This past week in the office we had a couple of pregnant women come into the office experiencing back and neck pain. Their primary concern is the welfare of the baby and are hesitant to take any kind of medication for pain relief. Why do pregnant women have more aches and pains in the joints and muscles? And what can be done to help?

I came across this article on Pub Med this week explaining why pregnant women tend to have some of the pains they do. As most patients in our office know, we have curves in our spine that help support our weight.

Here is a video of our digital motion x ray machine. This is actually my neck.

Also some interesting news:
The speed at which accident victims may be injured in rear-impact car crashes is amazingly low.

Recent research articles have shown that the human threshold for neck injuries in a rear-impact automobile collision is only 2.5 mph.

For years the personal injury field has used 5 mph as a consensus figure for injuries. Brault, et al has shown that the 5 mph figure was indeed double the actual figure. Others have shown that slow speed collisions actually cause more injury than collisions with more vehicle damage.

Common Medical Mistakes:
•Assuming you are not injured because your pain is mild
•Assuming you aren’t hurt because your car wasn’t
•Believing the ER doctor when he or she says “it’s just a strain, you’ll be better in a couple of days…”
•Treating with non auto accident specialists like your general chiropractor, family medical doctor, HMO doctor, etc. Accident injuries are not the same as gardening strains, and require advanced training.
(Source Dr Barry Marks)

Rest assured all the doctors and therapists at Coastal Chiropractic Clinic are highly trained experts - not only in health & wellness, but also personal injury care.

If you have been in an accident get checked immediately. New Florida laws require a checkup within two weeks or you lose all your health benefits. It is common to feel little or no pain just after an accident, a few simple tests by an expert can determine if there are any injuries.

It is now official! We have been in the new office for two weeks and it is AWESOME! We made it official on Thursday with our ribbon cutting ceremony (thank you City of Edgewater). We had a great turnout to enjoy tours of the new office and see all the great improvements for our patients. Everyone enjoyed the catered food from Blue Mule Deli in Edgewater and Beef O Brady's in New Smyrna Beach. Most got to enjoy the free chair massages and we gave away lots of great gift baskets from Ramunto's Pizza, Heath's Health food, and many others.

Everything is so much better about this office I don't know where to start. Let's start with the

What do you plan to accomplish in 2013?
So, it's been a month in the new year and what have you done so far? You only have 11 more months to reach your goals for the year!

I spent the good part of the first month of the year asking our patients what they would like to achieve in the upcoming year. From my unofficial results of my poll I found that either: 1) many people have no plan or

Most patients that come into the office are aware of the conservative nature of chiropractic care. I recently came across this diddy of research.

A review, by scientists at the Department of Orthopaedics at the Geisel School of Medicine, clearly suggests that the first doctor you choose to see will have a profound effect on whether you end up having spinal surgery.


Just look at these stats:

42.7% of workers who first saw a surgeon ended in surgery, as opposed to only

1.5% of those who (first) saw a chiropractor.

The authors conclude: “There was a very strong association between surgery and first provider seen for the injury, even after adjustment for other important variables.”

There is no better feeling than knowing we have helped someone avoid surgery and all the possible complications. We have seen this in the office in cases of scoliosis, back pain, knee pain, shoulder pain (rotator cuff), and neck pain.

We are happy to give our opinion on ways we can help residents of New Smyrna Beach, Edgewater, Oak Hill, and surrounding areas.

With all the Holiday stress we go through, I can't imagine anyone that needs a chiropractor more than Saint Nick!

T’WAS JUST BEFORE CHRISTMAS

T’was just before Christmas, but there was no cheer.
No jingle bells jingled, no sound of reindeer.
The word had gone out that Santa was sick.
There would be no visit from jolly St. Nick.

The people were sad; no gaiety sounded.
For Christmas was coming but Santa was grounded.
He drove down the road, and what should he see?
But a sign for a doctor, who was a D.C.

                                                                          Now Santa wasn’t one to like a new tactic,
                                                                          But all else had failed, so he tried Chiropractic.
                                                                          He entered the office and saw at a glance,
                                                                          in a place such as this, illness hasn’t a chance.

                                                                        The office staff smiled, the music was snappy,
                                                                        with all of the patients contented and happy.
                                                                        In a very short time, to judge by the clock,
                                                                        he was in the adjusting room, talking to Doc.

                                                                        It must be the hurry, the tension and all,
                                                                        I simply can’t seem to get on the ball.
                                                                        Life used to be easy; just kids, toys and whistles,
                                                                        now I dodge smog, spaceships and missiles!

                                                                        And Doc, take a look at the size of this pack!
                                                                        Have you any idea what it does to my back?
                                                                       Poor Santa was miserable and just barely able,
                                                                        with the help of the Doctor, to get on the table.

                                                                        The Doctor was gentle; without a fuss or tussle
                                                                he examined the vertebrae and relaxed every muscle.
                                                                He spotted trouble and then with a click,
                                                                started aligning the spine of St. Nick.

                                                                Santa felt aches and pains slip away
                                                                and in no time at all he began to feel gay
                                                                The air was a tingle with new fallen snow
                                                                and a healthy Kris Kringle was rarin’ to go.

                                                                As he went out the door, he threw them a kiss;
                                                                why, it had been centuries since he felt like this!
                                                                Then once more he shouldered the bag full of toys,
                                                                his heart overflowing with true Christmas joys.

                                                                So, may we, your friends, echo this cheer?

                                                                Merry Christmas to you and to all a good year!

                                                                Author unknown.  Original poem modified.

Have a safe and Happy Holiday from Coastal Chiropractic!

Fall in Florida is a different season than the majority of the USA. While much of the country is raking leaves, we are still mowing lawns. Keeping the yard in shape still requires work. If you aren’t enthused by fall yard work then perhaps some safety reminders are what you need to keep you running at 100% and ready to watch some football.

1.      Plan.  Make a list of what you want to accomplish for the day and then start at the top. Prepare for the tasks by getting the proper equipment needed (like knee pads if you are weeding, gloves for just about everything). Learn how to work without hurting yourself. Minimize twisting and bending.

2.      Don’t overdo it. It might seem like common sense, but unless you work in your yard everyday your body is not conditioned to do that type of work and you will feel the consequences. Plan to accomplish certain tasks over 2-3 days.

3.      Take breaks. Often times it is easy to just keep going because you feel “fine” but it is important to stop and rest. Fatigue will often come before back pain or neck pain. Many injuries sneak up on you when you are in a hurry to finish up after you are already tired. Take short breaks to sit, hydrate and eat throughout your yard work. This can help to avoid injury, muscle strain and just plain over-tiredness.

I’m looking forward to fall and all the fun memories that come with it. Pumpkin patches, trick or treating, watching football, tolerating hot chocolate (if it ever cools down), and pumpkin pie. Let yourself enjoy the season without the aches and pains. Enjoy the leaves and football (even with bad refs) and forget the herniated disc. Call us today to see how we can help you feel better.

My son loves Bob the Builder. Bob usually starts his books / videos with the question, "Can we fix it?" After which they all say together, "Yes we can!" See how that applies with scoliosis below...

The Journal of Pediatric, Maternal & Family Health (JPMFH) published a case study on August 16, 2012, documenting the case of a young girl with scoliosis who was helped with chiropractic care. An additional study published in the June 2012 issue of the Journal of Chiropractic Medicine (JCM) reports on an additional case of idiopathic scoliosis being helped with chiropractic care.

According to the authors of the JPMFH study, "Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS), which accounts for approximately 80 percent of the reported cases (of scoliosis), is the most common orthopedic deformity affecting children." Scoliosis is classified as AIS (affecting adolescent) when it is detected at age 10 or above. The authors note that this form affects between 3 and 5 percent of adolescents and is more common in girls.

The authors of the JPMFH study noted that there are two medical forms of treatment for AIS which include bracing or surgery.  They note that the bracing option carries self esteem problems as the child is required to wear the brace upwards of 23 hours per day. The surgical option is limited in results and often requires multiple procedures costing upward of half-a-million dollars.  They note that there are multiple separate studies of chiropractic helping AIS in various publications.

In the case in the JPMFH, an eleven-year-old girl was brought to the chiropractor because her mother was concerned with postural abnormalities she observed in her daughter. The JCM case involved a nine-year-old girl who was also suffering with AIS and was brought to a chiropractor. Both children received a variety of chiropractic examination procedures, and both had spinal x-rays. The x-rays were measured for curvature angles with both girls having a 22 degree curve at their worst point.

In both these cases Chiropractic care was initiated utilizing different forms of chiropractic care for each of the two girls. Both girls were seen by the chiropractor multiple times on regular schedules over several months. Both girls were also subsequently re-evaluated and comparative x-rays were performed.

Subsequent re-evaluations and x-rays showed that both the nine year-old and eleven year-old showed corrections of the curvatures measuring 55 percent and 13 percent respectively. The case in the JCM noted that the young girl did not show any psychological issues sometimes observed with other forms of care for scoliosis. The authors of the JPMFH article noted that, in addition to the curvature improvements in their case, this patient also experienced decreased pain, increased range of motion, and improved quality of sleep.

There are so many reasons why you may be suffering from a headache and too many to list here. There are some reasons that are more common than others. Frequently chiropractors see patients that are suffering from headaches and before beginning treatment, they'll attempt to identify why you are experiencing headaches to begin with.

Here are three of the more common factors that can contribute to headaches:

1.  Sleep Problems. If you’re having difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, it’s very possible you just aren’t getting enough sleep. You may be suffering from insomnia, which could be stress induced. You may also be suffering from sleep apnea, a condition where you stop breathing during sleep. Usually a person will wake up when this occurs, but not always. This can be a very dangerous condition. This disruptive sleep pattern is enough to bring on fatigue and headaches.

2. Not Eating Often Enough. If you are skipping meals or going too long in between meals, then you may find yourself with a headache and perhaps loss of appetite. While not a healthy habit, it is not difficult to break. If you are going longer than 3 or 4 hours in between meals/snacks during your waking hours, then it’s too long. Make sure you are getting a good balance of proteins, whole grains and fruits and vegetables. If you find yourself needing a snack at work or while you’re out, get into the habit of packing something portable like some whole grain crackers and string cheese. I almost always carry almonds with me just in case I'm hungry and short on time.

3. Caffeine Withdrawal. If you’re trying to give up caffeine, you will likely find yourself with a headache within 12-24 hours of quitting depending on how much and how often you have consumed caffeine. You may also be experiencing difficulty sleeping, lethargy and agitation.

Whatever your cause for a headache, you can usually find some relief from sleep, relaxing in a dark quiet room or perhaps a alternating between a cool and warm compress. A visit with your chiropractor can help you determine what the best course of treatment will be for you.

Call today to make your appointment and get relie

My wife would agree with that statement 100%. We just welcomed our second child into the world last week! We are so happy to have him in our arms, especially my wife. Those last two chapters were not comfortable. Low back pain, rib pain, and varicose veins make it difficult to be comfortable any time. It has been reported that approximately 50% of all pregnant women experience back pain during their pregnancy and 50% to 75% of women experience back pain during labor.