Are you a stressed individual? Do you find it difficult to cope with the load of life, and regularly find yourself freaking out when it all gets a bit much? You are not alone. Coping with stress is something we all have to do and some of us are better at dealing with it than others. Some of us even thrive off that stress. If you want to get to the bottom of controlling stress in your life, it is first useful to understand what stress is.
Welcome readers! The human body is made up of trillions of cells. Recent findings suggest as many as 30 trillion cells combine to form the human body at any one time. That’s pretty much impossible to comprehend. But combine they do, and what beautiful forms we are! Have you ever thought how all those cells stay together so well? Well… Our intricate and amazing bodies contain special tissues (made up of proteins) known as ‘connective tissues’ (CTs), which act as a glue to hold everything together. Without connective tissue, we may just exist as one big blobby puddle on the floor!
As well as their glue-like property, CTs allow the tissues of the body to stretch and recoil… A little bit like an elastic band. Some common examples of proteins that make up the CTs in the body include ‘collagen’ and ‘elastin’ (you may have heard of these before). It is possible for a person to have a disease which directly affects the CTs of the body. Collectively these are known as connective tissues diseases (CTDs), or diseases of connective tissue. As connective tissue is found all over the body, nearly all of the body can be affected. CTDs may affect the skin, blood vessels, blood, muscles, fat, bones, cartilage, tendons, ligaments and other joint-related tissues. Even the eye can be affected!
Types of CTD
There are two main types of CTD… Genetic and autoimmune. We’ll explain what these mean:
• Genetic: These types of diseases are inherited. This is usually because of a single mutated gene that is passed on from your parents to you.
• Autoimmune: These types of diseases occur because your body’s defence system (aka the immune system) views the CTs as foreign and attacks them. This results in a painful, inflammation-driven condition where a person regularly experiences redness, heat, swelling and pain in specific parts of their body.
Genetic CTDs
Examples of genetic diseases of CT (with a little description of each) include:
• Ehlers-Danlos syndrome: Affects the collagen in our body, resulting in excessively stretchy skin, hyper-mobile joints and abnormal scar tissue formation. There are over ten forms of this condition.
• Marfans syndrome: Affects fibrillin (a protein) in the body, resulting in longer bones and thin and long fingers and toes. People with Marfans are usually very tall and slender.
• Osteogenesis Imperfecta: Another condition that affects collagen, resulting in brittle bones, weak and thin skin, loose ligaments and a lower than average muscle mass.
Autoimmune CTDs
Examples of autoimmune diseases of CT include:
• Rheumatoid arthritis (RA): The body attacks the membranes that hold the joints together resulting in pain, stiffness, degeneration and destruction of joints throughout the body. RA typically affects the small joints of the hands and feet.
• Sjogren’s syndrome: A disease which typically leaves a person with an excessively dry mouth and eyes. People also regularly experience joint pain.
• Systemic Lupus Erythematosis (SLE): A condition that causes inflammation of the skin, internal organs and joints. Other symptoms include mouth ulcers, heart, lung and kidney problems, hair loss and mental health issues.
It is useful to point out there are many other CTDs. Having one CTD means you are more likely to have other CTDs as well.
Treatment
So where does my osteo come into the equation? Being the holistic practitioners we are, we can help in many ways. People with CTDs regularly need help with joint range of motion, as well as an exercise program to help strengthen the body. Treatment and exercise need to be carefully planned out with CTDs, so having someone with experience to help you manage a potentially difficult condition is always handy. We can also help to educate you on what the diseases are, and how they affect you to ensure you have the correct self-help strategies in place.
Have you been diagnosed with a CTD? If so, get in touch today for an appointment. We’d love to be a part of your team!
Have you recently started to experience pain at the side of your hip? Perhaps you’re embracing your new healthy lifestyle and have been going for a solid run several times a week… Or it might just be that you’re getting a bit older, hitting the middle decades of life, and you’ve had a nagging hip for a while. There are a few structures in and around the hip that can lead to pain felt at the very outer aspect of it. Problems in the low back, the hip joint itself, and soft tissues that surround the joint can all be viable culprits.
Read on to learn more about Gluteal Tendinopathy.
Thyroid issues? Have you been told by your doctor that you have a dysfunctional thyroid gland? This tiny little organ packs a massive punch when it goes wrong. It’s a very complex gland that carries a lot of responsibility on its shoulders. We’ve created a brief ‘get to know your thyroid’ blog to help you understand the role of the thyroid gland in everyday life.
When you visit us here at Holistic Hands Osteopathy, you can expect the entire package. One of our main principles of treatment is to treat the body as a whole. As part of your treatment plan, we may need to discuss diet with you. Nutrient deficiencies are common throughout the world and are the cause of widespread ill health. Here we outline five common nutrient deficiencies, the effects they have on the body and sources of each nutrient to ensure you know where to find them.
One very important condition that affects millions of people every year around the world is osteoporosis. We’ve put together this blog to inform you fully on some of the facts and myths surrounding osteoporosis and to let you know why it’s so important to act early in life to avoid this potentially debilitating condition.
Question… Which is the largest organ in the human body? A lot of people think the answer is the brain, lungs or liver when asked this question. When in fact, the answer is the skin. All of the skin combined in a big heap would weigh more than any other organ. The skin equates to approximately 7% of total body weight in an average adult. It’s an incredibly intricate structure that forms the outer layers of our bodies. But why do we have skin? Read on to find out all the cool things our skin does for us…
Do you struggle to take those first few steps out of bed in the morning? There are a few things that can cause pain on the bottom of the heel, but the most common cause is a condition named plantar fasciopathy (pronounced ‘fash-ee-op-a-thee’ — previously known as plantar fasciitis (pronounced ‘fash-ee-i-tis’)). Follow the link in bio to find more about this condition.
Confused by all the different types of imaging out there? We get it. There appears to be an endless list of devices that can take a picture of our insides. This is because our body is made up of different materials, and the different materials show up differently on certain imaging types. We are very fortunate that technology has advanced enough for us to have pretty much any type of imaging available to us for all types of injuries and diseases. Read on to find out all about X-rays!
As osteopaths, part of our job is to promote osteopathy to the masses. We do a lot of this by word of mouth, and we rely on our patients to also spread the word after they’ve received a successful treatment here at Holistic Hands Osteopathy. We and other osteopathic clinics also make use of the internet to help market and advertise our services. Despite all of our efforts, common misconceptions exist about osteopathy. We'd like to take this opportunity to debunk some of these myths now
Has one of your shoulders been feeling a bit off lately? Is the neck and mid-back region around the shoulder blade feeling stiff and heavy? If this sounds like you, then you may have a problem with a nerve known as the Dorsal Scapular Nerve (DSN). Read on to find out about this under-diagnosed injury.
Are you in (or approaching) your latter years and are wondering what you can do to ensure your bones stay strong through the next period of your life?
The good news is, there is plenty you can do now to reduce the risk of bone-related problems down the line. Read ahead for a few exercises you can perform regularly to keep you and your bones in tip-top shape!
Hey readers, it’s your favourite Osteo checking in to see how you are going! Lockdown has meant many of us have had to batten down the hatches and re-discover what it means to be ‘at home’. We ask you the question “how is your body being affected?” Let us take you on a scan of the body, focus on some potentially problematic areas, and give you some advice to avoid any long-term issues.
