain. Very Few Use One of the Best Tools to Treat it, which contains a variety of information about CHRONIC PAIN in general (BTW, his 100 million stat is […]
m.e.d. (minimal effective dose) as related to chronic neck pain and restricted cervical fascia
What is “Minimal Effective Dose” and How Can You Use it to Help Solve Your Chronic Pain? We live in a society where if a little is good, more must be better. And if more is better, pile it on, with every area of life proving this out time and time again. This is the […]
incredible chronic pain testimonial
CHRONIC PAIN IN THE SPINE: VIDEO TESTIMONIALPAIN RELIEF TWO DECADES AFTER A FIVE ROLL-OVER CAR CRASH When Gretchen says that back in 1994 she was involved in a MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT, it’s quite possibly the understatement of the year (it was a five roll-over crash that killed the vehicle’s other occupant). After being hospitalized with […]
fascia, inflammation, fibrosis, and chronic pain / chronic disease
FASCIA, INFLAMMATION, FIBROSIS, AND CHRONIC PAIN / CHRONIC DISEASE Doc, I have a bone to pick with you and the rest of the medical profession: I am real tired of hearing about pain. I have no pain. I have loss of functionality without pain. I am also real tired of hearing about injury, There is […]
case study: her problems started after a “minor” plastic surgery
PLASTIC SURGERY STARTS A DOWNHILL SPIRAL Every once and awhile, if I think a significant number of people might benefit, I take an email and turn it into a CASE STUDY. This one comes from “Sue” (name changed to protect her identity). Be aware that I do not have time to respond to most emails […]
the very latest research on whiplash & chronic neck pain
CHRONIC NECK PAIN: WHAT DOES THE LATEST SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE SAY? The statistics on WHIPLASH are frightening. As you’ll see again today, study after study show that 50% of those injured in a whiplash-type accident end up with chronic WAD — Whiplash Associated Disorders — pain and dysfunction that never completely go away. The majority of […]
practical pain management and the functional medicine matrix
FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE FOR CHRONIC PAIN? WHY NOT? “Until a magic medication comes along to stabilize β-cell function or, better yet, to reverse β-cell dysfunction, it will remain difficult to improve diabetes outcomes very much…” From Diabetes Care (How Our Current Medical Care System Fails People With Diabetes). This is something I’ve shown you over and over […]
fascia and biomechanics: making or breaking your chronic pain and chronic illness
HOW IMPORTANT IS FASCIA AND BIOMECHANICS? FASCIA IS EVERYTHING! According to a popular online dictionary, Biomechanics is defined as “the study of the structure and function of the mechanical aspects of biological systems, at any level from whole organisms to organs, cells and cell organelles, using principles of mechanics and physics.” In other words, everything […]
pre-surgical and post-surgical rules for preventing your chances of developing scar tissue, fibrosis, adhesions, and chronic pain
Having a Surgery? Go into it as Uninflamed as Possible On occasion I take a “can-you-help-me-with-this-particular-problem” email, and turn it into a CASE STUDY so that everyone can benefit. This latest edition comes to you from Josh B in response to a popular post I wrote called POST-SURGICAL ADHESIONS: ABDOMINAL WALL -VS- ABDOMINAL CAVITY. Be aware that […]
inflammation and fascia: what does inflammation do to connective tissues?
INFLAMMATION’S RELATIONSHIP TO CONNECTIVE TISSUES LIGAMENTS, TENDONS, AND FASCIA In order to understand today’s post, you must understand two simple concepts; inflammation and connective tissue. Connective Tissues are just that — tissues that physically connect various parts of you to other parts of you (FASCIA is a great example of this). Besides fascia, which is […]
another case history involving chronic pain and chronic illness
POTENTIAL HELP FOR A SUFFERING AUSTRALIAN Hello folks, Sometimes I share letters I get from my readers, along with some hints that might be helpful in solving their problems or at the very least, improving their pain and dysfunction (HERE is a list of previous case studies). While many of these cases are brutal, this […]
head injuries screw people up in ways previously never imagined
STRUGGLING WITH CHRONIC HEALTH ISSUES? HAVE YOU HAD HEAD INJURIES OR WHIPLASH? “We report that TBI, a common injury in sport, military, and domestic environments, alters the fundamental aspects of gene regulation, which could explain mechanisms by which the TBI pathology can divert into other brain disorders. TBI affected the network organization and the epigenetic […]
What Exactly Are Fascial Adhesions and Why It Is So Important to Do Whatever Is Needed to Break Them?
Fascial Adhesions: Deal With Them or They Will Deal With You! Inflammation presents a conundrum to friction-free fascia. On one hand it’s critical for normal healing processes and should be harnessed. But on the other, if there is too much inflammation, rest assured there will be problems — lots of problems (HERE). Furthermore, it’s critical […]
fascial adhesions are a chief culprit in numerous chronic pain syndromes caused by cutaneous nerve entrapments
FASCIAL ADHESIONS, CHRONIC PAIN, AND CUTANEOUS NERVE ENTRAPMENTS: MORE COMMON THAN YOU EVER DREAMED! I’ve talked at length here about the way that SCAR TISSUE (the FIBROSIS that in essence causes MICROSCOPICALLY ADHESED FASCIA) is not only a major cause of CHRONIC PAIN, but that said tissue has the potential to be as much as […]
can adhesions in the thoracolumbar fascia drive sciatica? how common are entrapments of the superior cluneal nerve?
THORACOLUMBAR-DRIVEN LEG PAIN / SCIATICA: IS IT A REAL THING? LET’S ASK THE SUPERIOR CLUNEAL NERVE Almost two decades ago I realized that low back pain was often times the result of problems in the Thoracolumbar Fascia (HERE, HERE and HERE). Not long after, I learned that as much as a third or more of […]
adhesions of the thoracolumbar fascia: 23 years of chronic back pain solved in one visit
ADESIONS OF THE THORACOLUMBAR FASCIA: TWENTY THREE YEARS OF CHRONIC BACK PAIN SOLVED IN A SINGLE VISIT! Ashley’s case reminded me of a person that I treated several years ago who had dealt with years of CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN after falling out of a second story window onto a PVC drain pipe as a […]
is whiplash a neck injury, a fascia injury, a brain injury, or all of the above?
HOW THE PAIN AND DYSFUNCTION OF THE WHIPLASH-INJURED NECK AFFECTS THE BRAIN An article by Julie Beck in a 2016 issue of The Atlantic (Chronic Whiplash is a Medical Mystery) was quoting professor of medicine, Dr. Robert Ferrari as she said… “That people can experience neck, […]
chiropractic maintenance adjustments, restricted fascia, chronic inflammation, and chronic pain
What are “Chiropractic Maintenance” Adjustments and Why Might There Be a Better Way? Because of THIS RECENT POST, I received an email from an unnamed chiro accusing me of being a, “pain-based and unprincipled” chiropractor. In his mind, the only way to deal with chronic underlying issues that patients (i.e. everyone) have is to see […]