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Dr. Tom Smith |
At the Parker & Morgan workshop, Dr. Tom Smith his colleague, Rakchanok Thirmongkol of D-Spine Chiropractic, spoke about what happens when your natural spinal curves put out of alignment.
This included advice about how to look after your spine and what to look for when choosing a pillow. At the workshop each participant was given a free consultation and a chance to and out which is the best pillow for his/her sleep position. |
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Beware of sleeping on your stomach.
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You have over 200 bones in your body. Whenever two bones come together at a joint, there is movement. Since joints in your spine are so close to your spinal cords and nerve roots, too much or too little joint motion can have serious effects on the spine, and the rest of the body as well.
Your Spine, Your Wellness
You have 24 moveable backbones, or vertebrae, which protect the spinal cord, a delicate system for sending information from your brain to your muscles, organs, skin and back again. If a spinal bone gets "stuck" and doesn't move right, it can irritate or chafe delicate nerves. If a joint moves too much, spinal bones can press against adjacent nerve tissue. This can interfere with the vital "life force" transmitted over your nervous system that keeps your brain in touch with your body.
The result is a vertebral subluxation. It is a change in the position of two adjacent spinal bones (vertebrae), and the resulting ill effects on the nervous system and the rest of the body. An over-simplfication of this then could be called a "pinched nerve".
More than bones and nerves are involved. Muscles can become too tight or too weak. Discs, ligaments and other connective tissues can become inflamed. Bone spurs and arthritic de-generation can set in.
What causes a pinched nerve?
There are many factors that can cause a pinched nerve. Trauma from car accidents, improper lifting, falls, jolts, or strains are common causes. Sustained postures (sitting all day) repeated motions common to the work-place, inadequate sleep, improper exercise, poor diet, drug side effects, and emotional stress are all factors that can gradually wear down parts of the spine and lead to subluxation. Pinched nerves can occur as early as childbirth.
Symptoms of spinal problems can include: allergies, aches and pains, tingling, numbness and stiffness, head-aches, dizziness, blood pressure problems, digestive disorders, asthma and shingles.
Your Spine and Sleep
There is an old Chinese proverb that states, "Only when one cannot sleep does one know how long the night is." Anyone who's ever experienced an occasional bout with insomnia, and that's most of us at one time or another, can relate to this all too well.
In fact, surveys have shown that between 40 - 60 percent of the general population has trouble sleeping. Daily stress and worries, pressures from job and family, body aches and pains caused by uncomfortable beds or pillows, and a host of other issues can keep a person from getting enough quality sleep.
Creating a comfortable place to sleep, by choosing the correct mattress and pillow, is essential to getting the quality sleep that your body needs to function at its best.
After investing in a quality mattress, don't forget to choose an equally supportive pillow. People spend thousands of dollars on a mattress and then skimp on a pillow that doesn't support their head and neck properly. A good pillow will keep the cervical (neck) section of the spine aligned with the thoracic and lumbar (chest and lower back) sections. Both sections move together and should be supported together.
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