Cold Hands - Warm Heart

COLD HANDS-WARM HEART--THORACIC OUTLET SYNDROME

Do friends comment to you that your hands are always cold? Do you get that 'pins and needles' feeling in your arms or hands? These are just two of the common symptoms of Thoracic Outlet Syndrome.
Some people with Thoracic Outlet Syndrome complain that their arms go to sleep when held in the same position for concentrated periods of time, particularly when driving. Other sufferers report that their hands are ìasleep when they wake up in the morning and need to be shaken to get the blood circulating.
All these symptoms are common with Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. These symptoms are typically associated with people who are angry or upset and hold tension in their pectoralis major and minor muscles, the chest muscles. We alo observe that their shoulders tend to roll inward.
"My shoulders always feel tight" is a common complaint too. This is caused by upper back tension and is secondary to the chest tension.
Many patients we see have learned to live with this chronic pain because they don't realize treatment is available. Unfortunately doctors tell patients to get some exercise to relieve the pain but when they exercise their pectoralis muscles, the situation is aggravated.
Patients who exercise and have rounded shoulders are told to work on their upper back muscles to compensate for the roll. This is just the opposite of what they should be doing. They need to relax their chest muscles, not tighten more muscles.
There is treatment available. It involves Pressure Plus Motion exercises. The goal is to relax the pectoralis major and pectoralis minor muscles. Once they are relaxed, the symptoms, cold extremities, arms and hands going to sleep, should disappear.
How do you get treatment? My first suggestion, for mild cases, is to refer to pages 11 and 12 in my book, How to Keep Chiropractors off Your Back. Here you will find Pressure Plus Motion exercises designed specifically to alleviate Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. If after doing these exercises the numbness and 'pins and needles' feeling in your arms and hands persists, please call the office for an appointment.
One final note. Your body is always 'talking' to you. If you don't listen, it will talk louder.

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DR. NUNEZ AVAILABLE AS SPEAKER

If you belong to a service club, church or organization that needs dynamic speaker for an event or seminar, Dr. Nunez is available to speak about thetopics of health and how to keep chiropractor off your back. Please call the office at 818-247-4411.

Infertility

PREGNANCY AND CHIROPRACTIC??

She had been trying to get pregnant for two years with no luck. Frustrated, she decided, with her ob/gyn to go on the popular fertility drug Clomid. Clomid works by stimulating the creation of more eggs by the ovaries. After six months on the drug she was still not pregnant.
Finally, in June of 1997 she visited my office. She was desperate. At age thirty-eight she wanted to be a mother. Her husband, a long time patient, suggested to her that our methods might help.
I talked to both of them. She had taken the HSG test, which indicated there was no blockage of the fallopian tubes. Other tests indicated the husband's sperm count was in the normal range.
During my initial evaluation she complained of chronic lower back pain. I decided this was where we would start.
I worked on the hip flexor muscle (psoas) which was very tight. After two sessions in June she was feeling better and remarked that after her treatments she was feeling very calm and relaxed.
On July 22nd she visited her medical doctor for the purpose of going back on Clomid, which she had not taken for four months. When he examined her he determined that Clomid would not be necessary. His exam showed she was pregnant!
This was the result of a team approach by her medical doctor and this office. Her chronic back pain and contracted psoas muscle had been pressuring the nerves that connect to the uterus and ovaries. Once our gentle chiropractic treatment and Pressure Plus Motion technique relaxed the muscle, normalcy was restored to the pelvic area.
In April of 1998 her husband called me here at the office to let me know that his wife had just delivered a beautiful, healthy baby girl.
On the same day that my first patient discovered she was pregnant in July of 1997 a second woman, Nancy, forty-one years of age, came to me with a similar problem. She had been married for eleven years.
Nancy and her husband, Paul, had undergone extensive fertility testing which indicated she had one blocked fallopian tube. She was unable to become pregnant. She did, however, report lower back pain when she exercised and tender stomach muscles on the left side of her body. She had been trying to get pregnant and had been using Clomid for one year when she came to see me.
Over the next two months we treated her chronic pain. After five visits she felt much better and the pain disappeared.
On October tenth she called me to report that she was pregnant. On June nineteenth of this year she delievered Sara Micheele, a beautiful, healthy baby girl.
While there is no question that all fertility problems can't be solved by chiropractic, it is also clear that, in many women, there is a relationship between chronic lower back pain and stomach pain and infertility. We always like to work in conjunction with the patient's medical doctors. We believe the team approach has the highest chance of success.
I encourage any woman who is having problems with becoming pregnant and exhibits these symptoms to call for an appointment. We offer a low cost, low risk, painless alternative to help couples get pregnant.

Incontinence

THE PROBLEM NOBODY WANTS TO TALK ABOUT

You get up to go to the bathroom three, four, sometimes even five times a night. You suffer from frequent urination. And this is, many times, just the tip of the iceberg.
Men and women both suffer. Sometimes the causes are major. But many times they can be solved by a few visits to your chiropractor.
For men the problem of frequent urination is usually accompanied by the inability to start the urine stream and by low flow once the stream is initiated.
In women frequent urination is accompanied by the incomplete emptying of the bladder. However, the symptom that can cause the most embarrassment is exertion incontinence.
Exertion incontinence, which is defined as uncontrolled urination when you exert yourself, can be triggered by simple physical activity; it can even be caused by sneezing.
In men the source of urination related problems can be traced to the prostate gland. Because the prostate is located in the lower abdomen, excessive tension in the lower abdomen or the lower back and pelvis area can constrict the prostate.
While I recommend that men with severe problems be checked out by a urologist, many cases can be treated by chiropractic manipulation. At no time is it necessary for me to perform any invasive procedures, such as a rectal examination. Again, we are treating muscle tension through Pressure Plus Motion and chiropractic adjustments.
In the case of a male patient I saw recently, adjustments were able to solve his problem. His complaint was low flow, fifty to sixty percent of normal. His urologist had prescribed medications. His flow improved slightly, but remained well below normal. He was still getting up at least three times a night to urinate.

"Exertion incontinence can be triggered by simple physical activity; it can even be caused by sneezing."

He wanted to get off the medications because he didn't like the side effects. Upon examination I discovered severe tightness in his lower abdomen. After a series of adjustments his flow increased to ninety percent. Now he doesnít have to get up once a night to go to the bathroom. He was also able to stop taking the medications. This after only three visits to our office.
Recently we treated a female patient who complained because she had to go to the bathroom every hour all night long. As a child she suffered from rheumatic fever but did not want to use a bedpan. We adjusted her bladder above the pubic bone and did low back adjustments. After four visits she now gets up just once a night. Women with frequent urination problems should first consult their gynecologist to rule out any serious problems before scheduling an appointment with us.

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NOTE TO THE WEEKEND WARRIOR

It happens every Spring. When the first robin of the season arrives our office fills up with weekend warriors. After being held hostage all Winter, they couldnít wait to rush outside and engage in strenuous activity.
From working in the yard to playing three sets of tennis, they overdue it. The result is strained backs and sore muscles. Here are a few simple steps you can take to avoid the aches and pains of overdoing it.
First, stretch before any strenuous activity. This gets your muscles limber and reduces the chance of getting pulls and strains.
Next, start small. Donít overdue it. Donít try and repair winterís damage to your yard in one day. Play a few games of tennis. Work your way back up to multiple sets over a period of weeks.
After you complete your activity, apply our Pressure Plus Motion massage techniques to sore muscle areas. This will greatly enhance recovery. If you havenít picked up your free copy of How to Keep Chiropractors off Your Back, stop by the office.
Finally, ice any sore areas for fifteen minutes. Again, ice combined with Pressure Plus Motion massage can eliminate your need to visit our office.However, if the pain persists, call us at once.

PMS

A SIMPLE CURE FOR WOMEN SUFFERING FROM AMENORRHEA AND PAINFUL MENSTRUAL CYCLES...

It is fairly common for women who have been taking birth control pills to face certain difficulties when they decide to go off the pill. One of the problems is restarting the menstrual cycle. The medical term for this phenomena is Amenorrhea.
This can be very upsetting. But I have found my techniques can cure this problem, so there is no need for patients to suffer.
Let me give you a case history. My patient Mary (not her real name) is a 35-year-old female who had been using birth control pills for many years. She and her husband decided they wanted to start a family. Mary discontinued her birth control pills but her period did not return.
After consulting with her regular medical doctor Mary went on the drug Provera. Her Amenorrhea condition persisted. Mary heard from another patient that I had a method for treating Amenorrhea and came to see me for an evaluation. She was desperate.
Upon examination, I found her psoas muscle was extremely tight. I knew that a crucial nerve to the uterus passes through the psoas. As we have discussed here before, if the psoas muscle is pinched or spasmed, the result is reduced nerve energy.
This can cause painful menstrual cycles, prolonged menstrual bleeding and difficulty in getting pregnant. My experience has also taught me a tight psoas muscle can prevent menstruation in women who have been long time users of birth control pills. After I completed Mary’s examination, I explained too her that normally treatment would take four to six visits. She agreed to my treatment plan and we began.
After Mary’s second treatment her period began. She was very excited because she and her husband so much wanted to have a baby and she had about given up hope. She came in for two additional visits and has had a regular menstrual cycle since that time.
My treatment for Amenorrhea consisted of the following:

• Relaxation to the psoas muscle through my exclusive Pressure Plus Motion Massage technique.
• Adjustment to the spine.
• Additional massage to the spine which helps relieve pressure on the nerves.
• Home exercise program to keep the psoas from retightening.

If you suffer from Amenorrhea or have excessive menstrual bleeding or prolonged menstrual bleeding during your period, please call and schedule an appointment. Inmost cases we can help get you feeling better in very few visits.

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CARPAL TUNNEL...WE CAN CURE IT

Over 20 percent of Worker’s comp claims in this country are for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Most people think Carpal Tunnel is caused by problems in the wrist, This is not true.
Carpal Tunnel is caused by tension in the forearms. We have found that if a patient does specific Pressure Plus Motion exercises designed to relieve this forearm tension, the pain disappears.
If you or somebody you know suffers from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, please call the office for an appointment. Remember, your pain can be cured. Your suffering is optional.

Chronic Pain Pt 2

CHILD ABUSE AND CHRONIC PAIN IN ADULTS

(part 2 of a two-part series)

Last issue we discussed my initial research into the link between childhood trauma and chronic pain. This issue I would like to tell you about a 39 year old woman I will refer to as Y.A.
She came to my office complaining of chronic sharp shoulder, neck, upper back and jaw pain. Observation clearly showed Y.A. also suffered from a condition known as swayback. As I do with every patient, I interviewed Y.A. in depth about her background.
She revealed that she had been the victim of sexual abuse from the age of 5 to the age of 16. Y.A. also reported she had fallen down a flight of stairs at the age of 10.
As with many victims of child abuse Y.A. later married a man who abused her. He beat her regularly. She told me her husband even kicked her in the face on one occasion.
Fortunately for Y.A. she was able to leave her husband and escape a very abusive and life threatening situation. But she carried with her the emotional and traumatic scars of an abusive childhood and a violent marriage.
It was time for me to go to work and see if we could help relieve Y.A.’s chronic pain. Because of her history she had difficulties with a number of simple activities. It was painful for her to get out of her car or get out of bed in the morning.
My examination showed that her hip-flexor muscle (the psoas), the muscle which attaches to the spine, then runs down the body behind the lower abdomen, then attaches to the hip, was terribly spasmed and extremely tender to the touch.
This observation of the hip-flexor muscle proved to be the breakthrough I was looking for. I theorized that Y.A.’s swayback was caused by this chronic tension on her hip-flexor muscle.
This was the key! It is common for pelvic and abdominal muscles to spasm during traumatic or extremely frightening events. But what appeared to have happened in Y.A.’s case was that her hip-flexor muscles had spasmed and then maintained that spasm chronically! This is what was causing her chronic pain.
What occurs clinically is that the hip-flexor muscle, which allows the hip to flex is the muscle that moves your leg forward when you walk. If a child is emotionally or physically traumatized between the ages of 5 and 12 this muscle can tighten and then stay chronically tight.
Because the spine is so flexible when a child is under 12 years of age, it will be pulled out of line by this tension. When this happens the result is swayback. This unnatural tension then begins to affect muscles in the surrounding areas, causing poor posture.
Armed with this information I went to work. I began to treat the hip-flexor muscles and the deep muscles in the lower abdomen area. The results were dramatic, Y.A. reported immediate relief from her chronic pain which had plagued her all her life.
Over the years Y.A. has visited the office periodically for check ups. I am happy to report that she has remained free of the chronic pain that plagued her for so many years.

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CHRONIC TENSION CHECKLIST

Here are ten common signs of chronic pain that may be related to childhood trauma. If you check one or more of the ten items listed below, and you suffer from chronic pain, you should schedule an appointment with Dr. Nunez.

• History of extremely frightening event between the ages of 5 and 12.
• Swayback.
• Protruding head: carrying the head in front of the shoulders creating the “humpback” look.
• Rounded shoulders.
• Parents made you “stand up straight“ all the time.
• Tenderness in the lower abdomen.
• Chronic constipation or diarrhea.
• History of child abuse.
• Parents divorced when you were between the ages of 5 and 10.
• Chronic indigestion.

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HOW DO I KNOW WHEN I NEED TO SEE A CHIROPRACTOR?

As a general rule, if you have a pain or a health problem that persists in spite of two or three days rest, you should come in for a consultation and examination.
If, however, you are in a car accident or have a slip and fall, you should come in immediately.
Remember, the sooner chiropractic care is started, the sooner you will be back on your feet again. When in doubt, call!

Chronic Pain

COULD YOUR CHRONIC PAIN BE CAUSED BY TRAUMATIC CHILDHOOD EVENTS?

(part 1 of a two-part series)

My research has shown that certain types of chronic pain in adults can be traced back to traumatic events in the patient’s childhood. It is my belief that these traumas cause certain muscles to tighten, and at times remain in this state of chronic tension causing other muscle and skeletal imbalances which result in chronic pain.
My first clue that traumatic emotional events in childhood can be the root cause of chronic pain in adults came when a 21-year-old client visited my office. She complained of a stabbing pain that started under her ribs and radiated to her midback region. She also reported burning pain under her ribs that was aggravated by eating and stress.
At the time of her visit to my office she was desperate. She had already seen two medical doctors. One suggested she had ulcers. The other thought it might be her gall bladder. However, all tests for these diagnoses were negative and her pain continued.
I asked the patient when her symptoms first appeared. She said she first experienced severe stomach pain at age 5 years. I discovered that this first experience of severe stomach pain occurred when her father was tragically killed in a car accident. She reported that her family acted strangely around her, not wanting to tell her what happened to her father.
When she figured out something bad had happened to him, she felt pain in her stomach.
Wilhelm Reich and Dr. Alexander Lowen, M.D., had developed a theory of muscle tension related to emotional disturbance. Lowen believed the physical body mirrors human character and dramatizes emotional disorders.
Dr. Joseph Janse, D.C. theorized in 1976 that spinal adjustments might cause relaxation responses in patients and release emotional disturbances.
My patient reported her stomach pain got worse over the years. I theorized that the traumatic loss of her father caused her stomach to go into spasm at the age of five.
The unexpressed rage she harbored towards her step-mother had maintained and aggravated this tension.
At some point this spasm had become self-sustaining and chronic. Based on this information I diagnosed Hiatal Hernia Syndrome. Using gentle chiropractic techniques I made adjustments on her stomach spasm.
After seven visits this patient was pain free. Subsequent follow-ups over the next six years revealed that while she occasionally gets some stomach pain she can now relax herself and the pain subsides immediately. (Next time our series continues with the story of Y.A., a victim of child abuse since the age of five.)

Chronic Ear Infections

KIDS HAVE CHRONIC EAR INFECTIONS?

Recently my three and a half year old son, Matthew, suffered a series of ear infections. My wife and I were concerned, as most first-time parents are, and followed the doctor’s instructions to the letter.

"As a doctor myself, I am a believer in antibiotics. But I also believe that if there is a way to solve the problem without them, it’s worth exploring."

When his ears cleared up, he had a few weeks of peace, and then the infection reappeared.
Not only was it frustrating to see our little boy sick, we were concerned about the antibiotics he was taking. As a doctor myself, I am a believer in antibiotics. But I also believe that if there is a way to solve the problem without them, it’s worth exploring.
My wife and I talked it over and we decided to try chiropractic the next time Matthew’s ears got infected. After my treatment his infection disappeared and we were able to take him off the medicine.
It is my belief now that as carefully as we all watch our children, they can injure themselves playing outdoors, throwing a tantrum, or roughhousing with their friends. Many times, these typical childhood traumas go unnoticed and lead to maladies like ear infections and nose bleeds.
If your child suffers from chronic ear infections, nosebleeds or chronic indigestion you might consider the 3d chiropractic technique as an alternative treatment.

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HOW DO I KNOW WHEN I NEED TO SEE A CHIROPRACTOR?

As a general rule, if you have a pain or a health problem that persists in spite of two or three days rest, you should come in for a consultation and examination.
If, however, you are in a car accident or have a slip and fall, you should come in immediately.
Remember, the sooner chiropractic care is started, the sooner you will be back on your feet again. When in doubt, call!

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DID YOU KNOW THESE CONDITIONS ARE TREATABLE WITH CHIROPRACTIC?

Many patients don't realize how many conditions Dr. Nuñez has successfully treated. Look over the list below. You might be surprised.

• Arms & Hands Falling Asleep
• Bursitis
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
• Children's Asthma
• Constipation
• Disc Bulges
• Hiatal Hernia
• Low Energy
• Migraine
• Ruptured Disc
• Sciatia
• Slipped Disc

If you have any of these conditions, give the doctor a call and set up an appointment. Don't need to suffer.
Remember, the sooner chiropractic care is started, the sooner you will be back on your feet again. When in doubt, call!

New News!

We are happy to announce the addition of our new blog/newsletter to the website! This section will be updated with news, Chiropractic techniques, and other important information, so be sure to check back frequently.

We are making an effort to embrace the technology that surrounds us, and we hope you will find it useful!