Merry Christmas!
Inside this Issue
Christmas Reflections
Feel Good for the Holidays
Emergency Office Visits
Avoid Snow Shovel Injuries
Stay Out of Pain While Wrapping
Drive Safe
CHRISTMAS REFLECTIONS
Christmas is upon us once again! Most of us are rushing around with Christmas preparations, hoping once more to be done early enough to relax and enjoy the holidays with family and friends. I feel the pressure like so many of you do, still, I wanted to get a letter out to let you know our holiday hours, send you my greetings, and share some personal thoughts about this most wonderful of holidays.
Through the office and in my personal life I know so many people who are experiencing pain in their lives this year. Some of it is physical though a good deal of it comes from other causes. Christmas threatens to be a sad time for many. All of us who have been around for a while can relate to this, I believe.
Life is full of challenges and difficulties – paying bills, keeping up with responsibilities at work and home, dealing with troubled relationships, coping with illnesses, finding time for family and friends, watching kids grow up and become independent, keeping our aging bodies in good working order, coping with the loss of loved ones, being concerned for the safety of our relatives in the service, living with disappointments in life, the list seems to go on and on. We often feel alone in our sorrows, but all of us experience most of these troubles sooner or later. So can we truly be happy at Christmas when so many burdens weigh us down? I believe we can.
I love Christmas. I love it for what it is truly about. Is it overly commercialized? Perhaps. But there is more to it than that. It is a time to reflect on the simple mystery of the first Christmas and what it means to us even today. Christmas is about giving . It is a positive time when we focus our energies on bringing happiness to others, in as many ways as we can. It is a time to step outside of all the drudgery and get excited like little children. It is a time to sit in the quiet and reflect on the meaning of the little baby lying in the manger underneath our Christmas trees. It is a time to remember that GOD loves us and we are happiest when we are sharing that love with others.
Whatever your current situation, I wish each of you true peace, good health and happiness over the holidays and in the year to come. Merry Christmas!
- Dr. Steve
Feel Good for the Holidays
The holiday season is usually a time when you walk more, shop longer, cook more, work out in the cold, along with other activities your body is not conditioned to. This often leads to increased aches and pains in your shoulders, neck and back. Tension headaches are more common, too. Your legs may feel weak, heavy, sore, or achy from the increased exertion. Your sleep or energy may suffer as well.
Chiropractic care can help you have a happier holiday season by keeping your body in good alignment, thereby minimizing or eliminating the nerve irritation that often causes these aches and pains and other disturbing symptoms.
Schedule time to come in and get adjusted close to when you hope to feel your best. Be conscious of the fact you are more likely to overexert and hurt yourself when doing new activities or more than your body is used to. Try planning your work in smaller chunks to lighten the strain on your muscles and joints. Get help when lifting heavier items. Be aware, and use common sense.
Taking these simple steps can help you avoid untimely injuries and keep you feeling your best for the holidays!
Emergency Office Visits
We are happy to be able to offer you a 6-day. Monday through Saturday normal office hours schedule. We always make every effort to get you scheduled when you need care. None-the-less, there may be a situation where you feel that your current condition is a chiropractic emergency, and it is outside of our normal office hours.
If you contact Dr. Wohar, he will listen to you regarding your situation and help you determine the best plan of action. If it is determined that urgent care is necessary and cannot wait for normal hours, 3 courses of action may be offered. If reasonably possible, Dr. Wohar will meet you at the office for care, or if he cannot see you, he will recommend you see another chiropractor or, go to the emergency room.
Please note: Due to the extraordinary nature of your care in these situations, we have a minimum emergency office charge of $75 for these visits.
Avoid Snow-shoveling Injuries!
It will soon be that time when we’ll be outside digging out our cars, or clearing the walks and driveways (not to mention the office parking lot!) Snow-shoveling is a common cause of back and shoulder injuries during the winter. And it is always sad to hear reports of heart attacks as well. Here are a few suggestions to lessen your chance of an injury this winter:
Use a smaller shovel.
It may seem efficient to use a larger one but, it also increases the weight of the snow, and the stress on your back.
If you are tired, take a break.
Pushing already tired muscles may lead to injury.
If you have treated for an injury lately, or if you are not in the best of health, consider hiring a younger person to do the job.
It will be worth it.
Bend your knees while shoveling.
Bending only at the waist increases the strain on your muscles and ligaments and sets you up for an injury.
Switch sides frequently while using a shovel or broom.
This balances the stress between opposing muscle groups and decreases the risk of sprain or strain to one side.
If you do notice any pain while shoveling, stop, rest, and apply ice for 15 minutes every hour over the painful area.
If the area is not feeling better in the next 2-3 days, call for an appointment. Injuries heal faster when treated sooner.
Tips to Stay Out of Pain While Shopping and Wrapping
Putting a little thought into the way you carry packages and wrap can also keep you feeling good for Christmas and help you avoid painful conditions. Keep these in mind during the next few weeks:
1. Balance your loads. Try to spread the weight of the bags or packages you are carrying evenly on both arms. Too much load on one side can strain your shoulder or low back.
2. Take more trips to the car, especially walking around malls. It may seem inconvenient, but so is a bad injury right before Christmas. It’s worth the time.
3. Put your foot or knee on the bumper when loading things into the trunk of your car. Bending at the waist with your arms loaded is a frequent cause of sprains.
4. Wrap presents on a table or counter at a comfortable height. Bend your knees, if possible. Do not wrap ‘Indian-style’ as this stresses your sacroiliac and hip joints. I see several of you every Christmas for injuries caused by sitting this way while wrapping.
Please Drive Safe & Sober this Holiday Season!
I read an article in an AAA newsletter a few years ago stating that according to statistics, 1.5 million drivers are arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol, each year. That’s one person every 20 seconds. Alcohol was a factor in 41% of the more than 17,000 highway deaths that year. We each have a 30% chance of being directly involved in an alcohol-related crash during our lifetime. During a typical weekend an average of one teenager dies every hour in a car crash. Nearly 50% of those crashes involve alcohol.
I am shocked and disturbed when I think of all the unnecessary pain, suffering, and loss hidden within those statistics. It is a personal issue to me. My wife, Karen, was hit by a drunk driver while we were dating in college. Her friends and her thought they had lost him at an intersection. However, just minutes later, he hit their car at approximately 40-50mph while they were stopped at a red light.
Karen treated with a chiropractor for 1 ½ years following that crash. She got very good results. However, most people agree that a crashed vehicle is never the same again, regardless of how well the repairs are made. I know this firsthand since our car was smashed by a drunk driver several years ago. Anyway, like cars, bodies are never quite the same again after whiplash injuries received in car accidents. Although I believe chiropractic care is the most effective treatment approach for whiplash injuries, even Karen still deals with residual problems relating back to her accident.
So let’s all do our part to keep the roads safe this Christmas and New Years. Please don’t drink if you have to drive. Observe the condition of your guests. Tactfully arrange transportation for them if they overdo it on the alcohol. Let’s do our best to keep the holidays merry and safe for all.
What to do if you or someone you care about is in an accident
Don’t downplay your symptoms. If you black-out for even an instant, it would be prudent to go to the emergency room for evaluation. X-rays, CAT scans, and/or neurological evaluations may detect subtle injuries before other problems can develop. If nothing is broken or bleeding, come in for a chiropractic evaluation.
Any accident damaging your car will most likely injure your spine, too, whether you feel it immediately or not. Although some accidents do cause immediate pain and action by the injured person to have their spine checked, in many cases, people ignore the signs of spinal injury until months or years have passed, and spinal degeneration has occurred. Don’t let this happen to you, or anyone you care about.
Cost should not be an issue because your car insurance pays 100% of all reasonable and necessary services. And your insurance premiums will not increase because of healthcare costs regardless of who was at fault. The only reason not to be checked by a chiropractor, is not understanding how your spine is affected now and in the future by a whiplash injury. If you know someone who has been involved in a car accident recently, care enough to refer them to us or a chiropractor in their area. They will appreciate you for caring and helping them feel better.
FYI: Most common “whiplash” symptoms :
- Neck pain and stiffness
- Dizziness
- Headaches
- Shoulder pain
- Low back pain
- Numbness, tingling and/or weakness in arms or legs
Office News
Holiday Office Hours (724)258-3371
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thursday, December 22 nd 3:30pm-8:30pm
Friday, Dec. 23 rd - Monday, Dec. 26 th OFFICE CLOSED FOR CHRISTMAS
Tuesday, December 27 th 3:30pm-8:30pm
Wednesday, December 28 th 10:15am-2pm
Thursday, December 29 th 3:30pm-8:30pm
Friday, December 30 th 9am-4pm
Saturday, December 31 st (New Year’s Eve) 8am-12noon
Monday, January 2 nd , 2012 OFFICE CLOSED
Congratulations to our Office Assistant
Colleen Hardy and her husband on
the birth of their baby girl Elyse!
In This Issue . . .
Page
1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Christmas Greeting from Dr. Steve
2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Feel Good for the Holidays
3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Christmas Help Tips
4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Please Drive Safe & Sober This Holiday
5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Office News
- · Holiday Office Hours
- · Colleen Had Her Baby!
Dr. Stephen J. Wohar
727 Route 481
Monongahela , PA 15063
www.drstevewohar.com [email protected]