HEALTH & FITNESS
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Tap Your Way To Well-Being
I
n the 1990s, in an effort to bring
relief to people suffering with anxiety,
phobias, depression, trauma, cravings
and addictions, stress and even illness,
Stanford engineer Gary Craig developed
a cutting-edge healing method called
Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT).
Its origins were in Thought Field
Therapy (TFT), created in the 1980s by
psychologist Dr. Roger Callahan of the
University of Michigan. Callahan's protocol
was expensive to learn and complicated;
Craig simplified it and made it more
accessible to the public.
In 2003,1 attended a workshop on EFT.
Since then (and after studying with Craig
in 2004), I have used the technique with
hundreds of my psychotherapy clients
(both children and adults) and consistent-
ly have been astounded by the results.
EFT often is referred to as emotional
acupuncture. Instead of using needles,
people learn to balance the body's energy
system by gently tapping with
their fingertips on various
acupuncture points that corre-
spond to organs and emotions
in the bod
The roots of EFT are found
in traditional Chinese medicine
and its recognition of the body's
subtle energy system. Qi energy
(pronounced chee) is circulated
throughout the meridians. You
can think of the meridians as
being like a riverbed over which
the river's water flows, irrigating
the land; Qi energy feeds, nourishes and
sustains the body's meridians, through
which it flows.
If a dam were placed at any point along
the river, the nourishing effect of the
water would stop at the point the dam was
placed. So, when the Qi becomes blocked,
the rest of the body suffers. Anxiety,
depression and various illnesses are
among the results.
EFT is a fantastic tool used
to restore the flow of Qi. Simply
by tapping on various meridian
points, you are able to clear the
blockages that keep your body
from fully thriving.
A client who felt unable to
go on a cruise — he'd had an
angioplasty two weeks earlier
and was having regular panic
attacks — found that EFT
calmed him down enough so
he could go on his trip and
have a carefree time.
Another client who had knee problems
for more than a year was pain-free a year
after tapping at the site of her discomfort.
(This is an example of one of the "one-
minute wonders" of EFT often referred to
by Craig.)
The possibilities of EFT are endless. It
is being used not only to heal trauma and
stress but also to bring abundance, grati-
tude and joy into its practitioners' lives. As
a therapeutic technique, there is little else
to equal its simplicity and effectiveness.
Many experienced therapists using EFT
today report typical success rates of 80-95
percent.
Easily learned, EFT is a tool you will
have for life. Li
Brenda Strausz, MA, is a psychotherapist, hypnotherapist and EFT coach who
writes the "Can You Relate" column that appears in JN Platinum. She is offer-
ing workshops on EFT, at no charge, 7-9 p.m. Wednesday, Sept.17, and 7-9 p.m.
Monday, Oct.13, in Southfield. For more information or to register, go to www.
brendastrausz.com , e-mail Dearbrenn@aol.com or call (248) 231-4504.
ASK THE DOCTOR
New Options Available To Treat Spinal Fractures From Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis, in which bones become fragile and easily broken, causes over 700,000 spinal fractures annually
What happens to you if you have a spinal fracture?
in the U.S.—more fractures than in the hip and wrist combined. Approximately two-thirds of all spinal fractures go
undiagnosed or untreated due to the absence of symptoms or difficulty determining the cause of symptoms, leading some
to call osteoporosis a "silent disease."
After experiencing one fracture, your risk of a second fracture is greatly increased. In addition, just one fracture affects
how weight is distributed through the spine, thus placing higher than normal stress on the front of the spine which
contributes to the risk of future fracture. With additional fractures, it can become progressively difficult to walk, eat,
and sleep due to pain and the unnatural spinal alignment. See a doctor to determine your condition and appropriate
treatment, as there may be different explanations for why you are experiencing back pain.
Since 50 percent of women and 25 percent of men older than 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture in their
lifetime and bone loss can begin as early as 30, now is the time to take a closer look at osteoporosis and new options
for treating fractures caused by osteoporosis. Through proper diagnosis and treatment, patients with spinal fractures
can significantly improve their ability to perform normal activities of daily living and enjoy an overall improvement in their
quality of life.
Dr. Louis Radden, Reconstructive Spine Surgeon with Spine Specialists of Michigan, offers
some answers.
How common is osteoporosis and to
what might it lead?
The National Osteoporosis Foundation
cites osteoporosis as a major public health
threat affecting 44 million Americans.
While a calcium-rich diet, weight-bearing
exercise and the avoidance of smoking
and excessive alcohol can help prevent
bone mass loss, osteoporosis ranks
second only to cardiovascular disease
as a leading healthcare problem according
to the World Health Organization.
With osteoporosis, bones in our spine, hip and wrist deteriorate and become susceptible to fractures. In the spine,
small fractures lead to compression of the vertebral body (called vertebral compression fractures or VCFs). Left
untreated, these VCFs create a curvature of the spine, sometimes referred to as "dowager's hump." Over time, this
curvature can become more pronounced, painful and debilitating.
How do I know if I have osteoporosis?
Bone loss happens without symptoms—it doesn't hurt or cause much trouble at first, though left unchecked it
might cause a lifetime of disability and even hasten death. Talk to your doctor about bone health and taking a
bone density test.
What options are there if I have a spinal fracture?
Traditional treatments for spinal fractures include extended bed rest, pain medication and back braces, all of which
can relieve pain but do not address the deformity caused by the fracture. Open surgery is also an option, but it is more
invasive than non-surgical management and is typically reserved for patients with neurological complications. Balloon
Kyphoplasty, a minimally invasive procedure, is designed to treat the fracture and restore the vertebra to the correct
position. Balloon Kyphoplasty has been demonstrated to significantly reduce back pain, correct spinal deformity and
improve quality of life.
How is Balloon Kyphoplasty performed?
Balloon Kyphoplasty is a minimally invasive procedure performed by a spine specialist. It can be performed using
either a local or general anesthesia. It typically takes about one half hour to treat each fracture and may require an
overnight hospital stay.
Does insurance cover Balloon Kyphoplasty?
In most cases, Medicare provides coverage for kyphoplasty. Other insurance may also provide coverage. Check with
your insurance carrier or doctor to find out about coverage.
What can Balloon Kyphoplasty do for me if I have a spinal fracture?
If you have a spinal fracture, Balloon Kyphoplasty can restore vertebral body height, significantly reduce back pain and
increase mobility, often shortly after the procedure. In addition to pain reduction, patients experience an increased
ability to return to such simple, everyday activities as walking, reaching, bending and lifting. Patients also report
improved mental health, vitality, social function and emotional health.
Are there risks associated with Balloon Kyphoplasty?
Although the complication rate with Balloon Kyphoplasty has been demonstrated to be low, as with most surgical
procedures, there are risks associated with Balloon Kyphoplasty, including serious complications. Complications can
include myocardial infarction (heart attack), cerebrovascular accident (stroke), pulmonary embolism (bone cement
leakage migrates to the lungs), cardiac arrest (heart stops beating) or nerve or spinal cord injury that may cause pain,
weakness or paralysis.
6621 W. Maple Rd.
14555 Levan Rd. Suite 116
SPINE SPECIALISTS OF MICHIGAN P.C.
West Bloomfield
30055 Northwestern Hwy. Suite 270
Livonia
Farmington Hills
248-661-4700
734-464-0400
248-865-4262
Dr. Louis N. Radden
RECONSTRUCTIVE SPINE SURGERY
1366520
A38
August 28 e 2008
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