Rehabilitation

The Rehab programs were developed over 20 years of research and clinical testing. The programs for the cervical and lumbar spines have specific neural components which significantly improves their therapeutic efficacy. The Rehab programs and the laser protocols work synergistically together to provide pain reduction, healing and strengthening of the injured area in the most cost effective manner. The Rehab programs are sequenced and have 4 levels which takes the delicate injured area through gentle exercises. As pain is reduced and healing occur, the sequenced levels become more challenging for toning, strengthening and returning the neuro-muscular co-ordination to the muscles.

Muscles and How They Affect Your Nervous System

Muscle Tension

While contraction and relaxation are the principal actions of muscle, there is in fact a second "activity" which is called muscle tension. This is part of the muscle contraction process. The tensing of muscle is a fascinating phenomenon. It is controlled by the CNS-the brain. Because the muscle tone is controlled by the CNS, it can occur without our conscious awareness. Here are a few examples:

Muscles tense:

• in preparation to move parts of your body, whether or not the movement occurs
• when you become threatened mentally or physically
• when you imagine doing some movement with your body to protect an injured area
• when used inappropriately, such as sitting.

Under normal conditions, muscles have a resting level of activity. If you add weight to a muscle, like bending your neck to read this page, then the level of muscle activity increases. This occurs at the CNS level and the muscle level. The result is that more muscle fibers contract and the muscle strength increases. Over time if the muscle stays contracted, it becomes tense/weakened – a learned response.

As more is demanded of the muscle, the CNS and the muscle tries to contract even more in an attempt to generate more strength. But as muscles contract and get shorter, they also get weaker. As they get weaker, they fatigue even more quickly. So the more contracted and tense a muscle becomes, the weaker it is, and the quicker it will fatigue. To put it simply: they become ‘pooped out' from being over worked.

New Thinking on Low Back Pain

New thinking on low back pain shows that when you experience pain, it is not from one cause. It is from a combination of factors which predispose the area to functioning improperly, thus eliciting pain. For example, how you feel about your occupation is proving to be a potent contributing factor in the development of low back pain.  People who don't like their jobs, or find them stressful have more back injuries and pain.

The diagram below shows some of the major factors causing spinal pain. This, of course, is excluding direct trauma to the spine.

Like cardiovascular problems, which slowly develop over time, so it is too with spinal pain problems – they also develop over time. When you do develop spinal problems, it is the body's way of saying: "I am unable to cope any longer".

Let's look at how each of these contributes to the development of spinal pain problems.

Poor Posture

Poor posture can be caused by a number of factors. Some of the main ones are:

• Sitting improperly in front of a computer daily. In time, this will cause rounding of the upper back and shoulders, awkward carriage of the head and neck, and flattening of the normal lumbar curve.
• Wearing a heavy winter coat will cause rounding of the upper back and shoulders. Remember, you do this approximately four months per year. Carrying a heavy purse