Get Grounded

It's autumn in the Pacific Northwest, which means rain, rain, rain. I usually tend to my urban farm  chores wearing my faithful Hunter boots, but the weather has been so warm I occasionally run outside in my bare feet. The chickens are confined to their pen, so there are few "surprises" I step in, other than some really squishy mud or a slug *shudder*. I find it so much easier to just wipe off muddy feet than deal with muddy shoes, and to be quite honest, I like walking barefooted outdoors. I don't mind mud, but prefer cool green grass or warm sand on the beach. I've even made the mad dash outside in the snow sans shoes or socks.

I grew up being told to always wear shoes. For years I wore "impractical" shoes, high heels with pointy toes than may have been too small for me but, oh, they were so cute and what was a little pain? Yes, this is coming from a doctor trained in foot reflexology. Maybe it's age, but my favorite shoes to sport these days are my Acorn TEX-MOC slippers and my Hunters (of course).

An email newsletter arrived today that reminded me of "grounding" or "earthing," which I first learned of when I was in naturopathic medical school. Benedict Lust, one of the fathers of naturopathic medicine, wrote about the health benefits of walking barefoot way back in the early 1900s and Father Sebastian Kneipp promoted "dew walking" in Germany even before then. Recently, researchers at the University of California have been studying the health effects of walking barefoot (or indoors, connected to systems that conduct energy from the ground into the body, simulating the outdoor effects). They found that connecting to grounded conductive systems (including walking outdoors) "may be a simple, natural, and yet profoundly effective environmental strategy against chronic stress, ANS dysfunction, inflammation, pain, poor sleep, disturbed HRV, hypercoagulable blood, and many common health disorders, including cardiovascular disease. The research recommends "earthing," weather and conditions permitting, for 30 to 40 minutes daily. 

So go ahead. Take off your shoes. Wiggle your toes in the grass. Get "grounded."

Journal of Environmental and Public Health

Earthing: Health Implications of Reconnecting the Human Body to the Earth's Surface Electrons

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3265077/

Woulda, coulda, shoulder

I have been struggling for almost a week with a sore right shoulder. I woke up Saturday morning with a dull ache. Didn't think much about it, the whole right side of my neck has been tight for months, and the muscles on the right side of my upper back have several knots. As I went about my day (got a mani/pedi, helped a friend paint her living room, ran errands, bought groceries), the pain increased and the range of motion decreased. When driving, I found myself needing two hands to push the stickshift into reverse. I massaged some Inflamyar into the shoulder and took some ProTrauma, figured it was just a strain.

Woke up the next day with even more pain and less range of motion, and as the day progressed, so did the symptoms. By Sunday night, the pain was so intense, I couldn't sleep and several times thought about walking a few blocks to the Emergency Department. By Tuesday, I lost the ability to raise my arm to the side (abduct) more than 10°, couldn't externally or internally rotate the humerus (upper arm), or touch my opposite shoulder. Miraculously, I got an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon for the next day. Three x-rays were taken and after reviewing them and performing a physical exam, the doctor told me I had a torn rotator cuff, and probable labrum tear. Yikes.

Did I recently hear a "pop" or feel a click in my shoulder, the surgeon asked. My joints often click, and I didn't recall hearing any "pop" or feeling a sudden onset of pain. I figured it happened Friday night, when I was trying to manage the dog at First Friday. But thinking back, my shoulder hurt when I went to Chicago a few weeks ago. And it was kind of achy when I hauled pieces of a tree fallen by a tornado a week or so before that. Then there all those times the ginormous 'potamus has pulled on her leash really hard to meet another dog. Multiply that by seven years.

It's easy for me to blame the dog, but it's not her fault. If I ever felt a twinge in my shoulder after a dog walk, I most likely worked through it. This past Saturday, my arm was achy and I still painted a wall, just limited my movement. Not going to let a little soreness get in my way. I am woman, hear me roar. Owwww. Multiply that by 30 or so years (I'm guessing as a little kid I was pretty intolerant of pain).

Won't know what's going on until the MRI arthrogram this Thursday. I'll meet with the surgeon the following Monday and we'll discuss my options. Surgery scares me, not because it's surgery, but because I will be limited in what I can do. Because I will be dependent on other people (it's happening already). Scary. Oh, the things on the internet about how painful recovery can be...yeah, that's scary, too. I warned the nurse that I'm one of "those" patients, who looks everything up on the internet. She didn't seem to mind.

We'll see what the next few weeks bring. I have been using naturopathic protocols so I can use less prescription and over-the-counter pain meds. Am about to walk to the Farmers' Market to get soup bones to make yummy, healing mineral broth. I just accepted a neighbor's offer to help with walking the dog. I'll be updating this blog with my experiences (OMG, MRI!), hopefully it will be more humor than whine.

One more thing...

How can I forget to mention the Grand Opening of the new NCNM Clinic in southwest Portland, Oregon, the largest naturopathic clinic in the Portland area. It's also the teaching clinic where I have been completing my residency. I was at the ceremony this morning where speeches were made by Mayor Sam Adams and Senator Monnes Anderson as well as NCNM President David Schleich, board member Nancy Garbett, the woman who makes everything at the clinic run just right, Dr. Jill Stanard (seen at the podium in the picture above).

The main teaching clinic provides low cost health care, preventive naturopathic and integrative care. There are also satellite teaching clinics for even lower cost care for the members of various Portland communities.

For more information, check out the NCNM Clinics' website at www.ncnm.edu.

Naturopathic Doctors in the Press

My fellow NDs from the NCNM Class of 2007 are making news all across the country! First, Dr. Karen Peters in Albany, CA, discussed flu prevention, then last night I saw Dr. Jesse Buttler who practices in Milwaukee, OR, on KGW Channel 8 news talking about cleanses and fasts. Now it's Dr. Sean Heerey from New York City, talking about the role of alternative medicine in the current healthcare crisis.

And I can't possibly mention Sean without talking about his wife (and my friend) Christina Heerey. She runs the New York Dog Training School and has a great technique for training dogs and owners alike.

Can't wait to find more press on my classmates and friends!

East Bay Naturopathic Clinic
Northwest Natural medicine
Sean E. Heerey, N.D.