SERIOUSLY SPEAKING – THE SECRET OF STAYING IN THE NOW

Someone brilliant once described anxiety as the distance between 'here and there'…

In the 1960’s the concept of staying focused on the present moment became a part of our culture through popular music and literature.

We now have many phrases in our language to help us stay focused on the ‘here’.  Sayings like ‘Be here now’ and ‘One day (step) at a time’ are designed to remind us that being in the present instead of putting our focus on what comes later can improve the quality of our life.


To illustrate this point, Dr. Patrick Gallagher, the Chairman of the Anthropology Department at George Washington University in the 1960’s, used to tell his students that you can’t be late until you actually arrive at your destination, so worrying about it in the meantime didn’t make sense…




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THE BEST EVER TRICK FOR STAYING IN THE NOW

BREATHE!

If you really focus on your breathing, especially if you include a ’count’ with it, it is just about impossible to focus on anything else!

The time honored formula is:

Take a deep breathe in on the count of 4

As you do this count ‘out-loud’ in your mind in a calming voice…
“In 2, 3, 4…”

Now as you exhale, once again use this same calming voice to count…
“Out 2, 3, 4…”

Do this several times (not while driving etc…)

After a few of these you will definitely be present and experience the joy of being in the moment.  Your sense of smell, your vision and sense of touch, all your senses heighten as you oxygenate your entire system. 

Giving ourselves totally present moments helps increase our ability to focus and deal with the ‘next steps’ or next pages in our lives with more wisdom and awareness.

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CAN YOU RESIST GOING TO THE END OF THIS STORY?

Ever read a mystery book and the anxiety starts getting to you… and the next thing you know you skip to the end of the story?

Okay.  No more anxiety – you know who done it.  

But really, doesn’t it ruin the story?

Unfortunately, many of us deal with life this same way.  When the anxiety starts getting to us – especially when we’re dealing with life’s challenges, we often write the end of the story – way before its time!

For most people who do this, the endings they write are almost always disastrous!  If they are diagnosed with an illness, they are already writing their obituary, if they have a tough test to take, they’ve already failed, financial challenges have them living under that proverbial bridge… 

Why? 

Well, like skipping to the end of the book, the mystery is over!  No more hope – no more anxiety.  Just dread…

Hmm…

When you think about it, is this really a good trade-off?

What do ya think? 

Ever done this one?



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SERIOUSLY SPEAKING – RELEASING HIDDEN ANGER IN 4 EASY STEPS

When we say we are feeling ‘blah’ or ‘down’ what we mean is that our affect is flat and our energy is low. 

It’s important to differentiate between a purely physical feeling like we can have when we are getting sick, or even sometimes on a medication.    

We often increase negative feelings by tormenting ourselves about feeling down!

The magic word is ‘awareness’.  

Once we identify what is actually going on we can begin to heal.




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Try these four easy steps to releasing hidden anger!

1)    Identify the problem:  Ask yourself how you are feeling.  For instance with the blahs you might answer: “Today I am feeling ‘off’.   My energy is low and nothing feels particularly good…”

2)    Awareness Step I:  Check to see if there is a physical issue – are you getting sick?  Did you start a new medication?  Did you run a marathon yesterday?  If the answer to any of these is yes, give yourself a break!  Rest and look forward to tomorrow.

3)    Awareness Step II:  If all the purely physical issues are under control, ask yourself if anything has recently happened that you might be annoyed about.  Did you just have a nasty phone call?  Someone forget to call you?  A run in with a neighbor of friend?  Remember this might have happened yesterday – and it can also be one of those things that you judge to be ‘too minor to bother you’.  Feelings don’t always correspond to our requirements!

4)    The Release:  If you answered ‘yes’ to any of the above, give yourself permission to be angry!  Try a few anger fantasies; a mean-spirited imaginary dialog with the offender goes a long way to relieving that tension that comes with pushed down anger. 

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WHAT EVERYBODY OUGHT TO KNOW ABOUT THE BLAHS!

Ever have one of those really blah days – lots of yucky stuff to do and not much that feels rewarding – and on top of that no one goes out of their way to call and say ‘hi I was thinking of you – you rock!’

One of those all work and no fun days…

Here’s an interesting thing to think about - Anger often hides in the guise of the blahs, in a feeling of frustration, sometimes in anxiety, sometimes in a sense of exhaustion…

And in these cases it is clearly hiding!  

Think about it…  

In any of these disguises anger is difficult to pin down and catch! 
It lurks and squiggles, ducks and feints like a boxer in self-protective mode…

As long as your anger is under wraps it's safe from the intense scrutiny – from the surgical spotlight - that allows us to exorcise and remove the rotting and puss filled sore…

Okay a little carried away there – but I think you get what I’m saying?

If you know you’re angry you can focus your attention on the cause – and do something about it!

Hidden anger is like a low-grade fever that you can’t quite get a handle on – you just know you feel off…

What do ya say?  How many disguises has your anger taken?



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SUNDAY SMILES – NOSE HAIRS AND OTHER MINOR FLAWS

As I entered my doctor’s office yesterday I walked into a conversation between him and his receptionist.  He was talking about nose hairs…  No!  It wasn’t because of me.  I swear it!

Anyhow, he was talking about a pact he made with his sister.  If either of them were ever in the hospital in a coma, the other had to promise that if they noticed little stragglers coming out of the comatose person’s nose…


So, here’s the thing.  Have you noticed that as we age our near vision deteriorates and our far distance vision gets stronger?

Think about it!

Whose nose hairs are you most likely to see…   Your own or those of the person standing in front of you?

Do you think this is part of a cosmic joke?  You know – a way to keep us all entertained?

It really is hard not to stare isn’t it?  They seem to wiggle and move like little antlers…

Ever noticed?  Sure you have!



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SERIOUSLY SPEAKING – LEARN TO BE A COMMUNICATION CHAMELEON IN 5 EASY STEPS

Truly effective communication requires the ability to change your ‘communication colors’ depending upon your audience.  

Some of this is obvious – we speak differently to little children than we do to other adults.

But it’s the subtle verbal 'color changes' that allow us to share our desires and thoughts – to be effective in making sure the message we deliver and the message received are the same!
 

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SHIFTING YOUR COMMUNICATION COLORS - 5 EASY STEPS

1)     Get your ego in check and think about who you are talking to and what you really want them to take away from the conversation …

2)    Think chameleon!  As an experiment actually imagine yourself shifting to fit the other person’s environment – this is subtle-  it is not about using trite expressions to ‘fit in’ but rather about feeling the temperature and context of the moment. 

3)    Listening is key.  What is the other person really saying? Try imitating their tonality and rhythm – subtle, subtle… 

4)    A great trick is to mirror their body language … remember … subtle! 

5)    Try to get into their rhythm of breathing.  Let this be fun…

What happened as you did this?  
Did it feel different?  

Was your connection with this person easier?  
Do you think they felt it?

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HOW MANY LANGUAGES CAN YOU SPEAK?

She couldn’t figure out why her emails to her daughter-in-law weren’t getting answered…

He wondered why he kept getting into such ridiculous arguments and fights with his girlfriend…

They didn’t understand why their son was avoiding talking to them about anything important…

Although we don't often stop to think about it, unlike these people, most kids today are very aware of the need to shuttle between languages, cultures really, as they text with their friends, talk to their bosses, deal with teachers and school.

They glide pretty seamlessly between these different cultures – work, school, friends.  
They don’t complain - much - about the need to shift between these different realities and easily recognize that they have to communicate differently within each context.

What keeps the rest of us from getting this seemingly simple concept?

The email writer was taught a certain way to communicate and didn’t
want to ‘compromise’ her beliefs…

The boyfriend didn’t even realize that his girlfriend spoke a different ‘language’…

And those parents didn’t stop to understand the language their child was communicating in…


Really.  How many languages can you speak?





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SERIOUSLY SPEAKING – HOW TO DEAL WITH FRUSTRATION IN 5 EASY STEPS

Frustration, an emotional response to opposition, is related to anger and disappointment. 

It is important not to turn frustration – an energy that like all other forms of anger requires an outward release – onto yourself.  

It is also important to respond in a healthy, appropriate way – not passive-aggressively and not overly aggressive.




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How to deal with frustration – Let the punishment fit the crime!

With frustration there is always something you can do:

First, be aware!  Acknowledge that you are angry and annoyed.

Second, release the energy so that you are not turning it on yourself. 

Check out your stomach, shoulders, neck.  How’s your breathing?

Tightness and shallow breathing are all signs that you are internalizing anger!


TRY THESE 5 EASY STEPS:

1)      Breathe deeply.

2)     Scream into a pillow.  (pillows muffle sound – a great kindness to neighbors.)

3)     Imagine doing something outrageous to the perp.

4)     Do  something creative with the energy – write, draw, sing a mean song…

5)     NOW FIX IT!  Things that frustrate us usually have a solution.  Think outside that infamous box.

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ONE STEP FORWARD…

So today this company I hired to do something relatively simple – explained myself until I was blue in the face – totally misread the agreement… and sent me a bill for four times what I was sure we had agreed on!

Yikes!

And now what?  I have to use my energy to fix it! 

I thought the idea of hiring them was to save me time and effort!  Ugh!

Don’t you just hate those 2 steps forward and 3 steps back days!

And do you ever notice how these things really do seem to go in … threes? 

Seriously, can’t I blame it on the stars?  Just this once?

What do ya say?  Been there?





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OUR "OLD FRIENDS"  FEATURE THIS PAST WEEKEND WAS A WONDERFUL SUCCESS!  WE HAD OVER 250 HITS ON THIS ONE!  THANK YOU ALL AND THANK YOU GREGORY TAYLOR!

COMPENSATION – PART TWO


Yesterday Physical Therapist Greg Taylor explained how compensation can occur after an injury and some of the problems that this can cause. Today, as we continue our conversation with Greg, our first question is:

OLD:  What can we do to avoid this?

Greg:  The first thing to do – and the best - is to be aware. 

Be aware of how you are sitting; more slumping or arm support when getting up can be a sign. 

Be aware of how you are standing; more hip leaning and frequent adjustments can be telling.

Be aware of how you are walking; a foot scrape sound that wasn’t there previously is a sure symptom.

I do a fun challenge test in my teaching clinic with the new medical students that rotate through by asking a patient with a post-surgical foot injury to walk so that the students cannot tell which foot was operated on.  This instills confidence in the patient.  They know that they are on the right track when they can fool these well-trained eyes! 

Try this experiment with a friend or colleague if you are not sure you have overcome the habit of limping from an injury to your foot, ankle, leg, knee or hip.  They still may have a 50/50 chance of getting it right, so if they do, ask why.  Though they might not be medically trained you are bound to get an interesting answer.

OLD:  How can we tell when it’s time to get help from a healthcare professional?

Greg:  It’s time to get professional help when you are unable to reach the physical goals you set for yourself after your injury.  
And if you haven’t set any goals do so now! 

Try to make them more than just being pain free, although that is an important one when trying to avoid compensation. Choose functional and physical goals that will make you feel good about yourself and your accomplishments. 

Physical therapists and other rehabilitation specialists are trained to help you do just that - reach your goals. 

We are trained to look at the whole body as it relates to function, focusing on more than the site of the injury and the immediate clinical symptoms. 

Our goal is for our patients to know as much about their injury as we do, promoting independence through education and shared experiences.  

I really do believe in the motto I wrote for our clinic:
Physical Therapy – Improving Your Movement, Improving Your Life!

Seeing a physical therapist may consist of a regimen of 3 times a week for 3 months or just once every few months for a tune-up, it all depends on your goals and needs. 

New York State has recently passed the law of direct access.  This allows a patient to see a qualified therapist without a referral from another doctor.  (Insurance company requirements vary so check with your insurance provider on what they require).

To reach Greg directly:

Gregory P. Taylor, PT, DPT
Director of Physical Therapy  
Foot Center of New York/New York College of Podiatric Medicine
55E. 124^th Street, New York, NY 11201
212 410.8090

GTaylor@NYCPM.edu

http://footcenterofny.org/physicaltherapy.html

http://footcenterofny.org/

OLD FRIENDS TAKE THE STAGE - COMPENSATION

The following is the first in our new series…

COMPENSATION

Often when one part of our lives goes on the blink we learn to fill in the blank with new behavior.  Is this a good thing?


In today’s post, our guest, Greg Taylor, a well known and respected New York City physical therapist, talks about how this happens with injuries to our bodies and what we can do to help ourselves heal.

Greg, a former dancer with the Joffrey Ballet, is Director of Physical Therapy at the Foot Center of New York, affiliated with New York College of Podiatric Medicine.

O.L.D. asked Greg to share some ideas with us about recovering from injury.

OLD:  Greg, can you explain how compensation occurs after an injury?

GREG:  There is a physical adaptation that takes over when our body is unable to operate in the same way it did prior to the injury. 
The mind tells the body to continue on with the activity and will incorporate new techniques and methods to accomplish this goal. Some good, some not so good. 

Different muscle groups, joints, breathing patterns, and energy resources will be called on to finish the task at hand,  and because the body is made up of different systems and subsystems that each have their determined role, when one part is called upon to substitute for another (the injured body part) an imbalance starts to occur.

It can be as obvious as limping after an ankle sprain, where the uninvolved limb now spends more time on the ground and thus requires increases in muscle work, joint stress, oxygen demands, and energy.

It can also quite often be less obvious, as with a mild hip injury that limits your range of motion.  You are still able to walk but have now adapted new ways to do old things.  Incorporating hip-hiking muscles in the back for walking and adapting new standing and sitting positions are some subconscious ways the body will protect itself from re-injury.

While there have been physical changes due to the injury we often don’t make logistical changes to our way of life. 

OLD:  What are some of the ways this compensation can become problematic?

Greg:  Problems can arise with compensation from injury when the adaptation is sustained over a prolonged period of time.  Unfortunately there is no predetermined problem list for any particular injury, but there are some commonalities that clinicians can identity. 

Remember, everyone is different and we all bring different characteristics to the healing table.  

Co-morbidities, extent of the injury, body type, and quality of life all play a part in the scope of problems that may occur. 

Over-use injuries of compensating muscles, tissues and joints are the most common problems to watch out for. 

The last thing you need when healing from an injury is to create another injury!  It is also important to remember the emotional and psychological effect that can come about when dealing with a chronic or even acute injury.

If you know that it is painful to be on your feet for prolonged periods this may lead to cancelling activities that you enjoy, thus adding feelings of dependence and even depression.

(In the 1960’s, Saad Nagi created a model to explain how pathology can first be an impairment, then lead to functional limitations, and finally become a disability.  This model helps clinicians determine the most effective point of intervention.)

OLD:  What are some clues for us that the injury compensation might be causing problems?

Greg:  The most immediate clues that injury compensation is causing problems are new pains! 

This may sound obvious but quite often I have patients that don’t connect a new pain as being associated with an old injury, especially if the new pain is located far from the original one. 

I know of a patient who was healing from injury to his left great toe and had gotten to the point where he could run again, even though the toe was not completely healed. 

Soon he started to report a pain in the front of his left shoulder that became worse the more he ran.  An analysis of his running style discovered a compensation of a slight forward shoulder thrust - he was subconsciously avoiding  fully pushing off his great toe - an antalgic terminal stance -  causing tissue irritation and inflammation at his anterior shoulder. 

His mind had memorized the point of pain and subsequently sought to avoid it, as far up the kinetic chain as his shoulder! 

Let me also share the example of my father and his knee pain.  He told me it had completely resolved and he was much better. 

During my next cross-country visit, I noticed that he was still limping in the same way as the last time I saw him. 

I asked him why he was still limping when he had told me he was much better.

“Oh, that’s right, I am,” he said and straightened up and walked away perfectly limp-free! 

It’s also important to be aware of changes in energy demands.  Is that flight of stairs you normally handle easily now finding you breathing harder once at the top?  Do you find yourself searching for a seat on the train when you once did not mind standing?

OLD:  What can we do? 

To be continued… Tune in tomorrow to get some great answers!

Gregory P. Taylor, PT, DPT
Director of Physical Therapy – Foot Center of New York/New York College of Podiatric Medicine
55E. 124^th Street, New York, NY 11201       212 410.8090

GTaylor@NYCPM.edu
http://footcenterofny.org/physicaltherapy.html
http://footcenterofny.org/



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