Stay warm this weekend, and be well.

-Andy

Back Together DVD program now available from Amazon. Click here to order!

The husband of the couple I was talking to started:

“I know this back pain is never going to go away.”

“If you know it will never go away, then you are right- it won’t.” she replied.

“How can you even say something like that?” he said.

“When I had my car accident seven years ago, I had faith that my pain was going to get better- and it did.”

This led into a long discussion about faith- in the universe, in God, even in one’s self. How much of a role does faith play in recovery from pain? I posted about the role of prayer in pain relief last year, and the discussion caused some of the most interesting letters I had ever received. Some of them were so glad I brought up the topic- others were downright angry that I would include this in a blog devoted to practical solutions for back & neck pain- they felt there was nothing practical about it.

If you’ve followed my blog this past year, you know my family has gone through a lot of difficulty. For myself, faith (or Faith) helped me to cope. I’ve been asked why I think it did, and the best answer I can give is this: For me, the belief that there is an order to things, helps me to reconcile some of the bad things that may be happening right now- maybe I can’t see it, but I personally believe there is an underlying force to the universe and it generally leans towards good.

I always get flack whenever I talk crunchy like this, but this is the only way I have found to even partially explain the role of faith in my life. Everybody seems to have a different take on it though- and frankly, I don’t think it matters if everyone agrees- or even if everyone has faith.

In the end of the day, one thing becomes clear, and you will hear me harp on this point again and again: Psychology has as much to do with how you feel as your physiology, and if prayer or faith gives you more psychological tools to deal with your pain- then faith matters.

Have a great weekend!

This past week, we had a visit from our good friend, and Buddhist Monk, Thay Jiac Dung.

I am so grateful for the nice responses I’ve been getting from viewers. This past week, between the FB fanpage, Twitter, You Tube and directly from right here on the blog, I have gotten more letters than in any previous week. So really, thank you for stopping by and contributing. When I end a video with ‘your cards & letters are what keep this place interesting’- it is the honest truth.

Viewer Letters

DR. KIRSCHNER–DO YOU FEEL THAT DOING YOGA IS A GOOD ALTERNATIVE EXCERCISE FOR SOMEONE WITH SERIOUS BACK PAIN?  I HAVE VERY LITTLE KNOWLEDGE OF YOGA.  WILL IT HURT ME?

-M

Well M, without knowing the specific mechanism or type of back pain you have, I can only make a few statements about Yoga in general…

As a rule, I love Yoga both for exercise and as a modality for helping with back pain. Gentle range of motion exercises and stretches, as found in various types of yoga can be useful for reducing back pain- I’ve personally only done ‘hot’ Yoga a few times, but it was really great for loosening up the muscles of the spine, and restoring some lost range of motion. It also helps with core stability, which is critical for long term reduction of back pain. If you are experimenting with different types of exercise, I would also give a well structured Pilates program a shot as well. As I mentioned before- I don’t know your specific circumstances, so be sure to consult your physician before trying anything. Hope this helps!

In response to the piece on prayer from last week:

Dr. Kirschner, prayer is such an integral part of my health & wellness. I have constant back pain, resulting from a fall off a bicycle. I had a compression fracture in L4, and I have never really had a pain free day since. My faith in God is really one of the only things that keeps me going. My family doctor understands how helpful this is to me, but none of the specialists I see really get it. Thank you for acknowledging the value of prayer.

-Teri

You will always see me stress the connection between body and mind, and for many people, faith is the best way they have of accessing the ‘mind’ component of back pain. I am glad you have found a way to find relief!

In response to the intro to the Alternative Medicine pieces starting next week, Live from the Dead Sea:

Andy- each year me and my boyfriend travel to the Dead Sea and soak in both the sea, and the mud baths around it. When I leave there, I get improvement in my neck pain which lasts 3-4 months. Your readers should really know about this- I get relief without medicine, and it lasts for a long time. I’ve been told the Dead Sea has properties which help lots of people.

-Shawn

As I related in the intro to that video- tens of thousands of people flock to the shores of the Dead Sea each year to float in the salty water, and get themselves covered in the mineral rich mud. I have patients who go there for pain relief, psoriasis, and other conditions. I have seen enough anecdotal evidence that people are getting relief, so I cannot simply write it off as some ‘crunchy’ pseudo-holisitc medicine- but conversely, I cannot explain why these folks are getting these results. I enjoy the sensation of floating in the Dead Sea- but it left me with my skin feeling kind of weird for a few days- and I didn’t particularly care for the sensation. As for a recommendation: if you have people close to you who have gotten results, and it is not too much of a hardship- give it a try! At the very least you will have an amazing trip to one of the most beautiful countries in the world.

Back Together is now available on Amazon.

My book, Back Together, has been available on Amazon since it’s launch. Last week my DVD program finally became available. They both make great gifts- so I hope you will give them a look. The links are below:

Back Together- Hands-on Healing for Couples (BOOK)

Back Together- Simple & Effective Relief from Back Pain- for Couples (DVD)

Thanks again for stopping by. Look for the wrap up on my spinal surgery pieces this week, and the alternative medicine series to begin next week.

Best, and be well!

-Andy

Performing an upper thoracic release on the great Jeremiah Trotter.

Inevitably, I catch some flack from people whenever I touch upon the topic of prayer and its effects on your health. It seems many don’t feel there is a place for prayer in medicine because there is no hard science to support it.

If you’ve been visiting my site for a while, you probably already know that I don’t agree with that sentiment. While I am a physician, and I need empirical evidence to support the use of a specific medicine or treatment modality- you know what a role I feel psyche has on your overall well being, and there is a proven link between psychological well being and physiological health.

I bring this up here because of a few moments where I had the chance to reconnect with elements of my spiritual life last week while I was in Israel…

I have been dealing with some pretty serious personal issues recently, and honestly, I have found them to be somewhat overwhelming (I will be hopefully putting some of these issues to rest Monday, when I publish this post)- and the emotional weight I’ve been carrying as a result has been pretty hard to deal with. Furthermore, my family has had to deal with me, and since you know how much I value ‘couplehood’ as part of my overall view of wellness, I really didn’t want to drag my family down the well with me. As a result I internalized a lot of this stress, and the feelings got worse.

During my trip, I visited the Western Wall, and went to the very spot where I had my Bar Mitzvah nearly thirty years ago. This was an emotional experience for me, as the last time I stood there I was surrounded by all of my Grandparents (the last time they were all together.) My wife and kids stood on the other side of the barrier which separates the men from the women on the exact spot where my Mother, Sister, and Grandmothers watched the ceremony. It really brought forth a flood of emotion,  and for the first time in a long while I felt really connected to my religion and with God. This catharsis left me feeling better, less stressed, and better equipped to cope with the stressful things I face in the coming weeks.

This experience, and the relief associated with it was a reminder to me of how psychology & physiology go hand in hand. I don’t know if you believe in God, or practice religion- what I do know is that you need to have real knowledge of your emotions and the things you internalize in order to get them out of your body,  and feel relief from pain. It doesn’t matter if this knowledge comes about through meditation, exercise, martial arts, or some other route or combination of routes- but it has to happen for you to get the most out of your physical body and reduce your pain. If prayer helps you to do that- then clearly there is a role for prayer in your overall health.

Thanks for visiting,

Andy

Photo taken on the spot of my Bar Mitzvah almost 30 years ago- Donna took this photo from the spot my Mother, Sister, and Grandmothers stood during the ceremony.