Myths about Posture — help for back pain
May 21, 2009
It wasn’t until I started questioning the current theories about correct posture that I started to make some headway with my chronic low back pain.
Although I’ve been acutely aware of the limitations in the knowledge of modern medicine, I somehow assumed that the prevalent description of ideal posture was true. I thought that certainly we at least know that! I could understand that the body is extremely complex chemically and how a lot about how the body functions could still elude us. But body mechanics — wasn’t that pretty straightforward? Surprisingly, no.
Experts actually don’t agree even on what ideal posture is. Most of them — from physical therapists to yoga and Pilates instructors — are pretty much in agreement. But there are those whose opinions differ, and I am finding that those differences in opinion are making all the difference to me.
A book by Esther Gokhale has convinced me that the ideal posture does not include the “tucked” or “neutral” pelvis and the supposedly natural S-curve that most people recommend. In fact, she makes a very convincing argument for holding the pelvis in an “anteverted” position, and for the superiority of a back that is relatively straight above the lower lumbar curve. She backs up these convictions logically and through reference to an amazing collection of pictures of the posture of people in other cultures and times in history, as well as the posture of toddlers whose natural body positions and movement have not yet been conditioned by the culture around them.
I was really ready to hear this alternative approach. Not only had I concluded that I would find some answers in seeing the posture and body movements of people in other, more “natural” or traditional cultures, but I had found through trial and error that anteverting my pelvis through tightening my gluts made my back a lot more comfortable. In fact, once I’d become convinced by Esther’s book, 8 Steps to a Pain Free Back, I abandoned the tucking of my pelvis recommended by my physical therapist to let it tilt into the anteverted position. And since doing that and making a few other adjustments from what I had learned in her book, my low back pain is almost completely gone.
I must confess that I haven’t even done the 8 lessons in the book yet, and I am preparing to do so. I promise to report back on the results. But I couldn’t resist sharing Esther’s ideas with you now. Before you start to invest time, energy and money into a program for your back, I highly recommend that you at least look into this alternative approach. It could make all the difference!
Here is a link to an article by Gokhale — 10 Myths about Posture:
pdf version
html version
See Esther Gokhale on YouTube.
And, last but not least, a link to Esther’s website: egwellness.com Esther has recently started a forum and is very generous in taking time to respond to posts and answer questions.
Staying Healthy in an Unhealthy World — The Story of Stuff
May 12, 2009
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I’ve wanted for the longest time to write about the connection between our health as individuals and the health of the whole world. Now that I’ve seen The Story of Stuff, I don’t have to try to write about this complex and important question. I can just urge you to watch this 20 minute video (free at this link) and see the essence of how our consumer culture works and the impact of its unsustainable and toxic practices. Not only does it affect individual health (though environment toxins, for example), it puts the health of the entire planet in a very precarious state.
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When I first heard about The Story of Stuff, I wasn’t sure I wanted to see it. I didn’t want to see a doom and gloom video that would only serve to depress me. But The Story of Stuff is not at all depressing — alarming, yes, but not depressing. It’s worth seeing for so many reasons. It presents facts and information in such clear terms. It ingeniously summarizes the history and current state of our consumer culture in such a clear, compelling way. It is clever, creative and actually entertaining to watch. After watching the video, you can click through to 10 steps you can take. It’s energizing and inspiring to see what we can actually do to change this situation. And my sense is that taking these steps will be an essential part of a true and lasting economic recovery.
Who is the best authority on your health?
May 4, 2009
I would say you are — or you need to become — the best authority on your health. Ultimately we all are our own authority. Even if we place our trust in someone else, we have made the decision to do so. We have come to the conclusion that this is the authority to trust.
Deciding who to listen to when it comes to diet, exercise, treatment choices, etc. can be confusing at best. Currently I have been reading about solutions for chronic back pain. Each book I read enthusiastically promotes its ideas, with lots of impressive testimonials to boot. As I read many of the books, I find myself thinking — oh yes this makes so much sense, this is the final answer. And yet, many of them disagree on even the most fundamental recommendations. Any suggestion, from how the pelvis should be tilted to whether back pain is related to physical abnormalities or stress, will have an opposing view.
I’m finding in my own healing journey that I learn a little bit of value from each book I read and every therapist I see, even if it is what doesn’t make sense for me. Every idea can trigger an insight for me, as I put together what works for me. It’s ultimately my own insights and observations about what works for me that I’ve come to rely on. How many times has a recommendation for health been made by a major authority, only later to be withdrawn as faulty? How many times have you followed a piece of advice simply because it came from an “authority”, only to later realize it wasn’t helpful at all, maybe even quite the opposite of helpful. I feel it’s vital that we view everything in the light of common sense and our own intuition. The best advice comes from what our bodies tell us, our inner knowing and testing things out for ourselves. At the very least, if someone says “always do this”, “never do that”, “eat this”, “don’t eat that”, etc., actively search out the opposing viewpoint and weigh the options for yourself.
Perhaps conflicting viewpoints are most obvious when it comes to diet. You can find an overwhelming number of conflicting theories and recommendations about food. Some say eat only raw food, others say eat only cooked food. Some say a food is wonderful for you that someone else says is toxic to eat. I’ve been very interested in Ayurveda for years. Ayurveda contains an extensive list of what foods are good for what types of people (which is a big improvement over recommending the same foods for everyone as is done in most systems). Many of these recommendations are consistent among Ayurvedic experts, but even there you can find differing viewpoints.
I always get a chuckle when I remember how someone reconciled opposing viewpoints about whether to eat tomatoes and/or potatoes. One vaidya (Ayurvedic physician) said eat potatoes but don’t eat tomatoes. Another said eat tomatoes but don’t eat potatoes. Someone made an amusing remark — my conclusion is that I can eat both tomatoes and potatoes to my heart’s content! Someone else would have avoided both “just in case”. The ultimate test, of course, would be to see how your own body responds to eating both. And always, moderation goes a long way to negate the possibility of eating the wrong thing. “Eat a little of everything” might be the best advice if you are unsure.
To say that we must be our own authority on our health doesn’t mean not to consult experts. But it does mean to ask questions, educate ourselves about what they are recommending, listen to alternative viewpoints, and ultimately make the decision what makes the most sense for us.
Since I feel that I need to be my own authority, I feel it’s important to develop certain skills. I spend time learning about anatomy and how my body works, noticing the sensations and signals my body sends me, observing how my emotions affect my body, and being thoughtful about the choices I make. I spend time clarifying my values and what is important to me. Being my own authority means being willing to rely on my own common sense and intuition in spite of what the outcome will be. There are never any guarantees for outcomes in life, but we can make sure that we make the best decisions possible and that we honor ourselves and our own inner knowing in the process.