Total Recovery – by Dr. Gary Kaplan

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First, know: Dr. Kaplan is an osteopath, and as such, will be mostly approaching things from that angle. That said, he is also board certified in other things too, including family medicine, so he’s by no means a “one-trick pony”, nor are there “when your only tool is a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail” problems to be found here. Instead, the scope of the book is quite broad.

Dr. Kaplan talks us through the diagnostic process that a doctor goes through when presented with a patient, what questions need to be asked and answered—and by this we mean the deeper technical questions, e.g. “what do these symptoms have in common”, and “what mechanism was at work when the pain become chronic”, not the very basic questions asked in the initial debriefing with the patient.

He also asks such questions (and questions like these get chapters devoted to them) as “what if physical traumas build up”, and “what if physical and emotional pain influence each other”, and then examines how to interrupt the vicious cycles that lead to deterioration of one’s condition.

The style of the book is very pop-science and often narrative in its presentation, giving lots of anecdotes to illustrate the principles. It’s a “sit down and read it cover-to-cover” book—or a chapter a day, whatever your preferred pace; the point is, it’s not a “dip directly to the part that answers your immediate question” book; it’s not a textbook or manual.

Bottom line: a lot of this work is about prompting the reader to ask the right questions to get to where we need to be, but there are many illustrative possible conclusions and practical advices to be found and given too, making this a useful read if you and/or a loved one suffers from chronic pain.

Click here to check out Total Recovery, and solve your own mysteries!

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  • Altered Traits – by Dr. Daniel Goleman & Dr. Richard Davidson

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    We know that meditation helps people to relax, but what more than that?This book explores the available science.

    We say “explore the available science”, but it’d be remiss of us not to note that the authors have also expanded the available science, conducting research in their own lab.

    From stress tests and EEGs to attention tests and fMRIs, this book looks at the hard science of what different kinds of meditation do to the brain. Not just in terms of brain state, either, but gradual cumulative anatomical changes, too. Powerful stuff!

    The style is very pop-science in presentation, easily comprehensible to all. Be aware though that this is an “if this, then that” book of science, not a how-to manual. If you want to learn to meditate, this isn’t the book for that.

    Bottom line: if you’d like to understand more about how different kinds of meditation affect the brain differently, this is the book for you.

    Click here to check out Altered Traits, and alter yours!

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  • 8 Signs On Your Breast You Shouldn’t Ignore

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    Can you name the 8 signs that may indicate breast cancer? This video discusses them, and also shows what they look like on various different skintones:

    Stay abreast:

    Dr Simi Adedeji bids us watch out for:

    1. Inverted nipple: a newly inverted nipple (pointing inward or folded) should be checked by a doctor, especially if it’s a recent change.
    2. Flaky rash: a flaky, itchy, or red rash around the nipple or areola could indicate an underlying issue and should not be dismissed as just a skin condition.
    3. Tethering: skin pulling or denting, noticeable when raising your arms, may signal a deeper problem.
    4. Dimpling: skin resembling an orange peel (po orang sign) with dips and accentuated pores could indicate swelling or thickening and requires medical evaluation.
    5. Redness or heat: unusual warmth, redness, or tenderness in the breast, particularly if not breastfeeding, should be investigated.
    6. Nipple discharge: any unusual fluid from the nipple (be it yellow, green, milky, clear, or blood-stained) warrants attention, especially if spontaneous or only from one side.
    7. Change in size: sudden changes in the size or shape of one breast should not be ignored.
    8. Breast lump: a firm, irregular, or persistent lump in the breast, armpit, or collarbone area should be checked promptly, even if it’s not always harmful.

    The above signs may indicate cancer or something else, but none of them are things that should be ignored (even if you get just one sign).

    For more on each of these, plus visual demonstrations, enjoy:

    Click Here If The Embedded Video Doesn’t Load Automatically!

    Want to learn more?

    You might also like to read:

    The Hormone Therapy That Reduces Breast Cancer Risk & More

    Take care!

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  • Stress Resets – by Dr. Jennifer Taitz

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    You may be thinking: “that’s a bold claim in the subtitle; does the book deliver?”

    And yes, yes it does.

    The “resets” themselves are divided into categories:

    1. Mind resets, which are mostly CBT,
    2. Body resets, which include assorted somatic therapies such as vagus nerve resets, the judicious use of ice-water, what 1-minute sprints of exercise can do for your mental state, and why not to use the wrong somatic therapy for the wrong situation!
    3. Behavior resets, which are more about the big picture, and not falling into common traps.

    What common traps, you ask? This is about how we often have maladaptive responses to stress, e.g. we’re short of money so we overspend, we have an important deadline so we over-research and procrastinate, we’re anxious so we hyperfixate on the problem, we’re grieving so we look to substances to try to cope, we’re exhausted so we stay up late to try to claw back some lost time. Things where our attempt to cope actually makes things worse for us.

    Instead, Dr. Taitz advises us of how to get ourselves from “knowing we shouldn’t do that” to actually not doing that, and how to respond more healthily to stress, how to turn general stress into eustress, or as she puts it, how to “turn your knots into bows”.

    The style is… “Academic light”, perhaps we could say. It’s a step above pop-science, but a step below pure academic literature, which does make it a very pleasant read as well as informative. There are often footnotes at the bottom of each page to bridge any knowledge-gap, and for those who want to know the evidence of these evidence-based approaches, she does provide 35 pages of hard science sources to back up her claims.

    Bottom line: if you’d like to learn how better to manage stress from an evidence-based perspective that’s not just “do minfdulness meditation”, then this book gives a lot of ways.

    Click here to check out Stress Resets, and indeed soothe your body and mind in minutes!

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  • 52 Small Changes – by Brett Blumenthal
  • Surgery is the default treatment for ACL injuries in Australia. But it’s not the only way

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is an important ligament in the knee. It runs from the thigh bone (femur) to the shin bone (tibia) and helps stabilise the knee joint.

    Injuries to the ACL, often called a “tear” or a “rupture”, are common in sport. While a ruptured ACL has just sidelined another Matildas star, people who play sport recreationally are also at risk of this injury.

    For decades, surgical repair of an ACL injury, called a reconstruction, has been the primary treatment in Australia. In fact, Australia has among the highest rates of ACL surgery in the world. Reports indicate 90% of people who rupture their ACL go under the knife.

    Although surgery is common – around one million are performed worldwide each year – and seems to be the default treatment for ACL injuries in Australia, it may not be required for everyone.

    PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock

    What does the research say?

    We know ACL ruptures can be treated using reconstructive surgery, but research continues to suggest they can also be treated with rehabilitation alone for many people.

    Almost 15 years ago a randomised clinical trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine compared early surgery to rehabilitation with the option of delayed surgery in young active adults with an ACL injury. Over half of people in the rehabilitation group did not end up having surgery. After five years, knee function did not differ between treatment groups.

    The findings of this initial trial have been supported by more research since. A review of three trials published in 2022 found delaying surgery and trialling rehabilitation leads to similar outcomes to early surgery.

    A 2023 study followed up patients who received rehabilitation without surgery. It showed one in three had evidence of ACL healing on an MRI after two years. There was also evidence of improved knee-related quality of life in those with signs of ACL healing compared to those whose ACL did not show signs of healing.

    A diagram showing an ACL tear.
    Experts used to think an ACL tear couldn’t heal without surgery – now there’s evidence it can. SKYKIDKID/Shutterstock

    Regardless of treatment choice the rehabilitation process following ACL rupture is lengthy. It usually involves a minimum of nine months of progressive rehabilitation performed a few days per week. The length of time for rehabilitation may be slightly shorter in those not undergoing surgery, but more research is needed in this area.

    Rehabilitation starts with a physiotherapist overseeing simple exercises right through to resistance exercises and dynamic movements such as jumping, hopping and agility drills.

    A person can start rehabilitation with the option of having surgery later if the knee remains unstable. A common sign of instability is the knee giving way when changing direction while running or playing sports.

    To rehab and wait, or to go straight under the knife?

    There are a number of reasons patients and clinicians may opt for early surgical reconstruction.

    For elite athletes, a key consideration is returning to sport as soon as possible. As surgery is a well established method, athletes (such as Matilda Sam Kerr) often opt for early surgical reconstruction as this gives them a more predictable timeline for recovery.

    At the same time, there are risks to consider when rushing back to sport after ACL reconstruction. Re-injury of the ACL is very common. For every month return to sport is delayed until nine months after ACL reconstruction, the rate of knee re-injury is reduced by 51%.

    A physio bends a patient's knee.
    For people who opt to try rehabilitation, the option of having surgery later is still there. PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock

    Historically, another reason for having early surgical reconstruction was to reduce the risk of future knee osteoarthritis, which increases following an ACL injury. But a review showed ACL reconstruction doesn’t reduce the risk of knee osteoarthritis in the long term compared with non-surgical treatment.

    That said, there’s a need for more high-quality, long-term studies to give us a better understanding of how knee osteoarthritis risk is influenced by different treatments.

    Rehab may not be the only non-surgical option

    Last year, a study looking at 80 people fitted with a specialised knee brace for 12 weeks found 90% had evidence of ACL healing on their follow-up MRI.

    People with more ACL healing on the three-month MRI reported better outcomes at 12 months, including higher rates of returning to their pre-injury level of sport and better knee function. Although promising, we now need comparative research to evaluate whether this method can achieve similar results to surgery.

    What to do if you rupture your ACL

    First, it’s important to seek a comprehensive medical assessment from either a sports physiotherapist, sports physician or orthopaedic surgeon. ACL injuries can also have associated injuries to surrounding ligaments and cartilage which may influence treatment decisions.

    In terms of treatment, discuss with your clinician the pros and cons of management options and whether surgery is necessary. Often, patients don’t know not having surgery is an option.

    Surgery appears to be necessary for some people to achieve a stable knee. But it may not be necessary in every case, so many patients may wish to try rehabilitation in the first instance where appropriate.

    As always, prevention is key. Research has shown more than half of ACL injuries can be prevented by incorporating prevention strategies. This involves performing specific exercises to strengthen muscles in the legs, and improve movement control and landing technique.

    Anthony Nasser, Senior Lecturer in Physiotherapy, University of Technology Sydney; Joshua Pate, Senior Lecturer in Physiotherapy, University of Technology Sydney, and Peter Stubbs, Senior Lecturer in Physiotherapy, University of Technology Sydney

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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  • 10 Ways To Naturally Boost Dopamine

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Dopamine is the “reward” hormone, and is responsible for motivation, as well as various oft-forgotten functions (such as spatial skills, motor functions, task processing, planning, and language). Sometimes, our relationship with dopamine isn’t what it could be, so here’s how to fix that:

    Let’s get hormone-hacking…

    Here are the 10 ways:

    1. The seesaw effect: reduce overstimulation by taking tolerance breaks from high-dopamine activities that aren’t particularly useful (like social media or phone games), allowing for natural enjoyment of daily activities that you’d normally find enjoyable. Think: if you died and negotiated to be sent back to life on the condition you’d appreciate it properly this time, what things would you then spend your time doing? It’s probably not Kingdom Crush Saga Farm 2, is it?
    2. Conscious state meditation: practise conscious state meditation, focusing inward to reduce anxiety and release dopamine. Even a few minutes a day can significantly enhance dopamine levels.
    3. Hack your REM cycles: optimize sleep, especially REM cycles, which produce the most dopamine. Aim to wake up after your final REM cycle to feel energized and happy.
    4. The runner’s high: engage in regular exercise, which boosts dopamine through physical exertion and can lead to feelings of relaxation and euphoria, often known as the “runner’s high.”
    5. Mood-enhancing music: listen to music that makes you feel good. Favorite songs can stimulate dopamine production, improving your mood and well-being.
    6. Bright light therapy: spend time in natural sunlight to stimulate dopamine production and elevate your mood, countering the negative effects of extended indoor time. If natural sunlight is not very available where you are (e.g. this writer who lives next to an ancient bog surrounded by fog and the days are getting short, at time of writing), then artificial daylight lamps are respectable supplement—but just that, a supplement, not a replacement. Despite how it looks/feels, natural sunlight (especially in the morning, to cue the circadian rhythm to do its thing) is beneficial even through cloud cover.
    7. Relieve stress for good: actively reduce stress, as it inhibits dopamine. Simplify daily routines and eliminate stressors to naturally boost dopamine and feel more relaxed. Of course, you cannot remove all stress from your life, so get good at managing the stress created by the stressors that do remain.
    8. Tap into your flow state: enter a “flow state” by focusing deeply on an engaging task, which can elevate dopamine levels and boost motivation and happiness.
    9. The hormesis effect: embrace mild physical challenges, like cold showers. The temporary discomfort will paradoxically increase dopamine (it’s the body’s way of saying “congratulations, you survived the hard thing, here’s a little treat, so that you’ll be motivated to survive the next hard thing, too”)
    10. Activate your inner artist: engage in creative activities that you find fun. The process of creating boosts dopamine and provides motivation, enhancing mood and enjoyment in life.

    For more on all of these, enjoy:

    Click Here If The Embedded Video Doesn’t Load Automatically!

    Want to learn more?

    You might also like to read:

    Rebalancing Dopamine (Without “Dopamine Fasting”)

    Take care!

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  • Could the shingles vaccine lower your risk of dementia?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    A recent study has suggested Shingrix, a relatively new vaccine given to protect older adults against shingles, may delay the onset of dementia.

    This might seem like a bizarre link, but actually, research has previously shown an older version of the shingles vaccine, Zostavax, reduced the risk of dementia.

    In this new study, published last week in the journal Nature Medicine, researchers from the United Kingdom found Shingrix delayed dementia onset by 17% compared with Zostavax.

    So how did the researchers work this out, and how could a shingles vaccine affect dementia risk?

    Melinda Nagy/Shutterstock

    From Zostavax to Shingrix

    Shingles is a viral infection caused by the varicella-zoster virus. It causes painful rashes, and affects older people in particular.

    Previously, Zostavax was used to vaccinate against shingles. It was administered as a single shot and provided good protection for about five years.

    Shingrix has been developed based on a newer vaccine technology, and is thought to offer stronger and longer-lasting protection. Given in two doses, it’s now the preferred option for shingles vaccination in Australia and elsewhere.

    In November 2023, Shingrix replaced Zostavax on the National Immunisation Program, making it available for free to those at highest risk of complications from shingles. This includes all adults aged 65 and over, First Nations people aged 50 and older, and younger adults with certain medical conditions that affect their immune systems.

    What the study found

    Shingrix was approved by the US Food and Drugs Administration in October 2017. The researchers in the new study used the transition from Zostavax to Shingrix in the United States as an opportunity for research.

    They selected 103,837 people who received Zostavax (between October 2014 and September 2017) and compared them with 103,837 people who received Shingrix (between November 2017 and October 2020).

    By analysing data from electronic health records, they found people who received Shingrix had a 17% increase in “diagnosis-free time” during the follow-up period (up to six years after vaccination) compared with those who received Zostavax. This was equivalent to an average of 164 extra days without a dementia diagnosis.

    The researchers also compared the shingles vaccines to other vaccines: influenza, and a combined vaccine for tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis. Shingrix and Zostavax performed around 14–27% better in lowering the risk of a dementia diagnosis, with Shingrix associated with a greater improvement.

    The benefits of Shingrix in terms of dementia risk were significant for both sexes, but more pronounced for women. This is not entirely surprising, because we know women have a higher risk of developing dementia due to interplay of biological factors. These include being more sensitive to certain genetic mutations associated with dementia and hormonal differences.

    Why the link?

    The idea that vaccination against viral infection can lower the risk of dementia has been around for more than two decades. Associations have been observed between vaccines, such as those for diphtheria, tetanus, polio and influenza, and subsequent dementia risk.

    Research has shown Zostavax vaccination can reduce the risk of developing dementia by 20% compared with people who are unvaccinated.

    But it may not be that the vaccines themselves protect against dementia. Rather, it may be the resulting lack of viral infection creating this effect. Research indicates bacterial infections in the gut, as well as viral infections, are associated with a higher risk of dementia.

    Notably, untreated infections with herpes simplex (herpes) virus – closely related to the varicella-zoster virus that causes shingles – can significantly increase the risk of developing dementia. Research has also shown shingles increases the risk of a later dementia diagnosis.

    A woman receives a vaccination from a female nurse.
    This isn’t the first time research has suggested a vaccine could reduce dementia risk. ben bryant/Shutterstock

    The mechanism is not entirely clear. But there are two potential pathways which may help us understand why infections could increase the risk of dementia.

    First, certain molecules are produced when a baby is developing in the womb to help with the body’s development. These molecules have the potential to cause inflammation and accelerate ageing, so the production of these molecules is silenced around birth. However, viral infections such as shingles can reactivate the production of these molecules in adult life which could hypothetically lead to dementia.

    Second, in Alzheimer’s disease, a specific protein called Amyloid-β go rogue and kill brain cells. Certain proteins produced by viruses such as COVID and bad gut bacteria have the potential to support Amyloid-β in its toxic form. In laboratory conditions, these proteins have been shown to accelerate the onset of dementia.

    What does this all mean?

    With an ageing population, the burden of dementia is only likely to become greater in the years to come. There’s a lot more we have to learn about the causes of the disease and what we can potentially do to prevent and treat it.

    This new study has some limitations. For example, time without a diagnosis doesn’t necessarily mean time without disease. Some people may have underlying disease with delayed diagnosis.

    This research indicates Shingrix could have a silent benefit, but it’s too early to suggest we can use antiviral vaccines to prevent dementia.

    Overall, we need more research exploring in greater detail how infections are linked with dementia. This will help us understand the root causes of dementia and design potential therapies.

    Ibrahim Javed, Enterprise and NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellow, UniSA Clinical & Health Sciences, University of South Australia

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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