High heeled shoes can also cause foot, ankle, and knee pain too. You see when a person is standing the body weight is supported by the spine. The lower body tends to take more of that stress- your low back, feet, and knees. Wearing heels changes the wearer’s weight distribution and tends to shift the spine forward. This will also change ankle and knee alignment.
Your foot arches also get affected, and wearing heels with too much lift will change the arches and will cause decreased motion of the foot. Not to mention a lot of heels lack much foot support and also pinch the toes inward.
So, for these reasons, women who present with back pain who wear high heels often can ease their pain by switching to a flat shoe or sneakers for a week or two. Along with this, chiropractic adjustments can correct any alignment issues in the lower body. What happens is that the shifts in the spine or pelvis put pressure on nerves in the back causing pain. Even though the wearer may switch to flats, the misalignments or joint restriction may remain until treated.
Shoe orthotics may help as well. These are custom-made insoles for your shoes that help restore the alignment and arches of the feet. Everything is connected, which is why foot alignment issues can lead to knee or pelvis problems.
I have extensive training in extremity adjustments, as well as supports and exercises one may need to balance the spine and especially the lower body.
A place for sharing information on health, nutrition, chiropractic, acupuncture dry needling, spinal decompression, and wellness.
My office is located in LaVale, MD at 359 National Highway above Fratelli's Restaurant. We are always accepting new patients.
Call me at 301-777-3710
More Info at www.accentonhealth.org
What is myofascial dry needling? The cost effective approach is used in treating myofascial dysfunction, a painful condition. At first glance, dry needing appears to be identical to acupuncture, a facet of Traditional Chinese Medicine, but it is very different.
Dry needing is a western development that focuses on neurology and anatomy in a biological sense rather than in a spiritual or energy sense. However, like acupuncture the needles do use specific trigger points to treat myofascial dysfunction.
Myofascial Dysfunction
Myofascial dysfunction is a type of chronic pain that is associated with fibromyalgia. However, it is a distinct disorder with its own set of symptoms and treatments.
Fascia is a web-like tissue that surrounds bones, muscles, blood vessels, and organs in the body. Myofascial dysfunction causes degeneration of the fascia, leading tochronic pain.
Fascia connects to muscles at trigger points that can be felt as nodules under the skin. These connective points are where pain is detected in cases of myofascial dysfunction. Myofascial dry needling addresses the pain at the source of the myofascialtrigger points (TrPs).
Myofascial Dry Needling
The inexpensive dry needling approach uses the trigger points as a guide for relieving pain associated with the dysfunction. The points are extremely sensitive and painful to the touch. Indiviudals who have the disorder notice:
• Tender skin
• Pain
• Autonomic phenomena
• Motor problems
Prior to myofascial dry needling, physicians injected substances that were supposed to relieve pain, but they discovered that the pain relief was associated with the stimulation the needle rather than the substance injected. The process may work by redirecting dysfunctional endplates in the affected region.
Janet Travell, MD, a physician who would later work as President John F. Kennedy’s physician, initially developed the approach during the 1940s. Some refer to this needle technique as “biomedical acupuncture” but it is important to recognize the difference between dry needling and acupuncture.
Acupuncture and Dry Needling
It is important to make the distinction between the approaches. Myofascial dry needling differs from acupuncture in a number of ways.
• Dry needling technicians are not usually trained in acupuncture
• Meridian acupoints are exclusive to acupuncture
• Dry needling does not use Traditional Chinese Medicine theories
• The approaches use different forms of diagnosis
• Each approach uses its own technique
• Acupuncture uses energy channels
• Dry needling uses biomedical foundations
Managing Myofascial Pain
Myofascial pain can be difficult to manage, especially considering how difficult it is to detect. People are often misdiagnosed as having fibromyalgia or other chronic pain condition when myofascial dysfunction is present. Proper diagnosis is the first step in treating the condition properly.
Those who think they can benefit from dry needling have a few resources available, but it is best to get a proper diagnosis in order to create a comprehensive treatment plan. Myofascial dry needling is a very effective option that offers relief with little or no side effects.
Dr Bohn has over 300 hours of acupuncture training and is licensed to perform Myofascial Dry Needling in his office at 359 National Highway, LaVale, MD. He has been using needle therapy for over 15 years.
