Total Health Chiropractic Blog

Back pain is a common problem for office workers who spend long hours sitting at a desk. Fortunately, there are several ways to minimize back pain and improve spinal health while at work. Here are some tips to consider:

1. Practice good posture: Sit up straight and keep your shoulders back while working. Avoid hunching over or slouching, which can put pressure on your back.
2. Adjust your chair: Make sure your chair is adjusted to the right height so that your feet are flat on the ground and your knees are at a 90-degree angle. This will help support your back and prevent strain.
3. Take breaks: Take regular breaks to stand up and stretch. This can help relieve tension in your back and improve circulation.
4. Use a supportive chair: Invest in a chair that provides proper support for your back, with adjustable lumbar support and a comfortable cushion.
5. Position your computer screen: Position your computer screen at eye level, and make sure it’s at a comfortable distance from your eyes. This will help prevent neck and shoulder strain.
6. Avoid crossing your legs: Crossing your legs can put pressure on your spine and lead to back pain. Instead, keep your feet flat on the ground.
7. Exercise regularly: Regular exercise can help strengthen your back and improve spinal health. Consider taking a short walk during your lunch break or doing some stretching exercises at your desk.

By following these tips, office workers can minimize back pain and improve their spinal health while at work. If you continue to experience back pain, consider seeking the advice of a chiropractor or other healthcare provider for additional support.

 

Poor circulation is a fairly common problem that can be caused by a number of conditions. Obesity, smoking, peripheral artery disease, etc. Reduced blood flow can cause some unwanted side effects like numbness, pain, muscle cramps, coldness of hands/feets, digestive problems.

Circulatory issues are often treated with medications but by adding to your diet and consuming certain foods can also improve blood flow naturally! Below are 10 foods to optimize blood flow.

Pomegranate

Cinnamon

Garlic

Turmeric

Nuts And Walnuts

Ginger

Fatty Fish

Beets

Onions

Capsaicin

 

Other methods outside of diet:

While adding any of these foods to diet can aid in improving circulation, lifestyle changes may have a larger impact.

-Quit smoking

-Stay hydrated

-Increase physical activity

-Maintain healthy weight

-Reduce stress

In 2022, patients from our Total Health Chiropractic offices sent in an overwhelming number of testimonials about their experiences with chiropractic care in our 7 locations. It has impacted our lives as well as our friends and family!

If you’d like to share your journey with us, please fill out a review on Google. Your journey matters and can have a very real impact on others in search of a solution. Here are a select few of our powerhouse reviews and inspiring stories patients have shared with us. Let’s look at 2022!

-Absolutely love going there. Dr. is amazing and has helped me so much. Anything I ask he jumps right on it. He got a back brace for me that I didn’t even ask about but it has helped so much. And Tiffany at the front is so sweet and helps with my schedule all over the place.  Would recommend anyone to go. -J. Lowry

-Dr. Nielson is personable, professional, and effective. The lower back pain I was dealing with is much better and she provided the care and tools to help keep it that way. Highly recommend!-W. Nichols

-I can’t say enough good things about Dr. Nielson’s skill and caring. She came to my rescue after I threw my back out during my move to this area. Another chiropractic center wouldn’t touch me until I went through some kind of evaluation which would have taken days. I was in serious pain! Dr. Nielson saw me immediately and treated me immediately and with complete success. Thank goodness I found her. -C. Lamere

-Dr Ruth is very gifted in her field. She is very intuitive and able to work on just the right areas that will bring you back to health. She is kind, caring, and compassionate. Being a chiropractor is more than a job to her, she cares deeply about her patients. My family has been seeing her for over 10 years and we would highly recommend her to anyone we know! -K. Hughes

-Great people and service. I would highly recommend them. They have helped me with several issues with only a few weeks of visits. Helping me avoid surgery!!!!! -D. Quintanilla

-Wonderful staff, great atmosphere and vibes, and amazing work done by Dr. Ruth. Love, love, love THC- ER, they’ve helped me tremendously. -S. Bristol

Ingredients:

2 tbsp everything bagel seasoning

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella

½ cup parmesan

 

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine cheeses and seasoning. Spoon small 1 inch balls and drop on a baking sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until crispy. Top off with additional bagel seasoning.

Our necks are commonly exposed to minor and major injuries. Bad posture, text neck, aging, falls, chronic stiffness, the list goes on. Our Total Health chiropractors are able to adjust and restore our natural mobility in the neck. However, outside of adjustments, addressing the area on a more daily basis can go even further for your health and wellness journey, especially if you are still experiencing pain. Below are 3 stretches that increase flexibility and allow more fluid neck movement.

Side to side:

Begin by rotating your head to the right without applying any pressure. Hold this pose for 15 seconds and then repeat on your left side.

Chin to chest: 

Lower your chin forward toward the chest. Place hands on the back of your head and gently apply pressure for 15 seconds. This is meant to be a gentle stretch. If you feel like your neck is being exerted, you are doing it wrong. 

 

Lean: 

Begin by stretching your head towards your left shoulder. Keep your shoulders straight. The goal is to stretch the muscles in your neck. Hold for 15 seconds then switch sides.

Hydrotherapy: The use of exercise in a pool as part of treatment.

Hydrotherapy is a word you’ve probably never heard of or if you have heard it you might not even know what it is and who is the best candidate for it. There’s so much information to know about Hydrotherapy and how it can be useful. Keep reading for more info!

The What:

The new treatment isn’t so new as it has been around longer than probably all of use (19th century). Hydrotherapy is a therapy with the use of water for health purposes. Water has a great rap sheet for being the go to for both internally and externally and at many temperatures to help aid in our personal health goals. Hydrotherapy can be used in the form of foot baths, hot and cold showers, saunas, epsom salt baths, water therapy, etc.

The Why:

This type of therapy is used to relieve symptoms of stiffness and pain. Hydrotherapy is excellent alongside other therapies such a s chiropractic. Hydrotherapy can help with bruising, pregnancy, pain, stiffness, swelling ,burns,muscle pain. 

Advantages:

Hydrotherapy has many advantages and benefits. It’s a great way to reduce symptoms without the use of medicines. Hydrotherapy improves blood circulation. Improvement of blood circulation allows more oxygen to enter our blood and organs which ensures functions are running more smoothly. Stiff and tight muscles may feel extremely uncomfortable but with hydrotherapy it reduces stress allowing tension to melt away. If received by a licensed provider it has little to no side effects and is very safe.

Ingredients:

-2 garlic cloves (Minced)

-1/2 tbsp olive oil

-1 diced onion

-1 head cauliflower (diced)

-32 ounces veggie broth

-sliced green onions

 

How to:

 

In a dutch oven, begin by heating olive oil over medium heat. Add your diced onion and garlic. Cook for around 5-7 minutes. Add chopped cauliflower and veggie broth. Bring items to a boil and cover/simmer for 20 minutes. Top with sliced green onions. Serve and enjoy!

Seated Low Back Stretch

-Begin in seated position in chair

-Slowly bend forward and place hands in front of you on floor

-Bend trunk of body and head forward and down

-Hold for 10-15 seconds

-Repeat 3-5 times

 

Upper Body Rotation

-Begin in seated position in chair

-At your own pace, cross arms over chest

-Twist your trunk (upper body) to right side

-Hold position for 10 seconds

-Return to front facing position and change side to rotating to left.

-Hold for 10 seconds

-Repeat 3-5 times

A new school year has “almost” arrived. That means our main focus is shifting to back to school, backpacks, meeting new teachers, school supplies, etc. This is the year that you should add chiropractic care to this to do list and here’s why!

Backpacks

We’ve all been there, in the back to school section and your child eyes the coolest backpack. You see the excitement in their eyes of showing this backpack off when school resumes, but trendy backpack choices can most definitely lead to back pain down the road. It’s important to ensure whichever back chosen has padded, wide ergonomic straps to help with the load of school items. Don’t forget that any of our Total Health Chiropractic locations offer free backpack checks! 

New School Year, New Stress

For some kids, summer is filled with unstructured time. It can be an adjustment getting into a routine again, not to mention stressful. Starting a new school year can present added jitters and stress to our kids. Think about new class nerves, schedules and transitions between classes, academic and social stressors, sports, germ exposure. It’s important to supply our children with every advantage we can to begin a new school year right! And that starts with chiropractic care. 

Chiropractic Care

Chiropractic care is for everyone, not just for those experiencing back pain. Regular chiropractic adjustments help your child’s body run optimally, stay strong and maintain a healthy immune system.

Give us a call today (423) 517-7000 to add Chiropractic to your Back to School checklist!

Relax shoulders and take a deep breath in. Now release it. You may already feel a sense of relief. Our respiratory system logs around 20,000 breaths daily. These breaths affect our entire body and while our breaths may be unconsciously produced much like blood flowing in our body, breathing is the body’s most important function. When we breathe, we send oxygen into our body’s cells. 

4 types of breathing exercises to add to your daily routine

Pursed lip breathing: This breathing tech is good for individuals living with lung conditions such as asthma. Begin by breathing in through your nose and breathing out through pursed lips. Make sure breath out is twice as long as the breath in. 

Deep breathing: Inhale slowly, filling lungs, exhale slowly, emptying lungs. This breathing technique is an effective way to handle stressful situations or help feel calm.

Equal breathing: This technique focuses on our inhales and exhales being the same length. 

Diaphragmatic breathing: begin by placing your hands on your abdomen and breathe in through your nose until your stomach rises. Breathe out through your nose for twice as log. This breathing technique can help strengthen the lungs. Don’t forget to relax your neck + shoulders. 

How to incorporate breathwork into your day

-Set alarms or plan specific times of the day when you will perform breathing exercises.

-Start small. Set easy goals for yourself by starting with 2–4-minute sessions. Increase the length of time once you create a habit.