Author: Dr. Joshua Cohen
Treating Your Jaw Pain and Your Headaches at Home
How do you deal with your stress?
Do you clench your teeth? How about shrugging your shoulders at a loss of what to do next? Do you swallow your screams instead of lashing out?
The truth is that many of us are finding ourselves more stressed than ever. Working from home gives us few escapes from “the office,” and that prolonged stress can add up.
All of the ways you cope with stress can wreak havoc on the body – particularly in your jaw, neck, and head.
Continue reading “Treating Your Jaw Pain and Your Headaches at Home”
How to Treat Your Pain, At Home
Are you suffering from muscle, joint, or arthritis pain? Do your shoulders or back feel stiff?
Well, you may have developed what is called “trigger points.” And with the right simple steps, your tensed-up muscles and stiff joints can start whistling a happier tune.
What are trigger points?
Trigger points are tight knots of muscle in your neck, shoulders, or back that make movement painful and difficult. Wherever there is muscle tissue, there may be a small area of tissue tension that could be a trigger point.
Think of it as a small marble just under the skin or a tiny charlie horse in the muscle. Now, the pesky points don’t cause too much pain on their own, but when you have enough you may start to feel intense pain or even limited muscle mobility.
Treating your pain on your own.
I specialize in treating trigger points. Nerves control the muscles, and muscles control the joints. If you have joint pain, chances are that the muscles are involved and irritated in some certain pattern, but it is very hard to figure out that pattern of injury.
The best way to treat joint pain, arthritis pain, muscle spasm, is by treating the muscles. Muscles control everything. If you can reprogram the muscles, and break them out of these neurological patterns of inflammation and spasm, you can get them to heal and function like normal. Well, almost normal. I am a big believer that once you injure yourself, that area is never the same again. The injury gets wired into your system neurologically, and that area is less stable and more likely to get injured in the future.
The best way to treat joint pain and muscle spasm is by applying pressure to the most painful and inflamed spot (trigger point) in the painful muscle; by doing this you cut off the blood supply and the neurological input that perpetuates the muscle spasm.
The way you find the spot (trigger point), is by locating the irritated muscle, and finding the most swollen and painful area of the muscle, and applying pressure to it. When you apply pressure, you are decreasing inflammation in the muscle and joint, and cutting off the neurological input that is causing the muscle spasm. Thereby reprogramming the muscle. The more you treat the trigger point, the quicker you will break that muscle out of its habit of spasm and inflammation, and allow it to return to its normal function.
Please keep in mind though, that the area that you feel your pain, might not be where your pain is coming from. And where you think your primary problem is, might be secondarily irritated by another problem, that is primary. Kind if like if you have pain in the outside of your knee. It can easily be coming from hip tightness in the glutes, on that same side of the knee pain, pulling on the IT band which is pulling on the outside of the knee, giving you knee pain.
Trying to figure out where your pain is coming from can be difficult, at best, even for a professional. That is why I break up joint pain into areas. It is a complex of muscles that are irritated and causing the joint pain. That’s why you can’t just treat one muscle.
Kind of like if you have left shoulder pain, you can’t just treat the infraspinatus rotator cuff muscle. It will be involved, and possibly the primary spot, but you have to treat the rhomboids and traps and muscles going into the neck, and in the front of the chest as well.
Living the Pain-Free Lifestyle.
On my website, I break your pain up into different areas. Shoulder or neck or upper back pain? The written and video blogs will tell you which muscles to treat, and how to treat them. Hip or low back or knee pain? The written and video blogs will tell you which muscles to treat, and how to treat them. The videos are easy to follow and are meant to be done at home.
The only equipment that you will need is a tennis ball, lacrosse ball, massage ball, or something else round and hard. A foam roller is also helpful, along with a basketball. I find the tennis ball much more accurate than the foam roller. And when treating trigger points, and muscle pain, accuracy is everything.
If you are thinking of starting on a new exercise system, I would recommend that you take the time and go through your muscles with a tennis ball and a foam roller, and make sure your muscles are looser and up to the challenge of exercising. You will find that you’ll be sore and sensitive in places that you didn’t know had muscles. Loosen yourself up and balance your body first, prior to starting a new exercise routine. You want to continue to treat yourself and your muscles at home, as you exercise, usually afterward. It is a great way to cool down and recover.
I’d hold each trigger point, or tender spot, for 5-10 seconds, no more. The longer you hold it, the more you chance bruising it. You are trying to reprogram the muscle by breaking up the neurological patterning that is causing the muscle pain, not trying to mash out a muscle knot, or rub out a tender spot. You can go over each muscle 2-3 times. A very painful and active spot, you can go over 4 times. But try not to do it more than that. If you do, you chance bruising the muscle. I’d also not do this more than every other day. If you do it every day, you chance bruising the muscle.
The trigger point will feel like a slippery little ball under the skin. It might be extremely sensitive, or not that sore. It might be stringy, or fibrous. This is a sign that it’s been tight for along time, years.
It is a skill to treating trigger points. Take your time. The more you do it, the better you will get at it. And the better you will feel. The simplest explanation for treating your trigger points at home: find the most irritating spot in the muscle, and press on it.
Have a Pain Free Day
How To Exercise At Home, Pain Free
For the first time, many of us are finding ourselves at home. We’re home for a prolonged period of time, with nothing to do – and many of us are doing just that – nothing.
And that’s where the problems begin. If we don’t figure out a way to be active, then you’ll come out of this period of self-isolation shaped like a potato; weaker and deconditioned. Your body will break down, and you’ll be more prone to injury.
You can, however, come out of this period in better shape. Come out of this period conditioned and ready to meet that stresses that will be present as we are all coming out of our hibernation. All it takes is a few dumbbells.
Creating your at-home gym.
It can be hard to exercise at home if you never have before. I consider myself lucky. I’ve been exercising at home for years. I am a big proponent of exercising at home. It is just so much easier than going to the gym. Outside of buying equipment, it can be very inexpensive exercising at home.
You can make your home gym as elaborate, or as simple, as you’d like. Whether you’ve spent years accumulating equipment or pick up some used equipment on Craigslist or eBay, what matters is making the commitment to changing your lifestyle.
If you can find an exercise that you can perform at home, with minimal equipment, it can be very easy to get into, and stick with, an exercise routine.
Sticking to a new routine.
When was the last time you did a push-up? High school PE class?
Or maybe you tried running as a part of a New Year’s resolution for a few months but lost your motivation.
Many of us have decided to start a home workout plan and have failed. So, why not try a new approach?
Think of what you want to be able to do – whether it’s getting in better shape or keeping up with your kids as you get older. Find your inspiration and then set yourself long-term and short-term goals.
Focus on one week at a time. Get in your workout for the day. Then complete the next workout. Make it a challenge to find that 15-45 minutes in your day, as often as possible, to just keep yourself moving.
After that first week, look back and take it a step further. Add a new exercise to your routine, and slowly crank up the intensity.
Start your journey with ‘Pain Free Lifestyle.’
I speak with all of my patients about exercise: how to get into exercise, how to pick the right routine for themselves or analyze their current routine to make sure that it is conducive to their specific needs.
That’s why, a few years ago, I created an online exercise and nutrition program for my patients to use. It is meant to be done completely at home, with minimal equipment. All that you need are a few dumbbells.
Through the years, I’ve learned a few easy on your body exercises. They are easy to learn and great for beginners. As the program progresses, the exercises get progressively harder and more complex. But they are still easy on your body and generally won’t create injury.
In this routine I have isolated the majorly overused areas of the body that we want to focus on, to keep ourselves moving and our pain minimized.
The program is designed to guide you through a series of exercises that will get you up and moving. For a limited time, since everyone is locked up at home, the Pain Free Lifestyle program is free. It is usually 9.99$ per month.
I’d recommend that anyone who tries the Pain-Free Lifestyle program starts with a light, almost too easy routine. Ease your body into it. With a little patience, consistency, and sweat, you’ll forget what life was like before you started working toward your fitness goals.
Have a Pain Free Day.
Dr. Joshua Allen Cohen Has Been Nominated and Accepted as a Four Years AIOC’S 10 Best in Pennsylvania For Client Satisfaction
The American Institute of Chiropractors has recognized the exceptional performance of Pennsylvania’s
Chiropractor Dr. Joshua Allen Cohen as Four Years 10 Best Chiropractors for Client Satisfaction.
The American Institute of Chiropractors is a third-party rating organization that publishes an annual list
of the Top 10 Chiropractors in each state. Practitioners who are selected to the “10 Best” list must pass
AIOC’s rigorous selection process, which is based on client and/or peer nominations, thorough research
and AIOC’s independent evaluation. AIOC’s annual list was created to be used as a resource for clients
during the practitioner selection process.
One of the most significant aspects of the selection process involves practitioners’ relationships and
reputation among his or her clients. As clients should be a practitioner’s top priority, AIOC places the
utmost emphasis on selecting practitioners who have achieved significant success in the field of
Chiropractic without sacrificing the service and support they provide. Selection criteria therefore focus
on practitioners who demonstrate the highest standards of Client Satisfaction.
We congratulate Dr. Joshua Allen Cohen on this achievement and we are honored to have him as a Four
Years AIOC Member.
The Importance of Balance
It is very common for our balance to get worse as we age. Many of us think that it is a normal part of the aging process, and just something that we have to deal with.
I am here to tell you that you don’t have to settle for your balance getting worse as you get older.
When I work with athletes, it is imperative to keep their hip muscles loose so that they are functional. As an athletes’ hips get tighter, their athletic performance will decline.
The low back and hip muscles allow us to stand up and sit down, cut back and forth, twist, pivot, and switch directions. The tighter that they get, the harder it is to cut, move, and do the things that athletes have to do.
What this means to a normal person is that the tighter their hips get, the more likely they will be to trip and fall, and the worse the effects from the fall will be.
Your Ability to Balance: All About the Age
Studies that show that the older we get, the more susceptible we are to falling, and the more the falling affects us. My 95 year old uncle Mort used to joke that the older he got, the harder the ground got. The tighter your low back and hips are, the harder it is to raise your foot to clear a curb or obstacle while you are walking and talking to a friend.
I find that tight low back and hip muscles make us more likely to fall, and make the effects of that fall, worse. This tightness is something that doesn’t occur overnight, it slowly and insidiously builds up over time.
That’s why most of us think that our tight and sore low back and hips are just part of life, and just part of getting older.
A tight low back, hips and legs are not a normal part of getting older.
Muscle tightness builds up every day. Everyday we are doing the same motions over and over again. These repetitive motions are what slowly, and insidiously, tighten up our muscles every day. The muscles get tighter and tighter over time until they pull on our joints and bones to give us bad posture, followed by joint pain. When someone bends over to tie their shoe and they throw their back out, it is due to tight muscles. It wasn’t bending over to tie the shoe caused the issue, that was the straw that broke the camels back. It was all of the muscle tightness building up over years, causing the muscles to get irritated and inflamed, and likely to be pulled, injured, sprained or strained.
Tight hip and low back muscles are becoming an epidemic in our society. With everybody sitting for hours at desks in front of computers, most people will have some hip and low back tightness. Sitting for long periods tightens up the muscles in the legs, hips and low back, (also in the neck shoulders and arms but that is a different topic). Sitting causes the muscles in the legs, hips and low back to get so tight that they become non functional. This is because every minute that you are sitting, the muscles in your legs, hips, core and back, are all contracting to keep you sitting upright and prevent you from flopping over like a boneless chicken.
Treating Your Chronic Sitting
A common diagnosis for this, I kid you not, is “Dormant Butt Syndrome”. This means that the muscles in the hip (or butt) area, get so tight from sitting too long that they become non functional, they won’t contract or move. The muscles get so tight that they can’t move. This causes a huge muscle imbalance in the hips and low back, and creates a whole host of back pain and injury.
The best way to treat this issue, how to prevent this issue form coming on in the first place, and prevent it from coming back, is to exercise, stretch and trigger point yourself. You want to keep the muscles in your back, hips and legs loose and strong. You want to stretch on a regular basis, and exercise on a regular basis.
Just walking won’t do it. Walking is a great exercise, but it has to be coupled with some other strength training and stretching. Otherwise walking will strengthen you up in an imbalanced way.
It’s like when I work on a construction worker who tells me that he doesn’t need to exercise because his work keeps him in shape.
Your work will strengthen you up in an imbalanced way because you are doing the same motions over and over again, and usually they aren’t balanced out to both sides of the body.
Usually you’ll have to use one side more, repeatedly. Over time this creates a muscle imbalance by overusing some muscles while other muscles get underused. This imbalance will eventually create injury and pain.
That is why it is so important to do some strength training and some stretching. You want to keep the muscles strong and loose.
But it has to be a balanced routine. That is why I put together Pain Free Lifestyle. It is a balanced, easy on your body exercise, nutrition and stretching system that anyone can follow, from home, spending about 20-30 minutes per day.
You don’t have to go through Pain Free Lifestyle. There are many exercise and stretching systems out there. You can do yoga, which is stretching and strengthening. Pilates, Ti Chi, Chi Gong, are also examples of systems that stretch and strengthen, are easy on your body, and are low impact.
I am a huge fan of weight lifting, but only when done moderately. As we age, heavy, high intensity weight lifting beats us up more and more and we recover slower and slower from it. That’s why I would recommend that whatever exercise system you choose, you can do it repeatedly, and without pain.
You want to feel better after a workout, not beaten up and in pain.
You want an exercise system that you can stick with, without causing pain and injury.
Exercise smarter, not harder.
Eat intelligently, not less.
Have a Pain Free Day.
Your Guide to Trigger Point DIY
It can be confusing trying to figure out exactly how to trigger point yourself.
How often do you do it? How hard do you go? Do you repeat it? How do you know if you are on the right spot?
These are all legitimate questions.
Introducing the Infraspinatus: Magic Relief to Your Shoulder Pain
The Cause of Your Shoulder Pain
When we hear that we have a problem with shoulder pain or our rotator cuff, we usually assume the worst.
Most of us know that the rotator cuff is a very important part of the shoulder. But besides that, most people don’t know much about it.
The rotator cuff is a group of 4 small muscles that hold the humorous (arm bone) into the gleno-humeral joint (the shoulder socket), and helps to stabilize the shoulder.
Every time that you move your hand, like when you type, write, knit, etc, you are using the rotator cuff muscles to stabilize your shoulder and hold your arm bone in place.
So it’s no wonder you feel the pain, we’re using it all the time.
Continue reading “Introducing the Infraspinatus: Magic Relief to Your Shoulder Pain”
Getting Your Body Ready for Winter
Winter is fast approaching.
Just like we need to get our furnaces ready to handle the impending cold, we need to get ourselves ready for the demands that the cold weather puts on our bodies.
Avoiding Holiday Weight Gain
The holiday season is upon us, and that means more eating, drinking, and being merry. All of this extra merriment can make it hard to stick with your regular exercise and eating routines. It can be hard to stick with any routine with all of the parting and shopping.
My business always picks up during the holiday season due to everyone hurting themselves from getting all stressed out from doing to much.
If you are trying to eat healthy or follow a diet plan, it can be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to stick with. There can be temptations around every corner. From the treats at the receptionists desk, to the snacks in the office kitchen, to the cookies at home, we are surrounded by treats and temptation.
When Fake Sugar Becomes Too Much
A vast majority of people at any given time want to lose weight.
Unfortunately, few people have training in nutrition or exercise. Therefore, most of us don’t know what is valid and what is invalid and wrong when evaluating a weight loss, exercise, or nutrition program.
And there are many companies out there looking to take advantage of uneducated consumers who are desperate to lose weight.
