This blog post was written by Justin Scherff, a Core Physical Therapy PT who specializes in TMJ pain and disorders.
The human being is a miraculous creation, filled with potential, passion, purpose. We all started as one tiny little cell on this earth, so small that it would have taken 10 of you, side-by-side, to fit on the tip of a fine-tip pen (per google). And now from that one cell, you have grown constantly and consistently, growing new and getting rid of the old, to get where you are at this moment in time. Amazing.
As you think about you and your body, there is NO SEPARATION between any part of the body. There is no starting or ending point to you. You are linked perfectly together and function as one. Like an orchestra, all parts playing their individual part, but at the same tempo and rhythm, creating harmonies that are astounding.
When this balance or harmony starts to move out of balance or “ease” that’s when “dis-ease” starts to set in. Often times this happens underneath the surface, until it grows to the point of needing your conscious attention. I believe your body is always wanting to get back into “ease”, but if the CORE OF THE PROBLEM doesn’t get addressed… it never has the ability to fully restore.
That’s why I love being an owner at Core Physical Therapy, because “we don’t just treat your pain, we get to the CORE OF THE PROBLEM.” From a physical level here’s a great blog post to see how connected you are structurally. Watch out, nerd alert on that page.
As my journey as a physical therapist has evolved and grown, I’ve learned a lot of about what factors into someone’s healing journey. Over the course of the past 10+ years, I’ve come to learn so much more about all aspects of health. Let’s dig in.
Mind
The thoughts that we think about ourselves and others; how we perceive the world we live; REALLY MATTERS. I like to think that we have the ability to choose what we think about. Why not choose the best? High quality thinking leads to high quality output of those thoughts. Seems like a no-brainer to me.
Emotions
All of the feelings and emotions that we experience on a daily occurrence can impact your health. If you share them, often there is minimal impact because it gets released. But if you store them, stuff them and never express them, that’s when a negative impact can happen on the body.
Nutrition
What you put into your body DOES matter. High quality food intake leads to high quality materials for the body to use for repairing/restoration. Low quality foods intake leads to low quality materials for the body to use for repairing/restoration. What kind of body do you want to build?
Hydration
Higher quality fluids that provide high quality lubrication for ALL life-giving processes, and lower quality fluids uses low-quality lubrication for ALL processes in the body. Dehydration is a sneaky way for the disease process to start, and did you know that too much screens/electricity can cause dehydration and other symptoms?
Sleep
Rest is HUGE for restoring the body. If you are sleeping well, getting deep sleep, your body is allowed to kick into its automatic programing for restoration. I like to think of it like a self-cleaning oven. Low sleep or no sleep, or even not living from a place of rest in your work day, causes all the cooked-over things to get sticky, burnt, and then start to smoke if you keep using your oven.
As you can see, there’s a general trend. The higher quality that you think and feel about yourself and the world, the higher quality things you put into your body, the higher quality output you can get. I hate to admit, that there’s no exercise or stretch that can improve nutrition, hydration, poor thinking/feeling and poor sleep, but I can almost guarantee that improving these factors will help ALL muscle function and performance… which is why you’re likely in my office.
Time to get a little personal…
I used to think…”Ah I’m heathy, I’m not overweight, I move around some, I’m young, I can get away with it, I’m not as bad/out of shape as ____________.” But I found myself saying that more often than not, repeatedly choosing the same habits each and every day, and eventually I started to have some of my own health issues. It’s required a deep and honest look at all of the aspects I mentioned above, and truth be told I wasn’t the poster boy for health like I thought I was.
As I started making true changes in all aspects that I mentioned above, low and behold, my body started responding. I changed my thinking about myself and others, started taking time to handle some mental baggage that was over-due to let-go of, started eating better food and supplementation, improved my hydration strategies, and wouldn’t you know it…I’m feeling better and moving better than I did when I was in high school.
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
This phrase, from Benjamin Franklin, states that doing the little things is better than trying to fix a problem when it shows up. In a field where people show up with a lot of problems that they need help with, and we are here for you, often times its little things that add up over time. I was a bit of a hypocrite, but now I’m a full-on believer.
I hope that my story can inspire you in the change you’re looking for. I learned that each aspect DOES matter, and each day DOES matter because what we do today can impact tomorrow. I believe that each of you is worth the little investments each day to create a brighter tomorrow, because you’re worth it.
And if not you…….Then who? Come visit us today.