The holidays are right around the corner. Whether it’s planning a safe family gathering or last-minute holiday shopping, the holidays add extra responsibilities and stress to your already busy schedule. Add in increased time with family members or worries about COVID-19, and you’re most likely feeling more stressed than usual.

Stress and pain, unfortunately, go hand-in-hand for chronic pain sufferers. As stress can exacerbate chronic pain, you may be feeling it more than usual this time of year, with no time to slow down. There may not be a way to totally eliminate stress or pain from your life, but you can take steps to manage it. Here are Redefine Healthcare’s best tips to limit stress-related pain.

Eat Well & Stay Hydrated

While we would never ask you to pass on your sister’s delicious homemade apple pie, you should be conscious of the extra sugar, carbs, and gluten you may be consuming at holiday meals. Enjoy good food and good company, but don’t go overboard; poor nutrition isn’t doing anything for your body, and not to mention, extra weight can put extra strain on your joints.

*Dehydration can also affect bones and joints, resulting in stiffness and soreness. Be sure to drink plenty of water!

Exercise

Exercising may be the last thing you feel like doing when you’re stressed or in pain, but getting some movement in, even something as simple as a walk, can make you feel better. Exercise can both boost your mood and ease some of your pain. “Motion is lotion,” and making a conscious effort to add movement into your day can provide some relief to stiff joints.

Take Time To Rest

When you’re allocating your time and planning out activities, make sure to set aside some for yourself. First and foremost, make sure you’re getting enough sleep. Not only can lack sleep make your stress worse, but it can also make the pain worse too. Your body needs rest to repair itself, and if you aren’t getting enough, you’re doing a disservice to yourself.

Get Help!

If you’re in pain, you should see a specialist. There are a ton of simple, non-surgical options available for pain management. At Redefine Healthcare, we offer chiropractic manipulation, physical therapy, and interventional treatments like corticosteroid injections, nerve blocks, and more. Schedule a consultation with one of our pain management doctors by calling (732) 906-9600 or at https://redefinehealthcare.com/

The post How To Handle Stress and Pain During The Holidays appeared first on NJ's Top Orthopedic Spine & Pain Management Center.

Redefine Healthcare would like to wish you well during these difficult times. We understand that our patients still need care and will thus be keeping our doors open. We would like to assure you that we are following all preparedness and prevention guidelines established by the CDC to protect our patients and staff. Our patient’s health and wellness are our utmost priority.

Additionally, we are now offering Telemedicine Pain Management appointments to patients who might not feel comfortable coming into the office. During these telemedicine appointments, one of our board-certified physicians will conduct a thorough screening of your symptoms over the phone. To the best of their ability, they will then suggest an appropriate coarse of action for you.

We wish you all safe and well.

Please call Redefine Healthcare at (732) 313-2610 for the most up-to-date news on the status of our practice or to schedule your appointment.

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Great news!

Beginning this March, Redefine Healthcare will now be offering Chiropractic treatment at our Edison location. If you live near Edison, your drive to access excellent chiropractic services will be a lot shorter—but drive safely! The after-effects of a car accident represent one of the leading reasons why people visit their chiropractor’s office. We are an excellent resource for addressing pain management and building strength to decrease recovery time after an accident occurs.

For most people, pain is inevitable at some point in their lives, but taking preventive measures increases the likelihood of recovering more quickly or avoiding injury altogether.

Prevention

Your spinal health is vital to your productive and active lifestyle. Taking preventative steps increases your ability to build strength and flexibility.

• Preventive chiropractic care increases your range of motion by boosting flexibility. When your muscles and joints are tight, you are at an increased risk of straining them, even during your light daily routines. Adjustments improve your joints’ ability to move so that your muscles can do their work.
• Your spine supports your body. A chiropractor’s adjustment will improve your posture, which has a direct effect on the neck, back, and leg areas. The more you stand or sit up straight, the less likely it is that you’ll experience minor aches and pains.
• Have you noticed minor pain? You may think that it isn’t worth addressing unless it worsens, but focusing on the issue earlier means that you can stop it before it becomes problematic.

You can stay one step ahead of aches and pains if you visit our offices as a preventive gift to yourself. If you do face a sports injury or find yourself rear-ended in an automobile accident, you will have a stronger and more flexible body to begin the healing process with as you pursue care.

Car Accidents

No amount of prevention can protect you from another person rear-ending you in an auto accident. The good news is that chiropractors are an excellent resource to address these kinds of injuries.

When someone hits your car from behind, forces measuring thousands of pounds impact your supporting tissues around the spine and neck. These tissues, ligaments, and vertebral discs stretch and tear, disrupting your joints. Spinal shifting and misalignment add up to the potential for a lot of aches and pains.

Pain from a car accident may not appear for days or even weeks after the accident. Pain medication does a satisfying job at masking the pain. However, a chiropractor will get to the underlying injury, whether it is a spinal issue or whiplash.

The Long-Term Solution to Managing Pain

Chiropractic care will address lost mobility after an injury. Adjustment relieves the pressure on the nerves and muscles as it realigns the spine. There are times when the pain goes away immediately upon alignment. Corrective exercises increase the body’s full range of motion, relieving even more pain.

Your long-term solution to supporting your body’s natural healing process begins with that first drive to your chiropractor’s office. Contact us today to schedule an appointment to relieve pain and build a healthier spinal structure to prepare for the unexpected.

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When February rolls in each year, our thoughts often jump to love. Valentine’s Day conjures some of our earliest memories of love, from drawing shapes on red paper in kindergarten to a fluttering heart in anticipation of a first date.

Fast-forward to adulthood, and hearts still dominate the second month of the year. We continue to give our hearts away, but as we age, we focus on nurturing the hearts inside our bodies so that we can be there for our loved ones in the years to come.

Here are a few things to know during American Heart Month.

Heart Disease

Heart disease is the number-one cause of death in the United States with one in three people dying from complications each year. Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the leading cause of heart attacks and the most common reason for fatalities.

Prevention

A healthy lifestyle holds tremendous value in preventing heart disease, and there are many ways to become healthier. By making some or all the choices below, you can keep your blood pressure and cholesterol in check and lower the chances that you’ll experience heart problems.

• Smoking is harmful to your heart. Avoiding the habit is an excellent first step to a healthier lifestyle.
• Become physically active every day. Walk more and avoid the elevator by choosing the stairs.
• Reduce your weight, especially if you are living with obesity.
• Manage your stress. Practicing meditation or yoga can help to keep your thoughts calm.
• Limit your alcohol consumption. Avoid that second or third drink for better health.

Spinal Care

Did you know that spinal care also offers a pathway to fighting heart disease?

New studies are linking heart health to spinal care. The vertebrae that make up the spine house neural pathways that support almost every system in our body. If one path isn’t functioning correctly, the resulting imbalance may affect the health of other parts of our bodies, particularly the cardiovascular system.

One controlled study explored the connection between high blood pressure and the health of the spine. Participants had hypertension but refrained from taking medication beginning a month before the eight-week study. One group in the study received chiropractic manipulation, and the other group didn’t. The results at the end of the study revealed a significant reduction in blood pressure amongst participants who received the chiropractic manipulations.

Why Spinal Care Affects the Health of the Heart

An aligned spine encourages the body to balance its physiology naturally. When the neurological structures in the spine are in harmony, patients tend to experience improvements as these adjustments reduce nerve interference.

Spinal care may also impact a person experiencing heart palpitations. If the spine is out of alignment, it puts pressure on the body’s nerves, which in turn stimulates the sympathetic nervous system to release stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol. Stress is a significant cause of heart palpitations.

Chronic stress drives a lot of inflammation in the body, and too much inflammation speeds up the aging process, which raises your risk for heart disease.

Staying Healthy

We can’t control which genes we receive at birth or our predisposition to specific health issues. We can, however, make healthy lifestyle choices to help prevent health-related issues from becoming problematic.

If we throw away the cigarettes, avoid excess drinking, and start walking every day, we may add more years to our life. The fresh air that we inhale as we walk will reduce stress, help lower our blood pressure, and encourage us to maintain a healthy weight.

Thanks to modern research, we have an additional tool to stay healthy: when you visit us to align your spine, you can help reduce inflammation throughout your system and decrease the stress hormones released into your body.

You’ve got years ahead to give your heart to the ones you love. Let us be your partner in keeping your heart healthy.

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Sports injuries happen. When you push yourself to achieve new levels of fitness, you are bound to sustain a sports injury of some kind sooner or later. The most important thing you can do regarding injuries is to prevent them in the first place by training safely, warming up, increasing your intensity gradually, and consuming enough water and the right nutrients. However, when you are injured, the other half of the battle is knowing how to handle your injury so that you recover as quickly as possible and minimize your chances of a recurrence in the future. If you have an injury but want to continue training, keep these dos and don’ts in mind.

Do Know What Your Injury Is

Don’t assume that you know exactly what type of injury you have. For example, the pain from a fracture may not be as intense as you’d expect it to be; however, continuing to stress a fractured bone can easily lead to more complicated problems, instead of gradual healing. Some injuries require complete rest to heal properly, so do see your doctor for an accurate diagnosis and to get advice on how to proceed regarding your activity levels.

Don’t Create New Injuries

One common problem is for people who are facing a long recovery period to overwork other parts of their bodies, resulting in a new sports injury. For example, if your right shoulder is injured and you spend months working only your left shoulder and arm, you could be setting yourself up for imbalances and future problems. Not only your arms but also your back, hips, and legs could be affected by such a scenario. Ask for professional advice from your doctor or coach to help you choose appropriate exercises.

Do Stop If It Hurts

Too many people insist on “working through the pain” – and cause themselves significantly more distress by doing so. Most of us work out for fun or to protect our overall health, not for a living. We should have different goals and priorities than professional athletes and even competitive amateur athletes. Your goal in the gym should be to get stronger and fitter for the long haul. Skipping recovery and training through pain will not help you achieve this goal. Train consistently and at an appropriate pace for you – and take the time to recover when you need it.

Don’t Stretch A Pulled Or Torn Muscle

Stretching a torn or pulled muscle will only exacerbate the issue – and the pain. For mild strains and pulls, you can try the R.I.C.E. method (rest, ice, compression, and elevation) until your symptoms subside. Conversely, waiting too long to begin exercising or stretching can also cause complications. Scar tissue begins to develop in the muscle fibers, which are less flexible than your original muscle fibers. When it’s safe to stretch, go ahead and do so to avoid unnecessary inflexibility. Ask your doctor for guidance on when stretching or working an injured muscle is okay.

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Did you know that May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month? That means that there’s no better time to begin a workout routine or try a new healthy activity. When you’re active, you burn the calories you’ve consumed during the day, helping you achieve and maintain a healthy weight. It isn’t necessary to train like an athlete to optimally balance your food intake and exercise.

You can do activities that burn lots of calories, but you can also make simple changes such as parking farther away from your destination and taking the stairs instead of the elevator. Here are four tips to help you and your family squeeze more movement into your day.

Break It Up

When you really can’t carve a 30- or 45-minute block of time out of a busy day, aim for smaller chunks of time instead. For example, you might have time for three ten-minute walks, which have the same healthful effects as one 30-minute walk. Or perhaps you can fit in 10 minutes of yoga before work and 20 minutes of strength training and stretching after dinner. Or, do some of your walkings on your lunch break and then do a few sets of crunches, sit-ups, and jumping jacks at night while you’re watching TV. There are endless ways to fit exercise into your day; the key is to find the right schedule for you.

Make Exercise Part Of Your Commute

If you’re lucky enough to live nearby your workplace, take advantage of the ability to walk or bike there each morning. Springtime is the perfect time to enjoy a little extra time outdoors. Or, if you drive or take public transportation, consider parking a few blocks away or getting off the train or bus a few blocks early and fitting in those extra steps before and after work. It’s also a great way to relieve stress and clear your head.

Enlist A Partner

It’s much easier to get motivated and make exercise fun when you do it with a friend. Find a buddy who also wants to get in shape and make plans to walk or jog or catch a yoga class together. If you have kids, bring them along on an after-dinner walk or bike ride, or join a local gym together and make staying fit a family affair. You can even remain active with younger kids by teaching them games such as jump rope and hopscotch.

Revive The Workout Video

How long has it been since you worked out along with a video? Today’s workout videos are better than ever, often combining strength, cardio, and stretching in one convenient workout. Best of all? Many of them are free. Search YouTube, and you’ll find tons of different exercise videos for people of all fitness levels and preferences. Save your favorites and do one each morning before work, at night to help you de-stress, or in the afternoon while the baby naps – anytime are the right time, as long as you do it.

Celebrate National Physical Fitness and Sports Month this year by making movement a more significant part of your life.

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Headaches are a common complaint and one that can be tricky to diagnose. That’s because there are many different types of headaches, with many different triggers. Some common causes of headaches include lack of sleep, alcohol, skipped meals, poor posture, and excessive stress.

Paying attention to what sets off your headaches can help your chiropractor diagnose and treat them appropriately. Other than lifestyle factors, there are several potential causes of headaches, including referred pain from the soft tissues or bony structures in the neck.

Your chiropractor may be able to help when it comes to relieving your headaches – and without the medications so often prescribed and their long list of unwanted side effects. When you see your chiropractor about your headaches, they will evaluate to gain an understanding of your symptoms, what triggers them, and the best way to treat them. They can also provide peace of mind by ruling out underlying severe conditions or refer you to another specialist if necessary, for additional testing or treatment.

Chiropractic treatments focus on proper body alignment, particularly the spine, to relieve pain, increase function and mobility, and enhance the body’s natural healing abilities. People seek chiropractic care for numerous reasons, including reducing neck or back pain, maximizing sports performance, boosting the immune system, and alleviating the symptoms of allergies or asthma. Now, headaches are on the list of conditions chiropractic care can treat.

Many patients who have tried chiropractic treatments for their headaches report an improvement in the frequency, intensity, and duration of their headaches, as well as improved ability to complete their regular daily activities consistently. Here are four essential ways chiropractic care can help with chronic headaches:

• Through chiropractic adjustments and spinal manipulations. These treatments can improve spinal function and alleviate excess stress on your system that can lead to headaches. Chiropractic care is often useful because manipulating the body can affect blood vessel function and provide relief. Spinal manipulation can be particularly effective for cervicogenic headaches, or migraines that are caused by problems related to the cervical spine.
• Through nutritional advice. Many people don’t realize that chiropractors can also offer nutritional information to help their patients recover. Changes in your diet including an increase in B vitamins may provide you with some headache relief.
• Through physical or massage therapy. Other treatments that can help with headaches are physical therapy and massage therapy. In physical therapy, your practitioner will guide you to actively move your joints and muscles in specific ways to help stretch the deep neck flexor muscles, providing more support for the neck and relieving certain types of headaches. Neuromuscular massage therapy is a useful type of massage that can help with back pain as well as headaches – particularly migraines. Neuromuscular massage involves alternating levels of concentrated pressure in specific areas to address muscle spasms.
• Through stress management. Chiropractic treatments can be very relaxing. Many people leave feeling much less tense, both from the adjustments themselves and the satisfaction of being proactive about their healthcare. Since stress is a common cause of headaches, this kind of relaxation can be very effective at relieving them. Do keep in mind that it may take a few weeks for you to adjust to your treatments.
• Through low-load craniocervical mobilization. Low-load craniocervical mobilization involves a gentler force than traditional spinal manipulation and can be useful for treating tension headaches. Force is applied to the neck joints to allow for the rhythmic movement of the cervical segments. This therapy also typically involves some stretching. Tension headaches are widespread; although they do not tend to respond well to regular spinal manipulation, they have been found to improve with low-load craniocervical manipulation.

Many people living with regular headaches have tried everything they can think of, often without success. Chiropractors commonly see patients who are frustrated with drugs and other treatments that haven’t worked; in fact, headaches are one of the most common reasons that people book chiropractic appointments. There has been a good deal of research on the effects of chiropractic care on headaches with favorable results; many patients report a reduction in the frequency, duration, and intensity of their headaches after just a few weeks of treatment. Less pain means a higher quality of life, so it’s not hard to see why it makes sense to contact a chiropractor about your headaches. Contact Redefine Healthcare today to book a consultation.

Along with chiropractic treatments, Redefine Healthcare says that there are some things patients can do at home to help ease headaches. These steps include managing stress, taking breaks from looking down at phones or from long drives, trying over-the-counter pain medications such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen, scheduling drug-free treatments such as massage or acupuncture, and visiting a dentist to find out whether clenching the teeth might be contributing to their pain. Patients can also experiment with different ways of sleeping, such as on the side, with a supportive body pillow, and the neck in a neutral position.

The post Four Ways Chiropractic Treatments Can Help Treat Headaches appeared first on NJ's Top Orthopedic Spine & Pain Management Center.

The average person may believe that chiropractic care only involves the manipulation of the spine. While spine support is an integral part of the process, chiropractic practice is a holistic approach to medicine—one that considers the entire patient, not merely one disease or a single symptom. At Redefine Healthcare, we celebrate the progress made by individuals in recovery, just as we celebrate our patients who are managing physical health conditions and recovering from injuries.

While pain relief is an essential goal in these procedures, as the Redefine Healthcare team explains, a chiropractor also seeks to help a patient restore his or her body’s natural order. These efforts can have holistic benefits of their own. Redefine Healthcare recently highlighted several of the critical benefits of experienced and comprehensive chiropractic care. We do our part in contributing to recovery by offering chiropractic services, which can help you recuperate faster and better from a variety of injuries. Here’s how.

Less Stress and Anxiety

Under the guidance of a chiropractor, patients receive not only treatment through physical manipulation but also advice and guidance on how to make positive life changes. These two efforts combine to offer more powerful benefits than either could produce on their own.

For many, this care process means a reduction in the amount of daily anxiety one feels, with stress making less of an impact. Chiropractors often point out that emotional stress can be a cause of subluxations, the vertebral misalignments that can cause pain and disease.

1. Reducing Stress By Reducing Muscle Tension

Stress and muscle tension form a cycle that can be hard to break; you feel stressed, so your muscles tense, which leads to pain and more anxiety. When your muscles are tensed, it can affect your posture and the way you sit, stand, and walk. Over time these changes take a toll on your body. You may experience sleep problems or have trouble concentrating on work because of the tension in your body. Your chiropractor can help soothe this tension, restoring your body’s natural balance and your mind’s focus.

2. Restoring Physical Function Through Spinal Adjustments

Your spine is central to your neurological system. Everything your brain communicates to the rest of your body – including swallowing and breathing – transmits through the backbone. When you are stressed, and your body becomes tense, it affects your spine. Your chiropractor can adjust your spine and restore its natural position as well as the normal function of your body. Many patients report that after regular chiropractic treatments, they have more energy, get sick less often, and feel less stressed overall.

3. A Holistic Whole-Person Approach

Your body and mind are inextricably connected, and this is never more apparent than when you are under a lot of stress. Your chiropractor can counsel you on full-body wellness including nutrition, exercise, physical therapy, and mental processes. All of these lifestyle choices impact your fitness, physical performance, and mental health. Your chiropractor will take your complete medical history and work closely with you to help you develop healthy and sustainable lifestyle changes that will keep you feeling your best.

Better Sleep

A good night’s rest is the natural consequence of lower stress levels. With confidence in your care and the ability to address problems in close consultation with your chiropractor, you may find it is easier to fall asleep. Many chiropractic patients report improvements in sleep quality following an adjustment, but your practitioner can help in other ways, too. Suggesting the right sleeping position for your body, for example, can make a big difference.

A Unified Approach to Your Health

By viewing the body as a series of interconnected systems and not merely breaking down issues into symptoms to treat, chiropractors offer patients a more unobstructed view of their healthcare. This benefit is further strengthened by the close working relationship that develops between patient and practitioner—one that Redefine Healthcare professionals consider a foundational tenet of chiropractic care. Consulting with a professional that can make connections between issues patients are experiencing can increase patient confidence and improve outcomes.

A Reduced Need for Surgery

Perhaps one of the most significant and most well-studied benefits of chiropractic care relates to its ability to aid patients in avoiding the need for surgery. While sometimes necessary to remedy a patient health concern, back surgeries often carry a higher risk of complications than non-surgical care. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, chiropractic care can and should serve as the first line of treatment for back-related issues before surgery becomes an option. Some recent studies found that holistic chiropractic care reduced the need for surgery by more than 60%.

Diet And Nutrition

Nutrition may not be the first thing you think of when you consider chiropractic care, but it’s indeed an important and integral part of your treatment. When you’re injured, you need to shift your perspective to nutrition. Your focus now is on fighting inflammation and fueling repair. When you’re injured, your body sends out an inflammatory response. This reaction is a good thing to an extent – it’s how cuts are healed, and the damage is repaired. However, a prolonged state of inflammation (for example, from a severe injury) can inhibit healing and exacerbate your swelling and damage. Speak with your chiropractor about a good anti-inflammatory diet that includes lots of vegetables, fruits, and healthy fats and excludes pro-inflammatory foods such as refined sugars, oils, and processed meats.

Increasing The Rate Of Healing

One of the most important ways chiropractic care can help you recover is by increasing your natural rate of healing. Muscle tension can stifle agility while misalignment can hinder the healing process; chiropractic treatment can address both problems. If you have sustained an injury, muscle stress, inflammation, and misalignments can all affect how quickly you recover. Chiropractic adjustments can protect you from these issues, not only helping you recover from an existing injury, but also helping you avoid injuries in the future.

Improving Range Of Motion

You may have heard about football players taking ballet classes to improve on the field. You’re almost certainly aware that stretching before and after a workout is a good idea. In fact, both of these practices can enhance your flexibility and agility, maximizing your range of motion and making it easier to move your body comfortably. Increasing your flexibility can help protect you from the effects of tight muscles – such as an increased risk of injury. Chiropractic treatments can help you achieve the same results. Having an optimal range of motion can contribute to your general comfort, a lower risk of injury, and speedier healing from injuries you may have now.

Correcting Asymmetries

Another way chiropractic can help you recover is by correcting asymmetries in your body. Maybe you’ve heard that everyone has one leg that’s longer than the other? This fact is indeed true of all body parts – nobody is 100 % symmetrical. As a result, the two sides of your body are slightly different, and this can affect your performance and healing. Chiropractic alignments can help condition your body to cope with these differences better along with reducing tension throughout your body. When your body is equipped to function properly as one unit, it can recover faster from an injury and be less likely to become re-injured going forward.

By creating an individual as a complete person, together, practitioners and their patients unlock the opportunity to explore many whole-body benefits. Redefine Healthcare is proud to offer access to holistic chiropractic as one of the many available options for pain management and relief. With trained experts in physical therapy, chiropractic care, and more, the Redefine Healthcare team is ready to aid in finding the right treatment pathway for each patient. Get in touch with Redefine Healthcare today to start a conversation about how chiropractic care could benefit you.

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