Yoga is My Health Insurance—Not!

by Nina

Apples by Paul Cezanne
(also not health insurance)

Okay, I admit it: The fight over health care is making me discouraged and depressed—again. So I decided to revise and rerun a post I wrote several years ago about this motto I had seen circulating in the yoga community:

Yoga is My Health Insurance

I believe that promoting this idea—that you don’t need health insurance if you practice yoga—that yoga is a replacement for western medicine—is both irresponsible and delusional.

On the staff of Yoga for Healthy Aging, we have a medical doctor, two medical researchers, and a physical therapist. And every one of these people not only has their own health insurance, but all would assure you that yoga cannot solve all your health problems. And thinking that it can is both foolish and dangerous.

Because modern yoga has been popular in the US for decades now, we now have a large number of people—particularly yoga teachers—who have been practicing yoga for 30, 40, or even more years. And I’ve been watching them struggling with some of the same major health concerns we all must face, from cancer and Parkinson’s disease to serious and lasting injuries due to car accidents and arthritis that necessitates joint replacements. (I’m thinking of people I know here—it’s likely you know other yoga teachers with other serious conditions.) Of course, yoga can help someone with serious illnesses or injuries, providing improved quality of life and possibly ameliorating certain troublesome symptoms, but it cannot prevent or cure those diseases. Would we really want any of these people to go without the help—sometimes lifesaving help—that could be provided by western medicine?

Obviously, we wouldn’t have started this blog if we didn’t all believe that yoga was a powerful tool for fostering healthy aging. And we continue to believe that is true. But we don’t for a second believe that yoga is our health insurance, or that it should be yours.

This rant was approved by Dr. Baxter Bell and Dr. Brad Gibson.

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The Health Benefits And Risks That May Arise From Epidural Steroid Injection Houston

By Ruth Green

The body is faced with various complications which one has to remedy or else would lead to death. One of the most dangerous complications is the inflammation of the nerve roots. This causes a lot of pain and makes one very weak. The remedy can be through surgery or the use of non surgical methods depending on the extent of damage. The most popular method is the use of Epidural steroid injection Houston. For every method, there are risks attached to them and negative effects. This article does just that in highlighting the negative effects and risks of this type of remedy:

If the medical practitioner administering the injections does not sterilize the needle and syringe, it can cause an infection. These infections can be fatal, and you should always ensure the right sterilization is done. Most of the modern medical facilities have embraced the use of technology in sterilizing needles. Always go to an equipped medical facility and avoid the injections if you have diabetes because you are at a high chance of contracting the infection.

When undertaking the procedure, complications such as bleeding may occur which may lead to disorders that are involved with bleeding. If not well managed, one may bleed out and die. Chances of such events taking place are small yet very lethal if they happen. The shot is meant to have the patient bleed so as to stimulate the body.

It is important to get a doctor who is very experienced in undertaking this kind of procedures as the nerves are very sensitive. If not well managed or where there is negligence or recklessness, the damage could be very intensive leading to permanent or temporal situations. The injections could cause trauma and damage the entire system.

People have different reaction to different types of medication. The severity of the reaction will also vary as some people may experience mild while others experience severe reactions. You should confirm with the physicist before undergoing the treatment to establish the type of reaction that you may undergo.

The common side effects caused by epidural injections are flushing of the skin, sleep loss, itchiness, and fever. If the side effects are ignored, they can lead to more serious problems, and you should report to your doctor immediately you experience any of them. The side effects will occur depending on your body, and you may fail to experience any of them.

The procedure has numerous risks and negative effects and is not necessary a very attractive reason to go through with it. The pain however may be too complex to handle and therefore professionals may advise you to go through with it. If however it is even remotely possible to go on without having to take the procedure than it is better and less stressful or invasive. It all is dependent on the results after a medical examination.

Surgical procedures that reduce pain caused by inflammation can be quite expensive. Epidural injections has registered excellent results in patients especially if the doctor is well qualified. With the right tests by a qualified medic, the treatment can be very helpful. This article has the best information that will give you insights on the possible side effects and benefits of epidural injections.

About the Author:

Find details about the benefits of receiving an epidural steroid injection Houston doctors offer and more info about an experienced physician at http://myspinetherapy.com/dt_portfolios/epidural-injections today.

Cortisol and Good Health

by Baxter

Fallen Tree by Brad Gibson

We have mentioned cortisol, one of the body’s important hormones, a few times in the recent past, but always with the slant of it somehow being a problem child, a bad actor, a rotten apple, as it were. But cortisol, when it is working in harmony with a well-balanced body and mind, is part of a elegant system that tries to help us respond in the best way possible to short term stressful situations that are bound to arise in our daily lives. So on a daily basis, during the early morning hours - around 4-5 am, the body releases a bit of cortisol to get your inner furnace ready for the first foot hitting the floor in the morning. It releases a bit of sugar into the blood stream, sends a bit more blood to the brain and heart, and really gets us ready for action, however mellow or intense our morning will be. Then, if the day is relatively uneventful, the level of cortisol gradually diminishes to its lowest levels around 10pm.

When released in response to unexpected stressful events, it has many more helpful roles to play. It has a strong anti-inflammatory effect, which is helpful with acute injury, so it can act like a fire truck when the body’s immune response to infection is too strong by decreasing the life span and production of one of our white blood cells known as lymphocytes. Basically, it tries to keep a balanced approach to infections.

Cortisol has an effect on the cardio-vascular (CV) system by controlling the smooth muscles in the walls of our arteries. In normal circumstances, this allows cortisol to help boost our blood pressure in the short run when we need extra work from the CV system. It has effects on the central nervous system (CNS), too, influencing behavior, mood, excitability, and the electrical activity of neurons. When we put all that together, cortisol is designed to respond to stress by providing fuel in the form of glucose, mobilizing fat and proteins for back-up fuel supply, modifying the immune response, heartbeat, blood pressure, brain alertness and the response of the nervous system to get us through the rough spots.

The cool thing about cortisol is that is has evolved to enhance the body’s response to stress while also protecting from excessive response to stress. The key thing about the place that produces cortisol, the adrenal glands, is that they need time to recover after stressful events have passed. And herein lies the rub!  If we give the body some time to recover between stressful events, the adrenal glands can do their job well, cortisol levels are adequate to the demands of the body, and you stay healthy and ready for the next stressful event.

But if you are either under constant stress, or your mind is prone to brooding about the past or anxious musings about the future or even negative assessments about the present moment, your adrenals interpret this as an actual stressful event occurring right now, and cortisol gets released into your system. So cortisol levels remain high in the blood stream for greater periods of time, which can result in swelling of the gland itself, and an increased chance of the following negative effects: loss of immunity secondary to shrinkage of lymph glands, increased risk of stomach ulcers, increased risk of hypertension, heart disease and other vascular disorders, excess sugar in the blood stream and more chance of developing diabetes. Not a good outlook! 

And as I mentioned last week, chronic stress depletes your supply of cortisol and can steal the building blocks of your sex hormones (see Yoga and Male Menopause), thus negatively impacting your sexual function and your reproductive capacity. What’s a yogi to do? 

Supta Baddha Konasana (Reclined Cobbler's Pose)

The good news is that your regular yoga practice, if it includes those much needed restorative poses (see Restorative Yoga), yoga nidra (see Yoga Nidra and Deep Relaxation), long guided meditations and generous Savasana (see Savasana Variations), should be the perfect balancing act for keeping the adrenals healthy and the cortisol cycle in synch with your changing needs. One fact that might influence your asana and even your exercise regimen is that aerobic or effort-full exercise (and some forms of yoga definitely fit the bill) can cause a release of cortisol to deal with the short term “stress” of the increased physical effort. If you work out or do asana in the morning, when there is still a bit of cortisol around from the 4 am release, the effects of the brief elevation are minimal. However, a late day work out could be theoretically more problematic, with a negative effect on sleep patterns as one possible side effect. So I would recommend active workouts and asana for the morning, and restorative practices in the evening if you want or need to do something later in the day.

So remember, cortisol is a good guy just trying to do its job. It’s the stress and our reactions to it that are really the culprits. Fortunately, we have the technology to neutralize this threat to our healthy aging! 

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Learn How A Michigan Holistic Doctor Offers Alternative Health Options For Wellness

By Earnestine Clinger

There are folks that still see alternative medicine as a scam or hoax and do not take it seriously. However, more people are changing their opinion once they understand the benefits of natural health options for wellness. Folks who seek the help of a Michigan holistic doctor are introduced to non invasive alternatives to traditional medicine.

A lot of folks see an alternative practitioner as a compliment to conventional medical care. There are other people who will only see an alternative medicine practitioner. One reason people see these practitioners is that this field views the person as a whole, focuses on the root of the illness, and uses therapies that are non invasive and natural.

With this more natural approach to healing, practitioners focus on finding the source of the symptoms. Traditional medicine typically addresses the symptoms and not necessarily the cause. Alternative care does not prescribe medications or surgical procedures. The line of attack is typically through nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle changes.

The holistic practitioner has graduated from a school of medicine. The way these doctors use what they learn sets them apart from traditional physicians. Alternative physicians have studied homeopathic methods as well as other techniques in medicine. An alternative practitioner will focus on how the various health care methods benefit the patient.

Homeopathic practitioners are classified by the methods they employ. There are some doctors whose focus is on the use of herbal therapy. Other practitioners may use therapies that involve energy waves to encourage the ability of the body to self heal. A doctor who studies and uses plants to improve health and wellness practices herbal medicine.

These are medical professionals with the knowledge of natural healing methods. The focal point is on finding the cause of the problem and addressing it. Alternative medicine is ideal for those who are looking for a natural approach to wellness.

About the Author:

Find a review of the advantages of consulting a naturopathic medicine practitioner and more info about a well-respected Michigan holistic doctor at http://www.cutlerintegrativemedicine.com/ now.