Step Out of Pain

Back Surgery: More Damage Than Benefit....According to DOCTORS

2010-04-12T21:44:00.003-04:00

When even the medical experts say that it's OK to say "no" to surgery, I'll listen. So should you. Another New York Times piece, this from the Economix blog titled "Saying No to Back Surgery," confirms what I've felt intuitively for a long time: if your surgeon recommends a complication back surgery, politely decline. It comes from a study by a doctor at the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, Oregon. He finds:

"More complex procedures were associated with greater complications, mortality, hospital charges, and other measures of health care use, even after adjustment for patient demographic and clinical characteristics. Age was less predictive than comorbidity or type of surgical procedure…"

What that basically says is this: if your surgeon is recommending a complex surgery on your back --, back away, because you're more likely to have more problems afterward than you had before surgery....more complications, higher possibility of death, higher bills from your hospital and more of everything else that the health-care system can throw at your (rehab, drugs, etc..)...most of it expensive).

It's no surprise that back surgeries also cost more than they ever did, and that's what might be the carrot for doctors: the chance to make more money. Don't give them the opportunity, especially if you love your back. (You wouldn't believe some of the emails I get from people who have terrible, awful, horrible stories of backs and lives that have been damaged by back surgeries gone wrong. I would love to help them, but in many cases, the tissue is so compromised that my stretches are a shot in a dark).

What to do instead
If your back hurts, quit leaning on one leg more than another. Stand on both legs. And if it still hurts, get down on the floor and do a few Rossiter System techniques on it. And get out and WALK!!!!

Had a bug lately?

2009-01-05T21:29:00.008-05:00

It makes me feel good to see the government hasn't forgotten us when it tells us that it will now let us know when it leaves bugs in our food.

According to the New York Times:

"The Food and Drug Administration has finalized a rule that will require food companies to list cochineal extract and carmine on the label when they are used in food and cosmetics. But the new rule contains one glaring omission. It doesn’t require companies to tell you that the ingredients come from a bug."

So all those great drinks, fruit punch's, reddish cola stuff, Sweet drinks, all with nummy bugs for coloring, only though. Nice pinks oranges, purples, yummmm. Oh and for you women of the make-up All those colors? Yes you guessed it, bug extracts. Bug juice to put on your face to go with the cow tendons. Oh, you know the ones, elastin and plastin, the good cow extract. These were hidden in the terms artificial coloring and color added. Thank you NYT. You rock. Maybe in the future government nitwits will chew enough of them to get wise.

To think some of my favorite drinks, yogurts, ice creams, all made with, well, bugs. Thank god they are government approved. For the full impact go to> http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/05/bugs-in-your-food/

Had a bug lately?

2009-01-05T21:29:00.001-05:00

When technology fails and can't find itself

2008-11-19T22:18:00.006-05:00

There are times when wanting to be at the edge of technology is time wasted. Sometimes trying to be technology's edge is a pain when your techie people can't find their butt with both hands. Then they don't show up for work. I'm getting tired of baby sitting. Right now I can't even get into my own site.

rhr

Drugs to Strengthen Bones...may cause BROKEN LEGS

2008-07-16T20:51:00.003-04:00

I'll admit it: I don't even like to take aspirin, that's how skeptical I am of drug claims. But I'm MOST skeptical of drugs that promise to reverse ANYTHING, especially bone loss. And now new studies have found that some of the drugs pushed on women (especially older women) to "rebuild bones" and to repair bone loss from menopause or osteoporosis...might actually cause leg bones to break on their own. In fact, some of the women who've broken their leg bones say it felt as if the bone broke and THEN they fell to the ground, not the other way around (which is how it's supposed to happen if you don't try to fool Mother Nature).

Want stronger bones? Then EXERICSE, for cryin' out loud.

Get out and walk every day, or swim, or take a short jog. Walk for 20-30 minutes, and don't just MOSEY....WALK like you're trying to get the first ride at Disney World on opening day. Walk like you mean it. Walk as if someone's chasing you and you want to get out of the way. Work up a sweat, and feel GOOD at the end. That's how you build strong bones....not by taking drugs.

Creaky Joints? You Haven't Heard Anything Until You've Heard...Squeaky Joints

2008-05-12T20:46:00.002-04:00

From the "it was bound to happen department," perhaps? A story in the New York Times recounts the experiences of hip replacement patients who are discovering -- up to 7% of them, in some cases -- that their several-year-old ceramic hips (artificial joints) are starting to SQUEAK

Reports Barnaby Feder of the Times: "Any artificial hip can occasionally make a variety of noises. But until Stryker, a medical products company, began marketing highly durable ceramic hips in the United States in 2003, squeaking was extremely rare.

Now, tens of thousands of ceramic hips later — from Stryker and other makers that entered the field — many patients say their squeaking hips are interfering with daily life. One study in the Journal of Arthroplasty found that 10 patients of 143 who received ceramic hips from 2003 to 2005, or 7 percent, developed squeaking. Meanwhile, no squeaks occurred among a control group of 48 patients who received hips made of metal and plastic. “It can interrupt sex when my wife starts laughing,” said one man, who discussed the matter on the condition that he not be named."

Patients say their hips squeak when doing normal activities...bending over, walking, getting up from a chair. One even posted a YouTube video demonstrating the squeakiness.

Makes you wonder...if those artificial hips are squeaking, what else are they doing internally? Deteriorating? Wasting away? Rubbing themselves into joint nothingness?

Another reason to avoid surgery as long as possible and try Rossiter System stretches instead.

Before you reach for that Diet Soda....read this!

2008-03-14T19:56:00.002-04:00

My wife can't/won't drink diet sodas - or anything containing the artificial sweetener aspartame - because she says it leaves a strange metallic aftertaste in her mouth. Just as I tell people who are in pain to listen to their bodies and to think of pain as information, I'm convinced HER body is telling her to stay away from the chemical sweetener as well.

So I was even more intrigued when I found this newsletter article from Dr. Mercola's web site (he's an alternative medicine speiclaist). One woman, concerned about her family's intake of diet soda, fed 108 rats small bits of aspartame over two years. And more than one-third of them developed tumors. Some of them were honking BIG tumors. How much did she feed them: the equivalent of 2/3 of the aspartame found in a normal 8-ounce can of diet soda.

Don't trust what i tel you. Start searching the Internet for information about aspartame -- also sold as NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, Equal-Measure and Canderel. Here's a link to Dr. Mercola's web site about aspartame. Or check out information from the Center for Science in the Public Interest about the Ramazzini study, which found that aspartame in rats is a "multipotent carcinogenic agent." Meaning it's a potent cancer-causing food.

So think before you drink that next can of diet soda...and just say no. Or choose plain old natural sugar instead!

Prescription Drugs...in the drinking water?

2008-03-09T13:07:00.004-04:00

Next time you take a big gulp of watery goodness from the tap, consider this: you might be drinking minute concentrations of prescription drugs that treat everything from heart disease to epilepsy, hormonal problems to depression.

The Associated Press says studies indicate that drinking water supplies are contaminated with tiny concentrations of common prescription medicines, and the studies have been done on treated drinking water and watersheds (water sources) from coast to coast.

Federal officials, of course, say the amounts are too small to be of any consequence. But how much is too much? How do they know? And what about water that hasn't been tested?

How do they get into the water? Well, humans take them, and whatever goes in has to go out, and some of the drugs are "released" into the water supply as urine that's flushed down toilets; water treatment systems can't remove everything that's in the water.

Scary....maybe those water filters are more important than we think.

Heat Wraps for Pain? Think Again (SIZZLE!!!!)

2008-02-12T10:01:00.001-05:00

Those of you who've taken my workshop have heard my lecture about the negative effects of "heat wraps" and hot baths. They're bad for pain. Heat changes, melts and remolds connective tissue (especially that huge hunk of it in the lower back, and especially when it's sat upon in a hot bathtub or Jacuzzi. Connective tissue that gets subjected to/reshaped by heat can send phantom pains (fibromyalgia?) shooting through the extremities. If you hurt, you should be putting ICE and COLD stuff on your pain, not heat!

And here's one more reason to avoid heat wraps: they BURN!

This from the FDA in early February 2008: "Chattem, Inc. announced that it is initiating a voluntary Nationwide recall of its Icy Hot Heat Therapy products, including consumer samples that were included on a limited promotional basis in cartons of its 3 oz. Aspercreme product. Chattem is recalling these products because it has received some consumer reports of first, second and third degree burns as well as skin irritation resulting from consumer use or possible misuse of these products."

(Third-degree burns, by the way, cause blisters and actually burn the tissue).

The press release accompanying the announcement says: "All lots and all sizes of the following Icy Hot Heat Therapy products are affected by this recall:

Icy Hot Heat Therapy Air Activated Heat- Back
Icy Hot Heat Therapy Air Activated Heat- Arm, Neck, and Leg
Icy Hot Heat Therapy Air Activated Heat- Arm, Neck, and Leg single consumer use "samples" included on a limited promotional basis in cartons of 3 oz. Aspercreme Pain Relieving Crème.
NOTE: if products have been removed from their holding cartons the recalled products are packaged in a red colored plastic pouch which states Icy Hot Heat Therapy and either Back or Arm/Neck and Leg.

Single consumer use "samples" of Icy Hot Heat Therapy- Arm, Neck and Leg were included on a limited promotional basis in yellow and red cartons of 3 oz. Aspercreme Pain Relieving Crème. The samples were distinct and stand-alone products, clearly labeled as "Icy Hot Heat Therapy Air Activated Heat," with their own internal labeling.

These products are sold over the counter through food, drug and mass merchandisers.

Consumers who have the Icy Hot Heat Therapy products under recall should immediately stop using the products, discard them, and/or return them to Chattem, Inc."

Cold and ice, people, NOT heat, for pain!

Welcome, new Rossiter System Instructors!

2008-01-07T21:25:00.000-05:00

I'm extremely proud to introduce to all of you the first-ever class of Rossiter System Instructors - a group of professionals from around the country who will begin teaching Rossiter System Unit I workshops in 2008.

These 12 people are true Rossiter System fanatics...people who've been so excited about The Rossiter System that they've asked me over the past few years when I would offer a course that would certify them as Instructors. And for six challenging and energy-filled days in December, all 12 them came to Cincinnati and participated in a first-ever, intensives Instructor Training course. Soon, they'll be scheduling and teaching Introductory and Unit I Rossiter System workshops from New Jersey to Seattle, the Carolinas to California, New Mexico to Colorado, while I'll continue to handle Unit II classes to certify new Rossiter System Coaches.

I'm truly excited about the energy, dedication and commitment that these 12 individuals exude, especially as we take The Rossiter System to the next level of awareness and professionalism. Equally exciting is the appearance of a seven-page article about The Rossiter System that appears in the December Massage Magazine.

Meet the Instructors

...and here's who they are (from the left): Michael Peairs of Springfield, OH; Valerie Lescantz of Lake Forest, WA: Steve Timmerman of Aiken, SC; Viktor Bek of Princeton, NJ; Kristen Peairs of Columbus, OH; David Henre of Leadville, CO: Richard Rossiter; Diane Meyer of Cincinnati, OH; Kathy Howard of Greensboro, NC; Ron Arbel of San Diego, CA; Felecia Harvey of Dexter, NM; John Carnes of Columbus, OH; and John Prior of San Francisco, CA. They include massage therapists and personal trainers, CORE fitness trainers and Structural Integrators/Rolfers.

Look for GREAT things from this Daring Dozen as they take The Rossiter System to the streets! The more you support them, the quicker that word will spread about this approach to pain relief...and the more that all of you will benefit from the additional exposure, awareness and training. I'm proud to have such great colleagues across the country!

The cost of "miracle drugs"...nearly $5 billion

2007-11-09T16:01:00.001-05:00

Remember Vioxx? The miracle pain reliever? Merck (the pharmaceutical company that makes it) agreed to pay nearly $5 billion (with a B) to settle lawsuits/claims against the company for the drug's "side effects," which included heart attack and strokes.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: drugs do not have "SIDE effects." They have "effects," and not all of the "effects" are good ones, especially when they maim, kill and backfire. Even the bad ones are "effects," not things that just happen on the side...especially when it's a heart attack or stroke that's the payoff for a little arthritis pain relief.

Be careful what you put in your mouth. Regard drug marketing suspiciously and skeptically. If it's too good to be true, it probably is. And stretching can solve so many problems that drugs simply mask over.

Migraines from too much headache medicine? Indeed. Try a Hole in the Shoulder instead.

2007-10-14T22:12:00.000-04:00

Noticed this piece in the New York Times this week: doctors are finding that a lot of headaches are really the result of the "rebound" effects of painkillers designed to kill headaches. That's right...take too many headache pills, and you're likely to give yourself a headache.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: lots of headaches, including migraines, stress headaches and just plain old hurt-like-hell headaches that creep up the back of your head/neck, are the result of connective tissue that's too tight, usually in the pectoral muscles across the front of the chest. A Rossiter System technique called the Hole in the Shoulder, especially if done as soon as headache symptoms start, can usually whack a headache (even a migraine) in a matter of minutes.

It sounds illogical, but think about it: most of the work that we do today is in front of us...at a computer, a desk, a piece of machinery, whatever. We don't use our arms and upper bodies that way that humans used to when they were outdoorsy, active people. So when all the tissue across the upper portion of the front of your body gets constrained and limited, it pulls and tightens inward....pullling on the tissues at the back of your head and upper back, causing headaches.

Stretch out the front part of your body, and you'll probably get rid of your headaches. Check out the book and find out how. Hole in the Shoulder. Try it.

For those of you who don't know...

2007-09-20T19:37:00.000-04:00

I am a political junkie.

Check out new ROSSITER STUFF at the AMTA National Convention!

2007-09-20T19:12:00.000-04:00

It's almost time for the national convention of the American Massage Therapy Association, which will be held Sept. 26-29 at the Duke Energy/CIncinnati Convention Center.

The Rossiter System will BE THERE....trade-show booth No. 101 near the doors. Come check out the new ideas, the new logo, and the new ways to provide BETTER MASSAGE therapy to your clients by integrating the Rossiter System.

If you're a state AMTA officer, stop by the booth for your free book and a free stretching session to fix what ails you.

If you're a massage therapist interested in techniques that provide quick pain relief to your clients (without wearing the heck out of you), visit Step out of Pain for some new insights!

Visit the Ohio on-site massage room for a Rossiter workout as well, provided by therapists from around the state who've been certified at Rossiter System workshops.

...and keep your toes up!

Is Over-the-Counter Pain Relief Worth Dying For???

2007-06-11T19:43:00.001-04:00

Couldn't help but notice this article in USA Today, which says that a 17-year-old high school runner died from an overdose of a topical cream used for sports pain relief.

EXCUSE ME???? Obviously something's wrong if the stuff you can buy over-the-counter can build up on your body and do you in. And I have to ask: why do athletes keep insisting on drugs/surgery/splints for pain relief when other natural approaches -- like The Rossiter System -- are readily available, FREE and carry no risk of side effects? Why aren't more coaches and trainers interested in approaches that work without risks? If sports medicine doctors who own huge orthopaedic clinics practices are in charge of most athletic teams, what incentive do THEY have to look at alternative approaches?

I am amazed. And saddened.

What the Drug Industry DOESN'T Want you to Know

2007-06-04T21:23:00.000-04:00

Have you ever noticed how many TV ads promote drugs directly to YOU...for conditions you didn't even know existed, or for problems that don't even bother you? But now you're wondering....

Critics of the massive pharmaceutical industry are paying attention, too, with several online campaigns to raise public awareness. The first, by the Media Education Foundation, promotes a documentary called "Big Bucks, Big Pharma," which examines the tremendous (and somewhat unchecked) growth of direct-to-consumer advertising, which is a fairly recent phenomenon. There was a time when drug reps and drug companies could market ONLY to doctors....there were no direct-to-the-public TV ads for Viagra and Nexium and Celebrex and Lunesta...and...and...you know the drill. Print ads for drugs appeared only in medical journals/trade publications, and TV was not graced with dancing flowers selling drugs, ladies in the park doing Tai Chi as if that made taking a drug any more sensible, auctioneers getting all teary-eyed over cancer drugs.

You can watch another video, "PHARMED OUT," at YouTube...it features a former Eli Lilly drug rep who talks about the secret side effect that the drug company don't want people on Zyprexa (an anti-psychotic drug) to know about: namely, obesity. The drug makes you fat, and people on Xyprexa are also therefore at higher risk of diabetes. But the drug rep says he and his fellow reps were "instructed to downplay that side effect" and talk up its other positives. The entire clip is about 5 minutes long.

Surgery Sucks...Drugs Suck just as much. Remember that next time you're in pain. Or have restless leg syndrome.

Fascia--the Body's System of SPACE

2007-06-01T16:33:00.000-04:00

Every workshop I teach, I remind my student/colleagues the same things: fascia is that body's system of "Space." It's what holds bodies together, gives them shape and form, allows them to move easily and freely.

And when fascia becomes too tight -- like a wetsuit that's two sizes too small -- all sorts of aches and pains set in. The Rossiter System is one of several modalities that loosen and elongate connective tissue -- fascia -- back to its normal, loose pain-free state by adding weight (a partner's foot), warmth (a partner's foot) and movement (you stretch like he!!).

The Ottowa Sun newspaper recently did an interesting piece on the small-but-growing interest in fascia, mostly by people like you and me but not by the medical profession (not just yet anyway). Read it here...and start stretching today!

Still here!

2007-04-25T21:32:00.000-04:00

Just because I haven't posted anything for a while doesn't mean I'm not here. Just been too busy teaching and spiffing up The Rossiter System.

Stay tuned for great things....including "The Rossiter Station." Way cool!

Mamas, don't let your babies grow up...to play football?

2007-01-18T21:13:00.000-05:00

Disturbing news today about the long-term effects of playing football: one forensic specialist who is particularly interested in football players has found that sustained concussions can increase the risk of later-life depression, dementia and suicide as early as midlife, as reported in the New York Times.(registration may be required)

The information has come to light because of the interest of another former NFL player who wanted more answers about why, after a teen/young adult career as a football player, he began experiencing depression and memory loss in middle adulthood. And according to the doctor taking an interest in the issue, some middle-aged adults who played football as teens/young adults show brain patterns in their 40s that usually aren't seen until elderly people are in their 80s, including pre-Alzheimer's conditions.

For some, the bottom line: sending young kids back on the field after head inujuries and concussions and telling them to "tough it out" may, in fact, be setting them up for severe problems later in life.

Surgery for Ruptured Discs? Forget About It!

2006-11-22T11:54:00.000-05:00

A large medical study of back surgery for ruptured discs finds that those who undergo surgery get quicker pain relief, but in the long run, people who do NOT have surgery end up just fine, thank you, and do just as well as those who underwent surgery.

You can read the study, published in the journal of the American Medical Association, in today's New York Times. Other studies, interestingly, have noted that even healthy people can have ruptured/bulging discs with no symptoms or back pain, so this study supports my belief that a lot of back surgery is done unnecessarily.

I'll say it again: If your back hurts, it's because you're using ONE leg more than the OTHER leg, and back pain typically develops on the side of the back that's OPPOSITE your stronger leg. If you always stand/lean on your right leg, your left back will hurt, and vice versa.

First, STAND UP STRAIGHT (mom was right!) and share the load between both legs, all the time. Do it consciously.
If you develop back pain, do the Rossiter System techniques on the quadriceps for quick and usually effective back pain relief.

And remember....SURGERY SUCKS.

"Restless Leg Syndrome"...a Fake Disease That's Easily "Fixed" By Stretching

2006-07-28T17:54:00.000-04:00

I've been watching those ads on TV for what drugmakers are now calling "restless leg syndrome," and I laugh and then I cry. I laugh because it's another "fake disease" invented by drug companies who want to create the impression in people's minds that very common structural problems in the body are really diseases. You might not know it, but drug companies frequently set up non-profit "foundations" that are in effect arms of the drug companies themselves. But as nonpprofits, they can provide "education" and "free samples" to patients.

I cry because "restless leg syndrome" is easily fixed by using a few of the stretching techniques in the Rossiter System, especially the Upper Calf Crunch and Lower Calf Crunch. "Restless legs" means a few things.

1. You're probably lazy and not using your legs a lot, so QUIT THAT. Get out and take a walk every day, for cripe's sake. And don't saunter. Walk as if you're headed to Disney World and the gates close in 10 minutes.

2. Keep your calf muscles stretched out. And here's a free technique that you can do easily with a stretching partner.

Upper Calf Crunch
1.Find a chair with a thick padding on the seat, or use a wooden chair but add several of blankets or foam pads to it so it's soft.
2. Stand in front of the chair and bend the knee of your "restless leg" and place it as far back on the seat of the chair as you can, making sure that your foot hangs over the edge with enough space around it that you can wiggle and move your foot around.
3. Stand up straight and hold onto the back of the chair for balance, but don't lean.
4. Ask your stretching partner to stand on the other side of the chair, facing your side, and to place the arch of his/her foot at the top of your calf muscle. Make your your partner keeps his/her toes up while adding weight. The partner should stand up straight and add weight straight down onto your upper calf with her/her arch.
5. Once you've taken as much weight as you can, start stretching by pushing out with your heel and pulling your toes under the chair, and then point your toes all the way across the room behind you. Now tuck your toes under again and push out with your heel, and make a big SLOW (and I mean SLOW!) circle, all the way around in one direction two times, and then two times in the other direction. Then go walk around and compare that leg with the un-stretched leg.

Repeat the technique.

And quit taking drugs that are probably nothing more than muscle relaxants anyway.

Besides, when you stretch, you can still operate heavy equipment that very day

What if the Drugs You're Taking Are Harming You?

2006-07-20T15:19:00.000-04:00

If you could get sick taking drugs, how you would treat the problem? Well, it IS a problem, according to the latest report from the Institute of Medicine, which finds that 1.5 million "medication errors" occur each year at a cost of $3.5 BILLION (with a "b").

According to Forbes magazine, that's one patient per day in every U.S. hospital who's somehow injured by a drug. (The medical community calls them "side effects" but at this rate, I call them what they are: "effects," and they're primary ones.

The bottom line for YOU? Know what you're taking. Read the labels. Read all the fine-print material that comes with your drugs. Politely DECLINE your doctor's recommendation if you think a drug might be too risky, or if you're already taking a lot of other drug and don't want to keep adding to the pile. Take CHARGE of your health, because if all you do is pop pills, you don't know how those pills are reacting and interacting inside your body. Ask lots of questions. Talk to your pharmacist.

Coming Soon....STEP OUT OF PAIN, the book!

2006-05-23T20:49:00.000-04:00

Extra! Extra! Read all about it.....soon!

If you hurt anywhere on your body -- stiff shoulders, carpal tunnel syndrome, low back pain, achy knees, sore feet -- whatEVER. Pain relief will soon be on the way with the updated, revised, better-than-ever book that details all the Rossiter System two-person stretches you'll ever need to get out of pain...and stay out of pain for the rest of your life.

First came Overcoming Repetitive Motion Injuries the Rossiter Way in 1999. Nice book, loser title.

Then came the self-published Surgery Sucks!!!! Fix Your Body Without Needles, Knives, Scalpels, 'Scopes, Lasers and Other Sharp Stuff! Awesome title, even better cover design....but way too many typos and an index that's being revised.

Step out of Pain the Rossiter Way proves that the third time's the charm.

It has the same 100-plus two-person stretching techniques, PLUS an entirely new section of single-person stretches for those times when you hurt but there's just not a stretching partner anywhere to be found.

It'll be rolling off the presses sometime this summer, probably in August....keep an eye out for it here!!!!