Pain Managment in Paradise 2008

What a wonderful trip the 6th Annual Pain Management in Paradise turned out to be. Erik Dalton brought along the originator of Active Isolated Stretching, Aaron Mattes, for a fun filled and informative week of 26 hours of continuing education.

Many of the workshop participants experienced a life alteration. This 26 hours of education coupled with the tranquil setting of Pura Vida Resort and Spa provided an opportunity for therapists to study theory of new concepts, practice techniques and reflect on why we do what we do.

Many new relationships were built over the seven days in Costa Rica. For those of us who had met before it was an opportunity to expand our personal and professional relationships. For me, getting to know Aaron and Judy Mattes a bit better was one highlight. What great, honest and caring people the two of them are.

Over the past 45 years, Aaron Mattes has spent well over 250,000 hours developing AIS in sports participation, sports and health instruction, rehabilitation, athletic training, adapted physical education, sports medicine, training and prevention programs. This man is the real deal, and his wife Judy, god bless her, has to reign him in at the end of the day, he is fully committed to helping people understand and use the techniques.

He is a registered Kinesiotherapist (#449) and a certified member of the American Kinesiotherapy Association. He is a licensed Massage Therapist (#3864) and a member of the Florida State Massage Therapy Association and the American Massage Therapy Association (#3864). Mattes is a member of the Association of Medical Rehabilitation Administrators, and the National Rehabilitation Association (#039204).

Mattes lectures internationally at sports medicine clinics, medical seminars, and massage therapy conventions. He provides continuing education to personal trainers, nurses, strength trainers, athletic trainers, physical therapists, massage therapists, coaches and athletes. Mattes serves as a consultant to sports clubs, high school, college and professional athletes and teams. He has rehabilitated thousands of subjects including famous politicians, entertainers, and hundreds of Olympic and professional athletes.

Mattes is co-author of two books: Pre-Condition, Re-Condition, Re-Habilitation: Shelton, Greninger and Mattes and Nutrition Therapy For Massage and Physical Therapy Patients: E. Leslie Knight and Mattes. He is the sole author of a number of books on stretching including his 2000 text "Active Isolated Stretching: The Mattes Method”. Mattes is internationally recognized for his techniques in treating pain, scoliosis and major spinal distortions, post polio, parkinsonism, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, spinal cord problems, and joint replacements.

Some therapist's may try to emulate his life, his commitment, and even his teachings, but there is only one Aaron Mattes, and what an honor it was to work along side him and assist him in his work over this unforgettable week. Thanks Aaron.

hope to see you soon.......

Sedona, Phoenix, Sedona, Home...Costa Rica

Up coming schedule.....

Myoskeletal Alignment Techniques, NAMTI, Sedona
Sunday, April 6, 10am-6 pm
Monday, April 7, 6pm-9:30pm
Wednesday, April 9, 6pm-9:30pm
Friday, April 11, 6pm-9:30pm (Phoenix, Ironman Arizona, 8am-2pm)
Sunday, April 13, 10am-6pm
Monday, April 14, 6pm-9:30pm
Wednesday, April 16, 1:30 -5pm, 6pm-9:30pm
Thursday, April 17, 9am-5pm
Friday, April 18, 6pm-9:30pm
Monday, April 21, 9am-5pm
Tuesday, April 22, 9am-5pm
Wednesday, April 23, 9am-5pm
Thursday, April 24, 9am-12:30pm

1st group
2nd group

Thursday, April 24th, Fly out for Myoskeletal Alignment 6th annual retreat with Erik Dalton and Aaron Mattes at Pura Vida Resort in Costa Rica.

Click the purple links to find out more......

Second Heart System- Part One

The walking cycle is complex to say the very least. It takes a harmonious balance between the head and neck, spine, ribs, arms, hips, knee and ankle movement. And that is just with-in the bones. Imagine the process form the viewpoint of muscle, ligament, nerves, and fascia. There needs to be an effective firing order of trunk rotation, latisimus dorsi, thoracolumbar fascia, glute max, and lateral hamstring (bicep femoris). All of this is very complex and is something that I am attempting to understand.

I do know the simple act of walking may decrease the likely hood of deep vein thrombosis in the lower extremity, and increased flexibility and tone may help the return of blood flow from the lower leg to the heart.

Many anatomists refer to the soleus muscle as the second heart. The soleus is located somewhat deep in the calf; it is the second muscle deep to the skin, just deep to gastrocnemius. It may be an active muscle in the “toe off” phase in the walking and running cycle, but it's main job is stabilization in the stance phase. Electromyography shows that this muscle is made up of nearly 100% slow twitch, high endurance muscle fibers. This means it does not fatigue easy, and may just become neurologically facilitated to the point where it needs intervention to turn off.

Just deep to the soleus muscle is the venous return system from the lower leg. The veins have a few branches and some of the smaller venuals entwine through the muscles belly and run deep. The veins need effective pumping and the muscle needs freedom of movement to provide this pumping action. Strength and flexibility are two key factors for healthy lower legs.

There are a few things we can do to ensure freedom of movement in this tissue. Using a foam roller is one great technique for applying just the right amount of pressure to this deep calf muscle. Roll from the head of gastroc down to the heel for lengthening the muscle fibers. Try flexing and extending the ankle to get deeper into the fascial layers and to provide a distraction technique if needed. The key is to get the bellies of the muscles separated, allowing space for the blood to flow when the pumping action of the lower legs is active.

Always check with your doctor if you are in pain. Deep leg thrombosis is very dangerous and may indicate the care of a physician. Do not attempt these movements if you suspect any clotting in the tissue. Please check with your doctor first.

Lifting and Twisting

So.... We have had some snow in Flag. We put old Babs to the test. The snow plow moved this bank up onto the side walk, I cleared the whole thing, then had my Dad stand here for a photo opportunity. He made it out alive!! The lifting and twisting motion of removing this snow fall from our driveways and sidewalks brought many people in with acute back pain.

He moved a lot of snow. Before that he raised three kids, worked in the produce industry, beef industry, and back to produce. Dad is 64 years of age. He retired 2 years ago from a major grocery store in the mid-west, with no back pain!

When we go to the grocery store we pick up items in the produce department. I want you to think about this:

Stacks of potatoes- 10 lbs a bag.
Celery- boxes weigh around 40 lbs.
Carrots- boxes weigh around 40 lbs.
Apples- boxes weigh around 40 lbs. And are stacked high and long. 8-10 varieties.
Banana- boxes weigh around 60 lbs. Organic and non-organic.
Lettuce- boxes weigh around 40 lbs. Washed in freezing water. 4 varieties.
Oranges- boxes weigh around 40 lbs. And are stacked high and long.
Peanuts, Chard, Endive, Green Beans, Pineapple, Tomatoes, Onions, Garlic, Grapefruit, Avocado, Peppers of all variety, Asparagus, Watermelon, Squash.....and on and on and on......

No back pain. That's quite a work out everyday. Go back up and look at this guy's posture. No Hunch, strong core, strong back, all as a result of many years of similar work to the snow lifting.

From Dalton's Blog.......

Much controversy exists in the biomedical and rehabilitation community as to the preferred strategy for lifting. This may actually come as some surprise to many of you who believe that lifting with a flat or arched back (lordotic posture) is unequivocally the safer and more efficient way to lift objects from the ground.

Serge is a proponent of what is called the rounded back (kyphotic posture) lifting theory. At a Rolf Institute annual meeting presentation in the early 80’s, Serge argued that the back muscles are not strong enough to properly support the spine and that when lifting naturally (without being coached how to lift) people will round their backs relying on the posterior ligaments and lateral thoracolumbar fascia to support their spines. He insists that lifting with an arched back is dangerous, since contraction of the erector spinae muscles increases the compressive load on the spine.

In fact, a fundamental problem in spinal biomechanics is explaining why vertebrae and discs are not crushed during the lifting of even relatively small loads. This problem has been wrestled with by spinal experts for years.

Gracovetsky attempts to solve the problem by proposing a model of the spine where lifting occurs without great involvement of the back muscles. They argue that lifting with a rounded back (kyphotic lifting posture) is safer since this results in less contraction of the erector spinae (lower back) muscles.

He believes that to lift properly, we must rely on passive bracing of the posterior ligamentous system and the thoracolumbar fascia of the spine for support. They claim that this lifting posture/strategy is to be preferred, since it results in less spinal compression and less tendency for shear forces in the spine.

Gracovetsky argues that the lower back muscles are not located posterior enough to the spine to be able to exert very much extensor torque and that since the erectors are located very close and lateral to the spine, they were never intended to generate much power.

While I may not agree one hundred percent with this model, many people do seem to lift this way, and many never have acute low back pain......

Hope it helps........and I hope we receive more snow!!

Stroke Awareness

STROKE: Remember The 1st Three Letters.... S.T.R.
If everyone can remember something this simple, we could save some folks. Seriously..

Please read:

STROKE IDENTIFICATION:

During a BBQ, a friend stumbled and took a little fall - she assured everyone that she was fine (they offered to call paramedics) .....she said she had just tripped over a brick because of her new shoes.

They got her cleaned up and got her a new plate of food. While she appeared a bit shaken up, Ingrid went about enjoying herself the rest of the evening.

Ingrid's husband called later telling everyone that his wife had been taken to the hospital - (at 6:00 pm Ingrid passed away.) She had suffered a stroke at the BBQ. Had they known how to identify the signs of a stroke, perhaps Ingrid would be with us today. Some don't die.... they end up in a helpless, hopeless condition instead.

It only takes a minute to read this...

A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim within 3 hours he can totally reverse the effects of a stroke... totally . He said the trick was getting a stroke recognized, diagnosed, and then getting the patient medically cared for within 3 hours, which is t ough.

RECOGNIZING A STROKE
Thank God for the sense to remember the "3" steps, STR . Read and Learn!

Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells disaster. The stroke victim may suffer severe brain damage when people nearby fail to recognize the symptoms of a stroke .


Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:
S * Ask the individual to SMILE.
T * Ask the person to TALK and SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE (Coherently)
(i.e. It is sunny out today)
R * Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.

If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call 999/911 immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

New Sign of a Stroke -------- Stick out Your Tongue

NOTE: Another 'sign' of a stroke is this: Ask the person to 'stick' out his tongue.. If the tongue is 'crooked', if it goes to one side or the other , that is also an indication of a stroke.

A cardiologist says if everyone who gets this e-mail sends it to 10 people; you can bet that at least one life will be saved.

Low Back Pain

This is one of my favorite Myoskeletal Alignment Techniques for assisting clients with low back pain. When the psoas muscle (and others) tugs anteriorly on the spine, it can cram the facet joints closed in the lumbar spine. Here we take a client into a side lying position and ask them to do pelvic tilts. When pelvic tilts are performed it asks the joints to open and close, in this case we want the joints to open more, so concentration is placed on posterior tilt, or thrusting the pubic bone forward. Sustained pressure is applied, creating more resistance to clients effort, thus creating more movement in spinal segment upon effort.