This is the third video in the stretching series. This one focuses on relieving low back tension.
Blessings,
Jeanne
Live Well. Be Well.
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Stretching to Relieve Low Back Tension (video)
Hello everyone,
This is the third video in the stretching series. This one focuses on relieving low back tension.
Blessings,
Jeanne
Live Well. Be Well.
This is the third video in the stretching series. This one focuses on relieving low back tension.
Blessings,
Jeanne
Live Well. Be Well.
Neck and Shoulder Stretches Video
Good morning all. I hope you are living well today.
Following is the 2nd video in the stretching series. It is specifically for your neck and shoulders.
As always, feel free to comment or ask questions.
Blessings,
Jeanne
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Every Day Stretches - my first You Tube video :)
Hello all,
It has been far too long since my last post. I am interrupting my story to add the below video clips. Several of my clients have been asking about stretching routines, so this one is the first in a series: Every Day Stretching, Arm and Shoulder Stretches, and finally, Low Back Tension Stretches. Please feel free to comment or ask questions.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSwa6u76Lto&feature=youtu.be
Friday, July 5, 2013
Present Tense
July 5, 2013
My focus regarding health is dramatically different now. It's not about a diet or a program. It's not about deprivation and forbidden foods. It's not about guilt-induced, self-imposed rules and it's not about rewards for "being good." It's a lifestyle. It's about being informed and making conscious choices about what I put in my body. It's about taking the time to prepare and enjoy my food, instead of eating the leftovers on the kids' lunch plates before loading them into the dishwasher and calling it "lunch." It's about eating when I'm hungry and stopping before I'm full. It's about finding a form of movement (a.k.a. exercise) that I enjoy and actually want to do.
I think the defining moment for me was two part... a) I realized my life depended upon making changes and, b) I realized I was worth the changes. YOU ARE WORTH IT TOO!! You may not be facing a life threatening illness, but still, the quality of your life may depend on you making some positive lifestyle changes.
What I'm going to share with you is a way of life - a whole new mindset. You may be surprised to find that not all the steps I recommend are directly related to food and exercise. My hope is that you will incorporate into your life some of the "first step" principles I will be presenting to help you on your journey to excellent health. My hope is also that you will find joy in that journey.
Until next time...
Be well. Live well.
Jeanne
My focus regarding health is dramatically different now. It's not about a diet or a program. It's not about deprivation and forbidden foods. It's not about guilt-induced, self-imposed rules and it's not about rewards for "being good." It's a lifestyle. It's about being informed and making conscious choices about what I put in my body. It's about taking the time to prepare and enjoy my food, instead of eating the leftovers on the kids' lunch plates before loading them into the dishwasher and calling it "lunch." It's about eating when I'm hungry and stopping before I'm full. It's about finding a form of movement (a.k.a. exercise) that I enjoy and actually want to do.
I think the defining moment for me was two part... a) I realized my life depended upon making changes and, b) I realized I was worth the changes. YOU ARE WORTH IT TOO!! You may not be facing a life threatening illness, but still, the quality of your life may depend on you making some positive lifestyle changes.
What I'm going to share with you is a way of life - a whole new mindset. You may be surprised to find that not all the steps I recommend are directly related to food and exercise. My hope is that you will incorporate into your life some of the "first step" principles I will be presenting to help you on your journey to excellent health. My hope is also that you will find joy in that journey.
Until next time...
Be well. Live well.
Jeanne
Thursday, July 4, 2013
The Journey Begins
July 2, 2013
The Journey Begins...
The realization that good health doesn't just happen, began in March of 2005 when I began experiencing extremely painful gall bladder attacks, which ultimately led to its removal - my first surgery since a tonsillectomy when I was three. I became so sick after the surgery that I was hospitalized. Three months and countless antibiotics later, the pain had dissipated, but I was still feeling uncharacteristically fatigued and run down. Additionally, my abdomen had become so tremendously distended that I had the appearance of a woman six months pregnant. Neither my surgeon nor his PA were able to offer any help. They made no connection between the absence of my gallbladder and my present condition. In desperation, I consulted with a reputable chiropractor/kinesiologist in my area who determined that my body was essentially toxic from all the antibiotics and other medications I had taken over a four month period since the initial surgery. I changed my diet per his instruction and lost twelve pounds in one week! I began feeling better almost immediately.
In May of 2006, a sunscreen-free, baby oil sun-baking adolescence caught up with me when my dermatologist removed a basal cell carcinoma from my forehead and several pre-cancerous lesions from my chest. I now sport a lovely one-inch scar on my forehead that daily reminds me to don plenty of SPF 40 sunscreen.
In August of that same year, at the age of 42, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I had no family history of any type of cancer and really no risk factors.....Other than an extreme amount of prolonged stress! I'm not saying that stress caused my cancer, but I am saying that, stress is toxic and I believe it helped provide an environment for the cancer to flourish. Following the diagnosis, I endured a myriad of tests, painful biopsies and a triple lumpectomy. Ultimately, in October of 2006, I underwent a modified, radical right-sided mastectomy with an immediate TRAM flap reconstruction. As I began the arduous process of healing from all that my body had been through, I knew I had to make some serious lifestyle changes. I had been through that thought process before, but this time it was different. This time my life depended on it.
Next time, "present tense..." the journey to good health continues.
Be well. Live well.
Jeanne
Monday, June 17, 2013
Who is this lady anyway?
June 17, 2013
Thank you for stopping in. I hope you will be encouraged.
Who I am NOT...
Well... I am NOT a fitness junkie or health food nut. I'm not a calorie counter or food weigher and I'm not particularly fond of the gym or step aerobics. And, if I eat something "not so great" or I miss a workout, I don't beat myself up about it.
Who I am and what I believe is this...
As an occupational therapist, I believe in making fitness fun and functional. Face it, you're just not going to stick with something you don't enjoy. I also believe that a preventative, whole-body approach is the key to wellness. As a homeschool mom (2 graduated, one still in our home school), I believe that education and accountability are vital - teaching someone how to make healthy lifestyle changes is far more beneficial than doing it for them, i.e. take this pill, follow this program. As a writer (and author in progress), I believe in spreading the message of good health through the written word. And finally, as a skin and breast cancer survivor, I believe that today is the best day to start your new life.
Before I was dealt the life-altering blow of cancer, I would fluctuate between half-hearted attempts to eat well and exercise, and full on purge-all-the-evil-in-the-pantry episodes. The latter of which my family came to fear. My intentions were good - I just wanted my family to be healthy. My delivery, however, was nothing short of an intense shock and awe campaign. Or should I say, shock, shock some more and "aw mom, do we have to eat that stuff?" I knew what I was supposed to do, I just didn't know how to do it or how to make it stick. Plus, my motivation was weak. I was wanting to make changes from an, "I should be doing this..." standpoint, rather than being conscious, in the moment, examining the real why I needed to make changes.
The next part of my journey will continue in the next post, "The Journey Begins..."
Be well. Live well.
Jeanne
Thank you for stopping in. I hope you will be encouraged.
Who I am NOT...
Well... I am NOT a fitness junkie or health food nut. I'm not a calorie counter or food weigher and I'm not particularly fond of the gym or step aerobics. And, if I eat something "not so great" or I miss a workout, I don't beat myself up about it.
Who I am and what I believe is this...
As an occupational therapist, I believe in making fitness fun and functional. Face it, you're just not going to stick with something you don't enjoy. I also believe that a preventative, whole-body approach is the key to wellness. As a homeschool mom (2 graduated, one still in our home school), I believe that education and accountability are vital - teaching someone how to make healthy lifestyle changes is far more beneficial than doing it for them, i.e. take this pill, follow this program. As a writer (and author in progress), I believe in spreading the message of good health through the written word. And finally, as a skin and breast cancer survivor, I believe that today is the best day to start your new life.
Before I was dealt the life-altering blow of cancer, I would fluctuate between half-hearted attempts to eat well and exercise, and full on purge-all-the-evil-in-the-pantry episodes. The latter of which my family came to fear. My intentions were good - I just wanted my family to be healthy. My delivery, however, was nothing short of an intense shock and awe campaign. Or should I say, shock, shock some more and "aw mom, do we have to eat that stuff?" I knew what I was supposed to do, I just didn't know how to do it or how to make it stick. Plus, my motivation was weak. I was wanting to make changes from an, "I should be doing this..." standpoint, rather than being conscious, in the moment, examining the real why I needed to make changes.
The next part of my journey will continue in the next post, "The Journey Begins..."
Be well. Live well.
Jeanne
Welcome
June 14, 2013
Welcome to Mountain Valley Therapeutics! I am so glad you stopped by.
I am an Occupational Therapist and Zero Balancing practitioner. I am also a wife, a mom, a writer and a cancer survivor. My hope is that this blog will be an edifying extension of my private practice to offer you help and information in various areas of health, wellness, fitness and nutrition.
To view a recent article I wrote on Zero Balancing that was published in Advance for Occupational Therapy Practitioners, please visit:
http://occupational-therapy.advanceweb.com/Features/Articles/Zero-Balancing.aspx
Be Well. Live Well.
Jeanne
Welcome to Mountain Valley Therapeutics! I am so glad you stopped by.
I am an Occupational Therapist and Zero Balancing practitioner. I am also a wife, a mom, a writer and a cancer survivor. My hope is that this blog will be an edifying extension of my private practice to offer you help and information in various areas of health, wellness, fitness and nutrition.
To view a recent article I wrote on Zero Balancing that was published in Advance for Occupational Therapy Practitioners, please visit:
http://occupational-therapy.advanceweb.com/Features/Articles/Zero-Balancing.aspx
Be Well. Live Well.
Jeanne
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)