I recently referred a client to Fitness Cove in Kirkwood, MO and today her fitness specialist came by the clinic to drop off a little thank you gift for me. I thought that was so sweet and the gift with the story attached to it was very moving, so I wanted to share it with you. The gift was a nice keychain in the shape of a starfish. Here is the story that was attached:

An old man walked up a shore littered with thousands of starfish, beached and dying after a storm. A young man was picking them up and flinging them back into the ocean. “Why do you bother?” the old man scoffed. “You’re not saving enough to make a difference.” The young man picked up another starfish and sent it spinning back to the water. “Made a difference to that one,” he said.

YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE, EVERY DAY.

Adolescence is a time of big change in a girl’s life. There is no standard starting age for adolescence: it can start when a girl is as young as 9 or when she is well into her teens.

Adolescence is a great time in life to develop good exercise habits. When a girl’s body begins producing the hormone estrogen, which helps trigger sexual development, she may notice an increase in body fat. Getting exercise in 5-7 days of the week with an appropriate diet stocked full of fruits and vegetables is the healthy way for adolescent girls to maintain their weight.

Participation in athletics is a great way for adolescent girls to build self-esteem and stay healthy. Being a female athlete brings with it some specific health concerns. Athletes who train every day with rigorous regimens can lead to amenorrhea (cessation of menstruation). Also, because of their wider hips, females are often at a greater risk of developing knee injuries.

A physical therapist can be a helpful professional during this time of life. We can guide you in setting up an appropriate exercise program and can help if an injury develops.

I thought I would start the new year off with a new series in hopes that I get on a more regular blogging schedule. Seeing as my main patient population is female I thought it appropriate to take a look at women’s health issues throughout the lifespan. I hope you enjoy the series.

INTRODUCTION:

Women are unique creatures. At our most fundamental level women’s bodies are structured to give birth and supply early nutrition to the next generation. Yet, whether or not we decide to have children, our reproductive system affects our body throughout our lifetime. Now I am not giving you free reign to blame hormones on everything, but they do play a huge roll!

We will be talking about various women’s health conditions from adolescence, menstrual pains, female athletes, childbearing years, and menopause. Please feel free to send me suggestions of information you are interested in learning about.

With the holiday season comes much hustle and bustle. It is very easy to get wrapped up in it all and not take time for yourself. Even when it seems impossible, I recommend taking 5 to 10 minutes of “quiet” time for yourself each day. Trust me it will help keep you focused and refreshed. Below are some suggestions for ways to relax.

• Deep Breathing: Several times a day focus on your breathing. Take deep breaths in through your nose feeling your belly bulge out a little. Then exhale through your mouth and feel the belly relax back to its normal position.

These next suggestions are best performed in a quiet room with low lighting. Turn off the television, turn of the cell phone. Put on some of your favorite soothing music and light some candles. Don’t worry it is okay to pamper yourself.

• Close your eyes and take a deep breath.
• Feel yourself sinking into the bed or chair and letting your hands and legs get “heavy”.
• Think about blood flowing into your arms like molasses and warming them or think about an image of you lying in the warm sun.
• Daydream about places that have been peaceful for you: church, a meadow, lakes, mountains, beaches, etc.

Hopefully these suggestions can help you recharge a little during this hectic time of year. Happy holidays to all!

So I got the chance to attend an interesting lecture by Dr. Coles L’Hommeieu on Wednesday night. He is an orthopedic surgeon and was talking about arthiritis and hip and knee replacements. St. Anthony’s hospital hosted the event and as a parting gift for everyone they had these tasty cookies that were shaped like bones. Well, at least my son said that the cookie was tasty, because he ate it all before I could have any.

The cookie got me thinking about the importance of bone health as we age. There are several easy steps that we can do to help boost our bone health!

• Try to eat 3 servings of calcium a day. (Milk, yogurt, cheese, and broccoli are all good sources of calcium)
• Get enough Vitamin D. Your body creates Vitamin D when it is exposed to sunlight, but you can also get it from dairy products, fish, and eggs.
• Work out your bones. Try to get 30 minutes of moderate activity in on most days of the week. Walking or jogging is a great way to build up bone strength in the legs and spine. Pushups help build up arm bone strength.
• Modify your lifestyle. Moderate caffeine and alcohol use and eliminating smoking can improve bone health.

So I am going to take my own advice right now and put down my coffee and get a little exercise in before my next patient comes in!

I finally uploaded some of the pictures from the health fairs that Legacy Physical Therapy has participated at in the last few months. The first pictures is from the 1st annual Kirkwood Chamber of Commerce Health and Wellness Fair on 9/29/09. We look forward to participating in this event for years to come.

We had a good turnout at our first health fair appearance. We had fun raffling off two Cardinals' tickets!

Our most recent booth was at the Des Peres Lodge Health Fair on 11/7/09.

We look forward to getting out and talking to the public more at future health fairs. Educating women how they can help themselves is truly a passion of mine. If you hear of any upcoming fairs or health events that you think we should participate in, please let me know!

So, I thought that what better way to start out “Upshot” than with a wonderful article about what Women’s Health Physical Therapy is.  Legacy Physical Therapy is happy to say that we provide all of these services at our facility.

Although I would like to take credit for this article, I cannot. It was written by Michele Wojciechowski and published in the Noveber 2009 issue of PT in Motion. I have included an excerpt of the article below and the link to get to the article online. I hope that you find the information helpful.

In the past, women’s health was most often thought of in terms of gynecological care. Even today, some physical therapists, hearing the words “women’s health,” first think of “pelvic floor dysfunction.” But that’s only one reason that women of all ages need and seek treatment.

Read Full Article

Well, it is official now: Legacy Physical Therapy is blogging. We will continue to provide monthly newletters with pertinent health information and news about Legacy Physical Therapy, but “Upshot” will be a place for me to quickly post new information about the clinic and quick health tips. I look forward to interacting more with my readers, so please post responses, suggestions for topics, and/or questions you may have.