Pressure points for quick relief!

I use this method myself to get rid of headaches. It works most of the time!

The only time when it really hasn't worked for me is for a migraine-and then it took "the edge off" so the pain was actually bearable.

When you are experiencing a headache, grab the web between your thumb and other fingers and look for a very sensitive nodule or "pea" within the web of your hand. Start pinching this nodule -IT SHOULD FEEL VERY SENSITIVE!

At this point you might want to ask a friend to work that spot until it releases (the reason you want to get someone else to work it is that you will never apply the proper pressure needed to fully release the nodule because it's a bit uncomfortable and painful)

If you choose to work on it yourself, or are unable to find someone to help, continue pinching and squeezing this spot-and at the same time slowly start moving your head and neck in a circular fashion. As you do this, occasionally you will hear a "pop" in your neck or head.

You are temporarily correcting a possible misalignment of the cervical vertebra that caused the headache in the first place. After you feel the nodule release, switch hands and repeat.

You may also find yourself wanting to twirl your ankles around, when doing this-this will help to unwind the twisting and torquing that stress adds to your body.

Other things to do to avoid headaches:

Avoid artificial sweeteners (like NutraSweet) certain studies have shown that aspartame is an irritant to the nervous system
Get a chiropractic checkup-misaligned vertebrae are a leading cause of headaches

Gallbladder Flush- avoid gallbladder surgery by doing this gallbladder cleanse

Items Needed:

raw, unfiltered apple juice

epsom salts

grapefruit juice

olive oil

Plan:

From monday through Saturday noon drink pure, unfiltered apple juice. As much as you can consume, wih meals and between them.

On Saturday, have lunch as you normally would.

Three hours after lunch, dissolve 2 tablespoons of Epsom salts in one ounce of hot water. Follow this with a chaser of grapefruit juice to mask the taste.

For dinner, have half a grapefruit only.

At bedtime, take 1 cup of unrefined olive oil, drink with a straw, followed by a small amount of grapefruit juice.

Immediately go to bed.

Lie on your right side, bend your right knee to your chest and hold for approximately 30 minutes. You can then lower your knee and proceed to sleep.

If you feel a bit nauseous when you wake up, rest a bit until you feel better.

When you get up, take 2 tablespoons of Epsom salts in an ounce of hot water, followed by grapefruit juice. This is done an hour before breakfast.

Your stools may contain small green materials floating around. Dark green are older deposits and the light ones are newer deposits.

If you pass many deposits, repeat in 2 weeks.

A moderate amount- repeat in 60 days

Toxicity Headaches

One cause of headaches that is not widely known are toxicity headaches. Toxicity headaches can result from environmental exposure, diet or accumulation of toxins in the body over a long period of time.

How do you know if your headaches are due to toxicity?

If you have or are prone to the following:

Skin problems

Bad breath or strong body odor

Allergies

Arthritis

What can you do to get rid of accumulated toxins in the body?

Fasting

Colonics

Herbal Cleanse program

Of all these methods, the first method I would try would be the herbal cleanse program first.

The reason is that fasting requires a great deal of time and effort , and a person that is employed full-time would have difficulty completing an intense fasting regimen.

One of the herbal cleanses that I recommend to my patients is a mild cleanse that lasts for 14 days. It’s not a fast and the person takes the supplements according to the schedule provided. Usually on the third or fourth day they may experience mild discomfort, but symptoms are usually kept to a minimum.

Sometimes when an herbal cleanse is too strong, too many toxins at one time leave the tissues and enter the bloodstream. This can make you feel sick and stop the cleanse. It’s a good idea to consult with your doctor or natural health practicioner before you start a plan.

For the cleanse that I usually recommend to my patients

How your feet may be contributing to your pain

Usually when I am working on a patient, and find excess tension in the low back I will check their feet-when the bones of the feet become "stuck" they can't act as a shock absorber for the impact caused by walking or running.

A healthy foot opens up when striking the ground-this absorbs impact. When the foot is rigid, the impact force gets transferred to the rest of the body.

How can you check for foot problems yourself?

Check the inside of your knees(about four fingers away from the kneecap-towards the inside of your leg), if there is an unusually tender area this could indicate a possible problem.

Have someone check the level of your hips-Have someone put their hands on your hips from behind. Their thumbs should look around for two "bumps" one on each side. Have them place their thumbs there and look at the level of the thumbs. If one is higher than the other,it means the hips are not level and a possible foot problem (or spinal)

Check your feet by twirling them around-if one side is not as free as the other, it could be that the foot bones are locked up.

With your thumbs, check for unusually tender points on your foot along the arches.(dig deep!)

Any of these signs could indicate that the biomechanics of the
foot are not working properly.

You should have a chiropractor or other professional that is trained in manipulation of the extremities check to see if an adjustment would help to restore proper movement and function to your feet.

How you can help your Sciatica

If you suffer from sciatic pain, or pain that radiates down from the buttocks down the back of the leg, the technique that follows may be of some help to you.This can be performed lying down on a firm surface or standing.

Bring your foot out-away from the rest of your body and turn the toes pointing out away from the body. If this maneuver makes the pain better, then your sciatic nerve is being squeezed as it passes through the piriformis muscle.

By performing this maneuver, you are forcing the piriformis muscle to relax somewhat,easing pressure on the sciatic nerve.

Of course, you should probably consult a chiropractor anyway regarding this problem. This maneuver is a temporary solution to a problem that usually only gets worse with time.

Whats the best way to sleep?

My patients usually ask me -“What is the best way to sleep?” to which I always answer: “Well, what position do you sleep in?” The reason for this reply is that just be modifying a couple of things here and there, you can get a restful and comfortable night’s rest no matter what position you actually sleep in.

Back Sleepers

Yes, this is actually the preferred position to sleep because it places the least amount of stress to your spine-IF you:

Place a cervical roll or rolled-up towel under your neck. Make sure that your head is in a neutral position (that you
are neither looking up or down). If you find that you cannot be “in neutral” then you need a smaller roll.

Place a pillow under your knees-This takes stress off
of your lower back. You could buy a special pillow for this, but a
regular pillow works just fine.

Side Sleepers
-If you sleep on your side, then follow these tips to minimize the
amount of stress to your spine.

Use a cervical pillow-Ideally, the pillow should take into account how wide your shoulders are-the wider your shoulders, the taller the pillow should be. This is because you want to keep your neck in a neutral position.Place a pillow between your knees. Not only will this feel more comfortable, if you have hip joint pain-this definitely helps.Try not to sleep on your side with your arm up over your head-this causes stress on the nerves that come out of the neck and into the arms and cause tingling or numbness down the arms.

Sleep on your Belly-
This position places the most stress on your neck.
In this position you have your head turned to one side or the other for hours at a time. This is quite stressful to your neck muscles and joints.

Your body will try to shift your position to compensate. This is why people who toss and turn the most are belly sleepers.

To sleep more comfortably(belly sleepers):

Place a pillow under your waist, and do not use a pillow for your head.

Remember that there are other variables that will affect the quality of your sleep, like the condition and firmness of your mattress. If your mattress is too old it will sag and not provide enough support.

Avoid super-soft mattresses-they may feel comfortable at the
beginning, but in the mornings, the lack of support will make you feel sore. Your mattress should be firm, but not hard to provide the adequate support.

As with anything, if any of these recommendations cause you increased pain, consult your chiropractor-there may be other factors present that should be checked by a professional.

Sweet Dreams!

Inflammatory Arthritis: Alternative Treatments

by Dr. Dan DeReuter, D.C.

There are two main types of arthritis: inflammatory arthritis and osteoarthritis. Inflammatory arthritis can be treated naturally without drugs. Inflammatory arthritis' symptoms (such as Rheumatoid Arthritis) are exactly what they sound like: inflammation, redness and swelling in the joints. Sometimes there will even be a temperature change in the area affected. Also, in the hand, you may notice that some fingers may look like they are turning away from the thumb (ulnar deviation).

This type of arthritis is primarily an auto-immune response. This means that the body believes it is under attack by an invader, such as an infection of some kind. However,this is not the case and the body ends up "attacking" the toxins that have built up in the joint capsules. Alternative treatment for this type of arthritis is fairly simple. Since the problem is caused by toxins in the joints, then the solution is to remove these toxins.

There are actually several ways to detoxify the body. One of these is fasting. Using juice fasts,fruit fasts or other types of fasts can be very effective. However, it takes a very disciplined individual to actually finish one of these programs. There are several good books to help you if you planon doing a fast, one of my personal favorites is "Dr. Jensen's Guide to Better Bowel Care"", by Bernard Jensen.

Another way to detox is cleansing the colon with a colonic irrigation or similar procedure. This procedure should be done by a professional since there are some minimum hygiene standards that should be followed. In this procedure, a tube is inserted into the rectum and filtered water is constantly irrigated into the colon-and fecal matter and other wastes flowing out at the same time. People that have this performed often report they see waste products from foods they have not eaten in years.

A third way to cleanse is by supplementing your diet with large quantities of fiber and herbal supplements. This method is probably best for most Americans. Not because it is more effective than the other two, but because of it's ease of execution.

One good way to see if this type of treatment will help is to buy an inexpensive psyllium supplement and take it three times per day for two days. If you do notice an improvement in your symptoms,then go ahead and purchase a complete cleanse program of some kind.

If you are performing a cleanse you should modify your diet in several ways: increase the consumption of leafy green vegetables, decrease the consumption of dairy, red meat and other mucus-producing foods. And probably the most important-increase your intake of clean filtered water to at least a gallon per day.

One note of caution: when doing any type of cleanse, you may experience a healing crisis. On the third or fourth day or a cleanse regimen, you may experience symptoms such as sore throat, headache, lightheadedness, bad breath or pimples. Don't panic! this is a normal response and indicates that the cleanse is working and the toxins are beginning to leave your body. Depending on your toxicity level, you may experience some relief by simply having a bowel movement.

If the healing crisis becomes too uncomfortable, then be sure to discontinue the program and consult a health care professional. The goal is to find the type of treatment that is correct for you and see it until the end. You will find that these treatments are more successful in helping arthritis than the traditional medical solution of pain killers and drugs.


Clean Start Cleanse That I usually recommend to patients


© 2000 Daniel DeReuter, D.C.