Tag Archives: Cranial Sacral Therapy

Living Well with Brainlash: February

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Welcome to the February 2012 edition of “Living Well with Brainlash”, the blog for people with MTBI, their supporters and their health care providers. Whether you have been recently diagnosed with MTBI, Post Concussive Syndrome, PTSD, Chemo Brain, or the myriad of other descriptors that circle around these diagnoses, here you will find help, understanding, resources, great ideas, support, and useful Lifestyle Strategies for living your life well.

Here are the five categories and their five topics for the February blog:

  1.  Symptoms of MTBI:  Fake ADD and Hypothalamus Issues
  2.  Body Therapies: Behavioral Optometry
  3. Dietary Supplements: B-12, Folic Acid
  4. Handy Hint: Fluorescent Lights are Everywhere
  5. Food: Good Carb Recipes

 

  1. Symptoms of MTBI: Fake ADD and Hypothalamus Issues

Fake ADD:  It is quite common for an MTBI person to exhibit signs which appear to mimic Attention Deficit Disorder. So much so that they are diagnosed with ADD instead of the broader MTBI. Many are even medicated and treated with ADD-specific therapies.

If you did not have clinically diagnosed ADD before your MTBI, then it is entirely possible your symptoms of MTBI are mimicking ADD in part. This is what I call “Fake ADD”.

The signs are there. Buzzy attention span, nervous feelings, short attention to detail, easily distracted, forgetfulness, hyper demeanor and all the rest. Yes, lots of symptoms are shared with the ADD diagnosis.

Curiously, however, your Fake ADD symptoms can go away with classic MTBI therapies, such as Cranial Sacral Therapy, Vision Therapy, supplementation. The same therapies are not so effective for classic ADD.

Hypothalamus Issues:  Recently published studies suggest that hormone imbalances within the body after an MTBI can be linked with the traumatic disruption of function of the hypothalamus gland. This gland, the master gland for hormone functions, is located in about the center of the skull, deep inside the brain. Traumatic jostling of the brain with injury holds a high degree of possibility that the hypothalamus gland has been jarred or jiggled in such a way as to influence its full function.

Endocrine function may be disturbed, and delivery of various hormones (as important as insulin-like growth factor, testosterone/estrogen, thyroid and cortisol) may be reduced or compromised within the body.

Check out the January 2012 “Life Extension” magazine for more specific details.

 

 2. Body Therapies: Behavioral Optometry

The second foundational leg of MTBI recovery (aside from Cranial Sacral Therapy) is Behavioral Optometry.

You may well ask two questions: What is that? and Why hasn’t my optometrist told me about it?

What is it?  Behavioral Optometry is the therapeutic arm of the profession of optometry. Behavioral optometrists are eye doctors with the same background education as your optometrist. And they have taken further steps to learn about and offer treatment modalities which address the dysfunctions of the eye (beyond issuing another pair of glasses to compensate for the problem.) This additional education is usually signified with the fellowship initials: FCOVD. Look for those initials behind the doctor’s name.

Why hasn’t my optometrist told me about it?  Well now, that is political. While optometrists and Behavioral optometrists have the same base education, there is still a tension within the occupation between the two groups.

What you need to know is this: Behavioral Optometrists are trained to evaluate and treat the consequences of MTBI as they relate to your eyes. Since your eyes are literally a functioning part of the brain, when you experience an MTBI there is a reasonable chance that your vision has been disrupted. (Dizzy? Nausea? Blurred focus? Cognitive retention? Skipping words on the written page? Headaches?)

So, get your vision evaluated. Not by your optometrist, who I am sure has been taking very good care of you all these years. Get an evaluation by a Behavioral Optometrist, experienced in the consequences of MTBI as they relate to the eyes. If you pass all the tests, then great! Move on to therapies that you need.

However, if your eyes are involved, begin your Vision Therapy immediately.

I am quite fond of saying, “Get your Cranial Sacral and your Behavioral Optometry first. They are the cornerstone therapies upon which all other MTBI therapies will be more effective built.”

 

3.  Dietary Supplements: B-12 & Folic Acid

 B-12 – This B vitamin is usually taken as an ‘under the tongue’ or sublingual vitamin, as it goes into the system most effectively right in your mouth. B-12 is most commonly suggested as a supportive supplement for depression, various brain functions and pain management issues.

As with all B vitamins, morning usage is recommended. It elevates mood and helps with fatigue.

Folic Acid – This B vitamin has shown to be very important for memory, attention efficiency, depression issues and fatigue. Folic acid is found in most B Complex supplements.

As with all B vitamins, morning usage is recommended.

 

4. Handy Hint: Fluorescent Lights are Everywhere

Fluorescent lights are ubiquitous in our modern world. Not just the banks and banks of them in the grocery store, flickering and buzzing. Everywhere you go from the gas station at night to your doctor, your dentist and yes, various brain injury therapy offices.

And those compact fluorescents, meant to be economical? They are still fluorescent.

Needless to say, fluorescent lighting is painful to the eyes of MTBI folks. The squinting from the glare adds to headaches, eye strain, fatigue and overall sensitivity responses. Wearing a ball cap can really help, as can sunglasses.

In your own home and at work where you can, eliminate fluorescent lights and return to incandescent. When you encounter resistance, persevere.  Your brain and eyes will simply work better with more gentle, incandescent lighting.

If you feel ‘un-green’ about incandescents, compensate by improving your recycling skills and doing good in other areas. As a brain injured person, take care of yourself and stay away from fluorescent lighting as much as possible. When necessary, invoke the ball cap and sunglasses.

 

5. Food: Good Carb Recipes

Gail’s Infamous Low Carb Baking Mix

This is the lower carbohydrate baking mix I invented. It has about half the carbs of regular baking mixes. It also has lower protein content than the soy flour based natural mixes, so it is kinder to your digestion and tastes better too!

Low Carb Bake Mix

  • 1 cup wheat germ, untoasted
  • 1 cup organic oat flour
  • 1 cup organic oat bran
  • 1 cup organic flaxmeal (brown or golden)
  • 1 cup organic almond meal flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 cup egg white powder
  • 1 tsp.  nutmeg, ground

Combine in a large mixing bowl and store in the refrigerator in a closed container  until you are ready to make something!

Use this mix as you would any other mix.

For pancakes or waffles, mix together 1 1/2 cups mix with 1-2 eggs, and enough water to wet the ingredients. Let it stand 5 minutes, then add in any additional water to make the batter the consistency you appreciate. (Add your blueberries and chopped nuts now.) Bake as usual and enjoy lower carb, yummy breakfast.

This mix works great for cookies, brownies, scones, muffins, quick breads and fruit crisps. Try it!

Thanks for reading. See you next month.

I offer one-on-one Life Coaching sessions, when you are ready for personalized help with your recovery. Check the Life Coaching tab for information. Email me directly for an appointment.

Living Well with Brainlash: January

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Welcome to the January 2012 edition of “Living Well with Brainlash”, the blog for people with MTBI, their supporters and their health care providers. Whether you have been recently diagnosed with MTBI, Post Concussive Syndrome, PTSD, Chemo Brain, or the myriad of other descriptors that circle around these diagnoses, here you will find help, understanding, resources, great ideas, support, and useful Lifestyle Strategies for living your life well.

Here are the five categories and their five topics for the January blog:

  1. Symptoms of MTBI:  The Importance of Nourishment
  2. Body Therapies: Cranial Sacral Therapy
  3. Dietary Supplements: CoQ 10,  Phos.Choline
  4. Handy Hint: Ball Cap Strategy
  5. Food: Actual Good Carbohydrates

 

1.  Symptoms of MTBI:

The Importance of Nourishment

Every day you vote with your fork at least three times. This is a predictable act, a repeated, consistent therapeutic act. You choose your fuel, and you add it to your body regularly.

You watch which grade of gas you put in your car because fuel grade makes a performance difference. I’ll save the diet lecture, and jump right to the reasons your brain injury recovery will work best with a few attentive menu behaviors.

Drink water. Water keeps you hydrated, helps your brain work as well as possible. Optimal water consumption: 8 glasses a day. All other beverages you consume do not contribute to this total.

Eat protein 3 times a day, or more. You have a brain injury, and eating protein frequently gives you a sustained supply of the building blocks your body needs to repair your brain. So, an egg with breakfast. Cheese sandwich for lunch. Or a cup of chicken broth. Dinner of fish with veggies. As a snack, a dip with veggie sticks. A handful of walnuts.

Eat breakfast. This single act is one of the most powerful for gaining maximum energy through your day. Eat breakfast before 9 AM.

Eat lunch. And eat lunch by noon or 1 PM. Include protein.

Eat dinner. And finish your meal by 7 PM. No snacking afterwards. Give your body and your brain a chance to rest.

Snack time. Have a small, refreshing snack anytime after breakfast and before 7 PM. A handful of almonds. Celery sticks with nut butter. A slice of cheese.

Supplements and Vitamins. Most of the specific supplements meant to assist the healing of a brain injury are best taken early in the day. This is because the supplements are active nourishment, and are meant to stimulate cognitive activity and circulation. Therefore, take them so your waking hours benefit from the supplements. I suggest most should be taken with breakfast or lunch.  If you take them too late in the day, you run the chance that your brain will receive stimulating help about the time you would prefer to go to sleep!

Low Glycemic Foods. Carbohydrates are important aspects of a healthful menu. The lower the carb-to-fiber ratio, the better for your body furnace. These foods are the steady, slow burners in your furnace. If you choose processed foods (you know, junk food), the body burns through it fast and the nutritional value is very poor. None of this is news to you. Whole foods, unprocessed foods you cook yourself have better nutritional value.

So, salad is good. Whole grain breads and cereals. Eggs, yogurt. Fruit. Vegetables. Nuts. You get it.

What you might not realize is, with a brain injury your usual mechanism for deciding if you are ‘hungry or full’ is on the fritz.  The hypothalamus gland, located in the middle of your head, is generally jarred in most instances of head trauma. So in addition to it regulating ‘wake-sleep’, ‘hot-cold’, and ‘thirsty-sated’, it also governs ‘hungry-full’.

With MTBI, your ‘hungry-full’ may be this constant ‘feed me’ buzz in your consciousness that seemingly no amount of munching and crunching can shut up. Nothing you eat satisfies. There is a continuous, yes annoying, hum of low-grade craving.

So here’s the double good news: a higher protein, lower carb, whole food menu can calm that experience down. AND. While you are waiting for it to calm down, at least you are not gaining weight (or as much as you could on soda and chips).

Soda. I will save the ‘empty calories’ lecture, and jump straight to the artificial ingredients. Aspartame. Nutrasweet. Splenda. Saccharin. And their ilk. All are called “Excito-toxins.” They are disruptive to brain function. And with an actual brain injury, it  multiplies the added stress you are heaping on top of your recovery efforts.

For beverage entertainment, mix at home some fizzy water with about 10% actual fruit juice poured into your cup. Use real fruit juice. (Don’t get me started on High Fructose Corn Syrup.)

 

Lean Into the Changes.

Is it easy to change your eating habits on top of MTBI recovery? Certainly not. Sometimes it will feel like ‘one more thing’ on top of a heap of exhausting challenges.

That’s why I recommend leaning into these changes. Shift gently and steadily. From the above list, pick one and invoke it into your lifestyle.  Maybe giving up soda is easy, and shifting that to a water habit is your chosen first step. Excellent. Get started.

Remember, you are in charge of what you select at the grocery store. Switch categorically from one sort of food item to a different brand with more wholesome ingredients. You will eat what you bring home from the store. Start shifting your choices towards low-carb, high value foods that support your brain health.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

With modest focus on your daily menu, its content and its timing, you enhance your overall health, fortify your energy supply, support maximum brain function and give yourself the best chance for optimal recovery.

 

2. Body Therapies

Cranial Sacral Therapy

 

In my opinion, a vital cornerstone of MTBI recovery is founded on the treatment known as Cranial Sacral Therapy. This therapy is based on the principle that your body, especially your central nervous system, and specifically your head, spinal cord and the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) that moves within this system, functions most effectively when the pressure and flow of CSF are in balance.

When an MTBI is present, this balance of flow and pressure is generally disrupted. Symptoms of this imbalance can include but certainly are not limited to headaches, insomnia, nausea, irritability, foggy thinking, poor equilibrium, face pain, inflexible mood and environmental or social oversensitivity.

Treating these and similar symptoms as a primary therapy approach sets the stage for all therapies that follow, and for those next therapies to be more successful and effective with less effort and in less time.

There are several avenues to locating a qualified Cranial Sacral Therapist. Many Osteopathic physicians practice Cranial Sacral Therapy. (An Osteopath is recognized as an Allopathic physician, so the treatment may be covered by insurance.) Many Physical Therapists practice Cranial Sacral Therapy, so likewise it may be covered by insurance.

Additionally, some Massage Therapists offer this service, as well as certified Cranial Sacral Therapists.

Importantly, select a Cranial Sacral practitioner with experience and credible credentials. (Not someone with a fancy Weekend Seminar certificate.)

 

3. Dietary Supplements:

CoEnzymeQ 10, Phos. Choline

Supplement caveat: My statements about supplements, general dose suggestions, brand names or general  benefits have not been evaluated by the FDA, and my opinions are not intended to be viewed as a diagnosis, treatment, cure or preventive against any disease.

CoEnzyme Q 10 (CoQ10)

This supplement is highly valuable as an antioxidant and is a crucial component in the primary energy production cycle. For MTBI, this supplement offers support for cognitive energy increase.

Phosphatidylcholine (Phos. Choline)

This lecithin-based supplement is a main component of cell membranes and is critical for brain function.

 

4. Handy Hint

Ball Cap Strategy

Your Ball Cap is your friend. Keep one handy in the car, keep several within reach in the house. Wear one when you go into any public building, grocery store, medical or dental office, restaurant. The brim on that ball cap will shade your eyes from up to 40% of the obnoxious glare and incredibly stressful brilliance of fluorescent overhead lights.

Fluorescent lights may not bother most people, but they burn valuable brain and eye energy from MTBI people. They wear us out, fast. I can actually feel the energy drain when I walk into the grocery store and realize my ball cap is in the car. There is no shopping fast enough to avoid the debilitating effects of the flickering, face-squinting rays.

Compact fluorescents are no better. Have you ever been over to dinner at someone else’s home and their dining room chandelier is loaded with those compact fluorescents? It’s enough to make me cry, long before dessert arrives. So I always take a hat when I go out for the evening.

For the record, other hat styles are welcome if they get the job done.

 

5. Food

Actual Good Carbohydrates

You will be happy to know that there are lots of really tasty and enjoyable foods  low in carbohydrate content. Let’s start eating now!

Breakfast:

Rule #1: Eat breakfast

Rule #2: Eat protein for breakfast.

You need protein first thing for breakfast. Listen, you are healing from MTBI, and your body is making new brain cells and repairing the ones that have been injured. The building block for cell generation is protein. Eat protein now.

Scrambled eggs with mushrooms and spinach.

Whip up two eggs with a little milk or water. Set them aside and sauté about 3 medium sized, sliced mushrooms in a little olive oil. Throw in a handful of washed and dryed-off spinach leaves. When the spinach has wilted, pour in the eggs and cook to your taste.

Serve on a plate, with a slice of low-carb toast (by that, I mean a slice of bread which states on the label that the Carb Content is 14 grams or less.)(Carb content minus dietary fiber content is total carb content.) Yes, you can have butter on your toast. And add some berries and fresh fruit to the plate.

Snack:

Handful of almonds (raw, unsalted is best), or handful of walnuts (raw is best)

Lunch:

Rule #1: Eat lunch

Rule #2: Eat protein for lunch.

You need protein for lunch. See reasons above.

 

Nice big salad with sliced grilled chicken or shrimp.

Salad dressing with olive oil base is perfect. Very tasty low-carb mayonnaise is made by “Smart Balance”. Key here is to make your own dressing when you can. Garnish with sliced pecans or roasted sunflower seeds.

Snack:

Half an apple.

Carrot sticks dipped in almond butter.

Dinner:

Rule #1: Eat dinner. (Be done by 7 PM.)

Rule #2: Eat protein for dinner.  (Are you getting the drift here?)

Turkey Burger with Sauteed Asparagus

Mix 1 pound ground turkey together with your favorite seasonings, 1/2 cup minced onion, 1/2 cup minced celery, 1 egg and 3 Tablespoons of whole grain barley flour. Shape into 4 patties and fry in olive oil, browning both sides.

Meanwhile, sauté asparagus spears in olive oil with a sprinkling of garlic powder. Cook until tender.

Serve turkey burger and asparagus on a plate with sliced tomatoes and a nice dollop of your favorite condiments.

Now, you have just had five eating events with lots of yummy ingredients. Notice, there were no ‘punishment’ ingredients involved. And you hovered right around 60 grams of carbs for the day. Excellent.

Now, no more food until breakfast tomorrow.

You will sleep better on an empty stomach.

 

Shopping Tip of the Month

Do not buy or eat anything with Aspartame, NutraSweet, Splenda or other Excito-toxin sweeteners in it. Excito-toxins are very stressful upon brain function, and more so with MTBI.

For beverage sweeteners, use liquid or powdered Stevia. (No carbs there!)

For baking, use crystallized Xylitol. Use 1/4 cup to every cup of sugar called for in a recipe. This product is low glycemic and very sweet.

 

Thanks for reading. See you next month.

I offer one-on-one Life Coaching sessions, when you are ready for personalized help with your recovery. Check the Life Coaching tab for information. Email me directly for an appointment.

Living Well with Brainlash Introduction

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Welcome to the “Living Well with Brainlash” series. This monthly blog will provide you with useful information about recovery options for MTBI. This monthly blog will also form the basis for my next book on MTBI recovery, due in 2013.

Each month I will offer thoughts in five categories that you can easily apply to your lifestyle, and enhance your daily life as well as your overall lifestyle approach.

The first category is “Symptoms Of MTBI”. This conversation will highlight a commonly understood aspect of living with a mild brain injury, and offer suggestions and strategies for treating the issue. Many of these symptoms, which you may have found yourself reporting to various health care providers with varying degrees of success, are quite common. You are not making anything up!

This category will arm you with terms and descriptors that will aid you in making yourself better understood and hopefully lead you to appropriate therapies, actions and strategies. The more you learn about MTBI, the more successfully you can communicate your experiences and gain support and understanding.

The second category is “Body Therapies”. To the great surprise and relief of most MTBI sufferers, there are actually a great number of supportive therapies available for the recovery of lifestyle function. Several of these therapies are actually available through Allopathic medicine (Western medicine.) Of course, the trick is to know about the therapy yourself, then to educate your Allopathic caregiver, and obtain a prescription for the treatment that your insurance company may support.

While this may sound like ‘it’s not your job’, believe me it is worth it to try and gain treatment through channels you are already paying for. Failing that, many of the suggested therapies are still worth paying for out of pocket because they work, whether your Allopathic care provider is trained to understand the benefits or not.

Allopathic medicine is very ‘specialty-based’, and many branches of treatment are not aware of one another. Remain steady in your quest. There are solutions which can be found by educating yourself.

Category three focuses on “Dietary Supplements”, of which numerous choices exist. It is commonly known that specific supplements enhance brain function and nourish brain injury deficits. Not all supplements work for all people, and not all combinations work for all people. That said, there are many supplements to choose from and many brands to consider.

This section will highlight at least two supplements to consider each month. In some cases, a brand will be mentioned. Importantly, the time of day for the supplement will also be mentioned. The very best supplement taken too late in the day can still keep you awake, alert and brain-happy when you would prefer to sleep! And with all supplements, please consult your physician.

The fourth category I like to call “The Handy Hint”.  Most of these hints are simple, easy to understand and gentle to add to your day. When I bring these ideas up to clients, it functions as a ‘forehead-slapping moment” or a “why hasn’t anyone told me about this before” experience. Such a simple thing. And a functional bonanza if you haven’t heard about it before.

The Handy Hints are the strategy toolbox for daily living. These are the incremental adjustments that reduce stress, lower stimuli in your environment and smooth your way. Because they are simple, they are not considered therapeutic or a part of a treatment protocol. Obvious to the uninjured, so not pointed out.

I am here to point these things out! If you knew wearing your sunglasses to the grocery store would reduce the visual stress of being in an overly lit environment by 30-40%, you would have done it already, right? See what I mean?

The fifth category highlights “Food”! It’s hard enough to have an MTBI, but to have to watch what you eat, shop for healthy ingredients, cook for yourself and avoid munching while being on the couch. It’s all just too much.

Weight gain during the first year of an MTBI is likely. For several reasons, your metabolism is shifted and slowed down. Your brain protects you while it is healing. And the easy food to reach for is a high calorie carbohydrate. You already know the difference between lettuce and brownies, so let’s save time and move on to menu strategies!

The January blog will establish the value of protein eaten at all three meals, and the importance of low glycemic, complex carbohydrates.  Snack suggestions and the value of water (and the evils of artificial soda).  Potentially brain-harming preservatives and additives found in many foods will also be discussed.

Shopping suggestions, healthy snacks and beverages, brand name products and label reading skills are offered. Hot tips easily added to your lifestyle will make potential weight gain easier to forestall and more manageable.

Your injured brain may be screaming at you for sugar, but that’s just because buzzy calories used to work as fuel. Now, not so much. Mostly your brain is just buzzing, and your old skill of shutting it up with calories is no longer helpful. I am here to show you a new way to calm those calorie-hound voices in your head and keep you from unconsciously piling on the pounds.

This category will also offer you quick recipes to streamline your kitchen experience and support your brain health. And don’t worry, in a previous life I wrote five (yes, five) cookbooks. So I know how to deliver flavor, kitchen speed and menu satisfaction!

Above all remember this: You will eat what you buy.

So, let’s start the blog. Welcome to “Living Well with Brainlash”.