​This July will mark 2 years as part of the team at Whole Health for Dr. Tessa! To celebrate she is offering initial consultations normally $85 for only $45 and donating the proceeds to a local charity as a thank you to the community. Book for yourself or your kids and be a part of giving back to the Brighton area.
 
Click here to book your initial consultation with Dr. Tessa or call the office to book. 

Did you know Dr. Tessa grew up in a small town in Southern Ontario called Simcoe, On. She was raised on a dairy farm and speaks Dutch since her parents and 3 of her 6 siblings were born in the Netherlands.
 
She loves playing sports- currently beach volleyball and ultimate frisbee with her husband. Her son is her biggest fan and comes to most of the games.
 
She understands the importance of taking care of your body to prevent injury and allow your nervous system to function optimally and therefore gets adjusted weekly or biweekly as well as regular massage therapy and athletic therapy. She has been in practice for over 5 years and loves continuing to learn more. She is doing an upcoming course on postnatal core rehab and is looking forward to sharing this information with new and experienced moms alike. 
Click here to learn more about her upcoming course and stay tuned for more information!

Did you know chiropractic care is a safe and effective way to get rid of your pain without having to take Tylenol or Advil everyday? There are lots of ways to adjust which we will determine based on your health history and comfort levels. Dr Tessa uses Thompson technique (or the drop table), activator adjustments and diversified (or manual) adjustments.
 
Click here for some stretches to help with your headaches and learn about the different types of headaches and some tips to help prevent them!

​Sore feet, hips, low back or knees?
 
Orthotics may help! It’s sandal season and we offer custom orthotics built right into Birkenstock sandals. This way you can stay cool and comfortable all summer long. Most insurance companies cover orthotics as long as you have a prescription from your medical doctor or podiatrist.
 
Read here for more about the benefits of orthotics. Give us a call if you have any questions and we would be happy to help!

​When your little ones come for their Chiropractic appointment or for your appointment, grab a colouring sheet from our front desk. Simply share their creation on social media tagging @wholehealthbrighton, @drtessavanlee @ohdahlyla for your chance to win one of three $20 gift certificate to Oh Dahlyla Ice Cream and Treats across the street! The more entries = more chances to win! Contest closes July 31st and winner will be announced August 1st. 

Did you know that headaches are experienced at least 1x per year by 50-80% of the population. About 15% of people experience headaches for more then 15 days in a month!  There are many ways to treat headaches but identifying the root cause and removing that is the most important.
 
Some tricks for preventing headaches depends on the type of headaches.

​Start feeling great! If you have any questions or concerns please reach out to me or your health care provider. Do not begin an exercise routine without consulting with your health care provider to make sure it is right for you. 

Did you know that around 80% of children 13 to 15 years old experience headaches? This can lead to decreased social activities, poor academic performance and increased absenteeism from school. Research has also found a link to more severe headache syndromes later in life. Identifying the root cause of headaches at an early age is important to help reduce future episodes and help improve overall quality of life.
Causes of headaches in children include:

• Family history of headaches
• Headache medication overuse
• Sleep disturbances
• Depressive/anxious traits
• Stressors
• Divorced parents
• Less peer relations
• Unhappy family atmosphere
• Trauma to head and neck- **note: symptoms can be delayed for months or even years after an injury. It has been found that the risk of chronic daily headaches increases with any injury to the head or neck and is not necessarily related to how severe the injury was.

 
Identifying the type and cause of headaches in children is important. Chiropractic care can help reduce frequency and improve overall quality of life. Care is safe and effective for children of all ages (even babies)! Your chiropractor will identify the root cause and help improve overall function of the nervous system to allow your child to be their best self.

Shoes are important for keeping our feet protected from injury and the heat and cold. But feet are also important to process sensory information from touching the ground, both flat and uneven surfaces. Like the rest of the nervous system and body, there is continual  development of the foot occurs throughout childhood. There are 26 bones and 35 joints per foot that creates the highly flexible surface for walking on. Walking, like any milestone, happens at different times for different babies- a range of 8-18mo is common. Often babies will start walking with flat feet and feet turned inwards.  This is due to the muscles and ligaments of the feet developing strength and stiffness as they adapt to being weight bearing and walking.  Feet are used to explore, interact and investigate the environment until locomotion begins. At that point the shape, structure and function of the foot begin to adapt to being a weight bearing structure.

​Why do Tummy Time?
 
This is an important activity for babies and is believed to build the muscle strength necessary for head control, pulling up, reaching, crawling and other developmental milestones. This includes the muscles of the arm, shoulder girdle, and neck muscles. Tummy time has been associated with higher motor performance vs lower motor performance with frequent sitting in devices such as strollers while not moving, swings, and chairs.
 
The Institute of Medicine recommends early obesity prevention from birth to five years old and stresses the need to increase infant physical activity and reduce time spent in movement restricting devices. Minimizing time in car seats when not travelling, swings, and other movement restricting containers and increasing floor time helps with physical development and prevents flat spots on the head (brachiocephaly/plagiocephaly). ⁠

Back to sleep is the recommended way to sleep to reduce the chances of SIDS and many parents report being afraid to do tummy time due to SIDS. Supervised tummy time is an important part of the development of your little one and can be performed in many different ways. This can include:
- Unrestricted floor play
- On caregiver's lap
- On caregiver's chest while reclined
- Burping baby in prone position on caregiver's lap
- Carrying baby in a prone position

​Did you know many parents report their little one does not tolerate tummy time? This makes total sense! If we had the choice to just relax on the couch vs workout most of us would choose relaxing. It's a lot of work to learn new skills and build muscles. Some infants may have some neuromusculoskeletal issues stemming from birth that make tummy time and being prone more uncomfortable. Being assessed by a chiropractor or other manual therapist may help alleviate this aspect of the discomfort. ⁠

Some ways to make tummy time easier includes:⁠
- Getting down on the floor/eye-level with your  little one⁠
- Having your baby do tummy time on a table (as pictured) to make it easier on your body or while you are eating⁠
- Try turning baby onto belly during every diaper change (even a few minutes at a time will add up)⁠
- Have bright coloured toys, mirrors and other things to keep your baby distracted and stimulated⁠
- Making faces, singing, talking, etc. ⁠

⁠How much tummy time is recommended?
Studies show that getting 80+minutes per day in the prone position achieved greater success in acquiring milestones than infants getting less tummy time.  The Canadian Paediatric Society suggests tummy time for about 10-15 minutes at least 3 times a day. This seems like a lot but it adds up quickly throughout the day!

Yoga is a mind body practice that combines stretching exercises and postures with deep breathing and meditation. It requires self awareness to successfully coordinate mindful movement of the body and breath. Yoga is low impact, intentional and easily modifiable type of exercise which makes it suitable during pregnancy.
 
Benefits of yoga include reduction in perceived:

• Stress
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Chronic back pain
• Migraines

 
How do these things change with yoga?
One theory is that slow and deliberate deep breathing, a major part of yoga, activates the parasympathetic nervous system, the rest-digest-heal system of our body. This is activated by stretching the lung tissue and the vagus nerve. Parasympathetic nervous system response creates decrease in heart rate, blood pressure, metabolic rate, and oxygen consumption.

What are custom orthotics for?
The basis of orthotics is that by providing arch support and realigning the 26 bones of the foot and 33 joints it assists in leg and pelvic alignment, corrects structural deformities and prevents muscle and tendon fatigue. 

​Your feet are the base of support for your whole body while you are standing and walking. The extra support provided through orthotics may help with:
​​- Controlling biomechanical alignment
- Correcting or accommodating deformities
​- Protect and support  an injury
- Assist in rehabilitation
- Reduce pain
- Increase mobility
- Improve balance
- Redistribute pressure 

As part of an orthotic consult, you will be assessed to see if custom made orthotics would benefit you. This includes a thorough history, observation, gait (walking) analysis, neurological and orthopedic testing.  Orthotics may be beneficial not only to those with foot pain but also those with ankle, knee, hip or low back pain due to biomechanical and structural compensations that occur when dysfunction happens anywhere along the kinetic chain. 

If you are experiencing any of the following, orthotics may be right for you:

• foot pain
• knee pain
• hip pain
• low back pain
• heel pain
• plantar fasciitis
• bunion (hallux valgus)
• heel spurs
• diabetic nerve pain/peripheral neuropathy
• ankle instability
• and many more!

This month we are having a special on orthotics! Book your consultation today! 

Disclaimer: The advice provided in this article is for information purposes only. It is meant to augment and not replace consultation with a licensed healthcare provider. Consultation with a Chiropractor or other primary care provider is recommended for anyone suffering from a health problem.  ​
References
1.  Goldfield EC, Richardson MJ, Lee KG, Margetts S: Coordination of sucking, swallowing, and breathing and oxygen saturation during early infant breast-feeding and bottle-feeding. Pediatr Res. 2006, 60: 450-455. 10.1203/01.pdr.0000238378.24238.9d.
2. Glass RP, Wolf LS: Incoordination of sucking/swallowing, and breathing as an etiology for breastfeeding difficulty. J Hum Lact October 1994; 185-189.
3. Vallone, S. H. A. R. O. N. (2004). Chiropractic evaluation and treatment of musculoskeletal dysfunction in infants demonstrating difficulty breastfeeding. J Clin Chiropr Ped, 6(1), 349-366.
4. Hawk, C., Minkalis, A., Webb, C., Hogan, O., & Vallone, S. (2018). Manual interventions for musculoskeletal factors in infants with suboptimal breastfeeding: a scoping review. Journal of Evidence-Based Integrative Medicine, 23, 2515690X18816971.
5. Miller, J. E., Miller, L., Sulesund, A. K., & Yevtushenko, A. (2009). Contribution of chiropractic therapy to resolving suboptimal breastfeeding: a case series of 114 infants. Journal of manipulative and physiological therapeutics, 32(8), 670-674.

GUEST BLOG by HANNAH GILLESPIE
​
​Benefits Of Sleep
There are endless benefits to sleep and reasons it is so important. When your baby starts to sleep independently, is able to sleep long stretches at night and having good naps, this is when you start to see regenerative sleep. Regenerative sleep is important because this is when your body is no longer at a resting state, it is now restoring, repairing and growing.

The Benefits for your Baby

Development: The body and brain develop while your child sleeps, helping your child reach important milestones. Sleep also helps your child to have better concentration, making it easier to learn, retain information, and to promote better memory.
Health: Sleep helps the body to fight infection, illnesses and viruses more easily, so your child is less likely to get sick and will recover faster. Healthy sleep lowers the risk of obesity, and also helps with diabetes. Poor sleep changes your fat cells. It also changes insulin disruption, making you crave food. Good sleep habits established early will help reduce the chance of them developing ADD or ADHA later in life.
Behaviour: Your child will make better decisions when they get enough sleep and will be less impulsive. Children with good sleep habits have less behavioural outbursts or tantrums allowing them to make friends more easily, and maintain healthy relationships with others. When your child sleeps well it helps to grow the bond between the parent and child that will last a lifetime. When your baby sleeps well, so do you, improving overall well-being and helping you to develop that special bond.

How this helps the Family:

Sleep helps the entire family as a whole. When the family is sleeping well, there is less fighting between children, parents, and between parents and children. When children are sleeping well, it allows more alone time for the parents and promotes a happy home life overall.

Teaching your child to sleep independently can change your lives in so many ways. I can help you get there and help you respond to your child’s cries and to reassure them while teaching them the skills that they need in order to self soothe. Teaching them these skills early on will help them for their whole life. Let me help you get the sleep your family needs and deserves.
​
Message me if you have any questions, I would love to chat with you.

For more information about Hannah and Sleep Consulting, check out her website here! 

Postpartum is a time where there is continued risk for joint hypermobility due to hormones such as relaxin still present in the body and the hormonal influence of lactation. These hormones effect the ligaments and connective tissue which are being stressed by the biomechanical and ergonomic positions of childcare activities.
 
Other things that can influence musculoskeletal pain postpartum include:

• Sleep deprivation (increases acute pain, decreases pain tolerance, increases sensitivity to pain stimuli, increases fatigue and negative mood, and decreases cognition)
• Depression
• Degenerative joint disease
• Chronic pain syndromes
• Hypothyroidism (increases risk of  carpal tunnel or tarsal tunnel syndrome)

Ergonomic assessments during breastfeeding may be beneficial to prevent joint injury, promote proper body mechanics and allow for energy conservation. Finding an optimal position for mother includes a neutral position that allows for balanced posture and avoids musculoskeletal strain. A neutral spine is a comfortable spinal position that creates equal pressure for all vertebra and discs.

Tips to Conserve Energy

• Simplify tasks
• Organize work spaces to eliminate unnecessary bending, twisting, lifting and carrying
• Roll or slide objects rather than carry or lifting them
• Make sure to add frequent rest breaks. Rest when baby rests! Rest after eating. Rest before becoming overly fatigued
• Sit instead of standing (requires less energy)
• Use gravity-eliminated positions that require less energy expenditure. For example a side-lying position with a pillow placed between knees/ankles during breastfeeding. This promotes a neutral spine and decreases energy use.

 
Tips to Protect Joints and Promote Proper Body Mechanics

• Avoid a prolonged tight grasp or pinch especially when wrist is bent
• Avoid staying in one position for long periods of time
• Minimize repetition
• Avoid bending, extending, or twisting the wrist during activities
• Use a power grasp (loose grip, keeping all the fingers together, thumb straight)
• Avoid reaching, grasping, and lifting with the palms down (especially with the wrist bent). Instead, lift objects from underneath with palms up (with wrist straight)
• Avoid leaning over a work surface or twisting the torso while lifting (especially into the crib)
• Keep objects close to body while lifting
• Maintain a straight or neutral spine while lifting
• Use a wide base of support (feet wide)
• Lift with leg muscles instead of bending at the back
• Use a golfer’s lift (bend at the hips while raising one leg behind)