The recent article by NPR, Flattening The 'Mummy Tummy' With 1 Exercise, 10 Minutes A Day, starts off with a sensational, grabbing title. A click bait title that we wouldn't expect from a trusted news source like NPR. But it certainly got your attention, especially if you recently had a baby and now are feeling a little weak around the core. And since this is NPR this should be safer than something random you pull off the internet, right? Well, yes and no.
With addiction, deep fractures are drawn between our mind and our body, our needs and our habits, our emotions and our actions, and in the relationships that we have to ourselves and to others. Yoga, on the other hand, is connection.
It's a great time to pay attention to how stress is affecting you. Common stressors include work, family, money, children, illness and more. Stress can impact both your body and your mind causing symptoms such as muscular pain, irritability, fatigue, and headaches. Here's how we can help...
According to CDC data, 32% of women delivering a baby did so via C-section in 2015. Some of these are elective (planned) & others unplanned or emergent. If you are one of the 32%, what can you expect following a C-section?
Do you feel like your insurance coverage gets more confusing each year? That’s probably because it does! It seems like each year there is another rule or exception to your plan but the cost keeps going up. Here at Jade, we are often asked, “how much will this cost?” The answer isn’t as easy at it seems.
Acupuncture has been growing quickly due to its accessibility, effectiveness, and its holistic philosophy. Even with vast amounts of information at our fingertips, it can still be hard to sort through the noise for clear answers on Acupuncture and Eastern Medicine.
Here we can show 5 conditions that are most effectively treated with acupuncture, as well as some of the most common misconceptions.
By Jennifer Major, DPT
Inhale to receive. Receiving can be difficult for people who are used to always doing, always giving. The breath nourishes the body and mind and helps to bring healing oxygen to restrictions and injuries. The breath is closely tied to pelvic floor rehabilitation, and here is why.
Sometimes when people have difficulty relaxing they breathe into the upper rib cage tightening around the ribs and abdomen. So why does the exhale feel like the relaxation part of the breath? In order to take a deep breath, we need to activate the respiratory diaphragm. As the diaphragm moves down and outward air is drawn into the lungs. Yes, the exhale is the relaxation of the respiratory diaphragm. But, when we breathe in, the pelvic floor descends along with the respiratory diaphragm. For abdominal and pelvic function a full diaphragmatic breath into the lower ribs works better.
The pelvic floor, in its relaxed state, is just along for the ride with the breath: down on the inhale, back up on the exhale. We inhale to receive breath, so that we can exhale and do something with the oxygen we have received. Inhale to prepare, exhale with action. It may be that we speak or perform a muscle action or maybe we just allow the breath to release gently back into the atmosphere. If we activate the pelvic floor and lift it on the exhale, then we are working with the body’s natural rhythm.
Can you breathe in such a way that you can feel your lower rib cage and abdomen expand as you inhale? Can you feel your pelvic floor soften and broaden as you inhale? Can you feel your respiratory diaphragm and pelvic floor return to the original position as you allow the exhale? This is how we meet your body where it naturally wants to be. When we meet you where you are, we can help you to heal and improve.
Early recovery is raw and vulnerable. It is a time to detox, fight triggers, and literally put days behind you, as you work to regain physical and mental wellness. The mind often "reads" silence as a signal to get "chatty" or fill the void with conversations, many times fueled by feelings of regret, judgment, etc. Practicing quiet yoga can help to support conversations of a self-love, self-accepting nature.
Traditional Chinese Medicine and Daoist religion have a long history of utilizing preventative medicine, or Longevity Techniques, to improve patient outcomes. Known as YangSheng, these practices include guidance on sleep, diet, herbal supplementation, meditation, and exercise used to nourish the Three Treasures of Jing, Qi, and Shen (Body, Breath, and Spirit). The exercise portion of YangSheng are collectively known today as Qigong.
Women who experience irregular periods with longer menstrual cycles have been associated with a higher risk of ovarian cancer, coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, mental health issues and now, a shortened lifespan. At Jade Integrated Health, we are a team of practitioners who are devoted to promoting women’s health and longevity. We integrate physical therapy for pelvic health, acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine to balance menstruation, pregnancy, postpartum, and menopause states in a woman’s life.
Why is it difficult to gain traction toward your goals with “simple”? Because you're stressed so everything seems more difficult and the time you have to devote to yourself may appear not to exist. That is fertile ground for your “Stress Cycle”, to continue, perhaps freshly enhanced. Time to take a step back and get your power back.
The benefits of having a 1-1 session, versus going to a group class, is that with the 1-1 you get individual attention to specifically address your yoga and wellness goals. 1-1 yoga sessions can also provide an opportunity to individuals who may be wanting to try yoga for the first time, but are feeling timid about taking a yoga class with other individuals.
Sure, a massage sounds nice. You'll get one....maybe...someday. But perhaps it seems a little self indulgent, or it's just not the first thing on your to-do list. And so you put it off. I've done the same thing, honestly. There's so much going on in life! Who's got time to lie on a table for an hour?
And then I remind myself that a good massage is a lot more than relaxing. A massage benefits your overall health in sometimes surprising ways.
The weeks and months after having a baby are some of the most wonderful in any mother’s life, but they can also be some of the hardest. With up to 1 in 5 new mothers experiencing postpartum depression and anxiety, there is no shame in experiencing these conflicting feelings, and yet the signs of these conditions aren’t talked about enough. In this blog we’ll discuss signs and symptoms of postpartum anxiety and depression as well as support options.
We’ve normalized how the postpartum period should go for women, but every woman’s experience is different. Women are meant to be cared for in the postpartum period just as we care for the newborn. At Jade Integrated Health, we have been solving this problem by offering postpartum home visits to women following childbirth.
How does integrated health actually work? Join us for a multi-part blog series, written by our experienced providers, exploring integrative care at Jade Integrated Health. This blog features physical therapist Melissa Belcher, MSPT, CAPP-OB and acupuncturist, James Constantine DAIM, L.Ac. and their work with a runner who came to Jade with complaints of hip pain.
How does integrated health actually work? Join us for a multi-part blog series, written by our experienced providers, exploring integrative care at Jade Integrated Health. First up, physical therapist and co-owner, Nancy Charlebois MSPT, LMT and therapeutic yoga instructor, Julia Redman E-RYT and their work with patient, Maddie.
