Lesson learned. Hopefully for the last time.

I've been putting off writing this blog post for awhile now. When you teach other people to take care of their bodies, you are supposed to be taking care of your own as well. But, like everyone else, I am human and make mistakes. So I want to share a lesson with you today, a life lesson I thought I had learned before but recently learned again.

That lesson is:
Do not ignore pain.
Do something about it instead.
If you don't know what to do, seek help from others.

In early December I helped organize a fundraising event for my son's preschool. Being in the health and wellness business, I came up with the idea for a "Family Wellness Festival." It was a huge success with lots of exciting professionals in the community coming together to share their knowledge. One of these was a chiropractic office in Niagara Falls- the Advanced Chiropractic Clinic. They offered a free 5 minute consultation at the festival. I wandered by, and thought, hey, why not? My neck is ok most of the time these days but still hurts sometimes...

This started me down a long, dark rabbit hole. It turns out that the pain I've experienced on and off in my neck since my early 20's was a pinched nerve in my C2 vertebrae. I had less than 30 degrees of rotation in my neck to the right. I had a major loss of sensation on the right side of my body. My biggest shock was the x-ray that shows I have bone spurs developing. Bone spurs! I'm only 37. I'M ONLY 37. What if I had ignored this for another 10 years?

The chiropractor was amazed at my general fitness and mobility. Pilates has literally kept me moving and strong. I fixed myself as best as I could with exercise, and I got used to pain. That's the only explanation I have. After an intensive round of chiropractic treatments, I am now aware of being pain free. Each morning when I get up, I turn my head and cannot believe the lack of pain. At the time, it was just the way it was- I didn't identify it as pain most of the time. Now, I am feeling the benefits of a pain free life. I can snuggle with my husband on the sofa again! I couldn't do it for years because it hurt my neck after a few minutes. When I rode the bus to montreal last month, my neck didn't hurt after falling asleep sitting up. When I talk to someone sitting on my right side, I can turn and look at them without shifting my whole body. It's truly amazing.

I am finding now that my personal Pilates routine is more effective than ever before. I can feel muscles coming alive on the right side of my body. No matter how much I worked at it over the years, I couldn't align myself properly before to get them moving. If I'd had a teacher working with me these last three years I'm sure they could have helped me find that alignment. But on my own? No way. 

So if you are out there reading this, and have pain that you've been ignoring for a long time, please take a page from my life lessons book. I'll repeat it here, for me and for you:
Do not ignore pain.
Do something about it instead.
If you don't know what to do, seek help from others.

Who you seek help from is your personal choice. Osteopaths, Chiropractors, Kinesiologists, Massage Therapists, Physiotherapists. Your GP. Holistic Health Practitioners. There are a lot of amazing and talented people out there that can help. Don't wait around, just do it. You won't regret it.

And if you come out the other side of your pain, and want a safe and effective exercise routine to stay fit and healthy, I would be happy to help you to stay that way.

​Take care of yourself.

​I will too.

<3

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