| I feel that I need to warn you about cortisone | | | | This brings me back to my friend with the Achilles |
| injections and the possible harm they can inflict. | | | | tendon problem. |
| I was speaking to a good friend of mine who was | | | | The major cause of prolonged pain and |
| in a great deal of pain. I asked him what had | | | | dysfunction from injuries is from lack of |
| happened and he told me that a rather small | | | | appropriate rehabilitative exercises. If you have an |
| problem that he had had was now a big problem. | | | | injury you MUST do stretching and strengthening |
| He explained to me that he had had been | | | | exercises as soon as possible. (After the initial 48 |
| suffering from pain in his Achilles tendon. The | | | | hour inflammatory phase). |
| doctor didn't seem to know why he had this pain | | | | So my friend has, in my opinion, been getting |
| so he recommended that he get a series of | | | | treatment in 'backwards- forwards land.' He has |
| cortisone injections to 'see how that went'. After | | | | come to see the doctor and instead of getting |
| the first one he felt a bit better, then the next he | | | | treatment for it such as physical therapy, which |
| felt better again and a few days before he was | | | | means stretching and strengthening exercises and |
| scheduled for his third injection he felt 'like | | | | soft tissue/joint therapies he was given cortisone |
| someone hit him in the back of the calf' and now | | | | injections. Here was a person who needed to |
| he had severe bruising in and around his Achilles | | | | strengthen his tendon and stretch it out to |
| tendon and ankle and was no longer able to walk | | | | recover it to full function but what he got instead |
| without the aid of crutches. The doctor took a | | | | was something that masked the problem. He |
| look at him and couldn't understand what had | | | | should have been getting therapy to allow the |
| happened so sent him off to get some | | | | fibers to knit into a strong and flexible repair so |
| physiotherapy for his ankle. This is where he | | | | that he could regain his strength in the soft |
| should have gone to in the first place | | | | tissues. However, instead he was now walking and |
| So what is wrong with this picture? | | | | running around with a torn tendon but now he |
| Why don't we first take a look at cortisone | | | | could apply more pressure through the tendon |
| injections themselves? They have been around | | | | thanks to the analgesic properties of the |
| since the 1950s and are used to decrease tissue | | | | cortisone. Now, he could walk harder and faster |
| inflammation so that the area can then heal. This | | | | which enabled him to damage his tendon further. |
| is the theory. But why is the area inflamed? This | | | | Every pain free step would enable him to tear |
| is the number one priority-getting to the cause of | | | | those tiny fibers more and more until finally |
| the problem not just treating the symptoms. Let's | | | | something had to give- and it did. His tendon, |
| take a look at another example. | | | | thanks to the deadening effects of the cortisone |
| I will use and example of a new client who came | | | | and the added benefits of the corrosive |
| to see me last week. This person was suffering | | | | properties of the cortisone pushed his Achilles |
| from neck pain and had tried everything from | | | | tendon past breaking point and it snapped. Where |
| prolotherapy to acupuncture to chiropractic to | | | | is my friend now? He is getting physiotherapy 3 |
| Rolfing. However, his pain still existed. The whole | | | | times a week to try to heal the area which is |
| time he was speaking to me he was sitting in a | | | | now much worse than the original problem. |
| slouched forward head posture. I could see by his | | | | So my advice to you is this. Just because your |
| posture that this was his major problem and | | | | doctor or therapist doesn't know why you have |
| would be our first area to look at. The thing about | | | | pain is no reason to jump into a series of |
| poor posture and particularly a forward head | | | | cortisone injections. They are not good for your |
| posture is that it affects the upper back, neck, | | | | body, they are a corticosteroid. There is no |
| shoulders, lower back and so on and so forth. A | | | | reason to start putting more chemicals into your |
| forward head posture has a huge knock-on | | | | body when you may not have to. Seek another |
| effect throughout the rest of the body. In other | | | | opinion. More than that, make sure that the cause |
| words, many of your problems will be caused | | | | is being addressed not just the symptoms. Are |
| (and fixed) by addressing this first. | | | | your shoulders painful because of major muscular |
| I knew by looking at him that his shoulders were | | | | and structural imbalances? Can you stop your |
| also forward and internally rotated which will | | | | osteoarthritis getting worse simply by postural |
| impinged the shoulder joint and set him up for | | | | and structural modifications? |
| shoulder problems. I asked him if he had had | | | | If a person has sciatica and back pain because |
| shoulder problems in the past and he said 'oh sure, | | | | they have disc bulges in their lower back and |
| I have had 3 cortisone injections in the left | | | | need surgery I would want to see first why they |
| shoulder and 2 in the right but they didn't really | | | | have disc bulges in the first place. Is it because |
| work'. | | | | they sit slouched at their desk all day and night? |
| Of course they 'didn't really work' because the | | | | Is it because they lift things poorly? If this is the |
| cortisone injections will never fix the cause of the | | | | case, and they elect to have surgery and do not |
| problem which is known as 'upper crossed | | | | stop these bad habits, what is stopping the next |
| syndrome' or 'rounded shoulders' or 'shoulders that | | | | weakest links above and below the fusion from |
| are too far forward and internally rotated which | | | | doing the same thing? Nothing. If you have blown |
| lessen the space in the shoulder joint and cause | | | | your L5-S1 disc because of these very reasons |
| impingement or better put, constant mashing of | | | | and then after surgery( all going well) you feel |
| the soft tissues.' The cortisone may have had a | | | | better but continue to sit, stand and lift poorly |
| temporary effect as it reduced the inflammation | | | | you will put these same forces on your discs |
| and impingement but the cause of the problem | | | | AGAIN and the problems will still be there. You |
| was never addressed (i.e. shoulders too far | | | | are still causing your discs to be pushed |
| forward and internally rotated causing pain and | | | | backwards, straining your ligaments and soft |
| inflammation) and therefore after a short while | | | | tissues. Likewise, a cortisone shot will not fix your |
| the pain returned. | | | | back pain from bad lifting techniques if you |
| The story doesn't end there. Not only do | | | | continue to lift badly |
| cortisone injections hurt but they have a | | | | Your neck is no different. You MUST remove the |
| corrosive effect on the cartilage and soft tissues. | | | | cause of your neck pain. |
| This, I don't need to tell you, is NOT GOOD! | | | | |