“Will I Have to See My Oxnard Chiropractor ‘Forever’?”
Posted on 22. Mar, 2010 by admin in Oxnard Chiropractor
As a Chiropractor in Oxnard, I commonly hear this question asked by those considering chiropractic care is: “If I start going to a chiropractor, will I have to always go?” I often wonder why this particular question doesn’t come up for someone who goes to a general medical practitioner. Think about it: How strange would it be if someone asked, “If I go to Dr. Smith for a general checkup and he gives me a prescription for a temporary condition I might have, will I have to see him ‘forever’?” The answer is “Of course not.” You don’t have to see Dr. Smith again, but you probably will for your yearly or bi-annual checkup and, naturally, in between if you’re not feeling well.
The same is true when you go to see a chiropractor. Most of the time, individuals go to see a chiropractor because they’re in pain (not feeling well). After the chiropractor has treated them and gotten them out of pain (a ‘prescription,’ so to speak, for a temporary condition), the chiropractor will probably suggest maintenance care (a general checkup even when you’re feeling okay). The only difference is that a chiropractor will likely suggest that you come in monthly. Why? Because chiropractors are all about preventative care whenever possible. Maintenance care is like a “tune up” that not only helps your body to maintain the “crisis” treatment you received when you were in pain and keeps you healthier and stronger so that you can avoid future injuries, but during your maintenance visit your chiropractor can make sure that you don’t have a “temporary condition” that needs to be corrected before it becomes “crisis” treatment.
Cumulative effects of awkward sitting posture, bad work habits, incorrect lifting, lack of regular exercise, and other unhealthy lifestyle-related influences can produce pain, often excruciating pain, in your back, neck, shoulders, hips, knees, etc. Getting “checked out” and “readjusted” on a regular basis keeps small conditions from becoming big problems.
So, to the question “If I start doing to a chiropractor, will I need to go “forever”? The answer is “No, but you may want to, for your health’s sake!”
Your Chiropractor in Oxnard Can Help You to Stop Suffering From Hip Pain Now!
Posted on 10. Aug, 2009 by admin in hip pain
Dr. Donald Bolt, your Oxnard Chiropractor, wants to help you stop suffering from hip pain as soon as possible. He’s well aware that your hip pain most likely wakes you up in the night and makes it impossible for you to get a good night’s sleep. He also knows that when you get up in the morning, or when you get out of your car, you’re probably stiff and find it initially difficult to move your legs, and that when you do finally move, you experience pain in one or both hips whenever you twist or rotate them or when you cross your legs. How does Dr. Bolt know all this? He’s relieved the hip pain of hundreds of patients with these complaints. If all of the symptoms just mentioned sound familiar to you, it is likely that you have imbalances and alignment problems in your lower extremities that, in addition to generating hip pain, can in the course of time produce degenerative joint disease in your hips if not treated.
Even though hip pain and related problems commonly point to age-related degenerative conditions, especially osteoarthritis of the hip joint, osteoarthritis (OA) isn’t always the perpetrator. In fact, rather than being the original source of the problem, osteoarthritis of the hip joint can be the end result of injury to your hips at a previous time.
Gait changes caused by biomechanical injury such as an ankle sprain or knee strain, can produce hip pain. Also, if you change jobs, alter the way you sit, take on a new sport or activity, or start driving for long periods of a regular basis, your gait may alter to compensate for these new changes.
In addition, gait asymmetries can occur from leg length dissimilarities, foot pronation problems, even carrying a baby or small child on your hip. The point is, anything that produces an asymmetry or imbalance when you are in motion can cause painful hip problems.
As part of the chiropractic management of your hip problem, along with adjustments, Dr. Bolt may prescribe orthotics and will offer suitable progressive rehabilitative exercises that include muscle stretching and strengthening.
hip pain won’t go away on its own. Hip pain means that something needs remedying. Dr. Bolt, your Chiropractor in Oxnard, can help you to get out of pain, get back in balance, and get your life back now!
Your Oxnard Chiropractor Offers Important "Pillow Talk"
Posted on 06. Aug, 2009 by admin in neck pain
Dr. Donald Bolt, your Oxnard Chiropractor, is wondering if your pillow might be contributing to your neck pain. If your neck pain is making your days miserable, chiropractic treatment can brighten your days, and bring tranquility to your nights, by eliminating your neck pain at its source. Once you are out of pain, Dr. Bolt will likely provide exercises to help you to strengthen your neck, as well.
However, in addition to the neck pain relief you’ll receive by your Oxnard Chiropractor by day, there is something important you can do for your neck at night. Neck pain is commonly exacerbated by sleeping on an inappropriate pillow. That’s why it’s so important to use a good pillow, one that is designed to support your neck. Some pillows are just too hard, while others far too soft, and others are just plain too flat. If you sleep on a pillow that has inadequate neck support, you will probably wake up with neck pain, and possibly back pain and shoulder pain as well.
Cervical pillows are specially designed to take care of neck and shoulder problems and offer support to the natural lordosis (curve) of the neck. An orthopedic pillow supports the head, aligns the neck vertebrae in a neutral position, supports the head, and allows better shoulder rotation.
Even a good pillow, however, needs to be renewed periodically due to the breakdown in materials. Although some brands of pillows cost more, they frequently last longer. A good quality orthopedic pillow, whether it’s down feathered, a foam-type, or poly-filled, will offer you needed comfort and support.
A good, cervical pillow should form itself to support your neck and head in the healthiest position whether you sleep on your back or side. Support on both your side and back positions is extremely important, and you will want to consider your own personal sleeping habits when choosing a pillow. If you are in the habit of sleeping on your back, then you will need to select a pillow that has been especially designed to provide neck and upper back support. If you are a side sleeper, then you will want a bit higher pillow that will supply enough room for your shoulder position. When you are sleeping on a proper orthopedic, it should provide enough support to inhibit your head from going sideways, or rolling and tilting unnaturally.
The most effective way to find an orthopedic pillow that is appropriate for you is to consult with a health care professional, Dr. Bolt, your Chiropractor in Oxnard.
Your Oxnard Chiropractor Won't Let You Play With Shoulder Pain
Posted on 05. Aug, 2009 by admin in shoulder pain
Dr. Donald Bolt, your Oxnard Chiropractor, knows that your shoulders work hard for you. They are expected to execute a large number of movements during your day. Whether you’re working or playing, this variety of complex motion helps you to do what you need to do. But, you have been overburdening your shoulders if you are currently suffering from shoulder pain. In other words, you might be engaging in repetitive activities like lifting and other arm movements, especially those done overhead, like throwing a baseball, swinging a golf club or tennis racket, or just placing objects on high shelves. Nerve inflammation, joint stress, and wear and tear of the tissues surrounding the shoulder joints can happen as the result of these types of repetitive activities. Actually, if your shoulder is healthy, these repetitive movements shouldn’t produce pain. But, if you are suffering from pain in your shoulder, it is an indication that there’s a dysfunction that needs to be addressed.
Shoulder muscles can become tight, and even weak, if the nerves are inflamed, and movement is painful and limited. This commonly happens in the ligaments and a group of muscles (and their tendon attachments) referred to as the rotator cuff. These muscles and tendons attach your upper arm bone with your shoulder blade and also help to lock the ball of your upper arm stably in its shoulder socket. It is the arrangement of this elegant combination that affords the opportunity for the greatest range of motion of any joint in your body.
The severity of this shoulder impingement syndrome can extend from a slight “catching” pain with activity (particularly raising your arm overhead), to an almost total loss of ability to use the shoulder. Do not, under any circumstance either ignore your shoulder pain or keep doing an activity while in pain. It is essential for you to get help for your shoulder pain as quickly as you can because the problem will only go from bad to worse. Unhappily, if left untreated, some shoulder problems, such as Rotator Cuff Syndrome, often end up requiring surgery and extensive rehabilitation.
Your Chiropractor in Oxnard, Dr. Bolt, is an authority when it comes to muscular-skeletal conditions, and he’s very knowledgeable about what to do to relieve your suffering. And because chiropractic care focuses on the reason for your shoulder pain, it is treated at its source. Dr. Bolt will help to restore natural mobility to your shoulder joints, and he will talk to you about rehabilitation exercises that will not only support you in getting rid of your current shoulder problem, but will help to prevent shoulder problems in the future.
Your Chiropractor in Oxnard Offers A Surprising Solution to Your Allergy Symptoms
Posted on 04. Aug, 2009 by admin in allergies
Dr. Donald Bolt, your Chiropractor in Oxnard, knows that everyday life can be miserable if you suffer from allergies. A walk in the garden, a play date with Fluffy, a shellfish stew, or even something as small as a nut can generate such unwelcome symptoms as itchy eyes, a runny nose, sneezing, or a skin rash. To make the situation worse, for some of us allergic reactions can progress from just plain irritating to dangerous and life-threatening as our air passageway begins to close and we have a problem breathing. If you have allergies, it may seem to you, from time-to-time, that your environment is an antagonistic place and that the world around you is, truly, out to get you!
You may wonder why it is that other individuals seem so unaffected by the environment, while your body reacts, or rather overreacts, to it It’s a great question. The answer is that some people, like you, have a hyperactive immune system that actually “freaks out” when they are confronted with common substances such as pollen, dander, shellfish, or nuts.
Can a chiropractor really help with your allergy symptoms? You bet! And, you may be surprised how chiropractic treatment helps. Even though chiropractors don’t treat allergies, per se, quite a few people notice that they experience relief from their allergy symptoms after getting chiropractic adjustments. This relief occurs because chiropractic manipulation affects the complete nervous system, including the autoimmune system. Still wondering about those allergies? When there’s an impedance in the nervous system, in conjunction with other problems, the autoimmune system, whose task it is to assist you in adapting and responding appropriately to your environment, can become under-active or overactive. The problem is the latter when it comes to your allergies. Since chiropractic manipulations decrease or remove disturbances in the nervous system and bring the body back into balance and harmony, the adjustments bring that same balance and harmony to the autoimmune system as well. A strong immune system responds appropriately to commonly named allergens in the environment.
So, as explained above, Dr. Bolt, your Chiropractor in Oxnard, doesn’t directly treat allergies. You could say that relief from your allergies comes about as part of your well-adjusted and healthy nervous system. If you’d like to get back into harmony with your surroundings as soon as possible, make an appointment with Dr. Bolt today.
Oxnard Chiropractor Explains How Chiropractic Care Can Correct Your Balance Problems
Posted on 03. Aug, 2009 by admin in balance problems
Santa Barbara Chiropractor: 10 Most Frequent Questions
Your Oxnard Chiropractor offers the following explanation on how chiropractic care can correct your balance problems: Controlling and keeping body position while staying still or in motion is the essential function of good balance. Good balance helps a person to walk without wobbling, arise from a sitting position without tottering, and to climb stairs without slipping.
Nearly 9 percent of adults, age 65 and older, disclose having difficulties with balance. Good balance is vital in assisting an older person to stay independent, and implement daily chores and activities. A large majority older individuals, however, suffer from dizziness, “wooziness,” and problems with balance.
The experience by many that they, themselves, or the things around them are spinning is known as “vertigo.” About 40 percent of people nationwide will experience dizziness that is consequential enough to go seek out a health professional. And, among older adults, falls are the prevailing cause of extreme injury and deaths.
Balance and Inner Ear Conditions
Three types of balance disorders that are most familiar are benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, labyrinthitis, and Meniere’s disease, although there are quite a few other kinds of balance disorders. Of these three, benign paroxysmal positional vertigo is the most prevalent. Its symptoms include a brief, intense feeling of vertigo with a change in head position, when rolling over to the left or right in bed or when getting out of bed, or when looking up for an object on a high shelf. This affliction is more likely to occur in people 60 and older, but it can also happen in younger adults.
The causes for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo are multifarious. Inner ear infection, head injury, or simply aging can produce the problem. While it can be associated with other disease processes, often a simple Epleys procedure can eliminate the condition. Your Oxnard Chiropractor has many years of experience in this procedure.
Labyrinthitis is an infection or inflammation of the inner ear that creates dizziness and loss of balance. It affects people|individuals of any age and the cause is currently undiscovered.
Ménière’s disease is a balance disorder that creates vertigo, irregular hearing loss, tinnitus (ringing or roaring in the ears), and a “full feeling” in the ear.
Even though those over 65 years are more likely to encounter balance disorders, age is not the only reason these problems occur. Care for balance disorders varies based upon the cause. Sometimes, there’s a simple answer to balance challenges, such as simple exercises for vestibular rehab. A chiropractor is well-trained in analyzing and treating a number of balance disorders. Call a health care professional, such as your Oxnard Chiropractor, if you have experienced, or are currently experiencing, dizziness, vertigo, or other challenges with balance.
Although some balance disorders are caused by challenges in the inner ear, other disorders may be associated with another region of the body, like the brain or the heart. Head injury, stroke, certain medicines, circulation challenges, upper respiratory infections and other viral infections, stress, fatigue, smoking, alcohol use, high or low blood pressure, and heart disease are all factors that, along with aging and ear infection, may cause balance disorders.
Balance disorders created by high blood pressure can usually be managed by less sodium intake,sustaining a healthy weight, and exercise. To help in making the symptoms of dizziness less acute, frequently eating low-salt or salt-free foods, and avoiding caffeine and alcohol, will help.
Balance disorders are significant. It is the primary cause of falls and fall-related injuries in older people. It is essential to have a suspected balance disorder accessed and treated as soon as possible.
If you can answer “yes” to any of these questions, you should discuss the symptom(s) with your chiropractor:
• Do you have the feeling of being “unsteady?”
• Does the room seem to spin around you?
• Is there ever a time when you feel as if you are moving when you know you are standing still?
• Do you lose your balance and/or fall?
• Do you feel as if you are falling?
• Does your vision ever become “blurred?”
• Do you ever feel disoriented, or lose a sense of time, place or identify?
Don’t wait until it’s too late! Call your Chiropractor in Oxnard today.
Your Oxnard Chiropractor Knows That When It Comes to Five-Year-Olds, Banking Takes on a Whole New Meaning
Posted on 02. Aug, 2009 by admin in pediatric chiropractic
Your Oxnard Chiropractor, Dr. Donald Bolt, offers the following important pediatric chiropractic information: At times, it can feel draining attempting to keep up with a five-year-old. If you have an active child of this age, or if you’ve ever been around one for any length of time, you may have found yourself longing for the kid to just stop moving for a little while. But, new research is affirming the long-term health benefits of this whirlwind of activity. In fact, according to a new University of Iowa study, instead of making an effort to slow these little ones down, five-year-olds ought be aided in being as active as possible. Why? “Because it pays off as they grow older,” said Kathleen Janz, lead author of the study and professor of health and sport studies in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Even if kids don’t stay as active later in childhood, being active at age five helps them to avoid excess fat as they get older. “We call this effect ‘banking’ because the kids benefit later on, similar to having a savings account at a bank. The protective effect is independent of what happens in between,” Janz went on to say.
The UI team tested the body fat and activity level of 333 kids at ages five, eight and eleven using a special scanner that accurately measures bone, fat and muscle tissue, and an accelerometer that measures movement every minute. Rather than counting on kids or parents to track minutes of exercise, the kids wore accelerometers to record their activity level for up to five days.
The study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, indicates that kids who are active at age five end up with less fat at age eight and eleven, even when controlling for their accumulated level of activity. The average five-year-old in the study got thirty minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise per day. For every ten minutes on top of that, kids had one-third of a pound less fat tissue at ages eight and eleven.
Although further research is necessary to learn what happens to the active kids’ bodies that keeps them in better shape down the road, Janz said that it could be that the active 5-year-olds didn’t develop as many fat cells, improved their insulin response, or that something happened metabolically that offered some protection even as they became less active.
However, as exciting as this study is, weight moderation is not the only benefit of early exercise. As a chiropractor I have discovered in my own practice that active kids don’t have as many ordinary childhood health problems, like catching colds and the flu. Chiropractic care is, without a doubt, exceptionally beneficial in helping kids to stay healthier. But, in addition, the stimulation to the brain that happens during activities, especially those that necessitate “cross pattern” motor movements of the larger muscles, i.e., right hand/left leg and left hand/right leg, such as crawling, running, climbing, and skipping, also boosts the autoimmune system and keeps kids healthier.
Too many children these days are overweight and unhealthy. Though part of the problem is an inappropriate diet, lack of exercise is also a major contributing factor. If you have a five-year-old who chooses to watch television or play video games rather than to participate in more active play, help your child to get up and get moving into healthier activities. Moderate to vigorous activity will not only benefit your child now, but will help to build a healthier future. You can bank on it!
Chiropractor in Oxnard Asks: Are You Concerned About Getting Adjusted During Your Pregnancy?
Posted on 31. Jul, 2009 by admin in pregnancy
Your Oxnard Chiropractor, Dr. Donald Bolt, knows that you may have concerns about getting adjusted during your pregnancy. If you are worried, you needn’t be. Not only are chiropractic adjustments safe during pregnancy, it is a great idea to get adjusted while you are pregnant!
You’ve probably noticed that, your body is going through a variety of changes, and these alterations will continue as the pregnancy progresses. A subtle change is your body’s increased production of the hormone elastin. This hormone is designed to relax the tendons in the pelvis. This easing gives the pelvis more flexibility during the birthing process to make delivering the baby easier.
This process, although designed to help the mother during labor, can produce much discomfort in the months leading up to the birth. As the pregnancy advances, more elastin is released, which allows the pelvis to become increasingly more unstable. In combination with the increased size of the baby and uterus, and you have the formula for severe low back pain. As a Chiropractor in Oxnard, Dr. Bolt currently sees a number of pregnant patients in his office for symptoms associated with their pregnancy, but most commonly it is for their low back pain.
One side benefit of having your spine and pelvis checked by a chiropractor regularly during your pregnancy is that there is proof that it can actually decrease labor time. Why is that you ask? Simply put, if the pelvis is aligned properly, the muscles contracting during the labor process are more efficient and won’t have to strain against misaligned joints.
Chiropractic is not only safe and beneficial in relieving the low back pain associated with pregnancy, but it relieves other symptoms like heartburn, nausea, swelling, and so on. In addition, should the need arise, a trained chiropractor, like Dr. Bolt, can assist a mother who has a breached baby. This is done by using the Webster Technique, a low force technique to manipulate the uterus and get the baby into the proper presentation for delivery. Additional information on the Webster Technique can easily be found online.
To summarize, chiropractic is both beneficial and safe in helping to relieve many of the discomforts of pregnancy. Please go to see your local chiropractor, or if you live or work nearby, call Dr. Bolt, your Oxnard Chiropractor. chiropractic can make you feel a lot more comfortable during your pregnancy, and it can even make the labor process easier!
Your Oxnard Chiropractor Offers Natural, Non-Surgical Relief From Carpal Tunnel Symptoms
Posted on 30. Jul, 2009 by admin in carpal tunnel
Dr. Donald Bolt, your Oxnard Chiropractor, has treated many individuals experiencing Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. How can chiropractic care help CTS? Chiropractic manipulations that work so well with the spine can, by all means, be used on other joints in the body. Essentially every joint is subject to debilitation and range of motion limitations, most often as the result of trauma, excess vibration, or repetitive motions. That is why chiropractic treatments are such an effective, non-surgical answer to treating Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
The carpal tunnel is positioned within the underside of the wrist. It is a tunnel, or passage, through which the Median nerve moves on its way to affect and enliven the hand and fingers. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is the most common nerve entrapment disorder. As the name suggests, the problem takes place when a nerve is impinged or trapped between other tissues of the body causing inflammation of the nerve. This can happen if the size of the tendon enlarges as the result of irritation or overuse, or if the tunnel, itself, gets smaller because of a misalignment of the carpal bones.
Initially, the symptoms include pain, numbness, pins and needles, and tingling in the fingers and hand, particularly the thumb and adjacent two fingers. These symptoms are especially noticeable at night and in many cases wake people from their sleep as they have to sit up in bed and shake-out and/or rub the hands in an effort to decrease these unpleasant feelings. Moreover, the hands can feel clumsy or weak, and fatigue easily with activity. In the course of time, grasping small objects with the thumb and fingers can be markedly affected and, if left untreated, can develop into a complete disability of the hand.
In order to diminish the disabling symptoms associated with the advancement of CTS, accurate diagnosis and suitable management are vital. It would be wise for you to try chiropractic as your first treatment option if you are experiencing the pain and disability associated with carpal tunnel syndrome. You can find out more about safe and natural chiropractic care, and what it can do for you, by calling Dr. Bolt, your Chiropractor in Oxnard.
Do You Suffer From Tension Headaches or Migraines? Your Oxnard Chiropractor Can Help
Posted on 29. Jul, 2009 by admin in headaches and migraines
Dr. Donald Bolt, your Oxnard Chiropractor, knows thet origin of both tension headaches or migraines and how to eliminate their often disabling effects.
Tension headaches: We’d all agree that life can be a pain, now and then, and turn into a tension headache. The majority of people have experienced more than one. If you are someone who’s had a tension headache, then you know that it usually feels like a dull, aching head pain that is commonly accompanied by a sensation of tightness or pressure along your forehead or on the sides and back of your head. Sometimes, you might feel a tenderness of your scalp, neck and shoulder muscles, and periodically you may experience a loss of appetite.
Tension headaches are commonly defined as mild to moderately intense. The severity of the pain varies from one person to another, and from one headache to another in the same person. You may have tension headaches quite frequently or they may take place infrequently. If your headaches take place fifteen or more days a month for a minimum of three months, they’re viewed as chronic. If tension headaches are interferring with your life, chiropractic management may be the remedy.
Migraine Headaches: Migraine headaches differ from the average tension-related headache. According to the National Headache Foundation, migraines frequently develop on only one side of the head. The throbbing or pulsating pain is accompanied by nausea or vomiting. One-fifth of migraine sufferers have auras, visual symptoms an hour before a migraine attack, and distrubances such as pulsating light, lines or dots.
Are you a person who experiences the painful symptoms of migraines? If you are, you know the upsetting, disabling effects that this kind of condition can have on your life. The pain of a migraine headache can sideline you for hours, for days, for a lifetime, and conventional over-the-counter medications are not only ineffective but, like prescription drugs, they all too often have alarming side effects. Chiropractic management may be the answer for you.
If you’re suffering from tensions headaches or migraines, it’s time to eliminate the pain and get your life back! chiropractic care has been shown to be highly effective. Get in touch with Dr. Bolt, your Chiropractor in Oxnard today!
