This subject is near and dear to me as I sift through layers of popular shinola in the quest for permanent healing regarding the (oh-finally diagnosed) herniated lumbar disc(or two as suggested by subjective evidence of radicular pain patterns that I am enduring). First lets establish a way to sift through all of the clever speeches and written structures of the founders of blasphemous correlation based treatments. For this, here is a sweet little link to Khan Academy: https://www.khanacademy.org/math/probability/regression/regression-correlation/v/correlation-and-causality
Now lets look at the 'supporting' evidence behind a very popular treatment modality for my problem, which has me pissed pissed pissed-because the oh so nice physical therapy people that I agreed to subject myself to are not understanding that:
A) I can't stand-positively cannot stand-any shift in my lower back that moves it from the neutral spine position when I am standing, and
B) I really can't tolerate any shift that lessens lordosis when I am in supine position . and
C) Sitting is for the emergency of voiding the bladder(since I'm a woman) and bowels. (Thank God I still can!)
D) I can't endure the negative side effects of nearly every available pharmaceutical for dulling this pain! Truly. I want to heal and live. So my only option is to lessen pain and inflammation naturally through positioning and rest. (Dear God I am grateful that it is working so far-which tells me that this problem is ever so much not as bad as it could be-or get-if I refuse to listen to my body!)
How was it determined that core muscles are the root of all evil?
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10489000
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10489000
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15836933
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10489000
Nowhere in any of these does it clearly state that weak core muscles are the absolute cause of lumbar injury, or that strengthening them is the guaranteed cure. What they all have in common is that it has been found that muscle recruitment patterns are different in those with lower back pain when compared to those that do not, I contend that this difference is an effect of the problem rather than a contributor to the over all problem! Don't you just love words like 'may'(which is a far cry from 'is') and 'associated'(which darn sure doesn't mean 'causes')
Well, it has been a highly effective treatment for a certain segment of the afflicted population, so how can I call it a medical blasphemy? It's the wording of the presentation of the treatment option that I despise. It is presented as a treatment based on gospel truth, as are many others, (which I will shoot down in later blogs as pain level allows) and that is a dishonest presentation and thus blasphemy.
Healing is a complex mind/body interaction, and there is no universal panacea. There is no guaranteed standard identical enervation supply for all of us, and the process of pain interpretation varies from brain to brain. This neatly explains how some people with abnormal MRIs walk around without pain. (Yes, I've been digging around in neuroscience, anatomy, physiology and the perception of pain) This is a statement of truth that no profit driven entity wants around. As long as these entities can site the studies that have shown abnormal MRI findings in pain free segments of the population, they can contest the existence of pain. Grrr-heck, a study can be designed to prove any desired correlation, I believe. Until more is known about the growth and death of neurons, people will continue to suffer. I have theories that the pain free people have less enervation of the structures in those areas, or that the messages from those areas are interpreted differently due to differences in brain structure and chemistry. Maybe it's a combination of both. Do I ever wish studies would be conducted on those, and of course I want to be the mastermind behind it all!
Now lets look at the 'supporting' evidence behind a very popular treatment modality for my problem, which has me pissed pissed pissed-because the oh so nice physical therapy people that I agreed to subject myself to are not understanding that:
A) I can't stand-positively cannot stand-any shift in my lower back that moves it from the neutral spine position when I am standing, and
B) I really can't tolerate any shift that lessens lordosis when I am in supine position . and
C) Sitting is for the emergency of voiding the bladder(since I'm a woman) and bowels. (Thank God I still can!)
D) I can't endure the negative side effects of nearly every available pharmaceutical for dulling this pain! Truly. I want to heal and live. So my only option is to lessen pain and inflammation naturally through positioning and rest. (Dear God I am grateful that it is working so far-which tells me that this problem is ever so much not as bad as it could be-or get-if I refuse to listen to my body!)
How was it determined that core muscles are the root of all evil?
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10489000
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10489000
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15836933
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10489000
Nowhere in any of these does it clearly state that weak core muscles are the absolute cause of lumbar injury, or that strengthening them is the guaranteed cure. What they all have in common is that it has been found that muscle recruitment patterns are different in those with lower back pain when compared to those that do not, I contend that this difference is an effect of the problem rather than a contributor to the over all problem! Don't you just love words like 'may'(which is a far cry from 'is') and 'associated'(which darn sure doesn't mean 'causes')
Well, it has been a highly effective treatment for a certain segment of the afflicted population, so how can I call it a medical blasphemy? It's the wording of the presentation of the treatment option that I despise. It is presented as a treatment based on gospel truth, as are many others, (which I will shoot down in later blogs as pain level allows) and that is a dishonest presentation and thus blasphemy.
Healing is a complex mind/body interaction, and there is no universal panacea. There is no guaranteed standard identical enervation supply for all of us, and the process of pain interpretation varies from brain to brain. This neatly explains how some people with abnormal MRIs walk around without pain. (Yes, I've been digging around in neuroscience, anatomy, physiology and the perception of pain) This is a statement of truth that no profit driven entity wants around. As long as these entities can site the studies that have shown abnormal MRI findings in pain free segments of the population, they can contest the existence of pain. Grrr-heck, a study can be designed to prove any desired correlation, I believe. Until more is known about the growth and death of neurons, people will continue to suffer. I have theories that the pain free people have less enervation of the structures in those areas, or that the messages from those areas are interpreted differently due to differences in brain structure and chemistry. Maybe it's a combination of both. Do I ever wish studies would be conducted on those, and of course I want to be the mastermind behind it all!
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