This experience was amazing!! If you ever have the opportunity to be in the presence of Jen Wright, it is a blessing. Not only is Jen a colleague, she is also my boss and what a warrior of a person she is! In our treatment today, I got to experience craniosacral therapy for the first time and she also included some energy and neuromuscular work in the treatment and…wow! I am completely grounded and at peace as I write this now. I am not one to flaunt my knowledge of energy work, I’m not a practiced energy worker myself nor I’ll admit, do I understand all the wonderful benefits of how it can be integrated into a therapeutic treatment, but my goodness has Jen ever mastered it! She explained that everyone experiences these types of treatments differently and I was fortunate enough to have the most blissful treatment EVER!
Raise your hand (go on, I’l be able to tell!) if you’ve said or heard someone say “If I’m not in tears by the end of this treatment then the massage is unless” – WRONG! The body doesn’t need to feel pain to relieve pain. Massage therapy is a delicate balance between challenging tissue in a therapeutic way and then integrating healing techniques to relax and release the targeted tissue. Jen IS that balance, and she throws in an added bonus of working through the emotional walls that our bodies put up consciously or even unconsciously. She is not fluffy or voodooey at all, she explains the process through scientific facts, anatomical physiology and how it all ties together with massage and craniosacral work. Whether you are a spiritual butterfly or a science forward person, she allows you to see things through your own beliefs and interpretations and I believe that’s what sets her apart from the rest.
For myself, I had a very empowering treatment that allowed me to see where my strengths and weaknesses are. We worked through muscle trigger points in my back to grounding my feet and protecting my inner healer. We also worked on the skull to see where things are moving with ease or are slightly “stickier”. I was able to leave this treatment feeling rejuvenated and at peace. I believe everyone should feel this way, rejuvenated and at one with oneself. Life can be extremely overwhelming at times and there are moments when we need to look inward to heal to move forward.
Jen is the founder and creator of Whole Therapy. She understood that it was not about the money but how we as practitioners can help heal others as a team, as a whole. I would highly recommend, if you can find a spot in her busy schedule, that you experience a treatment with her healing hands. They are completely magical!
Stephanie Lanthier
RMT
We have all seen when a person shows up with circular hickey-like bruises on their body. I remember witnessing this for the first time and thinking “What the heck is that?! And why would anybody do that to themselves?!” Or even, “What happened to that person?!” Well guess what, you were witness to someone who just had cupping. Believe it or not, they are not crazy, nobody injured them, the treatment is actually incredibly relaxing, and the benefits are amazing! From relieving back/neck pains, loosening stiff muscles, and even decreasing anxiety, fatigue, migraines, and rheumatism, this treatment is something that everyone can benefit from.
Cupping is a body treatment that involves creating suction on the skin using glasses, or plastic cups. It is most definitely a very trendy thing these days; however, the reality is that it is not new at all. It dates back to ancient Egyptian, Chinese, and Middle Eastern cultures. During that time, they discovered that by placing a cup on the surface of the skin, then subsequently using a suction device to remove the oxygen, that they could create a negative pressure inside the cup. This is why cupping results in elevation of the skin into the signature dome-like appearance inside the cup. The benefits they uncovered, and that we are now just experiencing, are beyond what you would imagine. They include:
- Creating a mild immune response and increasing anti-inflammatory chemicals in the body by mobilizing blood flow to the skin. Since the same reaction takes place during muscle recovery, cupping results in faster and more efficient healing.
- Improving blood circulation to the tissues by drawing stagnant blood to the surface. This speeds up and helps with the recovery of the treated muscle.
- Stretching tight muscles and the surrounding fascia, resulting in looser muscles, decreased pain, and improved mobility.
Whether you are suffering from pain, discomfort, or immobility, or you are a gym goer or an experienced athlete, cupping is a fantastic way to improve the quality of your movement and return to your daily activities significantly faster.
When it comes to negative side effects of cupping, there are a few things to keep in mind. The most apparent side effect are the odd circular bruises often left behind following the treatment. Although this is completely normal and will dissipate very quickly (often within a couple of days), you might not want to schedule a treatment then head to the beach right after! It is also normal to feel stiff and tender in the areas the cups were applied. Just as with the bruising, these symptoms do not last long either and are normally resolved within a day or two. Ultimately, the negative side effects are incredibly minor and most definitely do not outweigh the benefits.
Cory Boyd, RMT
Personal Trainer
Graston Technique Provider
Bioflex Laser Therapy Provider
Rapid NeuroFascial Reset Provider
Certified Golf Fitness Instructor
Officially Running Out Of Room For Qualifications Guy 😉
Did you know that physical strength is now recognized as one of the most important health stats for predicting both healthy lifespan and lifespan itself? The most advanced research now shows that our lean muscle mass affects every single aspect of our metabolism. Even cancer risks and outcomes for those already diagnosed with cancer.
Many of us won’t read past the first lines of this article. Why? Because subconscious programming keeps us stuck in a rut. We don’t want to hear about it. The subconscious tries to keep us safe the best way it thinks it knows how, but that programming is mostly laid down by the age of six. At that age, even cleaning our room feels like a huge chore.
The subconscious mind stores a million times as many data points as the conscious mind and it’s been doing that since we were born. Every time someone talked about “hard” work, being tired or sore from doing too much, whenever someone commented there was no time to keep in shape, made a negative comment about someone in good shape or any one of a thousand other inputs, the root subconscious attitudes about physical effort were influenced.
As we get older, a plethora of social attitudes and influence reinforce assumptions that weakness and frailty are natural and inevitable with age. No point in fighting it. Even when we read research or watch lectures demonstrating how powerfully life affirming health, mood and quality of life benefits are from physical strength and flexibility, the subconscious mind typically returns us to the couch. Binge watching Netflix or video games again; despite our occasional resolutions.
We have limited amounts of will power and as soon as that runs low, the subconscious mind gets its way; every time. Again, the subconscious really wants to keep us safe the best way it thinks it knows how and it’s got lots of tricks to get its way; all with the best intentions given its early programming.
A fortunate minority will find their way to a gifted and inspiring trainer, somehow discover they really enjoy some form of sport or physical hobby or get scared onto a different path. The rest of us are stuck with at best, good intentions, declining health and increasing frailty.
The good news is as long as you’re still breathing, it’s never too late. If you’re one of the many who just never seems able to change your life to start the process of becoming strong and resilient again, Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT, Tapping) and Picture Tapping Techniques can be powerful resources for change. Using these techniques with the assistance of a skilled advanced practitioner, can allow you to safely and quite painlessly rewrite early subconscious programs, those buried beliefs keeping you stuck in a weak, increasingly sick and fragile downward spiral.
A few of the common self-sabotage programs I see in my clients include: “I’m too old/fat/ weak to go to a gym or trainer; I’d feel humiliated”. “ I have no time.” “ My partner will feel bad if I get in shape and they’re not”. “ I’m not supposed to take time for myself; that’s selfish.” and one of the most insidious “who and what will I be if I become strong and flexible in my own body?” “What will happen to me?” Sometimes physical weakness combined with excess weight is a subconscious safety mechanism. “As long as I look like this I’ll be invisible and that feels safer.” All these and many others can be gently rewritten when the conscious and subconscious mind collaborate to figure out “the rest of the story” regarding early programming.
When the subconscious and conscious are on the same side, willpower is not a factor. Recovering power, strength and flexibility becomes fun, challenging in a good way and rewarding.
If in the Ottawa Ontario region, a good place to explore is www.wholetherapyottawa.com for safe, skilled training at any age or skill level. If you’re stuck in a rut, contact the undersigned @ 613-747-5458 to explore recruiting your subconscious mind to join team strength.
Yours in good mental and emotional health.
________________________________________________________________________________________
Author: David E P Gilbert. David is a highly experienced Integrative Therapist working with anxiety/depression, stress, burnout, grief, trauma, PTSD and self-sabotage. He’s based at ECOSYS Wellness Center and Whole Therapy in Ottawa ON Canada. Being trained in a number of modalities including Emotional Freedom Techniques and PTT (Picture Tapping Techniques), he works with clients both in-office and via phone or video cam across North America. Services so powerful they’re guaranteed
As soon as the word acupuncture is said, a lot of people’s initial thoughts are “needles, sh*t!” Myself included. I am not a fan of needles, shots or giving blood. With this in mind, you better believe that my experience was quite interesting to say the least. I was challenging myself to get over a small fear of needles by getting dry needling and acupuncture done. As a massage therapist, our forearms muscles can get quite angry with us as we are constantly treating clients day in and day out. So I thought it would be a great idea to give this modality a try and Adam, Physiotherapist extraordinaire, and my co-worker over at our Lancaster, was the perfect person to reach out to.
Adam is tremendously knowledgeable in his field and has this great way of making you feel comfortable with the uncomfortable. Right from the beginning of the session, he was putting me at ease by explaining the process step by step. He explained each part of the process thoroughly to make sure I was okay to proceed with acupuncture. He showed me the needles that he would use and demonstrated on the physio table and allowed me to see how incredibly gentle these needles are. From here I felt ready and excited to get the treatment started. We were going to try both acupuncture and dry needling techniques!
These two techniques felt very different from one another. With the dry needling, I felt a build up of anticipation as I was waiting for the “twitch” to happen. It was startling at first but then I became accustomed to the feeling. Following the treatment, my muscles felt stiff but the following day my forearm felt 10 times better! Whereas with the acupuncture, it felt more irritating (to me) at the very least. This technique was definitely less “twitchy” and much more subtle. Although, the awareness you have of the needle breaking the skin’s surface and then staying there brings its own sensations. During my experience, I had an acupuncture needle in the crease of my thumb and first finger. It was itchy at the beginning then a cold flush went through my hand and things calmed down completely after that.
Both acupuncture and dry needling are very similar in terms of the needles being used used but also very different in the way these techniques are executed. Personally, I preferred the dry needling technique as it targeted my trigger points/knots within the muscle that needed attention versus the acupuncture that is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine more for pain relief and for bringing blood to the area of discomfort/injury. I would recommend acupuncture for anyone struggling with an acute/sub-acute injury that has become painful to move and that would benefit from blood flow to the area.
If you’re curious to try it out and see if it is a good option to include in your personal wellness formula, please come out to visit Adam at the Lancaster Whole Therapy! His years of experience, soothing nature, and strong communication skills make treatments with him a breeze.
Stephanie Lanthier
RMT
My experience with Richelle was really eye opening to say the least. If you think about it, our first steps ever as babies start a little wobbly but once we get our feet moving there is no stopping us. As toddlers we are always being chased after, always moving, always running. As we get older some of us keep running but not all of us have sought to understand the proper technique to running. I know I definitely did not!
As a teenager, I developed shin splints and was told to run on the balls of my feet but I was never taught the true reason behind it. After having Richelle assess my running today, I am truly enlightened! It’s such a natural thing, running that I think we all sort of take it for granted, and think that we instinctively just know how to do it properly. So what’s happening to a lot of us, if we don’t jog/run/move properly, we are teaching our bodies to compensate. And when we compensate, we weaken other areas and cause imbalances. If these imbalances become our new normal, we become more prone to injury. Don’t get me wrong, cardio is cardio and it’s not everybody’s favourite, but if we were all taught how to jog properly and run without hurting ourselves or sore in the following days, don’t you think you we’d all enjoy it more?
Now, I do enjoy jogging. I would jog outside all year round if snow and ice wasn’t a hazard for me. It was always nice to jog but I was never consistent with it, and after Richelle brought some things to my attention today, I’ve gained a bit of clarity as to why. As I write this, I realize the way that I was running always felt “heavy”. What I mean by this, and as Richelle mentions in my first video, I jog with an excessive vertical oscillation (up/down movement) which made me expend more energy than what is efficient. Not only was I losing more energy due to the vertical oscillation, I felt 10X more heavy on my feet. That realization on its own makes me look at running with a whole new perspective. Who wants to feel like an elephant rumbling along when you can feel like a gazelle floating through the air?! Sign me up!! The small adjustment we made to my technique changed everything! Such a minor change, this one detail, has motivated me to start back up again with the running. And it gives me the confidence that I’ll be doing it more efficiently, and with a lesser chance of injuring myself now that I’m not forcing my body to compensate!
Richelle has a way of listening to your story and assessing your form that really motivate you towards achieving your goals, fine tuning your technique to get you where you want to be. She gave me the awareness and education that I needed to bring my jogging to the next level and not only did she provide me the tools, she gave me types of running that may peak my interests and be a better fit for me. (I am a very competitive individual and I love a challenge!) I mentioned that I can get bored easily so she suggested trail running during the warmer seasons and snowshoe running during the winter season, saying that these types of running may provide me with a challenge, a challenge that will fill the boredom and spark the individual competitiveness inside me that I am seeking. Can’t wait to try these out!
Her brightness and passion for running truly shows and it has pushed me to a place where it makes me want to grow myself as a person, especially in terms of starting back up with the running. That’s true empowerment 101!! That’s not something you can teach someone and it is totally captivating!
I have a newfound respect for running and appreciation for those that do it well! But we can learn! And if we can be educated on something like jogging and running, that opens the door to learning about how to improve ourselves overall in terms of wellness.
If you’ve experience pain while running or are just interested, like myself, in what you can do to improve your running, Richelle is your girl!
Check out her page on Facebook, Running With Richelle here!
And don’t forget to follow my page on Facebook as well!
Stephanie Lanthier
RMT
Dr. Lovely here with a question for you.
Have you ever had one of these moments, where you bend down to pick something up, maybe a sock, or toy your kid has left on the floor, or perhaps had one of those epic sneezes and WHAMMO! Your life flashes before your eyes?? (OK, not really but kinda really!)
Most socks or sneezes, as far as I can tell, aren’t inherently evil and aren’t actively seeking to cause you pain. So, do you really think that the sock you picked up or that the sneeze were the cause?
I’m here to tell you that that is not the case!!! As a chiropractor with 25 years of experience listening to patients stories, there’s not much that I haven’t heard or seen. And I’m willing to bet that you had signs and signals from your body well before that Mother Of All Sneezes!
Sometimes, we don’t listen to our bodies the way we should be. Instead of taking action to correct imbalances, postural habits etc. we’ll ignore aches and pains assuming they will go away. And many times they do! That’s because our bodies are very good at adapting to these things and moving on. The problem is that adapting is NOT the same as correcting!!
Our bodies can only adapt so many times before they actually start to break down. Neglected for too long and all kinds of unpleasantness (Degeneration, disc bulge, inflammation etc.) can occur and then we have no choice but to deal with it. Best advice? Don’t wait until you’re in this situation. Pay attention to the warning signals your body provides! If you’re dealing with aches and pains, we can help you identify and and help you alleviate them. It’s so much easier to take care of small warnings before they become the drop you to your knees sneeze!!
Looking forward to meeting you!
Dr. Jennifer Lovely
Chiropractor
Hey everyone!
Here’s a quick and easy, on the go snack perfect for the chocolate peanut butter lover in you!
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups Oats
- 1 cup natural peanut butter
- 3 tbsp natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce or honey
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 scoops of protein powder of choice
Instructions
- In a bowl add in the oats, peanut butter, apple sauce or honey, protein powder,cocoa powder, and vanilla extract.
- Use those muscles and MIX! It may take a moment for the batter to come together as you mix so don’t worry if it seems a little too thick at first. It will come together as you continue to mix it.
- Here comes the fun part! scoop a small bit of the batter out, roll it in to a ball and put it into container.
- Once you finish, place the container into the fridge or freezer.
Makes 20-24
Enjoy! 🙂
Michelle Murphy
Personal Trainer
Get to know Alicia in this quick, fun little Q&A 🙂
What are your passions?
In life, I love pushing myself and seeing how far I can go. I love pole fitness and how it allows me to move my body and use my strength in different ways than I use in the gym. I am also very passionate about Spartan races, I have been doing them for 4 years now and completed my first trifecta this year (next goal is 2 x trifectas!). In regards to massage therapy, I love helping my clients gain more mobility and live a pain free life in whatever it is they love to do. I’ve always loved the rehab aspect and helping clients regain or even surpass their limits prior to injury.
Favorite food? Drink?
If you could visit anywhere in the world, where would you go?
If I could visit anywhere in the world, it would be New Zealand. I love nature and natural scenery (hills, oceans, forests), as well as old architecture, and New Zealand just looks absolutely breathtaking.
What is your specialty in your field of work?
I love working with rehab clients and TMJ clients. I love seeing improvement and hearing back how something we’ve done has helped my clients. A lot of clients who have jaw pain were hesitant to try intra-oral massage, but after the first session, were very happy with how they felt afterwards.
Secret talent?
Pole fitness!
What energizes you at work?
What’s your biggest work pet peeve?
When linens aren’t restocked in the room or if my lotion/gel bottle is greasy because it wasn’t washed.
Get to know Michelle in this quick, fun little Q&A 🙂
What are your passions?
My passion is CrossFit. I’ve been doing it for 4 years now. I remember when I first started out how much I dreaded going to classes because of how difficult they were. I couldn’t wait to be finished my 6 month membership so that I could never return. Now here we are 4 years later and I couldn’t imagine my life without it. I’ve gained so much strength and confidence as well as creating many friendships that will last a lifetime.
Favorite food? Drink?
My favourite food is pizza with a good garlic dipping sauce. 🍕 My go to is pepperoni, hot peppers and bacon from Gabriel’s. My favourite drink at the moment is hands down the nitro pumpkin cream cold brew with .5 sugar free vanilla and light foam from Starbucks.The pumpkin cream on top is just enough to enjoy fall in a cup without going overboard. 🍂
If you could visit anywhere in the world, where would you go?
I’d love to visit Iceland around Christmas time. They have a few Christmas trees that stay up year around, and I just think that’s really cool so I can only imagine what Christmas time would be like. Of course , I’d love to visit the hot springs and swimming pools such as the Blue Lagoon, and the Secret Lagoon.
What is your specialty in your field of work?
Since I am still new in this field, I’m not sure what my specialty is yet, however, I look forward to figuring it out.
Secret talent?
My secret talent is I used to be in animation so I can draw really well. Another secret talent is handstands and handstand walking. I love being able to do them at anytime, any place! 🤸♀️
What energizes you at work?
What energizes me at work is being with a great group of individuals who have goals and work hard at what they do.
What’s your biggest work pet peeve?
A work pet peeve I have is people talking over someone else that is trying to speak or explain what they’re talking about.
Hi everyone! Dr. Lovely here, Chiropractor at Whole Therapy Lancaster!
Many of us think we’re in reasonably good shape but, do you give your spine a second thought? We go on about our days at work in a not so perfect posture for prolonged hours; Some of us slump on a couch or favorite chair in a lousy position in the evening to relax ,never even thinking what effect that may have on our spines!
Our spines are designed with specific curves and joints that must align with each other for optimal functionality. When we place our spines in abnormal, awkward postures for prolonged periods of time with no movement, it is a recipe for disaster and leads to unhealthy spines! What are some of the issues that you may encounter?? Well I’m glad you asked!!
- Decreased range of motion
- Pain
- Early signs of arthritis
- Actual changes to the curves of the spine
Being aware of your posture can go a long way in helping to curb the effects of joint misalignment. Be sure to get up and move around for at least 60 seconds every 60 minutes! Set an alarm on your phone, get up and grab a glass of water, do a lap of the office, anything to get you out of the awkward posture!
And of course, being proactive with self care doesn’t hurt either. Book an appointment with myself or one of our other fantastic Chiropractors.
Can’t wait to meet you! 😊
