Things You Can Do For Foot Pain

I have run into another flurry of a certain type of painful situation and it is foot pain. I have written about foot pain previously, but wanted to provide readily available information about things that anyone can do to prevent and relieve foot pain.

Stretching is the single most important thing you can do for foot pain. Tight hamstrings can communicate issues all the way from the sitzbones to the Achilles Tendons. Keeping them stretched and flexible is an important way to maintain the health of the foot. Two easy stretches we have found helpful are:

The Runner’s Stretch – Place your hands about two feet away from each other on a wall while standing about two feet away and leaning into the wall. Step forward with one foot, while leaving the other with the heel on the ground behind you. You are looking for a gentle sensation of stretch, not discomfort in that leg. Krista Kelley at Mission Rehab Services told us that a stretch any shorter than 45 seconds is not worth doing, so count slowly to 45 and then switch the positions of the feet and stretch the other leg. Doing this in the morning and evening will help the hamstrings to not get so tight. Muscles get tight from normal use so slowly that we may fail to recognize the sensation. Doing this exercise will help you become more familiar with the feeling of muscle tension so that you can monitor the status of your hamstrings more accurately and stretch them more effectively, thus preventing issues from arising.

The Hamstring Stretch – While laying in the bed, before arising, use a towel or strap and loop it under the ball of the foot. Holding an end of the towel in each hand, gently raise the leg while using the towel to keep the foot at a 90 degree ankle to the leg. Raise the leg until you feel a gentle stretch, not pain. Hold for 45 seconds, bring the leg gently down to the bed, and do the stretch on the other leg. Over time you will be able to raise the leg higher and higher as the hamstring is re-educated to be relaxed rather than tight. This will prevent the discomfort and possible micro damage to the tendons that can occur when getting out of bed when hamstrings have tightened up during sleep.

Things you can do to improve the health of your feet:

Massage - In the evening, while relaxing, deeply rub and massage your feet in a conscious way from the tips of the toes to the backs of the heels. Let it be your intention to touch every single inch of skin on the bottom of your foot. When you find areas that are tender, press into them and hold. In just a few minutes the tenderness will dissipate and the area will relax. This can also be a good way to improve your overall health through Reflexology.

Strengthen the Muscles of the Foot - The muscles in the feet need exercise and strengthening, just like any other muscle in the body. However, shoes are not conducive to exercising foot muscles. Take off your shoes and socks and while sitting in a comfortable position, imagine (or use real ones if you’d like) that you are picking up marbles with your toes. This strengthens the muscles in the arch which tend to flatten as our foot muscles weaken with age and wearing shoes.

Strengthen the Muscles of the Ankle and Top of Foot – How many of us have sat on the beach and almost unconsciously (because it feels so good), moved our feet back and forth from side to side in the sand, digging a little trough. This motion strengthens the muscles in the ankles and top of the foot to provide better stability for walking. You don’t need sand to do this. Sit in a comfortable position and imagine doing this little activity as if you were at the beach, moving your feet against the floor back and forth from side to side. If you vividly imagine you are at the beach digging the comforting little trenches with your feet, your body will not know that you are not, and other benefits such as shoulder and neck relaxation can be experienced as well.

Our feet are probably the most ignored area of the body. They carry our weight and do whatever we ask for most of our lives without complaint. As we age, our inattention to caring for our feet can take its toll. Notice your feet. Appreciate how hard they work for you. Do kinds things for them like massage or hot soaks. Become friends with your feet. They will love you for it!

What a SCENAR Session is Like

The first session is where many important things happen. First, I have you fill out some paper work so I know what is going on and start to formulate an idea of where to begin. Once we have talked about what issues you bring to the table, I can create an initial treatment plan. I discuss the plan I think will work with you and show you the SCENAR and how it works.

Let’s suppose you have pain in your neck and shoulders (many, many people do). I place the device on an area proximal to where we will work and bring up the sensation level until you feel a buzzing or tingling. The SCENAR will work regardless of whether or not you feel it, but feeling it helps you track not only where I am working, but also other places in your body where the sensation may travel. This tells me other areas to work that may have a healing impact.

Then I begin to stroke your neck and shoulders with the instrument. I am looking for places where the skin turns red and/or the device “drags” over an area. These are called “sticky” places and they indicate  what are called “asymmetries,” which is the way your body tells me where to work. There is a difference in the skin impedance between an area that is unhealthy and an area that is healthy, and the SCENAR picks that up.

When I determine where the asymmetries are, I focus on them and narrow down, through stroking, to what is called the “smallest asymmetry” in an area. Once found, I hold the device there until it gives me a signal that the healing chemicals (neuropeptides) have arrived at the spot. When they do, they immediately begin the process of healing, and the skin impedance changes. The device is looking for this and when it happens, there is a series of bells that tell us that the first “dose” of neuropeptides has arrived at the spot. The body’s healing attention is refocused on the area.

From there I look for other areas and treat them in the same way. There are typically several areas involved in neck and shoulder pain in the neck, upper back, shoulder, clavicle area in the front of the neck, and the muscles involved there.  I continue to treat any area that shows distress (asymmetries).

Usually, when I have treated all that I have found, you will feel substantial release from pain, more freedom of movement, and a sense of well being overall. Often this is most noticeable the next morning after the treatment.

Generally, after a SCENAR treatment, you will leave with a sense of relief from pain and an over all sense of well being in your body. The parasympathetic system is activated, so you will likely also feel a sense of relaxation.

It is important to drink water after a session because as the body heals it releases toxins from the tissues and you will want to wash them out of your system as efficiently as possible.

Chronic conditions may require 5 to 10 treatments.  Acute situations require fewer sessions which must done more frequently.

SCENAR is effective with any kind of injury, post surgery, and chronic conditions. If you have pain, call us at 828-337-6854. Mention this post for a 20% discount on the first session.

Healing Innovations Is Opening a New Opportunity

Beginning next month, we will be offering SCENAR pain relief treatments through Mountain Air Wellness Center in Cashiers, NC. Expanding into this market will give access to this revolutionary technology in the far western region of WNC. We look forward to being a part of this dynamic, creative, and visionary natural health practice.

New Study Shows Efficacy of Slow Breathing in Reducing Pain

A new study reported in the April issue of the Journal of Pain reports on the effects of slow breathing on reducing pain. It is the first study to directly examine the benefits of breathing rate on physical and emotional reaction to pain.

It is a small study using 27 women with Fibromyalgia and 25 healthy women. The results show that slow breathing reduced rating of pain intensity as well as negative emotion in the healthy women. Those with Fibromyalgia who had the capacity to feel positive, felt less pain with slow breathing.

The study’s lead author, Alex Zautra, Foundation Professor of Psychology at Arizona State University, says: “Slow breathing provides a natural means for damping activity in the stress system of the brain, leading to a reduction in pain. The first change that occurs with slower breathing is greater parasympathetic response which provides a counterbalance to sympathetic activation that is often aroused by pain, and that engenders feelings of anxiety and nervous tension. A greater state of calm induced with slower breathing also opens the mind to a greater capacity to feel emotions other than pain, providing perspective, flexibility, and choice in the regulation of inner states. In doing so, slow breathing reduces the dominance of the fight/flight response within us, extending the calm influence of parasympathetic activation to allow for better emotional regulation and cognitive shifts from helplessness to action.”

Zautra is now conducting clinical trials to test the benefit of their body/mind intervention in a five year project funded in part by the National Institute of Health.

It is wonderful to see the scientific community validating the effects of Parasympathetic Mind.

Why Do We Believe in SCENAR?

So, what does SCENAR do that is different from what traditional medicine offers for pain relief? The biggest benefit is that it alleviates pain rapidly without drugs or  invasive procedures. Using the body’s own adaptive capacity, the SCENAR wakes up the brain and central nervous system to the areas of pain that need attention, and often accelerates the body’s process of doing what it is designed to do: HEAL ITSELF. Although drugs can provide pain relief, they often interfere with the body’s self-healing ability and create negative “side effects”. What we are trying to do is relieve our pain, but we may end up constipated or woozy or addicted.

SCENAR causes the release of regulatory chemicals called neuropeptides, including endorphins, which naturally alleviate pain. By using frequencies native to the body, SCENAR supports the body in doing the healing work that is its natural capacity. So, not only does the SCENAR alleviate pain, but it supports the body in healing the issue that is creating the pain. Because it speaks to the body in the body’s own language, it can speed up the healing ability so that positive results occur more rapidly than could be accomplished without it.

Under what circumstances and conditions is getting a SCENAR treatment helpful? Although pain is always a good indicator that a treatment would be helpful, the SCENAR, in its support of the body healing itself, can affect other dynamics besides  pain. For instance, the SCENAR has an anti-inflammatory effect, anti-venom effect,  it lowers fever, reduces swelling and edema in general, promotes tissue regeneration, and helps the body in its effort to restore homeostasis. So, it can have a wide ranging effect from fast recovery from  insect stings to muscle strains and sprains, and  from chronic pain syndromes to post operative recovery. In Russia, the SCENAR accompanies the ambulance responders and is also used in hospitals to promote a quicker recovery from surgical procedures without having to use as many pain medications.

So, in essence, the SCENAR can be helpful anytime there is a need to recover the body’s natural balance, whether an imbalance occurs from injury, pain, surgery, infection or anything else. We carry our SCENAR everywhere with us, just in case. On many occassions, we have been glad we did.

Healing Innovations Provides Pain Relief with SCENAR

Healing Innovations pioneered the use of the SCENAR in Asheville. SCENAR is the holistic treatment that is changing the world of pain relief. This powerful biofeedback process provides effective relief for both acute and chronic pain without drugs or invasive procedures. Athletes find they rapidly recover from sprains, strains, and overuse issues, as well as seeing it improve their performance in their training programs. Those who have suffered with chronic pain for years find the treatments give them relief and return function they had lost long ago. There have never been any documented side effects in over 50,000 case studies.

SCENAR is a small, hand-held device that stimulates the body’s own healing mechanisms by activating the nerve receptors in the skin, and triggering the release of endorphins and other natural peptide chemicals (the body’s own internal pharmacy). Through biofeedback, an interaction is formed between the device and the body, thus establishing an “interactive dialogue” to correct body dysfunctions and relieve pain. The device itself does not heal the body, but rather alerts the body to mobilize its own healing forces. Acute injuries usually take 1-5 sessions, chronic conditions can take 5-15. During treatment, recipients feel gentle tingling sensations and often experience a sense of well being and relaxation.

Healing Innovations has helped hundreds of people with pain from acute injuries and chronic conditions since 2005. For more information see our website at www.biohealingweb.com or call us at 828-337-6854. If you mention finding out about us from our blog, we will give you a free 30 minute session.

SCENAR Pain Relief and “Trigger Finger”

Over the last five years of working with people in pain, a curious phenomenon has emerged. Frequently, I will notice that a number of clients will show up in the same time period with the same condition. Recently, it has been something called “Trigger Finger.” It is similar to Carpal Tunnel syndrome where the little tubes, or sheaths, through which the nerves and tendons move in the wrist become inflamed, scarred, and narrowed, impinging on the nerves and tendons themselves, and causing pain, tingling, and restricted flexibility in the hand. The tendons also become inflamed by traveling through the narrowed and scarred passageways.  In “Trigger Finger” the sheaths and tendons in the palm of the hand become inflamed causing one or more of the fingers to get “caught” in the bent position. When straightened out, the client feels a “popping” sensation as the inflamed tendons are freed from the restriction of the sheath through which they travel. Often a bump or nodule can be found below the affected finger or thumb. Today’s lifestyle involves much more fine motor activity of the hands, most notable being the use of the computer and cell phone. The structure and function of the hands is often compromised by this increase in fine motor activity. Without ergonomic adjustments, the pressure of this sustained activity over time can create inflammation and damage. In researching this condition, I found a nutritional support for the work I do with the SCENAR. Read more »

Organic Growers School

Healing Innovations was an exhibitor at the Organic Growers School this past weekend, providing free demonstrations of the pain relief that can be achieved by using the SCENAR. It was an amazing weekend of meeting incredible people and getting to experience the lovely UNCA campus during the best weather in months!

Our demonstrations, which went on non-stop for two days, were wonderful fun with people experiencing  relief after only 10 minutes of treatment. We stopped a migraine headache, relieved numerous issues related to neck and shoulder tension, and improved knee, elbow, back, and hand pain. By Saturday afternoon, people were coming up to us and saying, “I was told by a friend to come here and experience your amazing treatment!”

One of the best things about it was being next to Asheville Kombucha Mamas who were also exhibitors there. Their “buchi” was incredible. It was great for us as grandmothers to be around the beautiful children of the two “mamas” who have that business. They have their Buchi at Earth Fare and Greenlife. We would recommend you try it!

If you are interested in organic and growing food organically, we would recommend also that you make this school a priority to attend next year. You won’t be disappointed!

New Location for Healing Innovations

Dr. Steven Coward, ND

Healing Innovations has moved from its location at 65 Hill Street to the Natural Health and Homeopathy office of Steven Coward, ND at 54 Merrimon Avenue near Greenlife Whole Foods Grocery. We will provide SCENAR and Therapeutic Multilayer Blanket treatments from 10am to 6pm at this location on Tuesdays.

For those of you with lower limb problems that make climbing stairs difficult, we are available to provide treatments on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Fridays in your home for your convenience. We are also currently seeking a location within another wellness practice that is handicap accessible.

We are excited to be a part of Dr. Coward’s office and look forward to an ongoing collaboration that will provide our clients with access to a broader scope of high quality care that complements SCENAR therapy and enhances the healing experience we have been providing for the last 5 years.

To improve your general health or relieve pain from chronic conditions or acute injury, call us at 828-337-6854 for an appointment.

Why Consumers Turn to Alternative Medicine

In June of 2009, the Journal of Consumer Research published a study  that asks in layman’s terms why consumers choose to use alternative medicine. Based on surveys done in the US, China, and India, the authors found that consumers prefer alternative medicine when they are uncertain about the cause of an illness because holistic medicine tolerates uncertainty better than western medicine. Most alternative modalities favor a holistic approach, view the mind and body as a whole system, and rely on inductive tools and methods for treatment. The study also found that survey respondents preferred holistic approaches because they tend to focus on underlying sources of the problems rather than symptom alleviation, which is the focus of western medicine.

In another study reported in the June 2008 Journal of General Internal Medicine, primary care physicians who see the bulk of patients with chronic pain are frustrated by the limited options of western medicine (opioid drugs, physical therapy, or surgery), and the overwhelming numbers of alternative therapies which are only now being researched more empirically. This makes it difficult for them to know what treatment will work for a given patient. The researchers also say that these physicians have not been well trained in pain management.

Reading these studies brought to mind a client we have worked with who had surgery to treat a dangerous narrowing of his cervical vertebrae that could have impinged on his spinal cord causing paralysis. He had been in constant pain for nearly a year since the surgery. In working with him with the SCENAR, it was pretty clear that the muscles of his upper back were in severe spasm, likely from trying to adjust to relating in a new way to the four fused vertebrae in his neck. He related that he had developed significant pain in his mid back as well that radiated around to the sides. When he talked to his neurologist about it, he was told that it was his heart and he was sent to a cardiologist who after running numerous tests said that his heart was fine. The neurologist had nothing further to offer about the intractible pain the client was suffering. It was after that experience that he decided to try something alternative. The SCENAR identified the area in distress and the treatment greatly reduced his pain there as well as in his upper back. The SCENAR  assists the body to gently relax spasming muscles so they can return to their normal positions, thus relieving pain. The experience of this client exemplifies why consumers turn to alternative medicine.