• SHOULDER STIFFNESS

    A neighbor asked if I could do a post on shoulder stiffness, and upon considering it, I figured I may as well discuss stiffness in general…especially the part on how to prevent it! As Ben Franklin said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” And I think it goes double for joint stiffness. The good news is that in most cases, it can be easily and predictably prevented. The most common joints to stiffen as we age, and even more importantly, to cause functional problems, are our shoulders, knees and ankles. Let’s get down to business, starting with shoulders, per my neighbor’s request. Most shoulders stiffen because…

  • PART 7: STAYING PAIN-FREE DURING COVID-19 – SHOULDERS

    A lot of folks have been waiting on this one. There is a bunch of shoulder pain out there, and with just a few modifications, much of it can be alleviated…but not all! And again, there was R.I.C.E., all of which works pretty well for shoulders too, except that it’s a little hard to elevate your shoulder, since it’s already on top. Go on-line and get one of those strap-on ice packs. They’re particularly useful for the shoulder, because it’s hard to prop an ice pack there and make it stay. I also linked a cheap one, which looks like it would work for other parts of the body too.…

  • Lighten Up Your Heavy Load!

    That’s right! Our purses are way too big and heavy. They are causing pain and injuries! Check out my interview on Austin’s Fox 7 Good Day show with Ann Wyatt Little. http://www.fox7austin.com/good-day/258664575-story  

  • RESPECT THE KEYBOARD

    RESPECT THE KEYBOARD If you type on any regular basis, you should drop your keyboard down below desk or table height. Today I saw two patients in my office who were using their laptop/keyboard on top of their desks or their tables at home. Seeing them and thinking through their symptoms reminded me of the fact that I’ve been having a little more rotator cuff discomfort lately (after at least a decade of not having one iota of pain in my shoulder). Whenever I experience some classic form of repetitive strain pain, I immediately begin trying to figure out what I’m doing to cause or aggravate the situation. This time was…

  • RESPECT THE PURSE

    I’m sure I’m not going to get anywhere with this one. But look, I have to try. Purses are bad for your health. You never know which one of you is walking around with an upper quadrant liability such as cervical radiculopathy, myofascitis, bursitis, tennis elbow, deQuervain’s syndrome or the lowly carpal tunnel syndrome. But trust me, you’re out there…many of you having already helped me pay for my children’s education and my truck. And for that I say, “Thank you!” But there is hope. And if you’ve been reading my blog, you know that the hope comes in the form of modifying certain activities which will exacerbate or even…

  • RESPECT THE BRA

    It’s been a while since I’ve blogged. Sorry to those of you who have been waiting.  So I’m jumping right back in with my RESPECT series. And just a reminder, the purpose of this series is to remind my followers and patients of the many destructive forces out there which can result in the slow or acute decline of our musculoskeletal system. Of course there are commonly seen, major forces, like doing squats (and I won’t labor over that subject, since I already have on two previous blogs), and gaining a lot of weight (I will blog on that subject someday when I have the energy to do so). Changing…