With spring here and summer on its way we have more energy – wanting to get outside and be active. It is important to set a goal to allocate time each day to go for a walks, bike ride, or to do any type of exercise outdoors, whether it is ten minutes or two hours. The first thing to remember is, you need a good pair of shoes. Second, go at your own speed and on whatever terrain you like. If walking is an issue, stand and march in place, or sit and move your legs alternately, if standing is hard. Movement is the key here. Keep your goal simple. You don’t want to end up injured on the couch which is what you were trying to get off of! And fourth, find a buddy to do it with, it’s more fun that way and you get visit time!

Thea Juenke, RMT

Reiki is a form of energy medicine that is performed by therapeutic touch. It works with the body’s biofield, the energy field that is believed to surround the physical body. In a standard treatment, reiki energy flows from the practitioners hands into the client. During the procedure some may feel heat, cold, or even a subtle pressure within. The results of reiki vary, however some of the more common outcomes are feeling a strong sense of relaxation, relief and a brighter mood. Reiki is typically practiced in conjunction with regular medical or psychological treatment and is used to strengthen wellness. In addition to supporting medical care, some use it to help cope with symptoms such as pain, stress or fatigue. It is designed to bring balance throughout the body by working with the body’s own healing mechanisms, aiding the physical body’s energy to flow in balance.

Angela Diamond
www.prairiewellnessretreat.com

A possible cause of headaches and TMJ (temporomandibular joint) pain is poor posture. Proper postural alignment involves having the ears, shoulders, hips and ankles all being aligned. The average head weighs 10-15 lbs, similar to a pail of water. If the head is sitting in front of the shoulders, the muscles that balance the head on the spine, have to work much harder to hold up the head. This increase in workload for the muscles can lead to pain and dysfunction to vertebral and temporomandibular joints. Think of holding a pail of water at your side, and then holding it away from the body, much more work. If you are having headaches or TMJ dysfunction, consider analyzing your posture, you may find a couple of simple corrections that can ease your pain.

Andrew Neufeld BMR (PT) Physiotherapist

April is the month of renewed life and fresh outlooks; and after a winter of hibernation and comfort foods, maybe more than just our houses need spring cleaning!
Here are a few simple ways to Spring Clean Your Life:

1. Your Diet: Make a small healthy dietary change in your life, like placing a bowl of apples and bananas on your coffee table to encourage healthy snacking while watching your evening TV show.

2. Your Exercise Plan: Try something new and fun for exercise, like a high-energy Zumba class or ballroom dance lessons.

3. Your Integrity: Take time to identify areas of your life that don’t align with your core values. Make necessary changes to realign yourself.

4. Your Attitude: Use this time to shift your attention from all that is wrong in your life to all that is right. Add gratitude and joy and watch yourself blossom!

Gloria Laing – Registered Canadian Reflexology Therapist
www.gloriasreflexology.ca

A possible cause of headaches and temporomandibular joint dysfunction is poor posture. Proper postural alignment involves having the head, shoulders and hips aligned vertically in sitting, and in standing to also have them aligned with the ankles. This allows the muscles that run from the spine, shoulders and rib cage balance the head on top of the spine. When a person develops a forward head posture (FWP), the head starts to sit in front of that line. This causes some muscles, like the posterior occipatels (small muscles the run from the head to the spine) to shorten or get tight; other muscles, like longus Colli (small muscles along the front of the spine) to get lengthened and weak. This muscle imbalance will lead to movement dysfunction in the cervical spine and potentially in the temporomandibular joint. This dysfunction can become a source of pain and discomfort.

The human head weighs between 10-15 lbs. This is similar to a gallon of water. Think of how much harder your muscles have to work when you hold that pail of water out in front of you, compared to holding it at your side. That is what happens to the muscles in your neck, they have to work as much as 4x harder to hold your head up as compared to when you are in proper alignment.

When muscles are active, they release lactic acid, this is what makes a person feel sore when they start a new exercise program, or do extra work that they are not used to. When the muscles in the neck are working harder, they also release more lactic acid, overtime this may cause your neck to feel stiff and tight.

If you think that your posture is not very good, have someone take a picture of you from the side and look to see how you are aligned, very easy to do. If you are not aligned, try to make the correction and see how that feels. It will probably feel unnatural and might even feel painful as you are not used to being in this position. Your body has adapted to that positon, some muscles lengthen, some shorten, and so it will take some time before this becomes the new normal.

If you need some help with identifying whether your posture is optimal, or whether your posture is contributing the symptoms you may be having, please consult with a qualified, registered health care professional who can help guide through the path to pain free living.

Andrew Neufeld, BMR (PT), Steinbach Physiotherapy

Did you know that friends, coworkers and family members are the ones we are most likely to have to use first aid and CPR on? Many incidents happen in the home, workplace and school that require immediate medical attention as professional emergency medical assistance may take some time to arrive, and that is time we may not have! We should be teaching every student these skills in schools as early as possible. Providing students with first aid training at an early age helps cement those life saving techniques in their mind and by having as many people as possible trained with the right first aid skills, emergency first aid can be done immediately, potentially saving a life or preventing more damage. There are several programs available to students such as the PeopleSavers course and First Aid/CPR/AED training.

Yvonne Harder, www.eastmansafety.ca

Anything affecting your physical, spiritual and emotional well-being can cause you to be out of balance and therefore cause disease. Ayurveda is a natural holistic approach to health that focuses on treating the whole person – body, mind and spirit, with a primary focus on promoting good health rather than fighting disease. Ayurveda is a sanskrit word, ‘ayu’ meaning “life”, defined in the ancient scriptures as the combination of body, mind and soul. And ‘veda’ meaning “science” – “The science of life.” This unique health practice is a proven ancient method that combines the natural healing components of whole foods, herbs and oils to treat the imbalances of mental, physiological and chemical problems within the body. Many that adopt an ayurvedic lifestyle find that health problems significantly reduce, energy levels rise, sleep improves and weight usually balances itself out without the need for diets.

Andgela Diamond, www.prairiewellnessretreat.com

Well, Wellness is a choice; it is a choice we make for ourselves to get us closer to optimal health. There is a process we go through but it won’t happen overnight. It’s developing a lifestyle that brings us into our highest potential of well-being and health. Wellness starts in our mind the moment we take that first step and commit to eating better. Our bodies begin to heal themselves and ask for more healthy things such as more water, more movement, less screen time, and we start seeing life in a better light. Making that choice allows us to be able to play with our kids and grandkids for years to come. Even if you were never taught a healthy lifestyle, now is the time to learn and to teach the next generation! Get up, eat some veggies and get out there with the kids!

Theadora Juenke, RMT