By Marie Oliveras DC, NP, ACU, N.R.C.P.T.
Hello San Miguel, long time no write! I am back writing for San Miguel’s amazing newspaper, Atención. I took some time off for medical recovery. I know gossip and stories get passed around; therefore, they change each time you hear them. Now you have it straight from the horse’s mouth. I needed to take time off for a cervical fracture to be repaired that was not healing. I do not believe in posting or writing about every little thing about my healing process. I think it is more constructive to write about the holistic healing process of any human that has sustained an injury, the process to facilitate the recovery, and what the body needs for bone and tissue repair—useful therapies, supplements, or natural medicine utilized as well as mental/emotional aspects of healing your body after an injury.
I am looking forward to speaking to anyone who may have any questions about this article or would like more information about my healing process to help their own healing process along. Let me start by saying the body is an amazingly engineered machine! The body will automatically modify its movements to protect itself whether you notice it or not. The first line of defense is the release of prostaglandins. Prostaglandins are what cause swelling and inflammation, and interestingly enough it helps to stablize an injured area by helping prohibit movements that may further injure the area. This protective mechanism can last one to three days.
When the benefits of the prostaglandins wear off, that is when people usually start to experience more pain due to the lack of the extra stability that the prostaglandins temporarily provided. For example, when a person sustains a low back or pelvic injury in a car accident, they usually start complaining of more pain one to three days after the accident. Hospital reports, more times than not, coincide with these findings. The first item people normally run for when in their healing process is take an ani-inflammatory, a pain killer, or a muscle relaxer. Unfortunately, this is a band-aid for the issue and bad for the inflammation process.
People come to me when they are experiencing pain and would like chiropractic and/or acupuncture treatments to help correct the problem or relieve pain. I advise them not to take any medications (natural or pharmaceutical). I can not properly assess the pain level due to the medication. The person may also not have an accurate response to an ortho, neuro, or sensory test I perform when seeing a patient. It is important for a person, after sustaining an injury or no improvement in chronic pain issues, to be evaluated from head to toe with the tests listed above. The initial treatment plan in the above scenario is typically eight to 12 weeks of treatment and then another re-evaluation. I personally had amazing results with chiropractic and acupuncture treatment plans. Many of my patients with pain managements issues also obtain excellent results.
Chronic or intense pain due to injuries also effect a person’s mental and emotional well-being. Many people will not talk about this aspect of the healing process. In my opinion, it needs to be addressed because I know it will help them. Many people worldwide will suffer secondary issues due to their injury; sleep deprivation, depression, PTSD, anxiety, lack of appetite, drug addiction, and or alcoholism (masking the pain symptoms and sleep issues), etc. This obviously will not effect everyone, but many people do suffer with some of these as extra burdens after an injury.
Alternative and complimentary medicine can help a great deal with many of these health issues listed above. I also educate people on meditation and its regular practice to keep a healthy mental and or emotional state while helping their body recover. Meditation as well as 40 hertz frequencies have been specifically researched and approved for mental, emotional, and physical recoveries. When a person’s body is in a constant stress state, even from pain, it can not thrive and heal. It is only in survival mode. A combination of therapies, meditation or frequencies, nutrition, and supplements can truly change a persons life in recovering from an injury. Receiving a “get well soon card ” wishing you a speedy recovery with a positive note inside can also help speed up your recovery.
Proper bone and tissue repair are essential for returning to a more healthy life after an injury. There are so many supplements, webpages, posts, and articles out today, and many people self diagnose, or use whatever a friend recommended to them. The fact of the matter is many of these supplements are synthetic and are not regulated by the FDA. They do not even need to contain the full amount of what is listed on the labels. It is best to consult with a health care professional on how to get quality supplements and for advice on natural medicine and nutritition.
Many nutrients being utilized are not used correctly. First and formost, many consumers are using synthetic supplement doses and not getting high-quality absorbable therapeutic doses, which are meant for aiding the body in its healing process. For instance, many people advise me they take calcium and vitamin D3. However, they are not in a bioavailable form, nor are they are in the improper dosage for what they are trying to accomplish in their health goal. Another example is K2. Honestly, many K2 supplements on the market now are fillers with labels on them. I always advise people to get soybeans (if you are not allergic or have breast or female organ aligments) and ferment them properly for K2 needs that will help in preserving bone health.
Lastly, the mighty glucosamine and chondronin debate! I know this works as I have used it personally, but many forget the third component to this combo and what the proper ratios are. According to research if a person wishes to use glucosamine (1,000mg) and chondronin (1,2000mg), they also need to add MSM (1,000mg) for it to work optimally. This combo is excellent for your joints! Quality protein and amino acids are also needed for tissue repair. During an injury recovery more proteins are needed as they break down into aminos acids and help repair the tissues of the body, skin, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and blood vessels. It is also important that each person be evaluated for the proper portions for them to take each day.
In conclusion, the human body works in an amazing way to automatically repair itself if given a chance. There are steps to be taken in helping to facilitate the healing process. It is best, in my opinion and according to many researchers, to incorporate the mental, emotional, and physical aspects of what the body needs to heal faster with a lower level of stress. I hope whoever is going through a healing journey is getting all of their needs met to have the most optimal outcome for their health issues. Thank you, San Miguel readers, for your support.
Marie Oliveras DC, NP, ACU, N.R.C.P.T. +52 415 197 6068.
