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Studies have found that 80% of all Americans will have low back pain at least once in their lives. Most of us have chronic back pain and do not want to resort to pills, are tired of the chiropractor, and are ready to try other methods of relieving back pain. Here are 7 natural ways to find relief from back pain, along with tips that may prevent back pain in the future.

Visit Your Acupuncturist Regularly

Regular visits to the acupuncturist can keep you feeling great! At Endpoint Wellness we treat the underlying cause of your back pain using the best practices from Eastern and Western Medicine. Back pain may result from a postural issue, muscle imbalance, vertebral fixation or disc problem and getting the pain and inflammation under control is our first priority.

The next step is to get you moving again and we do this with supervised corrective exercises. Temporary solutions such as heating pads and over-the-counter drugs do not treat the underlying cause of your back pain. Instead, they simply cover up the pain temporarily.

Stretching

We all know how good it feels to do a big stretch right when we get out of bed. That’s because stretching loosens tense muscles that have been resting all night. The same goes for the rest of your body.

Stretching serves two primary purposes:

1. to loosen tense or stiff muscles
2. to strengthen muscles that need help

When it comes to back pain, there are many stretches that can help alleviate the pain. However, it is important to talk to your doctor if you have chronic back pain, as some stretches may make the pain worse.

When stretching, it is important to be gentle and gradual. You should not experience pain while stretching as this can do more harm than good. Once you find the stretches that are best for you, regular stretching can ease back pain quickly and effectively.

Practice Posture

Most of us spend a majority of the day sitting. Whether it is at work, in the car, at school or watching television, all of this sitting puts a lot of pressure on the spine. Overtime, bad posture can lead to pain in the neck, shoulders, and back. To prevent this, consciously practice good posture.

Good posture means having your feet flat on the floor, back straight, shoulders back, and neck straight. If you are short, it may help to place a small stool for your feet to rest on while sitting. This reduces the amount of pressure on your spine and surrounding muscles and ligaments. It is a good idea to get up every 30 minutes to stretch and move around. This keeps your bones, joints, and muscles from stiffening up and also stimulates the oxygen flow to the brain, making you feel more energized and alert.

Your Sleeping Position

Everyone has a unique sleeping position. Although some may be more comfortable than others, the best sleeping position is on your back. Sleeping on your back is ideal for neck and spine health because it keeps the back straight and aligned.

Side sleepers and stomach sleepers may create an unnatural curve in the spine which creates a lot of pressure.

Sleeping on your back also allows your mattress to do its job of supporting your spine. Some individuals may find this position more comfortable by placing a pillow underneath your feet. If you absolutely can’t sleep on your back, sleeping on your side with a pillow between your knees can help your muscles to relax and helps reduce pressure on the spine. If neither of these positions work for you, sleeping on your stomach with a pillow under your lower and pelvis abdomen can help reduce the strain on your spine.

Exercise

It’s no secret that individuals who are active tend to live a healthier life, experience less fragility, loss of mobility, injuries, and inflammation. Individuals who are active tend to experience less aches and pains and have more energy throughout the day.

Inactivity can cause spinal discs and back pain to become increasingly painful over time, since sitting causes muscles to weaken and puts more pressure on the spine. This is especially harmful if you are overweight.

Staying active doesn’t mean you have to train for a marathon. In fact, simple activities like walking, swimming, dancing, and cycling are all low-impact exercises that help keep your body in optimal health. As mentioned before, stretching is also a great option as it keeps muscles, joints, and bones loose, improves flexibility, reduces stiffness, inflammation, and pain.

Foam Rollers

Foam roller exercises are also known as self-myofascial release. The benefits of this exercise can be similar to the benefits of massage therapy and stretching. Foam rolling can help eliminate adhesions in your muscles and connective tissues, increase blood flow to your muscles, create better mobility, help with recovery, and improve performance. Foam rolling is not safe for everyone, and should not be used by those with a herniated disc.

Rest, Sometimes

Medical doctors used to prescribe patients with back pain to simply lie down and rest in bed. We now know that lying down in bed is one of the absolute worst things you can do if you suffer from back pain, as it can lead to severe stiffness, soreness, and other complications.

If you have an occasional back ache, try not to rest in bed for no more than one or two days. It is important to keep your body moving regularly, even if it is for five to 10 minutes at a time. This helps loosen muscles, relieve joint pain and provide overall optimal health.

At Endpoint Wellness, we offer solutions for back pain in the local Albuquerque area.

Sports Acupuncture is a branch of traditional Chinese Acupuncture that focuses on the treatment of sport related injuries and musculoskeletal pain.

Using principles of biomechanics, sports medicine, and knowledge of the particular sports specific requirements, Sports Acupuncture treats commonly seen acute and chronic musculoskeletal injuries, repetitive strain injuries (such as tennis elbow) as well traumatic injuries (post-op shoulder dislocations and fractures). The aim of treatment is to reduce pain and inflammation and improve range of motion in the affected and surrounding structures with the aim of restoring and increasing flexibility, strength, function, endurance, and ultimately performance.

Both Osteopathy and Chinese medicine share several key similarities in their approach to diagnosis, treatment, and how the body is viewed as an integration of both the mind, body, and spirit. To expand on this, the patient is treated holistically; not just the presenting symptoms or complaint.

There are three very important concepts that both of these systems encompass. The first one is the concept of holism or the “body as a unit”. This means that the injury or presenting complaint is never looked at in isolation, but rather as a whole. An example of this is an ankle sprain. Over time, a chronic ankle injury can cause a ripple like effect throughout the body and may result in the knee, hip, and even lower back pain.

The second very important concept is that “structure and function are interrelated”. If the structure is compromised then the function will also be impaired. Treatment is therefore aimed at improving the structures (joint, bone, muscle, tendon).

To use the example of the ankle injury, if the injured structures are treated successfully, normal function and healing can occur.

The third and possibly most important concept of why this integrated approach is so successful is the “rule of the artery is supreme”. This refers to the importance of all the tissues in the body having sufficient blood supply and being adequately nourished. Chronic injuries result in increased muscle tension and spasm which may result in reduced oxygen and other nutrient supply. Acupuncture can provide blood and growth factors which facilitate the healing process.

What would a typical Sports Acupuncture session consist of?

Both Acupuncture and Osteopathic Manual Therapy are very effective modalities on their own, but once combined, the effects are greatly enhanced. The techniques utilized are:

• Electro-acupuncture
• This modality enhances the effect of normal needling and helps in the regulation of pain, muscle hypertonicity, and has longer lasting results.
• Cupping
• Increases blood flow thereby delivering oxygen to the tissue and removing metabolic waste from the tissues at a cellular level.
• Tui Na
• Traditional Chinese medicine soft tissue and manipulative techniques.
• Auricular Therapy.
• Kinesio Taping
• A definitive rehabilitative taping technique that designed to facilitate the body’s natural healing process without restricting the body’s range of motion as well as providing extended soft tissue manipulation to prolong the benefits of manual therapy administered within the clinical setting.
• Postural and Corrective exercises
• Nutritional and lifestyle modifications and advice

At Endpoint Wellness, we provide incredible care at an affordable, friendly price.

Do you ever feel your life’s a ride that won’t ever stop? How many nights do you wait for Mr. Sandman to magically appear? How often do you truly take time for yourself? Do you have aches and pains almost daily? Are over-the-counter or prescription medications controlling your life? When was the last time you actually felt at peace? Acupuncture is can help you with all of these issues.

If any of these questions resonate with you, then it might be time to look at Traditional Chinese Medicine and acupuncture for an answer. People in Asian countries have known the magnificence of acupuncture for thousands of years. Traditional Chinese Medicine is growing in popularity in the United States and here are some reasons why you might want to consider utilizing it also.

Insomnia / Restless Sleep

Acupuncture can address imbalances in your body that may contribute to your inability to get a good night’s sleep. The needles can actually encourage the brain to produce the chemicals that help you relax and sleep better. If you have difficulty falling asleep, you wake up frequently or you toss and turn a lot, acupuncture might just be the missing link.

Anxiety / Depression

Thousands of people in the U.S. suffer from depression and anxiety. And while there are many amazing therapists available to talk to, psychotherapy may not be enough. Also, many of the prescription medications available have terrible side effects. This is where acupuncture and Chinese herbal formulas can help. Acupuncture can actually start to relieve symptoms of depression and anxiety in as few as two treatments without any harsh side effects.

Allergies

Runny nose? Sneezing? Watery, itchy eyes? Does this sound familiar? Seasonal or otherwise, allergies can be debilitating. But multiple studies have shown that allergy symptoms can be decreased and sometimes even eliminated with the use of regular acupuncture treatments. Immunity begins in the gut and acupuncture treatments for allergies will focus on the energetic meridians that support your immune system.

Migraines

For those who suffer from these monsters, life can be a toss of the dice. Migraines can come on without warning and can be completely devastating. And yet again, the pharmaceuticals that most migraine sufferers are prescribed can lead to harsh side effects. Acupuncture can reduce the frequency and intensity of migraines over time.

Menstruation Issues

Many women suffer monthly from menstruation problems. It can be that the period is irregular, painful or so heavy that it leads to anemia and fatigue. There can also be mental-health effects associated with periods such as depression and anger. Over-the-counter medications only mask the symptoms. To treat the root of the problem, give acupuncture a try. Once again, it’s all about balancing your body. That’s how acupuncture works to regulate menstrual problems.

Chronic Pain

Pain is the number one reason why people turn to acupuncture, and for good reason. If you’ve tried everything else and got little to no relief, acupuncture may be right for you. But remember, chronic pain took time to develop and it will also take time for acupuncture treatments to work. Many people get some relief immediately, but acupuncture works on a cumulative basis, so commitment to the process is a must.

Preventive Medicine

Did you know that acupuncture’s main function is to help keep you healthy? If not, then you’re not alone. While acupuncture may not be known for preventive care, it should be. Waiting until there is an injury or illness will only cause the treatments to take longer. Using acupuncture preemptively will help you fight off illness and let you recover more quickly. That’s reason enough to give it a try.

Fall or autumn is a favorite season for many people. The weather is getting a little cooler, things are starting to slow down and preparations for the holidays are in full swing…

For many others, fall is not so festive. Many people tend to get sick during the fall months, allergies can flare up for some, and many don’t like that the hours of sunlight decrease steadily, sometimes leading to seasonal depression. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, fall is the season associated with the lung and large intestine energetic meridians. These two meridians work in a symbiotic way to control the immune system from both the inside and outside of your body. And if you take good care of these two meridians during the fall, you are bound to feel better throughout the season.

Here are some suggestions on how to get through the season of the lung and large intestine channels.

First off, start wearing scarves. The scarves don’t have to be thick or heavy, but they should cover the neck. The large intestine channel runs up the arms, across the shoulders, up the neck, over the face and ends next to the nose. As many people now know, the health of our gastrointestinal tract plays a big part in our immunity. So keeping the large intestine channel warm and preventing exposure from the elements will help to keep you healthy. Cold pathogens can enter the body through the pores or nasal cavity. But wrapping the neck and shoulders with a scarf can help ward off the pathogens.

Another way to keep the lung and large intestine channels balanced is to eat according to the season. This means eat foods that are available during the autumn months as well as foods that boost the energy of the lung and large intestine meridians. In the fall, you should eat fewer cold and raw foods like salads and instead you should eat warmer, cooked foods. Utilizing the foods that are available at this time of year is a good practice as well. Foods to enjoy during the fall months include apples, squash, broccoli, sweet potatoes, pears, yams, bananas, cabbage, carrots, cranberries, ginger, pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg and wild rice. Also hot herbal teas are a good addition to your daily diet, especially those containing ginger and lemon, which act as natural antibiotics.

The large intestine and the lungs need to stay moist to function properly. So drinking lots of water is important. Most people know how important it is to stay hydrated during the summer months, but it is just as vital during the autumn. Without proper hydration the skin, which is controlled by the lung meridian, can become dry and cracked allowing pathogens to easily enter the body. The large intestine meridian needs proper hydration to be able to expel any pathogens that have gotten into the system. So don’t forget to drink lots of water during the fall.

As we approach the fall months, it is also a good idea to increase your regular acupuncture treatments and take an herbal formulation as well, especially if you seem to get colds more often than most. There are several acupuncture points that help boost immunity and fight off colds and below are some acupressure points you can do at home.

If colds are a problem for you in the fall, give us a call at Endpoint Wellness and we can get you scheduled. By doing so, you might just survive the fall without ever getting sick.

3 Points to Balance Your Energy this Fall

It is best to always have your energy aligned and balanced. To make sure your energy is balanced throughout this fall season here are three acupressure points you should utilize to ensure this. Acupressure is a great way to stay healthy and to balance energy, check out these points!

1. Large Intestine 4 (LI 4)
   A reliever of headaches and tense muscles, LI 4 is a great point to use to balance energy. In addition to making sure you are balanced it promotes healthy bowel functionality throughout the body. LI 4, is referred to as He Gu, or the “Adjoining Valleys.” It is the point where energy cleanses the body and clears out what is no longer needed, this point clears the system and replenishes Qi.
   Position your left hand flat with your palm down, now squeeze your thumb and index finger together, locate a fleshy mound that appears between the two fingers and press on this point with your right thumb above and index finger below.
2. Large Intestine 11 (LI 11)
   To relieve pain within your arm, shoulder or elbow use this acupressure point. LI 11 also regulates the digestive tract and the blood, in addition, this point cools heat and alleviates dampness. LI 11, the earth point of the large intestine meridian, is located at the crease of your elbow.
   To find this point bend your elbow in a 90-degree angle, place your thumb on the outside of the elbow crease and press.
3. Lung 2 (LU 2)
   Yu Men, or the Gateway of Gathering Clouds is the gateway where we are able to receive fresh sunshine, the rain and cloudy days. This point is very useful for balancing energy when you are overwhelmed with stress, it calms the body.
   To find LU 2, locate the area above the collarbone where it meets the shoulder blade, at this location there should be a depression, apply pressure there to harness the balancing powers of this acupressure point.

When the seasons change you have to be ready for a change in mood, especially as we move from fall into winter. Although it may not seem as drastic of a shift as you think, it matters more to our mental and physical states than you may know. Seasonal affective disorder is estimated to affect around 10 million Americans a year, and this isn’t even the full number of reported cases.

As we begin to lose the summer sun and transition into the darker months of the year, depression and fatigue seem to make that transition with us. But, there are ways to shake off the impending gloom and brighten your day, if you follow some of these steps you can combat seasonal affective disorder and find yourself being just as happy as you are in the warm summer months.

Light Therapy

Doctors have called this idea phase shifting. Because we lose sunlight so quickly as we head into the winter, you should start setting out bright lights when beginning your day. By eating breakfast and starting your daily routine under bright indoor lights, you get used to not having sunlight and can better acclimate to your new surroundings.

Exercise

Regular exercise works wonder for depression in general, so why would it not work for SAD-induced depression? By maintaining regular exercise habits you can work to get rid of the fatigue, depression and tiredness by adding at least 60 minutes a day of activity into your life.

These next two ideas go hand in hand, as both work together to not only combat SAD, but promote a healthy lifestyle. Maintain a heart-healthy diet and get plenty of sleep. No brainers? Maybe. But, you would be surprised at the amount of people who do not follow both or one of these guidelines, I’m sure you know someone who fits into those categories. Make sure to maintain a regular sleep schedule while keeping up with a heart-healthy diet in order to fight seasonal affective disorder.

Last, but not least, try acupuncture! Acupuncture is a great solution to combating SAD. There are various points on the body that have been known to alleviate symptoms of SAD.