If you’ve ever sprained an ankle, slipped and fallen down, or gotten hit while engaging in sports, you likely applied ice to your injury—as you should have. Ice is best used in situations where it’s crucial to control tissue inflammation to reduce damage and address pain.
“I tell patients to apply ice instead of heat, because wherever you have pain, you have inflammation which is red, hot, and swollen,” said Dr. Owais.
While heat may feel good when you put it on, it causes an increase in inflammation in the body. Applying heat when applying ice can worsen your injury.
The sooner you can apply ice to an injury, the better, but you have about a 24-hour window to get ice on the area of injury. To reduce swelling and minimize pain, apply ice to the injured area for 20 minutes every two hours, as long as it’s hurting.
Make sure to protect your skin from the cold, such as a towel. You could also use a bag of frozen vegetables or a cold washcloth.
Dr. Owais always tells patients to use ice for an injury, unless they have a frozen shoulder. “If you want to put heat on, don’t use direct heat. Take an Epsom salt bath instead of putting direct heat on you,” she said.
Dr. Owais always recommends ice after a chiropractic adjustment, because the force of the adjustment itself will cause some inflammation when you do it. That’s why she always tells patients to ice afterward if they have any discomfort. However, if you don’t experience discomfort after an adjustment, you don’t need to ice it.
“I also want patients to know that if their discomfort is muscle-related, it will get better with ice. If it’s not related to a muscle, it won’t get better with ice, so we can determine if something else is going on,” said Dr. Owais.
For more information about icing an injury, contact San Jose Chiropractic today.
Degenerative disc disease is an age-related condition that occurs when one or more of the discs between the vertebrae of the spinal column deteriorates, resulting in pain and sometimes weakness and numbness.
During this first phase, the loss of the natural curvature of the spine can indicate the beginning of degenerative disc disease. Pain may not be noticeable, but extra pressure is being placed on the spine, which can lead to faster aging of the spine, nerves, and joints.
In this second phase, the degradation of discs becomes more apparent. The curvature of the spine will become more unnatural, and the spinal canal may become narrower. Stage 2 is often where you will experience some pain and discomfort.
During this third phase, there’s a more extreme change in the posture and curvature of the spine. There’s also more pain and less mobility. Nerve damage is common, and scar tissue usually begins to develop.
This last stage of degenerative disc disease is the most severe and considered irreversible. At this point, the spine has extremely limited flexibility, and pain is often unbearable.
Chiropractic care is a preferred treatment option for degenerative disc disease, as it’s gentle and non-invasive. The earlier the stage of degenerative disc disease, the more likely it can be successfully addressed.
When patients come in, we do exams and X-rays. When we do, the X-rays usually tell what phase a patient is in. Dr. Owais is looking for nice smooth bones and the spaces between the bones to be equal.
“It takes 10 years to get from each phase to the other,” she said. Some patients may come in and say it just started hurting last week. But when Dr. Owais takes X-rays that often look like the patient is in phase one or phase 2, she knows it’s been there for 10-20 years.
To stop the progression, we take the pressure off the nerve, making sure the bone is moving properly the way it needs to be moved. Dr. Owais does that through specific chiropractic adjustments.
Patients can experience pain at every phase. Usually, if people are in phase 1, the degeneration can be reversed. But if they’re in phase 2 or 3, it can’t be reversed, but we can help slow down or stop the decay.
You only have one spine, so you want it to be healthy for a lifetime. Chiropractic care can help you enjoy optimal spinal and overall health. Contact us today to book an appointment.
Do you find yourself sitting hunched over your desk or looking down on your digital devices? It’s no surprise that many people suffer from poor posture, which can cause balance problems, breathing difficulties, headaches and other adverse effects. Fortunately, there are some things you can do to improve your posture.
It’s important to make changes to your workspace, such as using an ergonomic chair. Poor posture can affect the entire body, so if posture is off, the whole spine is off. Make sure your ankle is 90 degrees to your shin, 90 degrees to your thigh, and 90 degrees to your spine.
When looking at the phone, instead of looking down, keep your neck straight and extend your arms. Your eye should be the same level as the screen.
Often we forget about posture and start leaning more forward. Instead of doing that, consider placing a small pillow behind your neck. If you start looking forward and the pillow falls, it reminds you to sit up straighter. When you sit in the car, sit as straight as possible and fix the mirror in front of you.
Coming in for regular chiropractic care can help keep your spine aligned and posture perfected. Remember, though, that you need to practice good posture and can’t just rely on chiropractic care. “If patients don’t work on their posture other than what I’m doing in the office, it’s not going to help,” said Dr. Owais.
The good news is that a combination of chiropractic care and practicing good posture daily can not only help you look better, but also experience many health benefits.
Contact us today to schedule an appointment!
One of our greatest passions at San Jose Chiropractic is giving back to the community. From October 11 to November 10, 2021, we asked patients to donate nonperishable food items to benefit the Mandarin Food Bank. Our theme was “Let’s Heal the Pantry Together!” Patients opened their hearts and pantries by donating over 50 pounds of food!
“We always want to be there for those in need. I want to thank our generous patients for providing food to help the hungry in the Mandarin neighborhood of Jacksonville,” said Dr. Owais. She added that this past year’s collection was the biggest our practice has witnessed.
The Mandarin Food Bank was established in 1991 and is a ministry of St. Joseph Catholic Church. The mission is to provide emergency food and clothing to people in need in the Mandarin community. Every Thanksgiving and Christmas, the food bank provides a box of food for a complete holiday meal, serving approximately 400 families at each event.
We look forward to this year’s food drive and are committed to always being of service to those in need in Jacksonville.
