Happy Thanksgiving from Dr. Mike and the staff at LifeStyle Chiropractic. We wish you a healthy, happy holiday!

 Lower Back Pain

Lower back pain is never a walk in the park. Along with intense suffering, it may also lead to loss of work. It’s usually hard  to do almost anything with low back pain. Low back pain makes walking, sitting, standing, moving the head or arms, and moving the legs painful experiences.

What causes lower back pain? Prolonged sitting or improper lifting either as a result of personal or work-related activities, overexertion, trauma, an accident, or spinal abnormalities that are a result of genetics. Regardless of the source, lower back pain is something that has to be dealt with both to alleviate problems in the present and the risk of complications in the future.

Chiropractic care can not only help with lower back pain quicker than surgery or medications, it can also be more effective. Surgery is risky and painful, not to mention very time consuming because of the healing process.

Using medication to treat low back pain is dangerous for two reasons. First it may provide short term relief of pain but the source of the problem is not corrected and the injury becomes more inflamed and difficult to treat. Second, certain ingredients in pain medication are hard on the stomach, the kidneys and the liver. Over time, medication can cause problems with these organs and the back pain is still there.

Other causes of lower back pain may be a bulging or herniated disc that puts pressure on the spinal cord or nearby nerve root. These bulging or herniated discs may cause numbness, tingling, or pain in a leg. However, cutting away the herniated disc tissue can permanently alter its ability to separate and cushion adjacent bones. Along with this, the surgery seldom addresses the structural causes of the problem. The other surgical option would be to remove a part of the bone called the Lamina, leaving the spinal cord uncovered and unprotected.

What are the ways an individual can work with a chiropractor to improve their back problem? Among them:

• Make an appointment with a chiropractor. Arriving a few minutes early the day of an appointment is important to allow time to relax both mentally and physically. Even a short automobile drive can create tension that may make a patient less responsive to treatment. Taking time to relax before seeing a chiropractor will increase the benefits of treatment

• Don’t skip appointments. Chiropractic visits are scheduled at specific intervals between adjustments. As a result, missing even one appointment will disturb the recovery process

• Follow instructions for self-administered measures such as hot packs or cold packs. Not only can these be applied at home, they help recovery without the cost of another professional visit.

• Daily rest. Successful chiropractic care also involves recuperation. During recuperative periods patients should schedule daily rest periods. These involve lying flat on their back on the floor for 30 minutes. If time is a problem in doing, so the rest time can be divided into two 15-minute periods.

Chiropractors are experts in the care of nerves, muscles and connective tissues.Why not call today and set up your appointment to talk with Dr. Mike about how chiropractic can help you Get Back Into Life! 859-271-5433

Headache Relief

Here we go again. That all too familiar throbbing pain in your head is back. What actually causes your headaches?

The pain you feel when you have a headache is not located in your brain, even though it feels that way. The pain is actually sensed by nerve endings located in your head and neck. Many types of events, inside and outside of your body, serve as “triggers” that can bring on a headache. Knowing what most often triggers your headaches can help you avoid them. Chiropractors locate the misalignments in your spine and relieve the pressure on adjacent nerves.

For most of us the most common triggers are emotional (stress, anger, anxiety), food-related (processed foods such as cold cuts, alcohol, nuts, and dairy products), hormonal (birth control pills, menstruation, menopause), environmental (noise, air travel, changes in temperature/humidity), or physiological (illness, skipping a meal, overtiredness).

Chiropractors are trained to locate and correct misalignments in the vertebrae in the upper spine and neck. These misalignments put pressure on adjacent nerves ~ pressure that can cause your headaches. When those emotional triggers bring on a headache don't reach for those headache pills that only cover the symptoms, call our office and take care of the problem causing those headaches. Below is a testimony from one of our patients who came to our office with headache complaints. Take a moment and read her story.

Having never visited a chiropractor, I arrived at Dr. Mike’s office with everyday headaches and low back pain. I had a diagnosis from a neurologist and my general practitioner of low back problems from a fall several years before. The neurologist told me to come back when the pain gets too bad and we’ll do surgery. He suggested a pain management clinic along with the use of pain medication.

My appointment and meeting with Dr. Mike was one of my best decisions. He discovered neck injuries due to two rear end collisions in addition to a spinal injury. Treatment with neck traction and adjustments of my low back on a regular schedule has worked wonders for me. No more thoughts of “maybe” taking medication every day and no more daily headaches. I feel so good , keep an active schedule and exercise three times a week at Curves. I am also starting a new business with my daughter. Dr. Mike keeps me going.

Thank you Dr. Mike for keeping me going.

Joyce 

 * posted with written permission

The Holiday Season is fast approaching. Each year we choose a charity to collect items for during the holidays. This year we will be supporting the Ronald McDonald House. This is a great place for families of sick children to stay while their child is in the hospital. We will be donating items to the Lexington facility. Below is a list of the items needed. For each item donated you will receive a ticket for a drawing to win a Chiroflow Water Pillow. ($67 value) Their Website : www.rmhc.org

Their Wish List:

For our guests:

Disposable Cameras, Postage Stamps ,Sanitary Pads

Family Friendly DVD’s , Preemie & Newborn Diapers

Preemie Clothing, Disposable Razors, Toothbrushes

Travel Size Shampoo, Travel Size Toothpaste

For Our Rooms/Offices

White Bathmats, Light blubs (energy efficient)

Copy Paper (8 1/2 X 11), Plastic Laundry Baskets

Kleenex, Standard Size Pillows (hypo-allergenic)

Heavy Duty Vinyl Shower Liners (With Grommets)

Gift Cards:

Gas Stations (request gas only)

Grocery Stores

Discount Department Stores

Pharmacies

Home Improvement Stores

Big Wish List:

A New WII Game System, WII Games

Pixar, Disney, DreamWorks DVD’s

For Our Kitchen & Family Room:

Juice Boxes, Casserole & Baking Dishes

Disposable Plastic Storage Containers

Cookie Sheets, Pots & Pans (With Lids And Covers)

All Sizes Zip Loc Freezer Bags

Microwavable/Oven Proof Dishware

Garbage Bags 13 Gal or Larger

Individually Wrapped Snacks:

Little Debbie, Candy, Granola Bars, Pop Tarts,

Peanut Butter & Cracker Packs, Snack Size Chips, Bottled Water

For Cleaning Our House:

Disinfectant Spray, Pledge Multi Purpose Cleaner

Clorox/Lysol Wipes, All-Purpose Cleaner

Large Boxes Laundry Powder or Detergent

Fabric Softener Sheets, Stiffer Wet Jet Cleaning Pads

Windex, Furniture Polish

Paper Towels

This is Myles. Dr. Mike's grandson. He loves the outdoors. Myles is full of energy and curiosity. He loves life and goes at it full force. Most children do. No one likes to see a child full of energy suddenly stopped dead in his tracks with an illness. Myles was experiencing a problem with ear infections. It was miserable for him and his parents. After receiving chiropractic care Myles no longer suffers with ear infections. He is back playing and enjoying all life has to offer. In the October 1998 issue of the Ladies Home Journal appeared an article entitled, "Chiropractic Adjustments for Chronic Ear Infections." This article reviewed several studies showing the effectiveness of chiropractic care for preventing re-occurring ear infections known as Otitis Media or OM. According to the article, reoccurring ear infections account for over 35% of all pediatrician visits in the United States. Sometimes these infections are due to bacteria and sometimes these are due to a virus. The most common medical care for this situation has been antibiotics, even though antibiotics have no effect on viruses. While the article mentions that the antibiotic may be effective in an acute bacterial infection, they do nothing to stop repeat infections. Research and statistics is now showing that repeated use of antibiotics is contributing to future infections by creating drug-resistant infections. The surgical approach has met with little long term results as the "tubes" placed in children’s ears often come out and usually require a child to be put under general anesthesia to do the surgery. The article in the Ladies Home Journal states, "Chiropractic care is thought to prevent recurrent infections by correcting misalignments (called subluxations) and allowing normal fluid drainage from the middle ear." What the article took special note of was that 6 months after the chiropractic care was given to the children in the study, 80 percent had not suffered a recurrence of ear infections. Chiropractic works! If your child suffers with chronic ear infections, give us a call! 859-271-5433. April says have a sunshiny day! Carol and April

Creativity makes the world go round. Without it we would never have experienced the Slinky, Sponge Bob Square Pants, Slip & Slide or my favorite Velcro!

April decided her "hot chips" needed to be close to the fridge by her milk so she used a magnet clip to stick them on the fridge. Think we could market the Magnetic Snack Clip?

I love the story behind Velcro. It begins with a hike in the Swiss woods in 1948. Inventor George de Mestral noticed that he and his dog were coated with cockleburr seed casings. Under a microscope, de Mestral discovered that the seed casings contained numerous tips with hook-shaped ends. It was these natural hooks which clung so stubbornly to the loose weave of his pants and the dog's fur. George de Mestral believed that a fastening device made from a similar hook and loop design could rival the metal zipper in popularity and versatility. After several attempts to create a suitable prototype, de Mestral and a French fabric designer finally discovered a way to use nylon fibers under an infrared lamp to create the necessary hooks. Matted nylon fibers would also form the field of loops needed to complete the adhesive process. The name VELCRO was formed from the French words Velour (velvet) and crochet (hook).

So begins the world of Velcro. I use it for everything.

Chiropractic has its beginnings in a similar way. On September 18, 1895, D.D. Palmer was working late in his office when a janitor, Harvey Lillard, began working nearby. A noisy fire engine passed by outside the window and Palmer was surprised to see that Lillard didn’t react at all. He approached the man and tried to strike up a conversation. He soon realized Lillard was deaf. Patiently, Palmer managed to communicate with the man, and learned that he had normal hearing for most of his life. However, he had been over in a cramped, stooping position, and felt something "pop" in his back. When he stood up, he realized he couldn’t hear. Palmer deduced that the two events -- the popping in his back and the deafness -- had to be connected. He ran his hand carefully down Lillard’s spine and felt one of the vertebra was not in its normal position. "I reasoned that if that vertebra was replaced, the man's hearing should be restored," he wrote in his notes afterwards. "With this object in view, a half hour's talk persuaded Mr. Lillard to allow me to replace it. I racked it into position by using the spinous process as a lever, and soon the man could hear as before." Over the succeeding months, other patients came to Palmer with every conceivable problem, including flu, sciatica, migraine headaches, stomach complaints, epilepsy and heart trouble. D.D. Palmer found each of these conditions responded well to the adjustments which he was calling "hand treatments." Later he coined the term chiropractic -- from the Greek words, Chiro, meaning (hand) and practic, meaning (practice or operation). Although he never used drugs, under Palmer's care fevers broke, pain ended, infections healed, vision improved, stomach disorders disappeared, and of course, hearing returned. Often surprised at the effectiveness of his adjustments, D.D. Palmer returned to his studies of anatomy and physiology to learn more about the vital connection between the spine and one's health.

We are only given one spine to last a lifetime. Chiropractic gives us the ability to protect our spine and keep our bodies healthy!