I attended this webinar recently and it was very eye opening, both as a healthcare professional and a patient. I've been a Registered Massage Therapist since 2007 and my practice has developed along with my own personal experiences with chronic pain. I've had varying levels of pain since I was about 7, when I had my first big injury; a strained SI joint. This resulted in chronic lower back pain for about 8 years. Chronic pain is defined as pain that lasts from more than three-six months. Sometimes it was mild, sometimes constant aching and sometimes it would spasm so violently that I would be in bed for days, on pain killers and muscle relaxants. My parents took me for some treatments, but it wasn't really resolved until I started doing Pilates when I was about 15. 

My lower back was pretty good until around 19, when I had a serious whiplash injury, from a knee boarding accident. I'm now 37 and have been dealing with the ups and downs of this injury for a very long time. Fortunately, as and RMT, I have the luxury of a lot of knowledge about biomechanics and therapeutic exercises that I have always used to manage things. 
About 3 years ago, I had a major flare up of my whiplash symptoms and suddenly all the things I had relied upon were not effective anymore, or only gave me very temporary relief. This is when I turned to counselling and pain science. 

Since then, I've taken several courses about pain science through PainBC and other resources. I've read a lot of books about the biopsychosocial model of care. And I've implemented some new strategies to manage pain, that I never would have thought could be so effective. Meditation, mindfulness, body scanning and cognitive behavioral therapy practices are now a big part of my daily self care routine. Though I still rely on other things like self massage, stretching and strengthening exercises, I've come to understand how important nervous system regulation is. 

This webinar explains the importance of communication and positivity around pain experiences with children. I am left to wonder, if my first major injury had been handled differently, if the communication my practitioners and parents had used at the time had been different, would I still struggle with chronic pain as an adult? 

I can't go back in time and I can't blame anybody for what happened because we just didn't understand pain in the same way we do now. I am sharing this webinar with hope that it will reach someone who will use this knowledge to better communicate with their child or children, and prevent setting that child up for a life of pain.

Neither Remedy Wellness Centre Inc or Me take any credit for the production of this webinar. It was offered through PainBC, a wonderful resource for anyone suffering with chronic pain. 

​Kasey Thompson, Registered Massage Therapist

When I first moved to Victoria, I noticed something that immediately made me feel right at home as a naturally Kinesthetic (tactile/touch oriented) person... People hugged here, A LOT! 

Maybe it was something about the “West Coast vibes” that seemed to attract the most open, and caring people, or because of the huge alternative and progressive subcultures that I was seeing families, friends of all ages, acquaintances, and even co-workers literally in constant touch with one another. Pats on the back, supportive rubs of the shoulder all the incidental gestures that are normally taken for granted were definitely not lost on me. It made me feel safe, made me look forward to socially interacting and joyfully anticipating being embraced by my community every time I stepped out of my house.

There's a reason it feels great to be physically touched. Touch has been an integral part of our society before we even had a word for “human! Our great great furry ancestors would spend hours grooming each other everyday, and not just because there was a lack of showers in the rain-forest resulting in bugs throwing parties on their fur! Grooming was a part of creating and maintaining important social and familial bonds within primates for millions of years. It soothes infants and let's them know they are being taken care of, it allows us to slow down our nervous systems and go from being in a fight or flight response to a “rest and digest” mode. It lets you know who your friends are and who you can trust. It strengthens immunity and uplifts mood with all those fantastic endorphin chemicals that we need to thrive... 

So it was with equal grief that I lamented the loss of said touch in our community. Over the past year or so as a new found fear of touch was instilled in our everyday interactions. Socially distancing quickly turned into physical distancing, our personal space bubbles were expanded, handshakes were all but forbidden, and shaking hands or heaven forbid hugging anyone who you didn't live with... was pretty much a thing of the past. Is it any wonder that this year has seen unprecedented rates of negatively impacted mental health cases, more anti-social behaviour and all time highs of drug use and suicide rates through the roof?
           
How do you bring back positive touch in a safe way without the “Covid police” kicking down your door? What if there was a trusted way to get all those benefits of health oriented touch from a professional and dependable source? That's where RMT's come in. At a time when we all really need all the support we can get. Allow yourself to benefit from the knowledge, guidance and touch of a Registered Massage Therapist. 

-Post By Iz Shafey, Registered Massage Therapist

It is a common occurrence, as an Acupuncturist, to have people ask what acupuncture can and cannot treat. The simple answer is, if you have symptoms, acupuncture can almost always help! This article is going to examine what makes Acupuncture a unique approach to health care, and why that unique approach allows us to treat so many different illnesses, conditions, and concerns. 

Making the individual person the focus of our treatments is one of the most important aspects of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). In other medical paradigms, the focus of treatment is the illness: what type of illness, which variation of the illness, how severe is the illness, how does this illness behave, et cetera. In TCM, we focus on how this particular individual ended up with these particular complaints; What is going on with this person mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually that has led them to seek me out for help? 

This can give Acupuncturists a huge head-start in starting to help someone as we are not bound by test results and imagining studies in order to diagnose a patient, and/or begin appropriate treatment. Focusing on the illness can be troublesome if the illness in question is hard to diagnose, if it mimics other illnesses, if it is an uncommon or rare condition, if there is more than one illness the patient is coping with, or if the illness isn’t showing up on standard medical tests. I can’t count the number of times I’ve had patients tell me (often in tears) that they have been informed that “there is nothing wrong with you” because all of the tests they took came back clear. Talk about frustrating!

In TCM we diagnose and treat patterns of symptoms, so if  a patient has symptoms, then there is a pattern to treat. For example, if a patient told me they were having digestive issues resulting in urgent trips to the bathroom every morning, accompanied by sharp cramping in their lower abdomen and a feeling of weakness in their lower back.… I would be able to go ahead and treat this patient without needing much more information. And, any additional information I might need would come straight from the patient. I wouldn’t need to rely on a Western diagnosis to begin treatment, which could be a huge benefit to the patient. 

As Acupuncturists, we rely heavily on questioning our patients, observing their physical state and demeanour, reading their tongue, and reading their pulses in order to gain a full and clear understanding of their current state of health. We don’t need to send our patients for tests, or put them on a wait list for imaging, or rely on specialists to confirm or deny what we might already suspect is causing our patient’s discomfort. We have all the diagnostic tools we need so long as we have a patient to treat. 

Now, don’t get me wrong! Imaging studies and medical tests are incredible medical tools! No matter how skilled an Acupuncturist I may be now or ever could hope to be, I will never be able to look through my patients’ skin and muscle to clearly view their bones or their nervous system- so, thank goodness for x-ray machines and CT scans! Likewise, I can’t look at someone’s tongue or read someone’s pulse and discover the same information you get from a blood test or a urine analysis….and those can be very valuable test to run! My point is simply that we are not reliant on these tools in order to gain the information we need to start helping our patients. 

TCM is also wholistic in nature, which gives us another advantage over other modalities that focus only on one aspect of the person. The mind, body, and soul are all intrinsically connected and cannot be separated from one another. If you have ever been so stressed out that you felt nauseous, or if your never-ending back pain has ever put you in a terrible mood, then you are already aware of the intimate link between our physical selves and our non-physical selves.  
In TCM, the link between the physical and non-physical is not just recognized as existing, it is honoured as being key to good health and well-being. Can we really say we have helped to restore someone’s health if we haven’t taken the entire person into account? Would you really feel “healthy” if your body was in great condition but you were suffering mentally or emotionally? Or if you were mentally and emotionally sound but suffering physically? Of course not! 

So far I hope I’ve painted a clear picture of just how awesome TCM and Acupuncture are….but, it wouldn’t be a fair discussion if I didn’t make sure to mention that as amazing as acupuncture is, it is not a miracle cure-all. While there is very little that acupuncture cannot help, there are lots of conditions that it cannot “fix” or completely cure. Multiple Sclerosis is a great example: Acupuncture for MS can help relieve pain, increase mobility, help prolong periods of remission,  it can relieve the emotional stress and frustration that often accompanies chronic illnesses, and generally help the person feel better. But! Acupuncture absolutely cannot cure someone of MS, no matter how educated or experienced the acupuncturist may be.

Likewise, any Registered Acupuncturist in B.C. is trained to recognize medical “red flags” - in other words, we are trained to recognize when TCM and acupuncture are no longer appropriate forms of treatment, and that the patient requires emergency Western medical intervention. For example, we are trained to know the difference between a panic attack and a heart attack, and when we have enough evidence to call 911 no matter what we think might be happening to our patient. Acupuncture is a truly amazing medical tool, but it is not always the most appropriate tool to use in any given situation. That being said, there is a lot an acupuncturist can do to help stabilize a patient while waiting for emergency intervention to arrive.

So, now we know that TCM is wholistic, it is not reliant on outside equipment or testing for diagnosis, and that it relies on identifying patterns of symptoms rather than specific illnesses, we can begin to see how acupuncture can be used to treat a wide array of conditions. You can use acupuncture for…

-Digestive Complaints
-Migraines and Headaches
-Reproductive Health and Hormonal Imbalances 
-Fertility, Pregnancy, and Postpartum Support 
-Menstrual Pain and Dysfunction 
-Insomnia and Sleeping Difficulties
-Stress, Anxiety, Frustration, Anger, Fear 
-PTSD, Trauma 
-General Mental and Emotional Well Being 
-Allergies, Stuffy Sinuses, Chronic Rhinitis 
-Physical Pain of All Kinds 
-Fatigue and Burn Out
-Common Cold and Flu
-Asthma and Respiratory Conditions 
-High Blood Pressure, Low Blood Pressure
-General Cardiovascular Health 
-Dizziness and Vertigo
-Stroke and Bell’s Palsy Recovery
-Nerve Damage
-Neurological Conditions 
-Edema, Water Retention, Swellings 
-TMJ and Teeth Grinding 
-Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue
-Menopause, Hot Flashes, Night Sweating 
-Disharmony of the Five Senses 
-Foggy Thinking, Inability to Focus/Concentrate
-Depression
-Lack of Appetite, Weight Loss
-Addictions Management 
-And just about anything else you can think of…….

So, the next time you wonder to yourself “Can you use acupuncture for…..”, the answer is most likely a resounding YES! If you still aren’t sure if acupuncture is right for you, feel free to book a 15 minute free consultation with one of our Acupuncturists. 

The North, as a famous Northerner rapper pegs us, loves to travel during the North’s hallmark—a chilly winter. Many opt for a brief southward migration to bask beneath a sunnier sky, cocktails and bug spray in hand, sand in toes. Others prefer to buy local, venturing to nearby powdery hills for a log-cabin chalet and local brew filled weekend of winter sports and festivities. Some, those super beings among us, accomplish a flawless transition from beachy vacay to annual ski trip, shunning the vertiginous difference in climate and geography: the Adventurers. 

But trips take their toll, and not just on the chequing account. Our bodies can only handle so much moving about, so much sleeplessness, and so much wear and tear. Even the G.O.A.T.s among us (think of one Lebron, of the house James) know their limits, push beyond them, and then mitigate the effects through therapy so they can repeat. The body needs its repose, and Physiotherapy during the winter is the perfect antidote to an activity or work filled winter that may predispose you to an injury filled spring and summer that frustratingly holds you back. Not to mention the seasonally-specific injuries that occur during the winter (take note of how many of your friends and colleagues have casts after that ski trip at the cabin).

Many of us tend to experience activity and occupation related injuries during the warmer months, and attribute it to the increase in our output during those times. And yes, while we tend to be more vigorous during this time, those aches and pains we feel can be attributed to the general, albeit unwitting, neglect of our bodies during a crucial period for preventative rehab (prehab). Research has demonstrated time and again that being consistent with bodily treatments throughout the year not only enhances performance and output, but also helps ensure prevention of injury when we intensify things. Once an injury takes place, however, reversing it is certainly more arduous and protracted than simply averting it with prehab.

Physiotherapy during the winter is one of the most effective ways to remain active and prevent injury in the cold, and stave off injuries that are likely to occur when activity intensifies as the climate heats up.

​ Taking advantage of physiotherapy prehab during the winter not only ensures that you thrive during this season, but also banks forward the advantage of a stronger, fitter, more resilient body during the rest of the year. Don’t simply wait till you injure your knee on the slopes, or your wrist on the keyboard and mouse, optimize your health with regular physiotherapy to ensure a pain-free and activity filled year. 

- Daniel Rashid C. PT
Curious to learn more about Daniel and his Physiotherapy practice? View his bio here!

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When you see a physiotherapist at Remedy Wellness Centre, you can expect an in depth assessment to find the root cause of your back and neck pain. Your physiotherapist may use techniques to mobilize your spinal joints, and will give you advice on how to best maintain your thoracic mobility, essential for a healthy low back and neck. The thoracic spine (mid back) can often become immobile, which can cause compensatory hypermobility and strain in the lower back and neck. Back pain can be driven by tight hamstrings, underactive or tight quads, poor core engagement, unstable SI joints and a long list of other things. We have the tools to figure out where it's coming from so we can fix it and teach you how to take better care of yourself. No need to waste time doing stretches and exercises that aren't really helping you. 

Using manual therapy and other treatment techniques like myofascial release, IMS, and MET, your physiotherapist will help you to regain lost mobility, provide you with instructions on how to achieve ideal postural alignment, and prescribe therapeutic exercises that will support your spine. Patient education is very important to us and we like to empower our patients to take part in the treatment process by prescribing exercises and stretches to be done at home. 


 TIPS FROM OUR PHYSIOTHERAPIST

• Stay flexible. Optimal spinal health means having flexibility and ease of movement in all directions. If your mid-back has limited rotation movement, more load and stress can be transferred to your lower back, neck or other body parts. You can check your rotation by sitting in a chair with your arms crossed across your stomach; with a flexible spine, you should be able to turn equally to the right and left, and see behind yourself easily. 

 

• Vary positions at work. We are not meant to sit all day. Sitting at computers and desks all day puts increased pressured on your spine. After about 30 minutes of sitting, you should get up and walk around to keep the flow of blood and fluids to the spine. You should also bend forward, backward, sidebend and rotate through your whole spine.  Move your arms around in circles as big as you can without pain to get the shoulder joints moving. Squat down and get back up if you can to mobilize the hips, knees and ankles. Take all your joints through their full range of motion to keep them flexible and loose. You can also set up a standing workstation to vary your position while working at the computer. You should make sure your work desk and computer are set up properly for sitting or standing, to encourage optimal posture. There is a blog post here about desk ergonomics that you may want to check out.

 

• Keep the core in check. Regain optimal control of your deep spinal muscles (core) following an episode of neck or back pain with regular exercise to strengthen the core. Learning how to activate your core properly is something you and your physio can work on here at Remedy Wellness Centre. Healthy core engagement can be very beneficial for spinal health, but over doing it or clenching can make things worse. You don't want constant resting tension either. You want that happy middle ground. We can help you find it. 

Check out this article as well: https://fitnessvolt.com/lower-back-pain-athletes/

First of all, what is chronic pain? Chronic pain is pain that last 3-6 months or longer. Recovering from chronic pain is very different that recovering from acute pain, which is new pain that is typically, but not always, associated with an injury or incident. Here are some of the key factors to consider when you are trying to get out of a chronic pain cycle.

1. Pain Education: Understanding how pain works in your body, brain and nervous system will help you to understand what is happening in your body. Pain does not necessarily mean you are causing damage to your tissues, which can be a hard concept to accept. When you begin a new exercise routine or activity, you will likely experience pain. The initial increase in pain is not damage. It is a warning signal from a sensitized nervous system, a response that has become automated but is not accurate or helpful. Increases in pain are always expected when you first start a new movement, activity or routine. The key is changing your beliefs about the pain, learning where to start, how much to do and acquiring some tools to regulate your overactive nervous system. These tools can help you take control and minimize or eliminate the pain you experience.
2. Safety: Start with movements that feel safe. Fear is a big factor when dealing with chronic pain, even if you aren’t aware of it. Practice asking yourself, “Is this safe?”, and consider modifying the movement if you don’t feel safe. This could mean having your hand on the wall for support, using a smaller range of motion, or performing the movement more slowly. It is important that you start with movements that you believe will not damage your body. This may be a very small movement or not very much activity to begin with, and that’s okay. Slow and steady wins the race, as they say.
3. How Much Is Enough: Continue the movement or activity as long as you feel you won’t regret it later. This can be difficult to determine, so start with a less is more approach and go from there. If you find that the consequences of the movement outweigh the benefits, and especially if there is a significant increase in pain after or during each movement, back off or stop. Take a breathing break. If it’s possible to stick to pain free ranges of motion, do so. If not, try to stick to minimally painful movements.
4. Breathe: Ensure you breathe calmly while you are moving or exercising. Relaxed breath or deep breath can calm you down and stimulate your parasympathetic nervous system which governs your rest and digest mode. Try taking a break between each movement or exercise as well, to breathe and relax. This can help to down regulate your sensitization.
5. Relaxation: Try to keep your muscle tone and tension as low as possible while you move. This might be hard. Remember that less is more and by being tense while you move you might be using too much effort to complete the movement.
6. Dividing Attention: If you are hypervigilant or pay a lot of attention to your pain during activities, try to divide your attention and focus on something else while you move. For example you’re your shoulder is the problem, focus on how your feet feel. If you tend to ignore your pain, try paying more attention to it.

At Remedy Wellness Centre, our massage therapists, acupuncturists, chiropractor and athletic therapist have completed educational courses through Pain BC and other continued education venues. By staying up to date on most recent research and treatment approaches for treating chronic pain, we can help you achieve balance and get back to doing the things you love. We also offer Registered Clinical Counselling with a unique focus on chronic pain treatment and management.
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If you are suffering with chronic pain, please come see us so we can get you started on a path to feeling better today.