With holiday season approaching, let’s talk about gifts. In the spirit of you, I hereby advocate treating yourself and buying what you really want. Don’t misunderstand – I love a surprise as much as the next person; the mystery of what’s-inside-the-box, the allure behind the beautiful wrapping and ribbons, the happiness on the face of the gift giver. But let’s be realistic. It can get exhausting waiting and hoping for what you really want, never mind embarrassing to admit to what you really lust after. I mean, do you really expect someone else – or want to justify to someone else – what would { Read More }
Tips Toward a Better Massage
Stress, anxiety, aches, pains and muscle tension: they’re all a fact of life. And all good reasons to get a massage. It’s great to be able to give yourself a massage at home, and equally nice to go out for one. Either way, it’s a treat. And because a massage can be such an integral tool to better health, you’ll want to get the most of it. Making the most of your massage is easy to do with one of the many at-home massagers from Wahl, like this Hot/Cold Therapy Massager. Right in your own hands you have ability to choose the temperature and the pressure you’d like. There’s a powerful, variable-speed { Read More }
Five Quick and Easy Tips to Keep Your Sanity When You’re in Pain
May is Mental Health Awareness Month – a good reminder to check up - and brush up - on yours. The pain began as a dull off-and-on ache between my shoulder blades. But then, seemingly overnight, it progressed into a persistent, sharp and stinging sensation that moved beyond my neck and down into my arm. The unrelenting pain woke me – and kept me - up at night. And the more I felt the pain, the more I tensed up and the tighter my muscles became, which only added to my discomfort. In no time I became stressed and sedentary, short-tempered and depressed. After spending considerable time trying all my { Read More }
Moms and Massage, a Perfect Marriage
Mother's Day is approaching, and if your celebration includes gifts, it's not too early to start dropping some hints (or better yet, ask for what you want). Yes, I love surprises, but I also love getting a gift that I’ll use and love...and to ensure that, I've learned to ask. After all, a gift is worth asking for: It’s something special; something you wouldn’t normally buy or do for yourself; something that stays with you a long, long time. And the older I get, the more I’m learning that we have to ask for what we want. This year like every other, it's the same ask: A massage. Mother's Day, 1986: My { Read More }
Pain Relief for Achy Joints
Getting older certainly has its perks, but the reality of it is that aging can take its toll on many of us, despite our efforts to get out there and stay active – especially as the cold weather sets in. No, it wasn’t an exaggeration when your mother/father/grandmother or someone else rubbed their knee/elbow/back; winced and muttered, “I can feel a storm coming on.” Yes, there is evidence that shows a link between weather changes and chronic pain, especially joint pain and migraines. A 2007 Tufts University study showed that for every 10 degrees drop in temperature, there was an incremental increase in { Read More }
5 Things That Sabotage Your Sleep
There are plenty of things to disagree about these days, ranging from the complex and global – like political views; to the mundane and personal - like whose turn it is to take out the garbage. Yet, if there’s one thing almost every single person can agree upon it’s how important sleep is, and how lousy we feel when we don’t get enough of it. Without adequate shuteye, we compromise things like our health, hormone levels, moods and weight. And still, the struggle continues. Each night, millions of Americans toss and turn, yearning for that elusive sleep. Our united mission: To get the best quality and { Read More }
Does Your Body Need a Winter Fixer Upper? Five Easy DIY Improvements
With winter season on the horizon, it’s time to start thinking ahead about sprucing up around your home: cleaning out closets, tuning up your heating system, weather-proofing your garden, gathering firewood, clearing your roof and gutters of debris, caulking around windows and doors, and more. But just as important is sprucing up your health. Here are five easy things to do to get you prepped for the upcoming winter months, so you can keep your mind- and body – in the best shape possible. 1. Get plenty of light. As the days become shorter and sunlight more scarce, many people feel sad – and suffer { Read More }
Make it a Habit: 5 Tips for a Pain-Free You
For people with chronic pain, life can be hard. The unrelenting pain may make you feel uncomfortable and cranky and even hopeless at times. But it’s more within your control than you think; switching bad habits for good ones can help ease the pain and improve – and potentially prolong – your life. It’s never too late to reverse your bad habits or adopt some new, healthy ones, and it can be done if you give yourself some time and patience. It’s said that it can take about 21 days to develop a habit; when you think about it, that’s really not a huge amount of time to invest in better health and { Read More }
Is Your Everyday Life Setting You Up for Pain?
Our lives are filled with so much motion that can strain our body, a complex, amazing machine. Just thinking about all the possibilities is enough to make us dizzy: we turn, bend, lift, walk, run and move. And even when we’re not in motion, that brilliant machine with all its moving parts is still being challenged: It’s possible, after all, that sitting, standing or even sleeping in the wrong position can strain or harm some of its parts. The offshoot? Although the body works in synchrony – most of the time - everyday habits that are automatic, natural and easy can be pain landmines. It happens { Read More }