Hip pain can be very painful and can even prevent you from doing day to day actives. Anyone can experience occasional hip pain, here are some common symptoms to look out for:

• Tenderness felt in the top area of your hips
• Associated swelling or bruising
• Limping when walking due to the pain
• Range of motion of the hip can be limited due to the pain
• Pain worsens with walking, twisting, or bending

The first step in treating your hip point pain is to assess the severity and complication of the pain. This should be done by a doctor and treatment recommendations will be given. Getting adjusted regularly is crucial, but what you do at home in between adjustments is just as important in maintaining hip alignment. Here are some tips you can follow at home to help maintain the adjustment as well as decrease inflammation and pain. The first step is going to be reducing the inflammation under the surface of the skin. This can be done via cold therapy right in your own home. Get an ice pack and place on a towel or piece of clothing over the area of pain. Icing can lower the inflammation and help reduce the pain greatly. The use of ice as a cold therapy that has been used to treat several injuries to the muscles and ligaments. The cold therapy needs to be applied for around ten minutes. This method is very effective in alleviating pain and reducing the swelling or soreness in the affected area. The next step is going to be stretching.

1. Rotational Lunge Stretch

Be in a lunge position with your left leg forward. The right hand should be on the ground to offer you balance. Rotate your trunk with your left arm being high in the sky. Keep the glute contracted. You should be able to feel the impact as you stretch the trunk back and forward. Hold for 10- 30 seconds and repeat 10 times. All of these exercises should be done once a day.

2. Quadruped posterior rocking

This is another great exercise to work your lower back and mobilize your hips. Put your hands and knees on the ground with shoulders and knees placed under the hips. Maintain a natural curve but have your belly into your spine. Slowly move your hips backward until you start to feel the pelvis moving. Get back into the starting position and repeat the same procedure again. You should be able to breathe normally as you do this.

3. Leg cradle- endurance exercise

The leg cradle is an endurance exercise that should help you stretch the outer part of your hips in the front leg and the flexor muscles of the back leg. Stand and ensure your back is in a straight position. Arms should be at your sides and knees unlocked. Start by lifting your right foot in the air and squat it back and down as you stand with the left leg. Next, you need to lift your right knee to the chest supporting it with the left hand under the ankle. The left knee should be as close as possible to the chest as you contract the left glute. Repeat the same procedure for the left leg.

4. Glute activation-half kneeling

The glute activation exercise helps you stretch in the upper thigh and the front of the hip. On a soft mat, kneel halfway with one leg while keeping a slight forward torso. Contract the glute and tighten the core. Maintain the posture and shift the whole body forward. Take a break to relax and repeat the same procedure for both legs. Ensure you avoid excessive arching on your back as you move the body forward.

By following the simple treatment plan above, combined with regular chiropractic adjustments, you will be able to heal naturally. Feel free to give us a call at 515-278-9678 to set up an appointment today.

Jaw pain also called temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJD) is a common complaint that we see here at Yost Family Chiropractic. The symptoms of jaw dysfunction can vary from jaw pain, headaches, neck pain, tooth soreness, or in extreme cases even clicking, popping and locking of the jaw. People who suffer from chronic jaw pain can have one or even a collection of the above symptoms. There are many causes for jaw pain. Your jaw is a moving, working joint and because of that it can also become misaligned, causing you pain that requires an adjustment to fix. Another common cause that affects people is prolonged anterior head posture such as looking at computer screens or even phone screens for long periods of time. This can overload the small muscles in the front and back of the neck, which leads to tension traveling into the muscles surrounding the jaw. Proper posture is key when it comes to proper TMJ function. Getting your subluxations regularly corrected as well as doing a few simple stretches every day at home can help with any jaw or neck pain you may be having. We also treat TMJD with acupuncture here in the office. The jaw is a complicated joint and it is extremely important that is treated correctly. Prevention is an important part of the treatment of jaw pain. Identifying and removing triggers that lead to jaw clenching and addressing and correcting overall posture imbalances can really help those that suffer from daily jaw pain. I have attached a photo showing some simple jaw exercises to do at home that will help maintain jaw placement following a TMJ correction.  If you have any questions or are interested in getting your jaw checked, give us a call at 515-278-9678!

The inability to sleep also known as insomnia is a very common problem in the world today. Sleep seems to be something a lot of people struggle with, some cant get to sleep, or stay asleep, or even when you do get enough hours of sleep you wake up feeling tired. There are a lot of factors that can contribute to insomnia, but today I wanted to touch on how your spine and nervous system are involved and how we as chiropractors can help you. The vagus nerve is primarily responsible for putting you into a state of rest and relaxation, healing and recovery. The vagus nerve exits the spinal cord at the level of C1 (or atlas) bone. When that bone is subluxated or out of place, it can put pressure which causes irritation to that nerve which prevents it from functioning properly. The body cannot properly get into a state of rest and healing when the nerve is irritated. When the spinal subluxation is corrected and the nerve interference is removed, the nervous system can then function to it’s best ability. By removing that interference, the body has a much easier time getting into a state of relaxation and healing. One of the most common things we hear back from patients as chiropractors is that sleep is one of the first things that improves once the spine is in proper alignment. If you are struggling with neck pain or sleeping issues, or have any questions feel free to give us as a call at 515-978-9678. We would love to consult with you to see if chiropractic care could be a potential solution to your sleeping needs.

Almost everyone has experienced muscle cramping at least once in their life, and I think we can all agree they are NOT FUN. The top causes of muscle cramping are typically due to dehydration or lack of magnesium in the body. Proper water intake recommendation is HALF your body weight in ounces, for example if you weigh 200 pounds, your body needs 100 oz of water per day to be properly hydrated. If you drink non water drinks such as coffee, soda, tea or alcohol that actually counts against your daily water intake. The other common cause of muscle cramping is due to a lack of magnesium in our diets. Magnesium is needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body. It helps to maintain normal nerve and muscle function, supports a healthy immune system, keeps the heart beat steady, and helps bones remain strong. Recent studies have shown that magnesium particularly magnesium chloride, can provide rapid relief when applied directly to cramping muscles. Magnesium helps the muscles to relax while also reducing the ridgity in the cell membranes throughout the body. Recent studies have shown that magnesium chloride is effective in treating and preventing muscle spams. We can apply the magnesium cream immediately following a chiropractic treatment or you can even buy one to use at home in between treatments. In our office we offer various forms of natural vitality brand magnesium including gummies, drinkable and even a topical muscle relief cream. Stop in the office to get yours or give us a call at 515-278-9678