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DC Health has a New Address!

2/23/2017

After six years at my previous location, I decided it was time to move into a new space that would be more convenient and allow me to better serve my patients.

DC Health Chiropractic is now located at 417 Pease Road in Burlington!

There has not been any change in our phone number. Please call 360-755-3042 to schedule an appointment and come see my new office!

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Simple Neck Stretches to Relieve Neck Pain

7/22/2013

10 Comments

If you sit at a desk all day or work for hours at a computer you have likely experienced some neck pain or stiffness and can benefit from some simple neck stretches! Even doing these only once a day for a few minutes will make a huge difference for you!

Stretch 1: Neck Stretch

There are six ranges of motion of the neck. For best results, you should stretch your neck in all six ranges for 10-15 seconds, but if you are in a hurry, just stretch the ranges that are painful or tight! To begin, sit with good posture in your chair. Reach and hold the seat of the chair with your hands.

Neck Flexion (Chin to Chest) -Slowly begin to lower you neck down by lower your chin down to your check and hold for 10-15 seconds.
Neck Extension (Lean your head back) - Lower your head back as far as you can.
Right Lateral Flexion (Ear to Shoulder) – Lower your right ear towards your right shoulder.
Left Lateral Flexion (Ear to Shoulder) – Lower your left ear towards your left shoulder.
Right Rotation (Chin to Shoulder) - Slowly turn your head to the right. Your chin will be close to your right shoulder.
Left Rotation (Chin to Shoulder) – Slowly turn your head to the left. Your chin will be close to your left shoulder.

Stretch 2: Shoulder Shrugs

This particular stretch combines stretching with a common muscle relaxation technique called “Progressive Muscle Relaxation”. It’s really effective to relax the shoulders and neck!

Shrug your shoulders to your ears (as shown in the picture) and hold tightly for 2-3 seconds, still holding tightly rotate your shoulders back (you should feel a stretch in the pectoralis muscles or chest muscles) and then relax them down into normal position. Repeat for 10 repetitions for best results!

Stretch 3: Upper Back Stretch

This great stretch works on the neck and upper back muscles.

Stretch your arms out in front of you and rotate your hands until your palms face away from each other. You can put both of the back of your hand together or you can put your palms together, which ever is most comfortable. Then bend over at the upper back like you are diving off the diving board. Be sure and flex your head (chin to chest) at the same time!

To learn more about other good stretches to do at the office or home and the source of the images shown above, visit the website below located on About.com.

http://exercise.about.com/od/flexibilityworkouts/tp/officestretches.htm

10 Comments

Bed Rest for Back Pain? I Don’t Advise It

4/1/2013

15 Comments

As much as 80% of all adults will experience back pain at some point in their lives. This means if you haven’t already had to suffer through an incident of back pain you most likely will in the coming future.

Now for those of you who have dealt with back pain before, you know it may seem natural to want to get off your feet for a few days and rest your back in bed. However, current research has found that to be exactly what NOT to do. Lying in bed for prolonged periods of time can lead to further tightening and weakening of your muscles and it won’t encourage the proper healing of the body.

Instead, as odd as it may seem, you should get active. Go for a walk, stretch, keep your body moving any way you can. This will encourage proper healing and studies show that it decreases recovery time for many non-complicated back injuries. The exception to this advice would be in cases of severe injury or when accompanied with other symptoms such as pain or tingling radiating down the legs.

Of course, the first step when suffering back pain is to make a visit with a health care provider who can evaluate your pain, make sure there's nothing more serious going on, and then offer treatment and self-care recommendations (including activity) to help relieve it. Enter your doctor of chiropractic, the experts in treating spinal pain.

Jacob W Harris, D.C.
Find Relief. Find Chiropractic
360-755-3042

15 Comments

Chiropractic for the Expecting

10/19/2012

7 Comments

Photo courtesy of Amy Egbert.

Are you pregnant or thinking of becoming pregnant soon? If so, I hope you are seeing your chiropractor regularly. The body goes through many changes both structurally and hormonally during pregnancy which can lead to a great deal of low back pain before and after delivery. Chiropractic care offers natural, safe, and effective relief, making pregnancy easier and more comfortable.

Your Changing Body

As your baby grows, the center of gravity in your body shifts forward causing an increase in the curve of your low back. This will increase the stress on your spine as well as cause a tightening in the muscles of your low back. Other muscles including the psoas, tensor fascia lata, quadratas lumborum, and piriformis are put under new stresses as they work to support your baby’s increasing weight. Additionally, your body will begin to release hormones which cause a slackening in the ligaments that support your pelvis causing hypermobility and pain in your sacroiliac joints.

Relief

Chiropractic adjustments are safe throughout pregnancy for both mother and baby. Chiropractors will work to relax your overworked muscles as well as ease pain by ensuring the hypermobile joints of your low back are in proper alignment. Chiropractic appointments should be scheduled regularly throughout your pregnancy at least bimonthly during the first trimester and with increasing frequency in the later stages of pregnancy.

Pain can cause a great deal of stress and anxiety, neither of which are good for mom or baby. Getting adjusted regularly while pregnant can help ease your pain and make the process of having a baby much easier.

Jacob W Harris, D.C.
Find Relief. Find Chiropractic
360-755-3042

7 Comments

Save Your Back, Gardening Tips

8/2/2012

9 Comments

The garden can be a dangerous place! Many of my patients are coming in with tight and sore backs after long weekends gardening in their yards.
Here are some tips to help reduce strain on your back and body while gardening:

1. Change tasks regularly. Switch between heavy and light tasks so that you don't overdo it on one physically demanding task.

2. Kneel when weeding or planting. Being bent over for long periods of time increases the stress on your neck, back, and leg muscles.

3. When raking, stand with one leg out in front of the other. Then switch legs and hands every few minutes. This will help balance the stresses on your back.

4. Pace yourself. Take a minimum of three brief breaks per hour. Stand up, stretch, have a drink of water, then continue.

Try to adhere to these recommendations and you will be doing the best you can to keep your body safe this summer. If you still manage to overdo it, contact your chiropractor right away. The sooner you get in the sooner you can be feeling better!

Jacob W Harris, D.C.
Find Relief. Find Chiropractic
360-755-3042

9 Comments

Torticollis

6/19/2012

12 Comments

A few different forms of torticollis exist. I would like to specifically address the condition referred to as Pseudotorticollis because it is the most common type I find in my office.

CLASSIC PRESENTATION

The typical patient with pseudotorticollis will present to my clinic with intense neck pain causing the inability to move their head. The symptoms will usually have come on over night without any trauma or other known cause.

CAUSE

The condition is said to be idiopathic (fancy doctor talk for “unknown”). However, I have not had a single pseudotorticollis patient without significant subluxations in their neck, and it is in my opinion that there is a relationship between the two.

TREATMENT

I have had great success treating pseudotorticollis in my clinic. My primary goal is to restore motion to the spine with chiropractic adjustments. This helps to relax the muscles in the neck, which are usually in spasm, also it removes the subluxations which are causing much of the pain. Pseudotorticollis responds very quickly to chiropractic care and the patient will usually experience significant relief immediately and become pain free within 2-4 treatments.

If you have any questions regarding Pseudotorticollis, or if you have questions regarding any other injuries or pains that you may have, please feel free to contact me directly at (360) 755-3042. You can also find me on Facebook, Google+ or LinkedIn.

Thank you to FreeDigitalPhotos.net for the image above.

12 Comments

What's with that tape? Kinesio taping defined.

2/22/2012

18 Comments

You have more than likely noticed in the past couple Olympic games that many of the athletes wore a strange looking colored tape over their muscles. While your initial thought was likely “What’s that?” you probably quickly lost interest in the tape and enjoyed watching the event. Well I would now like to take the time to tell you about that strange tape because it is actually pretty cool stuff that can help not only elite athletes, but the general population as well.

The tape is called “Kinesio Tape” or “K-Tape”. It was developed as an alternative to traditional athletic tape which is rigid and restrictive. The Kinesio Taping Method is a rehabilitative taping technique that is designed to facilitate the body’s natural healing process while providing support and stability to muscles and joints without restricting the body’s range of motion as well as providing extended soft tissue manipulation to prolong the benefits of chiropractic adjustments.

K-Tape works by targeting different receptors within the somatosensory system. The elasticity of the tape causes a microscopic lifting of the skin which alleviates pain and facilitates lymphatic drainage.

K-Tape is used to treat many conditions including but not limited to:
·
*carpal tunnel syndrome
· *lower back strain/pain (subluxations, herniated disc)
· *knee conditions
· *shoulder conditions
· *hamstring injury
· *groin injury
· *rotator cuff injury
· *whiplash
· *tennis elbow
· *plantar fasciitis
· *pre and post surgical edema
· *ankle sprain

Please give me a call if you would like any more information or would like to discuss how K-Tape may be able to help you with your injury.

Jacob W Harris, D.C.
Find Relief. Find Chiropractic
360-755-3042

18 Comments

Now I'm a Blogger!

2/22/2012

2 Comments

Welcome to my new blog! This is my first post. I am excited to begin this blog as a new resource for me to communicate with my patients as well as my community. I intend to use this blog as a way to disseminate a variety of health information including information on common injury prevention and treatment, new health tips I come across in health journals, healthy recipes, or anything else I think may be valuable to share with my readers and patients.

I would like to encourage you to get involved with this site. Post comments after articles, ask me questions, and share any information you find valuable with your friends and family.

Thank you!

Jacob W Harris, D.C.
Find Relief. Find Chiropractic
360-755-3042

2 Comments

DC Health has a New Address!

Simple Neck Stretches to Relieve Neck Pain

Bed Rest for Back Pain? I Don’t Advise It

Chiropractic for the Expecting

Save Your Back, Gardening Tips

Torticollis

What's with that tape? Kinesio taping defined.

Now I'm a Blogger!

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