Tag Archive for: Portsmouth New Hampshire

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3 Reasons You Need PT After Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery

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Minimally invasive spine surgery (MISS) started to take off in the 1990’s and has since become far more common for spinal conditions such as degenerative disc disease, herniated discs, spinal stenosis, scoliosis, spinal infections, spondylolisthesis, compression fractures, and spinal tumors.

When you absolutely must have spine surgery (more on that later) – MISS is a far better alternative to open-spine surgery.

You can expect less anesthesia, less blood loss during surgery, reduced risk of infection, less pain after surgery, less pain medication needed, smaller scars, shorter hospital stays, faster recovery time, and quicker return to daily activities and work.

But don’t confuse the term “minimally invasive” with minimal risk.

With MISS – you’re still at risk for many of the same consequences of open-spine surgery should things go wrong. Therefore, you want to make sure you really need spine surgery before you go “under the knife” – even if it’s a tiny one.

Risks of MISS include bad reactions to anesthesia, pneumonia after surgery, blood clots in your legs that could travel to your lungs, infection (although this is significantly minimized with MISS), blood loss during surgery requiring a transfusion, injury to the nerves of your spinal cord that could result in more pain (or even paralysis) than you went in with, and damage to surrounding tissues.

While rare, these are very real risks and they do happen. Risks like this don’t occur with conservative treatment – such as specialized physical therapy.

It’s why I’m a huge advocate of folks not undergoing surgery until all conservative approaches have been exhausted – and/or – you’ve got what we call a progressive neurological deficit occurring (such as quick deterioration in your muscle strength, ability to walk, or ability to control your bowel/bladder).

All that being said – assuming you really do need surgery and will benefit from MISS – you still need physical therapy.

I’m amazed at how many surgeons no longer prescribe rehab after a minimally invasive procedure. Just because recovery time is reduced – doesn’t mean you don’t need a specialist to help you recover properly.

Here are 3 reasons you need PT after minimally invasive spine surgery:

1. Proper scar management

Minimally invasive procedures already do a great job of reducing scar formation because the incisions are smaller and less invasive, but there is still an incision. And the incision with MISS is deep because you have to get to the layers of the spinal nerves, vertebrae, and discs. Because the scars are small, people mistakenly assume they will heal without issue. The truth is they might, but the odds of your scar healing properly are much better with professional scar management. Scar mobilization should begin about 2 wks after MISS.

A specially trained physical therapist will not only help you manage your scar healing, but teach you how to do it on your own as well. You’ll improve blood flow to the area of the incision (which promotes healing), increase soft tissue mobility, and help to reduce any swelling that might form in the area.

2. Restore pre-existing impairments

Odds are pretty good you didn’t end up with spontaneous MISS. You likely had a long road leading to your surgery. It’s critical you go back and address all of the problems that occurred prior to your procedure.

This includes everything from muscle weakness, to poor compensatory movement strategies your body adapted to deal with pain, immobility that occurred either because of pain or to protect you from pain, and residual numbness and/or radiating pain that is still in your legs. MISS might do a great job of quickly getting rid of your back pain, but something led to that pain to begin with.

The absence of pain does not equal the absence of a problem. Now is the perfect time to work with a specialist who will help you not only optimize your recovery from MISS – but make sure the problems/impairments that led you to the operating table to begin with don’t come back.

3. Restore deep core strength

Chronic pain tends to inhibit the ability for muscles to work properly. If you’ve been suffering from back pain for awhile – odds are pretty good your deep core strength is not where it needs to be.

Plus, good core strength is critical for the prevention of future back problems (yes – you can still get back pain after back surgery). Ideally, now that your minimally invasive procedure has either eliminated or significantly reduced your back pain, it’s more critical than ever to work with a specialist who can help you restore your deep core strength. They’ll know how to do it safely and effectively – to not only help you recover from your MISS faster – but keep the original problem from coming back – because it can.

If you’re considering any type of surgery – but especially back surgery – I always advocate getting a second opinion first – even if the procedure is minimally invasive. Eighty percent of the time – back problems can be resolved without surgical procedures.

CLICK HERE to get a second opinion from one of my specialists.

If you truly want to avoid surgery – and we think we can help you do that – we’ll let you know and get you scheduled with us as quickly as possible.

However, if you’ve recently undergone MISS, ask your doctor to refer you to physical therapy. Many surgeons won’t. It’s going to help you recover optimally and faster – and will set you up for the best possible future success when it comes to back problems.

Dr. Carrie Jose, Physical Therapist and Pilates expert, owns CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth and writes for Seacoast Media Group. To get in touch, or request a free copy of her guide to back pain, email her at info@cjphysicaltherapy.com or call 603-605-0402

Flip Flops

Are Flip flops Aggravating Your Plantar Fasciitis?

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Now that summer is here – it’s flip flop and sandal season for many. Unfortunately, this also typically results in a rise in foot pain and plantar fasciitis cases. One of my readers recently wrote to me and asked about this.

Here’s what Jennifer wanted to know:

“Now that I’m wearing flip flops again, I noticed that my plantar fasciitis is acting up. Is there anything I can do? Do I need to stop wearing flip flops?”

This is a great question Jennifer. In order to answer your question, let’s look at a few reasons why plantar fasciitis occurs in the first place. Ideally, if you can stay on top of your plantar fasciitis and/or prevent it all together, flip flops won’t even be an issue.

First – what is plantar fasciitis? 

It’s inflammation of your plantar fascia – the tissue that makes up the arch (bottom) of your foot. Your plantar fascial runs from the base of your heel, down the length of your foot, and into your toes. It’s responsible for both the mobility and stability of your foot so that you can propel yourself during walking and running. When you land on your foot your arch falls or flattens – this is called pronation. The response to this action is that your foot then stiffens or supinates – this is where your foot gets the power to push off. If any part of this mechanism is not functioning properly, your plantar fascia can become stressed and overworked – leading to inflammation/plantar fasciitis.

What causes your plantar fascia to become overworked?

Basically anything that impacts or disrupts the natural mechanics of your foot to pronate and supinate. Most commonly, poor mobility in either your ankle or 1st toe is the culprit – but even tight hips and weak glutes can cause problems all the way down to your foot. Anything that impacts the way your foot hits the ground has an opportunity to influence the level of force and energy transmitted through your foot and arch when you walk, which in turn impacts the natural pronation/supination mechanism. When disrupted, your plantar fascia will attempt to compensate for the pronation/supination mechanism. If this continues to happen, your plantar fascia eventually becomes angry and irritated – resulting in plantar fasciitis. 

Flip flops, or any other shoe for that matter, can either “protect” your arch, or cause it to overwork. Technically speaking, if your foot mechanics are sound and the arch of your foot is strong and mobile, footwear should have a negligible impact on your plantar fascia. Sadly, this is rarely the case for many people. Because of how much we sit, and how little we walk around barefoot, the bottoms of our feet are simply not as conditioned as they could be. This is really the problem – not so much what you put on your feet. If you’re accustomed to wearing supportive and cushioned shoes all the time, and then suddenly switch to flatter, less supportive flip flops in the summer, it’s going to be a shock to your foot. And if you’re prone to plantar fasciitis, it’s going to flare up during flip flop season.

The best thing you can do to prevent and treat plantar fasciitis is to not neglect your feet.

Performing consistent mobility exercises for your toes and ankles is key, as well as conditioning for the strength and stability of your arch. Balance exercises, toe exercises, and plyometric (jumping) exercises are all important, as well as making it a point to walk around without shoes as often as you can. If you’ve already got an ongoing problem with your foot, then I wouldn’t recommend haphazardly incorporating these exercises into your routine without guidance. Talk to an expert who can help you. Plantar fasciitis, when addressed correctly, is very treatable, and you could be back to enjoying flip flops in no time.

Are you local to Portsmouth, NH and looking for help with foot pan?

CLICK HERE to request a discovery call with our Client Success Team to see if we would be a good fit for you!

Dr. Carrie Jose, Physical Therapist and Pilates expert, owns CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth and writes for Seacoast Media Group. To get in touch, or request a free copy of one of her guides to back, neck, knee, or shoulder pain, email her at info@cjphysicaltherapy.com or call 603-605-0402

Physical Therapist

Piriformis syndrome and Sciatica – PT not working?

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I recently polled my readers regarding their most important concerns when it comes to their musculoskeletal health. In other words, what questions were they desperately seeking answers for related to back, neck, knee, hip, shoulder, or ankle pain?

Here is a great question I received from John:

“I’m getting Physical Therapy for lower back pain and sciatica that is said to be from my piriformis. My PT treatment has consisted of various exercises and some massage. Eight sessions in and no change at all. I’m still having pain when sitting or walking a distance. What now?  Do I need an Ultrasound or MRI to see if there is any damage or tear to my piriformis?”

First, John, I’m so sorry to hear you’re still having pain and not seeing any change after a good amount of physical therapy. When it comes to back pain and sciatica, it’s critical that you receive a thorough mechanical and movement examination by your PT before any treatment begins. This should involve repeated testing and retesting of movement and range of motion to determine:

1) where your pain is coming from and

2) what movement patterns trigger and relieve your symptoms

Without this first critical step, you risk missing the root cause of your pain and treating just symptoms. This type of testing is also essential to determine if physical therapy can even resolve your problem. If your physical therapist simply read the prescription from your doctor and dove into generalized treatment protocols – there’s your first problem right there – and it could explain why after 8 sessions you’re seeing no change in your condition.

In your case, it sounds like the massage is intended to treat your symptoms – perhaps your tight, tender piriformis that is believed to be causing your back pain and sciatica. This is perfectly appropriate, however, it’s important to incorporate targeted, therapeutic movement to make the most of what your manual therapy (massage) just did.

In other words, movement is the real “medicine”. Manual therapy is designed to enhance blood flow to and prepare your soft tissue (muscles and ligaments) to be better equipped to tolerate and perform the movement/exercise that is going to have a long-lasting effect.

If the massage and exercise are not done in a specific and targeted way – they aren’t going to have their intended effect. It’s possible this could be happening to you. If you’re not totally clear on what your exercise is for and what the intended effect is – chances are high your exercises haven’t been prescribed to you properly. If you suspect this to be the case, it’s worth your while to try for a different, perhaps more specialized physical therapist before you go jumping into diagnostic tests that could lead you down a rabbit hole of unnecessary procedures or surgery.

Now, let’s assume for a moment that you did receive targeted and high-quality physical therapy treatment and it’s simply not working. This does happen from time to time – but it should only be approximately 20% of the time for the majority of musculoskeletal problems such as back pain and sciatica. And in my opinion, it should be caught well before 8 sessions. In my experience, it takes about 5-6 (quality) PT sessions to figure out if a problem can be resolved with movement and natural means. If not, then a referral to another specialty is necessary.

Are you there yet? I can’t be certain.

But to answer your question about whether or not you need an MRI or Ultrasound… 

If quality, targeted physical therapy has been truly exhausted then yes – either of these diagnostic tests would be the next step in providing valuable information as to what more might be going on.

Ultrasound is a non-invasive diagnostic tool designed to visualize both organs and soft tissue. It could be a good option for examining your piriformis if you are certain that is where your problem is coming from. But piriformis syndrome only accounts for about 30% of all sciatica cases. And typically a tear in your piriformis will not cause pain to radiate down your leg. Most of the time, sciatica is caused by nerve impingement occuring in your lumbar spine (low back). If conservative treatment, like physical therapy, has been fully explored – an MRI could be helpful to see how badly a nerve is being pinched or irritated and whether or not a procedure or surgery is warranted. But in general, the research has shown time and time again that spine surgery is really only successful when you’ve got serious and progressive neurological deficits and symptoms.

In other words, you might have symptoms like foot drop, and your leg is getting weaker and numb by the minute. Otherwise, physical therapy – although it may be slower to work – has equal if not better results compared to surgery and it’s a lot safer.

The caveat, however, is you need to find a good physical therapist.

I hope this helps answer your question. Most importantly – don’t give up hope!

For the next few months I’ll be answering questions like these each week in my articles. If you’ve got your own questions regarding musculoskeletal aches or pains that you want answers for, reach out via the information below.

Local to Portsmouth and feeling frustrated with your current physical therapy treatment just like John?

Reach out – we’d be happy to provide a second opinion. CLICK HERE to request a Free Discovery call with one of my specialists.

Dr. Carrie Jose, Physical Therapist and Pilates expert, owns CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth and writes for Seacoast Media Group. To get in touch, or request a free copy of her guide to back pain, email her at info@cjphysicaltherapy.com or call 603-605-0402

Will a Cortisone Shot Help Your Nagging Shoulder Pain?

Will a Cortisone Shot Help Your Nagging Shoulder Pain?

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Nagging pain in your shoulder can be extremely annoying. But when it starts to interfere with things you love to do – you can’t help but wonder – is it time to get a cortisone shot? 

When you’ve got dull, nagging shoulder pain that just won’t go away, cortisone shots suddenly seem very attractive. They’re quick, easy, and seemingly harmless – right? Not so fast. Just because cortisone shots are extremely routine and popular – it doesn’t mean they are the best or right thing to do.

Cortisone shots are typically administered to reduce localized inflammation inside a joint or tendon. In shoulders, it’s very common to use this procedure to reduce pain from arthritis, bursitis, rotator cuff tendonitis, and even frozen shoulders.

When inflammation is confirmed to be the root source of your shoulder problem, and it’s not going away with medication, on its own, or with physical therapy – a cortisone shot may be the right course of action.

But what if inflammation is not the root source of your problem? What if inflammation is actually a secondary symptom?

This is where most of the confusion lies in the medical community. While it might not seem like a big deal (pain is pain, right?) – it’s a problem if you keep getting cortisone shots when you don’t actually need them.

Why?

Well overuse of cortisone shots can cause degeneration of your tendons and joint structures. So you only want to get one when you know: 1) it’s going to help and 2) if it’s necessary.

But how do you know? The key is in understanding the source of your pain. With chemical sources of pain, the source is inflammation and a cortisone shot is a good idea. But when it comes to mechanical pain, inflammation may exist but it’s not the source of your shoulder problem. In these cases, cortisone is either not helpful – or worse – it “works” but then masks your problem, sometimes for years.  

Let’s talk about the two sources of pain to help you understand.

“Chemical Pain”

Chemical pain is the result of your body’s natural inflammatory response to injury. It’s a complex chemical reaction that occurs after tissue damage that involves the releasing of chemicals from your blood and other cells to “flush out” the area and start the healing process.

A good example of this is when you fall and sprain something. The sprain causes temporary tissue damage so your body creates inflammation to heal it. Normally this process only lasts a few days, your pain subsides, and you’re back to normal in no time. But sometimes this inflammatory process lingers longer than it should.

For various reasons the accumulation of toxic chemicals sticks around and the result is constant irritation to the nerves and surrounding tissues. Constant, dull pain, even at rest, that tends to be very sensitive to any and all movement is often a tell-tale sign that you’re dealing with pain that is chemical in nature. In this case, a cortisone injection could be a good course of action for you.

“Mechanical Pain”

Mechanical pain does not need a cortisone shot and it won’t respond well to it. The hallmark sign of mechanical pain is that your pain will come and go based on certain activities, movements, or positions. It’s not constant and throbbing like with chemical pain. Eighty percent of all musculoskeletal problems – including shoulder pain – are mechanical in nature.

Now, the real problem is that whether or not your pain is mechanical, a cortisone shot often does take away your pain. Not only is this confusing – but many people question why they should even be concerned about this. Well – when the pain and inflammation you’re experiencing is secondary – which is often the case with mechanical pain – you never actually treat the true source of your pain when you “cover it up” with a cortisone shot.

For example, you might have an irritated rotator cuff tendon or arthritis that is exacerbated because of poor posture or immobility in your shoulder joint. If you inject cortisone into your tendon or joint, the pain will likely be relieved, but it will be temporary. It’s only a matter of time before your poor posture and movement habits cause irritation and pain again. This is the vicious cycle I see a lot of folks get themselves into. You risk never fixing the real problem, and irreversible damage to your tendon that might eventually need to be fixed surgically. 

Moral of this story… don’t rush to get a cortisone shot just because you’ve been told you have inflammation.

You must figure out the source of your inflammation first. Cortisone shots are not necessary if your pain is mechanical in nature, and might actually prolong your problem. If your pain comes and goes, or you have good days and bad days, this is a classic sign that your pain is likely coming from a mechanical source.

Your best course of action is to work with someone who understands and specializes in this. I’ve seen many cases where getting a cortisone shot provides a false sense of hope, and as a consequence, delays quality treatment that you should be getting instead. 

Are you local to Portsmouth, NH?

Request to speak to one of my specialists to see if we would be the right fit to help you get out of pain. CLICK HERE to request a Free Discovery with one of my specialists.

Dr. Carrie Jose, Physical Therapist and Pilates expert, owns CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth and writes for Seacoast Media Group. To get in touch email her at info@cjphysicaltherapy.com or call 603-605-0402

Neck Pain

Tech neck: What it is and How to Cure it

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Tech neck – also known as text neck – is a commonly used term to describe neck pain that results from overuse of various electronic devices. If you’re looking down at your cell phone or iPad too much, or sitting in front of your computer too long – and you feel pain in your neck – you are likely suffering from tech neck.

So what’s the big deal? Is this even a real syndrome?

I’ll be honest. I had my doubts at first. I’ve been a physical therapist for 20 years and when I first heard this term I thought it was a joke. But over the last 12-15 years I’ve seen more and more cases pop up and I can tell you with certainty that tech neck is, indeed, a real problem for people.

Tech neck – when allowed to go unaddressed – can result in headaches, tension into your upper shoulders, or even pain and tingling into your arms and hands.

The good news – it’s not only entirely possible to get rid of it – but you can learn how to prevent it all together.

So what can you do about tech neck? Here are three simple tips:

1. Be mindful of your posture

When you’re constantly looking down or hunching forward – it eventually wreaks havoc on your neck. Being mindful of your posture is not only the number one way to cure tech neck – but it’s the best way to prevent it.

The biggest problem with poor posture is that you don’t know it’s a problem until it’s too late. Postural problems take a lot of time to reveal themselves. The changes in your soft tissue and the wear and tear on your spinal joints that occur from being positioned poorly and repeatedly don’t happen overnight – and you rarely notice them when they are first happening.

Truth be told, “bad posture” on occasion is not bad for you and should not cause you any major problems. Poor posture all the time is where you get in trouble. That’s why simply being mindful of how you’re positioned when using your favorite electronic devices can go a long way.

2. Use headphones

Our spines crave movement but also alignment. But we don’t want alignment at the expense of other joints – namely – our shoulders. It’s not always comfortable to hold your phone or iPad in front of your face – which is what you need to do if you want to maintain optimal neck alignment when using your device. While great for your neck – this position can cause strain and tension in your upper shoulders.

For this reason I highly recommend using headphones. Especially wireless headphones. This allows you to keep your phone or iPad on your desk while freely sitting upright and talking. Headphones also allow you to use the speak to text feature quite easily so you don’t have to strain your thumbs or shoulders when talking to your friends, kids, or grandkids.

3. Interrupt your sitting and standing

Prolonged posture in any form is not great for you. Our bodies – especially our spines – crave movement. We hear a lot about the detrimental effects of sitting all the time – but standing all the time isn’t great either. When it comes to sitting, your lower back tends to hunch over time which forces your neck into that “forward head” posture when you’ve been sitting for more than 20 min or so. When you add an electronic device to the mix the effects are even worse.

Because of this – standing desks have become much more common over the past few years. But I see folks having problems from standing too long also. If you don’t have great core engagement, for example, which is important when you’re standing for prolonged periods, you might hold tension in your jaw or neck to compensate. This can create unwanted tension and stiffness in your neck muscles.

How do you combat all this?

Simply interrupt your position. Try not to stay sitting – or standing – longer than 30 min at one time. Your body – and especially your neck – will thank you.

Recognizing tech neck early is crucial and if you catch it in time – it’s very easy to cure on your own.

The problem is that it’s something that tends to creep up over time and not addressed until it’s too late. If you’re suffering from chronic headaches, or symptoms down your arms or into your hands – the tips I’ve given you here may not be enough to address the problem.

Don’t worry – you can still get help with these symptoms naturally and without pills and procedures – you will likely need some expert help.

Talk to someone who understands posture and the importance of healthy movement in your spine – they are the best people to help you cure and prevent tech neck.

Local to Portsmouth, NH?

Consider talking to one of our specialists free. They’ll let you know if you’re a good fit for what we do and get you on our schedule as quickly as possible! CLICK HERE to request a free Discovery Call with someone from my client success team.

Carrie Jose, Physical Therapist and Pilates expert, owns CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth, NH.  To get a free copy of her guide to taking care of back pain – click here.

Shoulder Pain

The Number One Reason your Shoulder Pain isn’t Going Away

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Statistics show that shoulder pain impacts approximately 15.4% of men and 24.9% of women. The prevalence of shoulder pain also tends to increase and become more severe as we age, especially for folks in their 50’s.

There are many reasons why we get shoulder pain. It’s the most mobile joint in your body, making it more susceptible to injury. But why – for some – does it seem to just linger and not go away?

The number one reason is mis-diagnosis. Here are a few examples of what that looks like.

  • Your MRI says you have a rotator cuff tear – so you get surgery – yet the pain comes back or doesn’t fully resolve like they told you it would.
  • You’re told you have impingement syndrome – so you get arthroscopic decompression surgery – no success.
  • Perhaps you’ve been told you have tendonitis in your shoulder and need a cortisone shot – followed by physical therapy. Nope, that didn’t work either.

When it comes to shoulder pain, it’s critical that you know for certain the pain in your shoulder is actually coming from your shoulder. If not, you’re going to waste your time fixing the wrong problem and are more likely to get an unnecessary procedure or surgery. 

So – if your shoulder pain isn’t coming from your shoulder – then where is it coming from? 

The most common culprit is your neck or mid-back. In fact, studies have shown that 40% of the time extremity pain (including shoulder pain) comes from a source in your spine – even when you don’t feel any pain in your spine. 

Here are a few key signs and considerations to help you figure out if your shoulder pain has been misdiagnosed:

1. Where is your pain located?

When your pain is coming from your shoulder, the pain will be localized to your shoulder joint. True shoulder pain is felt directly in front of your shoulder, on top of your shoulder, or in a more involved shoulder problem (like a rotator cuff injury) you might feel some achiness down the side of your arm. But it will never go below your elbow. If the pain goes past your elbow and into your forearm or hand, or radiates above your shoulder into your neck (the upper trap area), or if you feel pain deep inside of your shoulder blade into your mid-back – odds are pretty good that you’re dealing with a spine problem and not a shoulder problem. 

2. Do your symptoms involve numbness, tingling or burning?

These are signs of nerve compression or irritation. If that’s happening – it’s likely coming from your neck – and could be due to something like a bulging disc – or a restricted/faulty movement pattern that is irritating nerve roots in your neck. You might feel symptoms in your shoulder, shoulder blade, or even down into your arm. What’s particularly misleading is that it’s entirely possible to feel all these nerve symptoms in your shoulder or arm – and not actually feel anything in your neck. If you’ve got more pain in your arm than you do your shoulder, be sure to get your neck fully checked out. This is a huge area of mis-diagnosis for those suffering with long-standing shoulder pain.

3. How is your posture?

Poor posture can wreak havoc on your shoulder joint – without you even knowing it. If you’ve got a really curved middle back, combined with a “forward head” posture, you’re just setting your shoulder up for failure. Chronic, poor posture will crowd the tendons and structures in your shoulder joint over time. Every time you raise your arm overhead, or try to lift something with an outstretched arm – there will be implications if you’ve got poor posture.

The tricky part about this scenario is that you really will have pain in your shoulder. You’ll have wear and tear of your rotator cuff, and you’re more likely to have degeneration in your shoulder joint that might cause it to feel weak. The confusion here is that the shoulder “problems” are actually symptoms. The real cause is your posture and it’s either been missed or not addressed. The good news is that if you address your posture, most of these “wear and tear” shoulder problems will go away naturally, and you can avoid unnecessary procedures and surgery. This problem flies so under the radar that it’s overlooked all the time.

If you’ve got a true shoulder problem and it’s been diagnosed correctly – it should go away with proper treatment.

If that’s not happening, it’s worth considering that the true source of your shoulder pain has been missed. Start by getting a thorough check of your spine.

Don’t know where to start?

You can request a free Discovery Call with someone from my client success team. They’ll let you know if we can help – tell you if you’re a good fit for what we do – and get you on your way to living pain free. CLICK HERE to request a free Discovery Call.

Carrie Jose, Physical Therapist and Pilates expert, owns CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth, NH.  To get a free copy of her guide to taking care of back pain – click here.

5 Summer Activities on the Seacoast to Keep You Active, Healthy, and Mobile!

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With the weather getting warmer, it’s time to start appreciating all the amazing assets that the Portsmouth area has to offer for summer fun! The best way to prevent back pain and all-around stiffness or soreness is to stay moving as much as possible, and what better way to do so than out in nature?

Here are some of our favorite places to walk, bike, and otherwise enjoy the outdoors!

 

1. Great Bay National Wildlife Refuge

The Great Bay National Wildlife Refuge includes more than 1,000 acres of protected land in Newington, NH. Its two main trails are open to both hiking and biking and offer a close look at the flora and fauna of the Great Bay area. While visiting the reserve, you might see bald eagles, foxes, otters, turtles, deer, and a huge variety of songbirds. There are two main trails for the public to explore this unique and largely untouched area. The half mile Upper Peverly Pond path is a boardwalk trail, meaning it is fully wheelchair accessible and inviting for both young children and seniors! The William Furber Ferry Way trail is a more ambitious, yet not intimidating, two miles that delves deeper into the forest and features a beaver pond and old orchard.

NH Wetlands

2. Picnic by the Sea at New Castle

New Castle’s Great Island Common is a perfect destination for a relaxed, yet active day spent outdoors. You can spend the morning kayaking, an excellent core and upper body workout, and then kick back with a picnic on the beach or lawn. The park area also offers a large playground if you’re accompanied by young children. No matter where you stand, you’ll have a breathtaking view of the ocean, multiple lighthouses, and boats entering and leaving the harbor.

3.  Take a bike ride around Portsmouth

Get some exercise in while riding along all of the scenic views that the Seacoast area has to offer! Port City Bike Tours brings groups on historic and coastal bike tours with 5 different routes to chose from for a private or public tour. All of the tour guides are local to the area and have a love for New Hampshire history and historic preservation! Check out all the info here.

4. Odiorne State Park

Odiorne is the ocean lover’s ideal hike- gorgeous views of the rocky coastline, twisting trails through the woods that open up onto a salt marsh, and a paved bike path all in one place. Odiorne is comprised of about 330 acres of protected land, and is open year round to walkers and explorers! In the summer, you can even go tidepooling while you walk along the shore. You might find sea stars, snails, minnows, crabs, and more! And you will undoubtedly see seagulls throughout the entire coastline walk. On the wooded trails, you could come across deer, songbirds, chipmunks, and squirrels. Odiorne is a great place to stretch your legs and get some fresh air while enjoying the seacoast at its best!

5. Try Stand-Up Paddleboarding

Stand-Up Paddleboarding is a perfect way to get a core workout in while enjoying the ocean! This low-impact outdoor activity has gained popularity over recent years not only for being great exercise, but also because standing at your full height above the water gives you a unique view of your surroundings – which are beautiful at any location along the Seacoast! The balance and core stability that goes into paddleboarding is something we focus on with our Pilates program as well. In fact, Pilates and paddleboarding would be great activities to pair this summer!

Is pain getting in the way of you doing your favorite summer activities?  CLICK HERE for a free discovery visit with one of our specialists to see how we can help!

Carrie Jose, Physical Therapist and Pilates expert, owns CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth, NH.  To get a free copy of her guide to taking care of back pain – click here.

Avoiding Radiofrequency Ablation

Avoiding Radiofrequency Ablation in Your Back – Success Story

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Have you heard of Radiofrequency ablation (RFA)?

If you suffer from chronic back pain – there’s a good chance you have. Perhaps it’s even been recommended to you?

It’s a common procedure used to disable nerve fibers that are carrying the pain signal to your brain.

Your brain is what decides whether or not you’re going to experience pain. So the goal behind this procedure is to kill (or in this case burn) the “middle man” – the nerve that is responsible for signaling the pain trigger. An electrical impulse is transmitted through a needle that is designed to burn the nerve endings responsible for your pain.

If it works – the results last anywhere from 6 months to a year – but they typically aren’t permanent.

Most of the people I talk to who rely on this for pain relief have to go back at least once per year or more.

But in some cases… the procedure eventually stops working all together…

And then what?

Well… you’ve usually got just two choices…

  1. Live with it
  2. Get surgery

The good news?

You don’t have to accept either of these options and you don’t even have to rely on this procedure at all if you don’t want to.

How do I know?

Because 80% of all spinal pain is mechanical in nature – which means it’s due to poor or insufficient movement habits. These habits – over time – result in compensatory strategies in your body. These compensatory strategies eventually lead to “pissed-off” muscles, ligaments, or nerves – which result in pain.

So you see…

Getting a procedure like RFA is really only a bandaid.

Why not find out what compensatory strategy might be happening in your body – and from there – what caused it to begin with?

That’s what we prefer to do and I’m excited to tell you about a recent success story where this actually happened…

I was re-evaluating one of our patients (“L”) this week and even though she is still working through some back pain – it’s nothing like when we first began working together.

When we first met – she couldn’t walk very far without back pain and she didn’t even think about getting on a bike. (Biking, hiking, and staying active are things she LOVES to do for herself and with her husband)

When we spoke this week – she was not only walking – but starting to do some trail walking – and she was using her bike trainer at home regularly – all with minimal or no back pain. The next step for her is to get on the road with her bike – we have a goal of her riding 30-50 miles!

I am confident we’ll get there 🙂

But the most important part of this ongoing success story that I want to share is this…

“L” told me that the most valuable accomplishment from working with us so far is that she hasn’t had to return for any RFA!

I almost cried when I heard this… not even remotely exaggerating…

Because not everyone has the courage to see a program through and trust in the process.

But “L” did – and I’m so proud of her for it.

She said one of her goals was to not need this procedure anymore…

I’m excited to say that as of today – she’s officially far past the point when she would normally have returned for her RFA procedure.

And it’s because of our program!

The biggest motivator behind everything I do – every email or article I write – is to empower you.

My mission behind CJPT & Pilates is empowerment by education.

We aim to give you all the information you need so you can make the best decisions for your health – and hopefully those decisions involve less pills, less procedures, and certainly not surgery 🙂

I wanted to share this story with you because it is a perfect example of just that.

Yes – “L” still has back pain – but it’s progressing and we’re working through it – but on her terms and not on the procedure/RFA’s terms.

If you want more details on how we helped “L” work through her chronic back pain and avoid procedures like RFA…

CLICK HERE to talk to someone on my Client Success Team to see if we are a good fit to help you avoid RFA.

Ready to get rid of your back pain? Lucky for you we have a totally FREE guide written by leading back pain specialist, physical therapist, and movement expert, Dr. Carrie Jose! CLICK HERE  to read her BEST tips and advice on how to start easing back pain and stiffness right away!

When exercise hurts your back instead of helps

When Exercise Hurts Your Back Instead of Helps

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The research continues to show that the best treatment for back pain is exercise. But what do you do when exercising hurts your back instead of helps? 

What most people do when exercise flares their back up is they just stop. They simply wait for the pain to go away – and begin the cycle all over again. This is not the best strategy. Instead, why not figure out why exercise might be hurting your back and do something about it?

Here are 5 reasons why exercise might be hurting your back instead of helping:

 

1. Its the wrong type of exercise

While the research isn’t wrong about exercising and back pain – the type of exercise you choose is important. For example, walking is generally considered one of the best exercises for back pain sufferers. But there are certain types of back pain where walking flares you up. In these instances, it doesn’t mean that walking is “bad” for you – and it doesn’t mean you have a serious problem. Many times, it simply means you need a different type of exercise first that gets you back to walking normally. Same goes for strength training and core training. Exercise is good for back pain – but if it flares you up – don’t be quick to blame the exercise. You may just be doing things in the wrong order. Working with a back pain expert can help minimize this and make sure you’re doing the right exercises at the right time – and that won’t flare you up.

2. Stability training is introduced too soon

Stability training is an important part of back pain recovery – but I often see it introduced too soon – and typically before good mobility is fully restored. Mobility is something you always want to look at first. If you don’t have full mobility in your spine, there is a reason. And when your spine doesn’t move well, you risk developing compensatory movement patterns that cause structures in and around your spine to get irritated. When it comes to stability training, there is often resistance or load involved. The last thing you want to do is add load to the spine that is already compensating and irritated. This is a sure-fire way to flare up your back and why exercise might be hurting you instead of helping.

3. You aren’t activating your core

Knowing when and how to properly activate your core is different from having a strong core. You can have the strongest abs in the world – but if you can’t use them when they count – it’s useless.  Knowing how to properly activate your core is essential when you exercise, but especially when you have back pain. If you don’t activate your core properly when you’re lifting weights, or performing complicated movements that require good coordination, you’re setting yourself up for injury. The ability to activate your core properly is developed through motor control training. It’s where we teach your mind how to recognize and activate specific muscles, during specific activities, so that it eventually becomes habitual. If you’re constantly having back pain every time you exercise or try to strengthen your core, it could be that you lack the ability to activate it when it counts.

4. You aren’t breathing properly

Not breathing properly can significantly impact the effectiveness of your exercise routine and impede your ability to perform an exercise properly. As mentioned previously, knowing how to activate your core is crucial when you exercise, and in order to activate your core properly, you must be able to breathe properly. Your deep core is made up of four parts: your deep abdominals, your deep back muscles, your pelvic floor, and your diaphragm. Your diaphragm is what controls your breathing. Let’s say you hold your breath when you exercise. When this happens it means your diaphragm isn’t expanding or contracting in the way it needs to for your deep core to be fully functional. Additionally, when your diaphragm doesn’t work like it should, it adds unnecessary strain to both your back muscles and your discs. If you’re not in tune with your breathing, and you aren’t timing it properly, it’s another reason why exercise might be hurting your back instead of helping.

5. You’re using improper form

The last and most common reason why exercising might be hurting your back is because you aren’t doing it right. There’s a lot of people out there who think posture and form don’t really matter. But they do. If you’re lifting weights – especially when frequently and repetitively – you want your spine to be in good alignment. It might not hurt the first time you lift with improper form, but it will hurt after several weeks or months when you get to your 100th rep. Same goes for body weight exercises. Just because you aren’t adding an external load to your spine doesn’t mean you can’t aggravate it by doing something with poor form over and over. This is where I see most people get in trouble. If you’re going to exercise – and you want to exercise daily – do it with proper form and posture or it’s going to catch up to you and keep causing your back to flare up.

 

If exercising is currently hurting your back instead of helping  – it could be due to one of these 5 reasons. Get expert help to figure out which one it might be. Because at the end of the day – exercise really is good for your back. If done correctly, timely, and in the right order – it will help your back instead of hurt it.

Ready to get help with your pain or injury?

Request to speak to one of my specialists to see if we would be the right fit to help you get out of pain. CLICK HERE to request a Free Discovery with one of my specialists.

Dr. Carrie Jose, Physical Therapist and Pilates expert, owns CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth, NH.  To get a free copy of her guide to taking care of back pain – click here.

Shoulder Pain

Neck Pain Not Going Away? 3 Reasons Why

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Over 30% of people report they have neck pain, and of those, 50% will continue to have problems without any real answers or solutions. The last 2 years of the pandemic saw people becoming generally less active, falling off their routines, and working from home in less than optimal “work stations”. It’s no surprise that people are suffering from more neck pain than usual.

Having been a mechanical spine pain specialist for the last 10 years – and a physical therapist for just over 20 – I can tell you that resolving neck pain is trickier than resolving back pain.

And there are some good reasons for that. Your neck is the most mobile area of your spine – which makes it more complicated to manage – and the muscles in your neck are a bit more fragile than some of the bigger muscles in your lower back. The way you strengthen muscles in your neck can’t be approached in the same manner you might tackle your lower back – for example.

While there are several reasons for your neck pain not going away – the biggest culprit I have found is inaccurate diagnosis. Without an accurate diagnosis – your neck pain treatment fails – and it’s more likely you’ll be prescribed injections or pills to relieve your neck pain and get stuck with this treatment regimen for the long-term.

Here are three reasons why the root cause of your neck pain might be getting missed – and why your neck pain just isn’t going away:

 

1. Your neck problem is disguised as shoulder pain:

Shoulder problems are confused with neck problems more often than you would think. If this happens – you risk spending weeks (or months) trying to resolve shoulder pain that is actually a neck problem. Not only will your shoulder pain not fully resolve – your neck pain won’t either – and could actually become worse. Because your neck is so mobile, it’s easy for nerves in your neck to get irritated and refer pain into the middle of your shoulder blade, top of your shoulder, or down the side of your arm. When you consider this, it makes sense why neck problems are so easily mis-diagnosed as shoulder problems. It’s a very common scenario that not only results in neck pain not going away – but persistent shoulder problems too. My general rule of thumb – if you’ve been working on a particular problem persistently and consistently for 2-3 weeks or more without significant improvement – something is missing. You’re either treating the wrong thing or have the wrong treatment approach. It happens a lot with neck pain so be sure to pay attention to this common error – especially if you’ve got coinciding shoulder pain.

2. Your core is weak:

Lack of core strength is commonly associated with back problems – but believe it or not – it can have a lot to do with neck pain too. Most people are familiar with how muscles and joints are connected – but did you know your muscles and organs are connected as well? They’re connected by a web of tissue called fascia – and this connection is often referred to as myofascial. “Myofascially speaking” – your deep neck muscles are connected to your core. If your core isn’t functioning properly – your neck will try to compensate and it will result in neck pain. Do you consistently feel neck pain or tightness every time you do a core workout? This could be a sign that your neck is compensating for your core – and there’s a good chance proper core strengthening is what’s missing. It could explain why your neck pain isn’t going away no matter how aggressively you treat it.

3. Not working with an expert:

The anatomy of your neck, more so than the rest of your spine, is fairly intricate and quite mobile. Not only does this require special care and accuracy when it comes to examining your neck, it makes it easy for someone who is not expertly trained to miss things. For example, one of the most common things I see is someone thinking that full range of motion has been restored in your neck when it hasn’t. If you start strengthening your neck when it doesn’t have full mobility, you can run into problems later on that result in persistent pain. Additionally, strengthening the muscles in your neck, especially in a neck that hurts, needs to be done carefully. The muscles in your neck were designed for stability – which is very different from say – the muscles in your legs – which are designed for power. You can’t approach strengthening them in the same way. All too often I see neck strengthening exercises that are too aggressive for the small muscles in your neck. This results in unnecessary neck tension – and delayed resolution of neck pain.

Generally speaking – if you’ve been suffering from neck pain for a while now – and despite trying lots of different treatments you’re still having problems – there’s a really good chance you’ve got the wrong treatment approach because you’ve been misdiagnosed. Don’t settle for relying on pills or injections for the rest of your life. And don’t undergo any kind of surgery or procedure until you’ve truly exhausted all possible causes of your neck pain. Ideally, find a neck pain expert and work with them, particularly one who prioritizes natural, movement-based solutions over pills and procedures. If diagnosed properly, it’s not only possible to get rid of your neck pain naturally, but learn to keep it gone all on your own.

 

Ready to get rid of your neck pain?

Check out this totally free guide on 7 Easy Ways to Get rid of Neck & Shoulder Pain to learn easy tips that are PROVEN to help your neck and shoulder pain – without pills, procedure, or surgery. CLICK HERE to get the free guide.

 Dr. Carrie Jose, Physical Therapist and Pilates expert, owns CJ Physical Therapy & Pilates in Portsmouth, NH.  To get a free copy of her guide to taking care of back pain – click here.