What if I told you that a lot more problems with the body can be solved by getting to the root issues? They can. Hm- that's "basically" it!
Okay, okay- I guess I'll expand a little more.
Most people have a few aches, pains, or pieces of them that they wish were just a liiiiiitle bit better off. For just 3 easy payments of-...
Let's forget that happened. Moving on:
With all silliness aside- there are ways to make life better for most people. Some of it's a chemistry and supply conversation to help the cells do a better job. Today, however, we are going to focus on the kinesthetic proprioceptor system. Though there are laundry lists of body issues we may face- and we can return to those thoughts- most pressing issues are often those of musculo-skeletal pain.
I have great news: a lot of help can be accomplished in 10 minutes or less. These tips are for you- whether you're on the practitioner side or the recipient side. That means if you have a fantastic D.C., O.T., P.T., M.T., or even someone with two hands that get tired in 5 minutes, here's a few tips to make the most of your therapy time of any form.
Tip #1: Move.
Have you seen the Lemurs' dance in the movie Madagascar? "I like to move it- move it" If you haven't, and this comment makes you look it up, then you may have just gotten your best value out of this little letter. Great.
Whatever is being worked on should be moved into different areas while the squeezing and pushing is happening. This forces the muscles through its different phases and resets your pain receptors.
Tip #2: Observe
Check out what's weak. Seriously- this is most of my advantage right here.
If you move slowly and gently gauge both sides' capability to move without shaking- usually one is just a bit weaker. This allows you to focus on the "weak link" and possibly iron out some things you didn't know were connected.
Tip #3: Breathe
Yeah I know that's simple- but I'll just throw in one thing I didn't know about until I took a class on stress and PTSD. There's this thing called "The Magic Breath" that really helps your brain and nervous system. It's really easy- here's the detail I didn't know: When you breathe in through your nose put your tongue on the roof of your mouth. When you breathe out through your mouth- relax your body and pay attention to what it feels rather than what random thing you're thinking. When you exhale your brain does stuff- so try not to confuse it with other cognitive tasks.
I could go into a lot of really cool science about this that I've heard- but I'm not going to put it up on this page today- because sometimes it's better just to take a small bite and chew on it. I guess that's Tip #4 then isn't it? Really though- going fast, pushing hard- it's not all there is in the progress conversation. You can get a lot done in a few minutes with simple tools. Don't underestimate what can be found when you are looking in a small area.
My last word for today is this: Go easy on yourself. Sometimes one step in the right direction is all you need to do for one day. Giving yourself permission to rest in the space of a good question- like "what do I have going well for me right now?" can be something that gets to the root of deep things that can change your life for the better- little by little.
Thanks for reading!
Peace, and many blessings-
Kevin.