*This blog was written by my inspiring mother, Lorraine Cupido… enjoy!

I was searching for a hobby.  My inclination is always towards some type of physical activity and so I thought it was time to do something that was quiet and forced me to sit in one place and challenge my brain in a different way.  I also wanted to do something that would improve the fine motor skills of my hands.

My brother, David Young, is an accomplished and talented musician, teacher and composer of music.  I had always believed that he had inherited all of the musical genes in my family.  It never occurred to me that I could learn to play a musical instrument until one day, over Christmas I asked myself why I couldn’t learn to play an instrument.   I may not have the gift my brother has for music but I could still give myself the opportunity to learn and have fun.

I have since bought myself a guitar and have had four lessons.  I can now read music and without looking, my fingers are beginning to find the notes with fewer mistakes.

I am thoroughly enjoying my new hobby and I look forward to practicing.  I am so happy I challenged myself to go beyond my comfort zone.  I know I can do this!

The new year has brought a new activity into my husband’s and my life: hip hop dancing.  Yes, you read this correctly.  We are LOVING it and it certainly has been a wake up call for my neuromotor skills.  Being an athlete my entire life, I didn’t think that picking up on choreography was going to be as challenging as it has been.  Don’t get me wrong, I certainly didn’t think it was going to be easy, but I did not expect that it would be this hard!  I can perform the moves properly when slowed down, but trying to make my brain and body connect quickly has been quite the task.

I have realized how important an activity like dance is for athletes to improve motor firing patterns, for injured individuals trying to re-coordinate their neuromuscular systems, and for seniors working to improve proprioception and decrease their risk of falling.

If hip hop is not your thing, try ballroom classes with your partner or salsa with your friends!  Dancing is not only a wonderful way to strengthen your neuromotor skills, but it is wildly fun, it is a great way to socialize and it is fantastic exercise!  Remember, don’t take yourself too seriously; just have fun with it!  Fear of failure or embarassment may keep you from finding a passion that you could otherwise miss out on!

Here is to getting your groove on in 2010!

* The video above features our dance teacher and my patient, Shauna Smith.  Shauna is a professional dancer and will be leaving for London, England this week to pursue some of her career goals.  We wish her the best!

A very interesting paper was published in European Spine Journal this month entitled Altered Breathing Patterns in Chronic Low Back Pain Patients.

The research proved that patients with chronic low back pain often experience altered breathing patterns while performing movements involving the core muscles.  This is relevant for anyone who moves and has low back pain!  Let’s define each of the patterns that were considered impaired:

Breath holding:  Pretty self explanatory.

Paradoxical breathing:  Chest wall moves in on inspiration and out on expiration (reverse of the normal movements).

Upper costal breathing:  Upper chest moves with inspiration and expiration while the diaphragm is not properly engaged.

Mixed pattern breathing:  Any of the above patterns mixed together.

The ideal breathing pattern was deemed to be costodiaphragmatic breathing.  This pattern is defined by the ribcage displacing upwards, outwards and forward with outward abdominal movement (which is reversed on expiration).

The core muscles that surround our lumbar (low) spine take on the shape of a cylinder with the diaphragm at the top, the pelvic floor at the bottom, the abdominals at the front and the back muscles bringing up the rear.  If there is a sense of instability in the low back, it is thought that individuals alter their breathing patterns, using their diaphragm to aid in stabilization.  Therefore if you have chronic low back pain, you may be utilizing one of these abnormal breathing patterns to help stabilize your low back (which is not good).

Much research is still needed on this topic, but breathing patterns should be assessed in chronic low back pain patients as they could be perpetuating the problem.

Rousell et al., Altered Breathing Patterns in Chronic Low Back Pain Patients. European Spine Journal. Volume 16, Pages 1066-1020.

Dr. Meschino is not only a doctor of chiropractic and naturopathic medicine; he also has a master’s degree in nutrition; that is ten years of post-graduate studies!  Dr. Meschino is an evidence based doctor, this means that he only practices and teaches what has been proven in research.  The research, whether taught by naturopaths, medical doctors, or biochemistry professors states that essential fatty acids are very important for us.  Learn from Dr. Meschino’s video why essential fatty acids are ESSENTIAL.

Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that was utilized extensively throughout the 20^th century in a number of military and industrial applications. Asbestos exposure occurs when the material becomes damaged or deteriorated and the microscopic fibers are released into the air where they can be inhaled or ingested. Exposure to asbestos is the primary cause of a rare and aggressive cancer known as mesothelioma.

The combination of disease symptoms and treatment side effects can cause mesothelioma patients a great deal of pain. Cancer patients have included chiropractic care in their course of treatment to help control pain and alleviate headaches, tension and stress.

Chiropractors seek to restore mobility and alleviate pain through a variety of different treatments including spinal adjustment, massage, stretching movements, rehabilitation exercises and numerous modalities. These doctors devote careful attention to the biomechanics, structure and function of the joints of the body, the musculoskeletal and neurological systems, and the role played by the proper function of these systems in the preservation and restoration of health. A doctor of chiropractic is one who is involved in “the treatment and prevention of disease, as well as the promotion of public health, and a wellness approach to patient healthcare.”

Two studies published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics observed the cases of two patients fighting cancer. A 57-year-old man diagnosed with incurable pancreatic cancer experienced significant pain relief and was able to lower the amount of medication needed following chiropractic care. An increase in his quality of life was also reported following visits to a chiropractor.

A 54-year-old man who was diagnosed with lung cancer (a cancer often related to asbestos exposure) began seeing a chiropractor a year after going through surgery because he was unable to relieve the pain with the medications he was given. He experienced pain relief immediately after beginning chiropractic care and discontinued use of all pain medications after two visits to his chiropractor. The Journal noted, “These clinical examples offer two specific instances of how chiropractic may improve the quality of a cancer patient’s life.”

Written for www.drcarlacupido.com by: Richard Moyle, American National Awareness Coordinator, Mesothelioma Center, Asbestos.com

What do these three objects have in common?  They can all be used for self myofascial release!

Foam rollers are becoming very popular among athletes.  They are used to help maintain healthy tissue between ART, Graston or other myofascial treatments.

I am constantly educating my patients on ways to keep themselves healthy outside of the clinic.  Rolling is something I often recommend.  When patients cannot afford to buy a foam roller or they don’t have enough space to store one in their home, I suggest a “budget”, space saving, and more environmentally sustainble option.  If you roll a tea towel around an empty wine bottle or rolling pin, the same results can be achieved as with a foam roller.  Yes, the foam roller provides more distance from the ground which makes rolling easier; however, these cylindrical objects can release tissues just as well.  You can modify the intensity of your self-release by the thickness of towel wrapped around the object you choose roll on.

Take home points:

1. Be gentle!!!
2. It shouldn’t hurt more than seven out of ten on a pain scale with ten being the worst pain you have felt.
3. Remember, your tissues need to recover from treatments just as they do from activity.  Therefore, begin gently and increase your time on the roller SLOWLY!
4. Give yourself at least a day inbetween rolling at the beginning.
5. This is great for ITBs, calves, forearms, etc..
6. Check in with your practitioner if you have questions about how to apply this to your body.
7. Remember that if something is tight, it is normally because something is weak, so get checked out by your practitioner to see what exercises need to be incorporated into your regime.
8. If you are rolling heavier parts of your body and are concerned about the wine bottle breaking under you, choose a rolling pin for those body parts instead.
9. HAVE FUN being healthy!

Lorraine Cupido Bala Triathlon

I had an interesting experience a few weeks ago when my daughter and I went for a run and we decided to incorporate push-ups and lunges among other exercises into our workout.  Carla, my daughter, prepared to lead me in jumping squats up a flight of stairs.  That was when it happened… I simply couldn’t make myself jump without holding onto the hand rail.

I realized that I couldn’t remember the last time I needed or wanted to jump.  None of the athletic activities I am currently involved in require me to leave the ground with both feet at the same time and especially not up a flight of stairs.

It has become apparent to me that we have to remind our brains how to do some very basic movements at different times in our lives.  I often walk along curbs and move as I would on a balance beam.  This is such a natural thing for me to do but it had not occurred to me to jump and it was obvious that I had become very rusty at a once simple task.  However, it only took a few attempts before I was easily jumping and very gracefully I might add.

I remind myself when the opportunity presents itself to balance, jump and catch et cetera.  I give myself the chance to move in different ways whether I am in the water, on a mat, running or playing a sport.

This experience was a reminder for me that as I age it is important for me to incorporate balancing, running/walking, jumping and eye/hand coordination activities into everyday of my life, after all I want to be a stable, strong and independent senior.

Caitlin Griffin: Professional Dancer & Great Patient (http://caitlingriffin.zoomshare.com/)

There are many factors to consider when defining “great patient”; my list includes the following:

1. Dedicated to getting better
2. Committed to their exercises
3. Want to learn about their injury
4. Understand the importance of their involvement in getting better
5. FUN personality (this makes appointment times GREAT)

I have now had the pleasure of treating a number of professional dancers.  What I have learned from these experiences is obvious, but noteworthy: without healthy bodies, dancers cannot make a living.  For this reason, among many others, dancers make GREAT patients for they have no choice but to possess numbers one through four from the list above.

Dancers are more in tune with their bodies than average individuals and recognize when they require treatment and when they can manage things with self care and previously prescribed rehabilitation.  Many of the dancers I have treated are on limited budgets, but still make an incredible effort to look after their bodies properly.  The dedication they demonstrate to their health is admirable and I wish I could inject this into everyone I know!

Thank you to all of my patients; you have all been a joy to work with.  Let us all try to become “great patients” based on the definition above; I will work on this as well!  Feel free to ask me if I have been doing my exercises the next time we see eachother!

Bicycle transportation has recently become a regular and very fun part of my life.  My husband LOVES riding his bike; he wants to bike wherever we go regardless of weather or time of day.  Recently, I have liberated myself from the Ontario suburban car-attached mentality!  The more we cycle, the easier it is to jump on my bike instead of in the car AND it is becoming increasingly enjoyable!

Here are some reasons to cycle instead of drive:

1.       It is the green choice.

2.       It is good exercise.

3.       It makes you feel alive.

4.       It provides the opportunity to interact with individuals in your community.  This truly increases our quality of life!

5.       It will inspire other people to bike.

6.       It gives you time to relax and clear your mind.

7.       It enriches your life in ways you may not expect.

8.       It prevents the issue of being stuck in traffic and being late for engagements, therefore decreasing the risk of road rage.

9.       It is cool!

10.   It is fun!

What do you think?  Why not give it a go?  Once you get out there, you will feel better about yourself and you will be surprised at how alive you will feel!

In recent months, I have more regularly required communication with my patient’s medical doctors and specialists.  I have been impressed with the speed at which medical imaging reports and responses have been sent my way.  I believe that communication between medical practitioners is incredibly important to our patient’s health.

Too often patients think that they understand what their doctor, physiotherapist, or even accupuncturist has told them, but in fact they do not.  I have had many patients try to tell me something that another medical practitioner has told them and I know it is not what they were told; does “broken telephone” sound familiar?  Is this our patient’s fault or our fault?  There will always be issues of communiction failure, but we must ensure to our best ability that our patients understand the issues pertaining to their health.  When requiring information from another physician, we should take extra time to provide our patients with a note, send a direct letter, or make a call ourselves to make certain that the correct information is being delivered.

I am sure I have failed at this before and some other physician out there things I am a nutter; but, I hope this happens very infrequently.  Communication and education is incredibly important not only for our patients, but for the development and collaboration of the medical practices out there.  A second year medical student interviewed me recently for one of his classes that focuses on different medical disciplines.  I was thrilled to represent the chiropractic profession for his small group.  I am very proud to be an evidence based practitioner and I am proud that chiropractic is moving more in that direction now, especially in Canada.  Chiropractic has certainly come a long way in terms of its acceptance, but we have a ways to go.  As medical practitioners, let’s keep working together for our patients!

I encourage you to create a discussion on this topic via the comments option below.  Let’s keep the lines of communication open.