The Permanent Pain Cure: Book Review

With so many books on the market that promise to relieve pain, it's easy to dismiss them as providing more hype than answers. As the author of one of these books, I know that each one offers advice that works for some people. The Permanent Pain Cure by Ming Chew, PT makes a big claim, but his approach is more comprehensive than most and is worth a try.

The first thing I like about this book is that it focuses on fascia, which plays a large role in most muscle and joint pain. The Ming Method is unique in how it addresses fascia health through a 3 step process. As Chew states:

"The bottom line is you're as young as your fascia. Or to put it another way, the quality of your fascia determines the age of your body . . . fascial hygiene is just as important as dental hygiene."

Amen! He has my full attention with wisdom like that and I'm impressed with the program he outlines. Here is a summary of The Ming Method.

1) Before adding exercises or stretches, it's important for your fascia to be as healthy as possible to avoid injury. Chew recommends 2 1/2 quarts of water a day plus some supplements that he's found to be beneficial for fascia. Many of his patients achieve a reduction in pain with this first step plus the added benefit of younger looking skin.

2) There are two types of stretches included in the book: spinal stretches that decompress the spine and fascial stretches. I found the spinal stretches to be quite unique. They work down the spine from neck to tail. Although difficult at first, I can really tell a difference from them. The fascia stretches are more familiar to me, but I like Chew's instructions for whole body involvement to tether the entire fascial chain.

3) The strength section is the least unique in the book, but I would trust Chew's exercises (he's a former bodybuilder and martial artists) as the right complement to his exceptional program.

Are You Hydrated?

Water is essential for healthy living. Every cell and organ in the body needs water, so it’s important to have enough especially if you feel stiff and tight in your muscles. Despite the controversy about how much liquid is enough to stay hydrated, there is an easy way to tell if you need to drink more water. Simply use the “snap test” on your hand to see how fast your skin returns to its normal shape. If it takes longer than a second then fill your water glass and start drinking. I can use this test throughout the day to gauge my H2O intake.

Fresh Food for a Healthy You

This blog usually focuses on how movement (or lack of it) affects your life, but today I am verging from my usual refrain of “You are what you DO” to the more familiar phrase, “You are what you eat.” Muscle action, connective tissue health, metabolism and feelings of well-being all depend on a complex series of chemical reactions. The chemicals the body gets to work with – good or bad – all come from our food so what you eat affects how well you move as well as how good you look.

My opinion is that food grown from healthy soil and eaten when fresh has the best composition of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients and other ingredients we don’t understand yet which are needed for a healthy body and mind. Food grown with chemical fertilizers or pest control has less nutritional value. New research is proving this is true. To assure my supply of fresh, nutritious vegetables I join a CSA each year.

CSA stands for community supported agriculture and it is a way for people to purchase direct from farmers each week through the growing season. I support the Sol to Seed Farm in Carnation. In return I receive a box of vegetables from June through October that I know are grown sustainably and are good for me. I’ve learned to like new vegetables. Sol to Seed’s arugula is absolutely fantastic and they introduced me to kohlrabi, now one of my favorites. Even the familiar lettuce and kale and beans and potatoes are welcome, not to mention the joy of fresh tomatoes in August and always a pumpkin in October. When I pick up my box each Wednesday, I have a week’s supply of good food and usually a couple of recipes to help me figure out what to do with all of it.

Over a dozen farms offer a CSA in King County. Puget Sound Fresh provides a directory of farms throughout the region. Small farms and large farms are included, many offer programs year round. If you’re not in the Seattle area, just do a search for community supported agriculture and you’ll find a rich resource of cost-effective nutrition near you.

Exercise of the Month: Jaw Massage

It would be nice if we could build self-care like a massage or fascial into our lives on a weekly basis. Most of us don’t have the time or money to go for a spa treatment every seven days even though everyone could use the relaxation. This month’s exercise is adapted from Align for Life written by Dan Bienenfeld, which includes many exercises that complement a structural integration series, but they are also great for everyone. Try this to relax your face especially if you’ve been working at the computer for a while.


Jaw Massage
1. Put your hands on the sides of your face with your fingers just below your cheek bones. Firmly press in, then up and to the sides to draw your mouth into a big smile. Release and let your face relax.

2. Hold your chin with your fingers above the jaw bone and thumbs below. Press firmly and slowly, tracing the jaw bone all the way to your ears.

3. Find the space between the top of your jaw bone and below your cheek bones with your finger tips. Massage in circles as you slowly let your jaw drop.

Book Review: Move Into Life

Many people ask me about the differences between Hellerwork Structural Integration and The Feldenkrais Method. My short answer is that structural integration approaches a change of movement patterns by addressing the body’s connective tissue, which then affects the rest of the body including the nervous system. The Feldenkrais approach seeks to reeducate the brain and nervous system for improved movement patterns that affect the rest of the body. Several new books use the Feldenkrais approach and one of the best is Move Into Life: The Nine Essentials for Lifelong Vitality written by Anat Baniel.


It’s easy to see why people find it difficult to differentiate the modalities without having experienced them. Baniel’s nine essentials are oh-so-compatible with structural integration and especially with undulation. Here’s a brief summary of the essentials for vitality, but I encourage you to explore more for yourself.

1. Attention – Awareness is the first step in any change (please see my previous blog post) and Baniel explains why. Awareness increases brain activity, which makes new patterns possible.
   
2. The Learning Switch – Fight or flight and freezing caused by stress have turned off the learning switch for many of us. Regaining beginner’s mind can turn it back on.


3. Subtlety – We’ve been conditioned to force being the path to accomplishment, but it blocks the intelligence of intuition. Subtlety is needed to find all movement between the extremes.
   
4. Variation – Up to this point in the book, I’ve been nodding my head in agreement, but here is where I start to say out loud, “Yes, YES.” Variation in movement increases brain synapses, decreases rigidity and allows for dramatic transformation.
   
5. Slow – When we move fast, there is no room for new experiences, railroading us into unproductive patterns. Moving slowly is counterintuitive, but better for harder tasks.
   
6. Enthusiasm – Although it seems as though enthusiasm is something that comes from without, Baniel asserts that it is a skill we develop from within. In Hellerwork, we call this inspiration and maintain that it is fundamental to wellness.
   
7. Flexible Goals – We’re back to undulation here. Baniel suggests that we try three different ways to accomplish a goal. “Getting off course” is often just what we need to expand our capabilities.
   
8. Imagination and Dreams – Brain patterns are equivalent when imagining and doing things in real life. Playfulness creates a more flexible brain. It’s strange that we use less imagination and have fewer dreams when we get older, when we need them the most.
   
9. Awareness – This feels like an extension and deepening of the first essential, attention. After adding subtlety, variation, enthusiasm, flexibility and imagination, the reader is able to be more aware, bringing all nine essentials together.
   
   Baniel includes a couple of useful movement exercises in each chapter and dozens of examples that make the reading easy. If you get this book, please let me know how it affected you.