Promoting healthy sleep to allow the body to heal, learn, and repair.

Sleep

Sleep is one of the most important aspects of a healthy, optimal life.

Sleep is arguably the most important aspect of quality health. Research shows that sleep deprivation leads to:

  • weight gain

  • memory issues

  • trouble thinking/concentrating

  • mood changes

  • increased likelihood of accidents

  • weakened immunity

  • high blood pressure

  • risk for diabetes

  • low sex drive

  • risk for heart disease

  • poor balance

  • decreases longevity

Bodywork & Alignment

As a massage therapist (MT), bodywork is near and dear to my heart. Bodywork is the therapeutic touching or manipulation of the body by using specialized techniques. With most clients there are common areas of pain and tension. People often ask me “how did you know where my pain was?”. Here is a little known secret: it’s often because that’s where everybody’s pain is. Shh! Don’t tell! Although we are able to find and feel problematic areas, it can take awhile to zero in when you are working on a new client. Having worked on a cruise ship you learn to go to the common places first as you usually have less than an hour of massage, a quick intake, and no follow-up visit.

Each month I will choose an area of pain or tension that I frequently see. I will give you my two cents about what may be causing that along with several links from specialists that I feel may be beneficial. I will also be including some information aimed at massage therapists. While they will find this more helpful than the general public, anyone can benefit from it. Massaging your friends and family is a great way to build social connection and help the body heal. However, be careful! Listen to your “client” and always bow to their opinion. Every body is different and if something is uncomfortable to them there is probably a reason. Massage hints: never push directly on bone, stop if they report any numbness or tingling sensations, and get their feedback on how much pressure to apply.

Some very common generalizations: a lot of pain is from chronic bad posture and not an acute injury, the body likes symmetry and balance from one side to the other, sore muscles are often contracted in extension opposite shortened muscles that are the root cause. What does this mean for you? Be aware of your posture and use ergonomic tools and furniture, work both sides of your body equally, and trust your MT when they work on a body part that doesn’t seem relevant at first.

Chronic neck pain from sleeping wrong is a very common problem, especially on said cruise ship where people have been on a plane for hours and then sleeping in an unfamiliar bed. While massage is fabulous, it isn’t always an option.
      I’ve included a YouTube link to Bob and Brad (my favorite online physical therapists) that covers some easy stretches you can do. Also, I’m a firm believer in preventative medicine and I believe that the best way to prevent sleep “cricks” is by training your body to sleep anywhere. I learned this from Katy Bowman and I will let her tell you about it. She is a biomechanist and one of my leading sources of information. https://www.nutritiousmovement.com

      Some facts about neck pain from sleeping “weird”:

  • One in 15-20 of all new cases of chronic pain in the population could be attributed to sleeping problems

  • Back and side sleeping are typically best, tummy sleeping can cause multiple types of back and neck pain

  • Changing sleeping surfaces occasionally can increase your sleep resilience

  • Apply heat to loosen up stiff muscles and increase blood flow to speed healing

  • Don’t “dig” at it constantly, you can cause further irritation

  • Drink extra water, dehydration makes everything worse

  • Walk around; the gentle, rhythmic, swaying motion of walking is amazingly beneficial

  • Work on better posture throughout the day. A lot of stiff muscles and even injuries come from previous days’ poor posture and activites.

  • If your mattress is a decade old and you can barely escape the crater it may be time to think about upgrading.

Essential Oils, Herbs, & Spices

Chamomile

Latin Name: German: Matricaria recutita, M. chamomilla. Roman: Chamaemelum nobile, Anthemis nobilis

Other Common Names: corn, scentless, field, stinking, Moroccan, dyer’s, golden, oxeye, yellow, Cape, or wild chamomile. Ground apple, sailors buttons, pin heads.

Origins: European. Used by ancient Romans, Greeks, and Egyptians.

Medicinal Uses:

  • Menstrual pain and cramping
  • Anxiety and insomnia
  • Upset and nervous stomach
  • Skin irritation such as eczema and psoriasis
  • Ease gas and bloating
  • Lowers blood sugar in diabetics

Food Uses: Here are some fun ideas: https://theherbalacademy.com/23-ways-to-use-chamomile/

Growing: Zone 3-9, prefers part shade but full sun is okay, dry soil, don’t fuss with, drought tolerant, good companion plant as odor keeps pests away. Roman: perennial, creeping ground cover, German: tall annual.

Safe/Moderate/Caution: Considered to be a safe plant.

Ingestion method: Most commonly as tea but capsules are used as well as topical applications

Dose: Tea: pour 8 oz. of boiling water over 2 tbsp. of dried chamomile blossoms. Allow the blossoms to steep for 4 to 5 minutes, then strain the tea into a tea cup. Garnish with honey and a slice of lemon if desired.
Capsules: Follow the directions that come with them as concentrations vary.
Topical: Here is a great website: https://www.chamomile-benefits.com/chamomile-poultice/

Pregnant/breastfeeding/children: Safe for children with correct dosage. Not enough information about whether it is safe while pregnant or breastfeeding.

Drug interactions (always consult with your doctor first): Warfarin – blood thinning risks, Cyclosporine – enzyme inhibition, may lower efficacy of birth control, ongoing studies to use for lowering blood sugar in diabetics so use caution with insulin.

Parts used: Dried flowers

Phytonutrients/constituents: volatiles (proazulenes, faresine, alpha-bisabolol, spiroether), flavonoids (anthemidin, luteolin, rutin), bitter glycosides (anthemic acid), coumarins, tannins

Products & Tools

This page is reserved for a weekly tip that will support this month’s foundational focus. The December focus will be on improving sleep quality. Our increased reliance and absorption with smartphones, tablets, and TVs is changing the way our hormones are released. Our circadian rhythmn has to do with our sleep and wake cycles. Melatonin is released in the evening as the light fades. Increased melatonin makes us sleepy and helps us to fall and stay asleep. When we are exposed to blue light (i.e. screens) our bodies don’t realize that it is night time. Melatonin is not released and therefore we don’t get sleepy. This is causing an increase in sleep problems.

There are several ways to counteract this. The best method would be to completely avoid screens starting several hours before you want to fall asleep. If you can do this, great! Even if it is only a couple of times a week or even a month. A second option is amber or blue blocking lenses. These can be found easily and inexpensively. There are growing studies showing the efficacy of these types of lenses. They improve sleep and even mood in people that wear them for about two hours preceding their sleep time. There have even been studies showing improvement with blue blocking lenses in cataract surgery patients.

As there is more and more awareness about this issue there are more options as well. Many smartphones and tablets have built in “night shift” modes or other alternatives for changing screen color and brightness. I have recently downloaded software from http://justgetflux.com that changes the screen on laptops and computers. I’ll keep you posted on my thoughts.

KEYS:

 

  1.  Block light (blue wavelengths especially) starting two hours before you want to sleep.

  2. Reduce screen time as much as possible for the same time period.

  3. Try candlelight instead of bright overhead lights/lamps.

  4. Go old school, read a book instead of on a screen.

Daily routine & Habits

Work on making your daily schedule into a regular routine. Pick  sleep and wake times that work for you and stick to them every day. Our bodies do well on a consistent schedule. Try and ensure that you get enough sleep every night so that you aren’t trying to play catch up on your day(s) off. If you are consistently getting enough sleep you should not need to nap during the day. A lot of research points to a 10 pm bedtime and 6 am wake time as being healthiest for our bodies. If you can make that work for you, great. If not, no big deal, consistency is much more important.