Integrative Health Blog

Coy Roscosky D.C.

As a physical medicine doctor of 15 years I have seen a lot of patients that have presented with  various levels of pain and musculoskeletal problems.  Some as simple as low back pain as the result of shoveling snow, to as complicated as having Lyme disease/low thyroid/ chronic inflammation/ shoulder pain all layered on each other, never knowing what is the real cause of their physical pain.  Somehow, in any of these cases, there needs to be a point where the basics of physical health are incorporated into daily living. Along with proper treatment, this will set the foundation for healing and get a patient back to a better state of health from when they first came in.

In sports, when a team is doing poorly many times the coach will take the team back to  drills they learned as a kid to reinforce the basics of the sport.  This allows the team to return to "the basics" of being successful and winning games.  The same thing has to happen when restoring the physical body to the way it is supposed to move and feel. 

What are basics for health?

1)      Proper motion of Joints

2)      Responsive, stable muscles

3)      Proper nutrition

4)      8 hours of rest

5)      Reduced levels of emotional/mental stress

Why are these the basics? 

If your joints don’t move properly it is difficult to exercise and move.  If your joints don’t move then it is harder to stimulate your muscles through proper ranges of  motion and muscles become weaker and unstable.  In order for muscles to contract correctly and heal, you must have good nutrition to support energy and healing of these and other soft tissues.  Recuperation from exercising your muscles and daily work comes from sleep.  Eight hours of sleep has been shown time after time in research studies as a necessity for health, or the body suffers in numerous ways.  If you don’t get enough sleep, stress increases and your ability to remain calm, relaxed and think clearly throughout the day is limited.

The Basics are a Foundation for Healing

Doesn’t this all sound familiar? Do you remember that song, “the knee bone is connected to the thigh bone?”  Everything in the body has a connection to the other.  If you don’t have a basic foundation then how can your body heal?

The following is a list of action steps (prioritized) to take to get back to the basics:

1)      Chiropractic, Manual Physical Therapy, Exercise, Yoga

2)      Chiropractic, Manual Physical Therapy, Athletic Trainer, Functional Exercise

Do you suffer from problems with your jaw or have pain when you chew or yawn?

Do you hear a clicking or popping sound when you open or close your mouth?

Do you grind or clench your teeth?

People generally do not understand what TMJ Temporo Mandibular Dysfunction is about other than they have pain or poor jaw movement. The cause of TMJ may be difficult to determine. TMJ is comprised of 2 components: Temporo Mandibular Dysfunction (TMD) and Myofascial Pain (MFP).

The concept of TMJ should be understood because the two different components of TMJ must be treated differently.

TMD, Temporo Mandibular Dysfunction, occurs when the jaw joint  (left, right or both) is not functioning well.   The second component, MFP, Myofascial Pain,  exists when the muscles of the jaw are painful or not functioning correctly.

                      TMJ =  TMD  +  MFP

The two components may exist together or exist separately.

It is important to understand how the jaw functions normally to conceptualize how to treat Temporo Mandibular Dysfunction.                    

In a healthy TMJ the lower jaw (mandibular) moves within the bone of the head (temporal bone) to open and close.  The muscles of the jaw provide the force for the mandible to move within the temporal bone.

Pain is one of the biggest motivators to go get healthcare. Most people think they can deal with sharp pain, muscles that ache, a body that gets achy and tired at the end of a day. But when it gets to a point that you can’t handle it anymore, you call the doctor.  Our job is to discover what is causing your pain.  Sometimes we get lucky and  it is just a sore muscle that goes away after a treatment, but what if it is more complicated?  There are no easy cases for doctors; patients present with individual problems that get solved uniquely based on how they present. 

The Sources of Pain

Nicholas Buscemi MSOM, LAc

Nicholas Buscemi MSOM, LAc

Nicholas Buscemi MSOM, LAc

Anita Capizzi RN, CHC

Dr. Coy Roskosky  provides comprehensive chiropractic care using joint manipulation, soft tissue therapies, functional and sports enhancing techniques. As a Doctor of Chiropractic he treats and balances the nervous and musculoskeletal systems to help the body function at it's highest level.

Erchonia laser is an infrared, cold laser that is F.D.A. approved for pain and range of motion. Lance Armstrong has used the Erchonia Laser for peak performance during his seven year reign as Tour de France champion cycler. I have used the laser successfully in my practice for the past 3 years with a great deal of success.