SIMPLE PAIN RELIEF with Kathryn Merrow, the Pain Relief Coach

Ice or heat for pain relief?

Ice can help you heal and get rid of your pain much more quickly than heat.  My friend Bette Dowdell will share her experience with you.  Bette’s an endocrine specialist.  She LOVES ice!

Here’s what Bette says about ice therapy:

Muscle problems tend to accompany endocrine issues, especially adrenal glands that can’t or won’t keep up.

Our muscles get inflamed and “knotted up,” worse on some days than others.

Accupressure massage helps, but few therapists do it right. Several therapists have had at my back. Some felt like they were tickling me; some bruised my muscles and left me sore for days. Only one, Glenn Kippes, the physical therapist who treated me when I lived in Tucson, made a real difference. He’s a magician, but most aren’t.

Doctors usually advise hot baths–the exact wrong thing to do. Heat just inflames muscles all the more.

I know, I know. Heat feels really good. Problem is, all the while it’s feeling good, it’s making things worse.

Answer me this: A half hour or so after you get out of a hot bath or the Jacuzzi, are your muscles better or worse? And how much progress have you made with your muscle pain since you started treating yourself with heat?

A lot of people, especially men and senior citizens for some reason, won’t even consider giving up hot soaks, fully persuaded that some day they’ll work, and all the pain will disappear. It reminds me of when Continue Reading »

Tags: how to use ice, ice for pain, Kathryn Merrow, muscle pain relief, pain relief coach, simple pain relief

Did you wake up with a stiff neck?  It’s amazing the crazy things we can do to ourselves in our sleep!  Sleeping with your neck tilted forward, or to one side or the other, can cause your muscles to get unhappy and become tight or go into a spasm.  Being in one position for a long time without moving (like sitting with your head turned toward someone) can aggravate your neck muscles, too.

A hard jarring sneeze or cough can also cause a stiff neck, and this may be even more uncomfortable than the one that comes during your sleep.   An accident that whips your head from side to side or front to back might cause pain in your neck, too.

When the muscles go into spasm, or seize up and keep you from moving your neck, that can be a protective step by your body to prevent injury.  Be mindful as you apply the following steps and pay attention to what your body is telling you.  If something doesn’t feel appropriate, don’t do it.

Here are the 3 natural steps you can take to help your neck relax:

1.  Use heat on the muscles on the tops of your shoulders.  You can also apply heat to your upper chest and upper back.  If heat is not the best treatment for you to use, you’ll be able to tell; you’ll feel slightly worse afterward.  If you use a hot shower, direct the water to your upper back, tops of shoulders (each separately) and the front of your upper chest and neck.

2.  Use ice on the muscles at the back of your neck.  Also, wrap the ice pack around your neck to benefit the muscles on the sides and front.  It may feel like the pain is in the back of your neck, but there’s a good chance that all of the neck muscles are involved.  Some muscles run from your collar bone to the back of your head.  If you only have a small ice pack, your muscles will just have to take turns!

The rule of thumb is:  Heat for tight muscles and ice for nervy symptoms.  Since a stiff neck may involve the nerves in your neck, go for ice around your whole neck and upper chest toward the middle.  Ice will relax the muscles and also helps numb the pain.

3.  Gently, slowly move your neck into Continue Reading »

Tags: get rid of pain in neck, Kathryn Merrow, neck hurts, pain in neck, pain relief, pain relief coach, simple pain relief, stiff neck

Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome (TTS) is much the same as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome…except the Tarsal Tunnel is in your ankle.

Here’s a recent email I received from Tom:

“I came across your group on Facebook, about Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Relief. I have the leg version of this complaint, Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome and am about to have an operation to rectify it. Do you have any information on Tarsal Tunnel? I ask because I’ve not managed to find much about it other than the operation doesn’t have a very high success rate. I’m clinging to the hope that my op DOES work.”

Here’s my response to Tom:

“My best resource is ‘Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction, The Trigger Point Manual, Vol. 2, The Lower Extremeties‘ by Travell & Simons, MD’s.  These 2 volumes may be (and should be) on your surgeon’s or physician’s bookshelf.  Here is my translation of what they have to say about TTS in a nutshell.

Regarding surgery:

The doctors said that surgery to release the tibial nerve and the medial and lateral plantar nerves  as they passed through and deep to (behind; more inside) the abductor hallucis muscle was successful in 9 of 10 TTS release surgeries.  That means 90% were successful.  Sometimes, part of the abductor hallucis is removed.

The doctors said:  “The possible (likely) role of myofascial TrPs in the abductor hallucis was apparently not considered in these patients with heel pain.”  What does that mean?  The doctors Travell & Simons were aware that muscles and soft tissues (not bony tissue) cause a huge amount of our pain and other symptoms.  It means that if Travell or Simons were your doctor, they would be looking for trigger points as the cause of your pain before they considered surgery.  (TrPs = trigger points.)

What causes tarsal tunnel syndrome?

Running, jumping and shoes that are too tight–not wide enough–can be a cause.  Also, in 2 cases, the abductor hallucis muscle was 3 times larger than normal, and in one case, had an additional muscle belly.  In those 3 cases, the extra-large muscle pressed on the nerves.

What are trigger points?

If you go to Carpal Tunnel Pain Relief, and scroll down to ‘Categories’ and scroll to “Triggers and Triggers Points” you will find articles describing trigger points and their causes.  Basically, they are extremely irritable spots in soft tissue or muscle that “fire” or cause pain elsewhere, sometimes at a very far distance from the trigger point.

Like everything else, trigger points are Continue Reading »

Very good article at Live Healthy By Walking titled “The Sitting Disease.”

I don’t know where my friend Rosalie got that clever title, but it’s a serious problem, and lots and lots of us are affected by it!  The Sitting Disease is caused by…too much sitting!

All that sitting causes lots of muscle and body malfunctions and aches and pains and premature aging.

Knots in your back, problems breathing, constipation, carpal tunnel syndrome, osteoporosis, back pain and headaches and MORE are caused by “The Sitting Disease.”

It’s practically an epidemic!  But there is a simple, natural cure.  Read “The Sitting Disease” and get started on your road to recovery.

Tags: Kathryn Merrow, pain relief, pain relief coach, simple pain relief, walking for pain relief

You’ve seen people who are only 40 who already look “old.”  And you’ve probably seen folks in their 80’s or 90’s who still have a spring in their step or a sparkle in their eyes.

Why do some of us grow old so quickly and other stay youthful?

Here are 3 reasons:

1.  Attitude.  Optimists may not always have the most realistic outlook, but they live longer, healthier lives than pessimists and enjoy living more.  Attitude can be learned and unlearned.  A healthy attitude includes gratitude and happiness.

2. Nutrition.  People who give their bodies all the nutrients it needs are much more likely to be healthy and feel better longer.  This gets harder and harder as more of our “food” comes from factories rather than farms and gardens, but it CAN be done.  The best place to buy your groceries is in the produce section, and if possible, the best ones to buy are organic.  Try to eat a lot of different colored foods (and Froot Loops don’t count.)

3.  Posture.  When you lose the fight to gravity, and gravity is winning, your heavy head moves in front of your body.  Then, gravity can pull you forward even more!  Your posture can be corrected, at least enough to relieve some of your pain.  Posture is a BIG key in aging.  When you collapse forward, your organs gets squashed.  How can your heart function its’ best when it is being compressed?  How can your intestines and stomach do their best job?  This is a common cause of constipation.   You can overcome poor posture by stretching the muscles in the front of your body and strengthening the muscles in the back.

George Burns, the comedian, said:  “It’s okay to get older, as long as you don’t get old.”  I’m sticking with George!

Tags: aging and pain, constipation, Kathryn Merrow, pain relief, pain relief coach, poor posture, simple pain relief, what causes old age

If you have muscle pain or other symptoms that just aren’t going away with conventional (medical) treatment or with massage therapy, there’s a reason.  The reason could very well be “trigger points.”

Here’s an example: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is very often caused by trigger points in your muscles.  The trigger points in this case are in the neck, upper chest, front of the arm and lower arm.  They “fire,” or refer, pain into the area of the carpal tunnel in the wrist.

A “syndrome” is a collection of symptoms.  Symptoms are things like pain, numbness, tingling.  If you can get rid of the symptoms, or the causes (triggers) of the symptoms, you get rid of the syndrome, too.

Trigger points are hyperirritable (very irritated or crabby) areas of muscle.  Trigger points can also be found in other soft tissues like skin and organs.  Soft tissues are everything except our bones.

What do trigger points do?  They cause pain and symptoms in other parts of the body, sometimes at a far distance from the trigger point.  This is called “referred” pain.

We ALL have the potential to have them, because we all have soft tissues.

When a nagging pain or symptom won’t go away with treatment, that most likely means that a trigger point is causing the pain and needs to be released. Whatever caused the trigger point also needs to be corrected.  Everything has a cause!

When I was making my notes for a recent Carpal Tunnel Radio show, I noticed a relationship between Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and trigger points:  All of the things that cause trigger points also cause Carpal Tunnel Syndrome!  And, so it is with a lot of our body pain.

A great deal of our pain and other uncomfortable symptoms are caused by trigger points.  Trigger points and muscles are largely overlooked by the medical community (your doctor) as a cause of pain.  It’s just not widely taught in medical schools.  In fact, very few doctors understand the roles of muscles in pain syndromes and fewer still understand trigger points.

Here are some of the things that cause (create) trigger points:

* abnormal bone structure that Continue Reading »

Tags: Kathryn Merrow, muscle pain, muscle pain won't go away, pain relief, pain relief coach, simple pain relief, trigger points, what causes muscle pain

The best thing to do for a migraine is not to let it start!

There are many things we can do to prevent migraines, at least a lot of the time.  In the meantime, if you have a migraine, or feel one coming on, here are some tips to help you feel better.

As you know, aspirin generally doesn’t do a thing for a migraine headache.  However, there are 2 over-the-counter remedies that might help.

1.  Aleve (or its’ generic, naproxin) may work for you if you take a dose (1 or 2 tablets) at the onset–follow the directions on the label.

2.  Alka Seltzer may work, because it gives you a fully-dissolved dose of aspirin all at once.  Follow directions on the label.

Here are some other simple pain relief remedies to try:

1.  If the muscles on the tops of your shoulders are all “jammed up,” try a heating pad or heated cloth bag filled with rice to relax your shoulders.

2.  Lie down with an ice pack or cold pack comfortably positioned under your neck and the base of your skull.  Place a cold, wet cloth over your eyes.  If the cloth warms up, keep a basin of cool water next to your bed to refresh it.

If the cloth is drippy, that’s fine.  It’s actually good, because the cold drips will affect more of the nerves and muscles on your head.  Just put a plastic bag and towel under your head and shoulders to catch the drips.

3.  Don’t be shy about pushing or pulling on the muscles around your ears, temples, forehead, back of your head, or anywhere you can reach.  Sometimes the migraine is from the inside out, and sometimes it’s from the outside in.

4.  Pull your hair.  The soft tissues around your whole head get tight with a migraine.  By clasping your fingers in your hair, close to your head, you can use your hair as little levers to help relax your scalp muscles.

5.  Try to straighten up.  Your heavy head pulls on the muscles around your neck and shoulders when it’s in front of your body and can cause head pain.  If you can lift your chest, your head will move back and be more over your body and take some of the strain off your muscles & nerves.  Do this when you DON’T have a headache or migraine, too.

Here’s hoping that at least one of these tips will help you have less migraine pain.

Tags: cause of migraine, get rid of migraine, Kathryn Merrow, migraine, migraine headache, migraines, pain relief, pain relief coach, simple pain relief

How can yoga help relieve your headaches?  Oh, let me count the ways:

1. It relaxes the muscles around your chest, ribs, shoulders and neck.  These are the same muscles that get tight and cause headache symptoms.
2. Yoga helps reduce your stress.  When you’re feeling all stressed, your muscles “clamp down” on nerves that go to your head.
3. It helps strengthen the muscles of your backside, and makes you long and strong; it creates muscular balance.  A strong back and a long, strong body helps you have good posture.  Good posture, with your head over your body instead of out in front, reduces headaches.
4. Yoga gets your circulation moving and that helps move the metabolic (body) wastes out of your body.  It reduces swelling which can also be a cause for head pain.
5. It helps you become more “in tune” with your body.  When your muscles start to complain or your head starts to hurt, you will be able to figure out the cause and correct it.
6. Yoga can help reduce your blood pressure, but if you are having high blood pressure headaches, you’d better get to a doctor immediately!

Yoga is a full-body stretching and strengthening movement program with a lot of benefits.

If you take a class, always remember:  It’s your body.  If a move doesn’t feel appropriate to you, or feels like it will make your head hurt or your headache feel worse, DON’T DO IT.  Instead, practice a different movement (pose) or breathing.

So, yoga helps take the pressure off the muscles around your head and neck, and helps you relax, and reduces stress, and improves your breathing (shallow breathing could also be a cause of your headaches by not giving you enough oxygen.)

That’s how yoga can help you get rid of your headaches.

Tags: cause of headache, head pain, headache, headache relief, headaches, Kathryn Merrow, natural headache relief, pain relief, pain relief coach, simple pain relief, yoga for headache

You are not alone. Millions of people suffer from chronic back pain.

Sometimes your back pain is caused by something that you do.  Other times, it’s caused by something you DON’T do.  Okay, I’ll be totally honest:

There are a LOT of reasons for chronic back pain. It could be caused by:

• Foods that causes inflammation (swelling in your muscles and soft tissues.)
• Additives (chemicals & toxins) that are in your food.
• Vitamin & mineral deficiencies.
• Artificial sweeteners (chemicals & toxins) (Oops!  Did I already say that?)
• Muscles that are “out of balance.” That means muscles on one part of your body are not in balance with the muscles that oppose them.  Some of your muscles are “too tight” and some are not strong enough to keep you where nature designed you to be.  This creates muscle strain.
• Injury to a muscle or area of soft tissue from incorrect use or an accident.
• Anger and sadness; strong negative emotions.

Let’s just stick to muscle strain here.  We can talk about the other causes at a different time.

Can muscle strain can be caused by doing things over and over?

Yes, and especially when the same movement is done over and over again incorrectly.

Here’s an example:

I was at the airport and I was watching the men who Continue Reading »

Tags: back pain, back pain relief, cause of back pain, chronic back pain, Kathryn Merrow, pain relief, pain relief coach, simple pain relief

There are reasons why we have pain.  We don’t get a backache or a headache or any other pain unless there is a reason.

Chiropractor Greg Fors has written “A Complete Physical & Spiritual Guide To Healing Your Chronic Pain WHY WE HURT Your Total Self-Care Guide for Backaches, Headaches, Shoulder Pain, Arthritis and Fibromyalgia.”

Yes, that is a very long title, but perhaps that’s okay because it’s a very thick book.  Dr. Fors explains that pain can be healed.  He tells us the causes of pain, which he believes are 3:  physical, biochemical and spiritual.

Dr. Fors goes into the causes of pain, too.  Some of the causes may never have occurred to you.  He’ll tell you where the toxic chemicals that affect your health come from, and much, much more.

Why We Hurt is a logical, well-written, pretty easy to read pain relief book.

Tags: cause of muscle pain, Kathryn Merrow, muscle pain, pain relief coach, simple pain relief