Farnsworth Orthopedic Physical Therapy

Orthopedic Physical Therapy

sleep

It’s Hip to Get a Good Night’s Sleep

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When you have chronic pain, you tend to have a hard time getting a good night’s sleep. Pain and discomfort can distract you from falling asleep or keep you from falling into a deep sleep, when every little movement causes a flare-up with your pain. If you struggle with hip pain, then you may have difficulty finding a comfortable position to rest in because of the pressure and strain on your hip joints. When you are unable to sleep well, it can also make it difficult to heal after an injury or condition that is hurting you.

What Causes It?

Sciatica

The sciatic nerve is located at the base of your spine and travels throughout your hips, buttocks, and legs. When the sciatic nerve is aggravated or injured, it can cause a specific type of discomfort and pain in your lower back and lower half of your body known as sciatica. Some causes of sciatica are caused by a herniated disc in your lower back or spinal stenosis.  You may notice that certain movements or positions can make the pain worse. Common symptoms of sciatica pain include tingling, weakness, and numbness, most commonly in just one of your legs.

Tendonitis

This refers to inflammation that affects tendons that connect muscle and bone. If you develop inflammation of a tendon in your hip, you might experience pain and discomfort with even the smallest of movements. Irritation and inflammation of tendons can lead to muscle tightness, tenderness, pain, and weakness in the area. Tendinitis is common in people who do sports with repetitive hip and leg movements, like running, swimming, and cycling.

Hip Bursitis

All of your joints have fluid-filled sacs that offer support to your joints. These fluid-filled sacs are known as bursae and if one of these becomes inflamed in your hip joint, then you might be diagnosed with hip bursitis. This condition is most often caused by repetitive movements that put strain and stress on the joints, leading to inflammation. If you have hip bursitis, your hip may feel achy and stiff, and you might feel pain with certain movements. Hip bursitis can also lead to sharp, shooting pains and swelling and redness in the area.

 

What to Do At Home

If you experience hip pain when sleeping, the first thing you might try to do is readjust your sleeping position.

Sleep on Your Side

One side may be more comfortable than the other, but side sleeping is a great position for relieving sciatica pain. You can even use pillows to help keep a natural separation between your knees and better support your lower back.

Try Sleeping on Your Back

Sleeping on your back might work best for you, but it may require a bit of trial and error. Try putting a pillow (or two) under your knees to relieve some pain. If that doesn’t work or you’re still uncomfortable, try a pillow or rolled-up towel under your lower back too.

Use Some Extra Pillows

Sometimes a pillow between your knees or under your back can make all the difference. You might want a body pillow or several extra pillows to help you get even more comfortable and maintain your pain-free position throughout the night.

You can also try taking a warm bath or icing the area before going to bed. This can help reduce inflammation in the area while also providing some pain relief. Also be sure to follow good sleep habits, like reducing screen time before bed, avoiding caffeine, and keeping your room at a good temperature. Additionally, you should ask your physical therapist about helpful stretches and exercises to try before bed that can help stretch out muscles that have gotten tight and stiff.

How can we help?

Our physical therapists can help provide you with tips and tricks to relieve hip pain while you sleep. This may include stretches and exercises to improve your strength and flexibility in that area. The supportive muscles, tendons, and other soft tissues that support your hip joint need to be strong and flexible in order to work properly and not cause pain. Your physical therapist can also teach you about foam rollers as well as stretches and exercises to do before and after workouts. Performing certain movements and stretches can also reduce pain if you sit or stand for long periods of time at your job.

If you are suffering from pain in your hips and it’s keeping you up at night, come in and see us at one of our offices.  We can get you back to sawing logs in peace.

 

Don’t Hurt Yourself Sleeping

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The Sad Truth

When you slide into bed at the end of a long day, you might not think much about your sleep position.  But the way you choose to lay down on your bed can have a major effect on how you feel.  Can you actually injure yourself sleeping? The sad truth is, yes.

Ever noticed how you feel achy and painful after a night sleeping on a mattress you thought was great? If so, you have become a victim of a sleep injury. Even on the best mattresses in the world, a bad sleep position can cause injury. And although a great mattress can help you sleep in a better position, it cannot guarantee a pain-free morning if you aren’t sleeping in a way that is best for your body.  You’ve probably heard of something called a “crick” in your neck or back. “Cricks” sound like a mild annoyance, but they can actually be pretty serious. If you aren’t careful, you can injure yourself and create more wear and tear on your body.

Possible Pains

Shoulder Pains – Do you put your arm underneath your head as a pillow when you sleep? This could actually wear down the cartilage of your joint, and can lock your shoulder muscles in place – making them very painful when you try to straighten your arm in the morning.

 

Back Pains – Sleeping incorrectly on your back can cause you to strain those muscles. You may have already worn a you-shaped groove into the mattress, and the depression in the mattress will pull on your back muscles. In certain cases this can actually cause your spine to slip out of alignment if you don’t change your mattress or your sleeping position.

Elbow Injuries – Does your arm hang over the edge of your bed as you sleep? When you sleep on your back, do you extend your arms straight out to the side? If so, you may be placing extra strain on your elbows. You may actually cause the same kind of injury you can get by working out incorrectly, as placing all of the weights on your elbow joint can hyperextend the joint – causing potentially serious damage.

 

Neck Pains – If you sleep on your stomach, your neck has to twist at a weird angle. If you sleep on your back, a pillow that is too thick can strain the curvature of your spine and your neck muscles. If your pillow is too thin, side-sleeping can strain the muscles on the side of your neck.

Hip Pains – Those that sleep on their side may be used to it, but those trying to change their position from stomach or back-sleeping to side-sleeping may feel pains in their hips. Sleeping on your side without the right support can actually wear down your hip joints.

There’s Hope

Look at how you sleep, as well as how you feel when you wake up in the morning. If you feel aches and pains, it may be time to change your sleeping habits!  If you’ve hurt yourself sleeping, there’s hope.  Come and see us during your waking hours and we can help you heal.

 

 

Exercise- For Your Health

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Exercise is good for your body.  This is a fact that most people realize.  Getting exercise regularly can aid in weight loss and help strengthen your muscles and bones. However, there are more reasons why exercise may be something you want to take seriously. At the top of the list are the mental health benefits that happen when you work out.

Self-Esteem

Exercising helps to build your self-esteem by improving how your body moves, feels and looks. Even if you don’t lose weight from exercising, you are likely still strengthening your muscles and helping your body to move as it should. It can be empowering to run longer, lift heavier weights and stretch farther than you used to.  These physical results will make you feel better, and improve your confidence and self-esteem.

Pain

Scientific studies have shown that people who exercise and stay flexible are better able to manage their pain than those who don’t. Typically, chronic pain can lower your pain threshold. This means it takes less pain to cause you discomfort. Fortunately, exercise helps to increase your pain threshold. Increasing blood flow through your body helps your joints and muscles move more freely, and that helps decrease your pain.

Brain Power

Exercise enhances blood flow throughout your body, and that includes your brain. This increased blood flow supports the survival of new neurons in your brain and helps other neurons fire up faster. Exercise has been shown to promote neurogenesis, which allows for the creation and survival of new brain cells in the brain. This allows for better cognitive function, memory recall and more creativity.

Positive Mood

There is a strong link between exercise and the treatment of mild to moderate anxiety and depression. Exercise encourages all kinds of positive changes in your body by releasing endorphins in your brain such as dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin. These are known as the “feel good” chemicals because of their strong influence on your mood.  Getting regular exercise can be a huge help in managing your mood.

(That’s his positivity face.)

Stress

When you work out, you actually give your mind a chance to slow down and stop thinking about the things that stress you out. Pair this with the better sleep that comes as a result from exercising and you will see a significant reduction in your stress levels.

Do What You Can

There are so many different ways you can get exercise, ranging from weight lifting to yoga. No matter what type, doing some is better than doing none. Do what you can and not only will you reap the benefits physically, but mentally as well.

TMJ: A Real Mouthful

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TMJ

The temporomandibular joint (See why it’s abbreviated?), also known as the TMJ, is the joint that connects your jaw to your skull. The mandible attaches to the temporal bone which is part of the skull. The joint is located just in front of your ear and is surrounded by muscle, bones, blood vessels and nerves. Problems in this area can often lead to neck pain and headaches, ear and face pain, or your jaw locking or snapping while you chew. This is known as temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD). Studies are unclear as to why, but the research shows that more females have TMD than males. Go figure.

Causes

The most common causes of TMD include trauma and osteoarthritis. Grinding your teeth is the most common type of trauma. This can result in inflammation of the joint and spasms of the surrounding muscles which help you chew. This occurs most often at night while you sleep and can be difficult to control. This inflammation of the joint can also happen with clenching habits such as chewing gum or fingernails, usually stress habits. Degeneration of the joint can also occur, as it can with other joints in the body such as the knee and hip.

A final cause of TMD includes rheumatoid arthritis which can again cause inflammation in the joint and deterioration of the cartilage in the area. As mentioned previously, symptoms may include your ear ringing, headaches, neck pain, dizziness, facial pain and difficulty opening the mouth completely. Another common symptom is lock jaw, when the jaw either cannot open all the way or when the jaw is stuck in an open position.  Not a very fun symptom.

Treatment

So how do we treat TMD? The treatment for this disorder is multifaceted. It involves the physical therapist, primary physician and dentist, all of which play an integral role. Your doctor can prescribe anti-inflammatories to help control the inflammation in the localized area. Your dentist may recommend a night splint or mouth guard created to help stop you from grinding your teeth at night. Finally, a physical therapist assists with soft tissue work both inside the mouth and outside the jaw in order to prevent and decrease spasms of the muscles for chewing. Joint mobility to the mandible will also help with improved biomechanics and smooth motion of your TMJ.

If you have significant TMJ pain, it’s important to take steps to alleviate it before it gets worse.  Don’t hesitate to come in and let us help you start a plan to become pain free.

Post written by: Casey Badder, PT

The Right Side of the Bed

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Getting out of bed in the morning can be a figurative pain for many reasons. For one, who couldn’t use more sleep? I find myself wishing I could sleep just a little longer most days, especially in the winter time when it’s dark in the morning. Getting out of bed can also be a literal pain for some people. It’s important that we learn proper body mechanics when getting out of bed to ensure that our day starts in the best way possible. Though I can’t give you permission to keep hitting the snooze button, I can give you some tips for getting yourself up and at ’em, so you can start your day on the right foot.

I’m forever grateful that my alarm clock doesn’t come in the form of birds and mice.

Injury, degenerative changes, and improper body mechanics are some of the most common sources of back pain. If you currently have back pain, there are several ways of getting in and out of bed to decrease the discomfort while you heal. First, to move from lying on your back, bend your knees upward and roll onto your side. Next, slide your legs off the edge of your bed with your knees bent. Finally, push yourself up with your arms, using your legs as a counter weight and sit up.

 

To move from sitting to lying down, reverse the procedure. Begin sitting on the bed, then lower yourself down onto your side, using your arms to help guide you. Once you are lying on your side, you may slide your legs up onto your bed. Make sure to keep your knees bent to roll onto your back. Body mechanics while getting in and out of bed is only part of the battle when it comes to pain. Proper sleep positions are also very important. You can read more about those here.

Now you’re well on your way to getting out of bed faster than Grandpa Joe when he found out Charlie won a Golden Ticket. Just kidding, no one could possibly get out of bed faster than that fraud.

Post Written by: Clint Bunker, PT

Sleep Tight

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There’s an Irish proverb that says “A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures for anything”. Did you know that 35% of adults report less than 7 hours of sleep per night? In order to obtain maximum mental function, the average adult requires 7-9 hours of sleep per night. So the question becomes, are you getting enough sleep?

There are a few contributing factors that may effect the amount of sleep you get each night. Stress is one of the most common and one that can be the most difficult to control. Making sure you are eating a proper diet, drinking enough water, and exercising regularly can help manage stress. With all we have going on in our daily lives, it is easy to forget to care for ourselves.  Because of this, stress levels can rise, which leads to other medical issues.

Pooh is stressed about Heffalumps and Woozles, which doesn’t make for a decent night’s sleep.

Aside from controlling stress, you can prepare your bed for a good sleeping posture. Ideally, the best sleeping posture is on your back. First, try using a pillow or a bolster to elevate your feet from the knees down. This takes the pressure off the joints of the low back, as it allows for proper curvature of the spine. However, there are some medical diagnoses that don’t allow for sleeping on the back. If you are unable to sleep on your back, try sleeping on your side with a pillow between your knees. Again, this allows for proper curvature of the spine as well as placement of the hips in this position. The worst posture for sleeping is on your stomach, as it can often lead to shoulder or neck issues and should be avoided if possible.

There are times when we wake up feeling like our body has been wedged in the entrance to Rabbit’s House.

The other factor for sleeping posture is the type and position of the pillow used. Some people have a preference of using a feather pillow. Though they are soft and fluffy, they’re often not supportive enough for the curvature of the spine. On the contrary, using a memory foam pillow may have too much support for the spine. Therefore, each person may benefit from a different type of pillow. A physical therapist can help you figure out which pillow is best for your needs. Whether firm or soft, the pillow should be placed at the base of the neck for the best support.

 

Knowing how important sleep is to our everyday health, we must all take the proper steps to ensure we get the best sleep possible. Managing stress, sleeping position, and pillow choice/placement are all factors that could effect the number of hours we get each night. If you are having postural related issues or need help setting up an appropriate sleeping arrangement, feel free to contact our office for more information on how we can help you.

Post written by: Casey Badder, PT

That feeling when you find the best pillow and sleeping position for you.

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Areas Served:

Mesa, Gilbert, Chandler, Phoenix, Queen Creek, Apache Junction, Tempe, Globe, Gold Canyon

Postal Address

Gilbert Office
730 N. Greenfield Rd.
Gilbert, AZ 85234
Phone: (480) 633-0666

Mesa Office
342 N Val Vista Dr. Suite 106
Mesa, AZ 85213
Phone: (480) 325-3310