Recognizing Psychiatric Disorders in Athletes
Whether you are a dancer, swimmer, or basketball player, being involved in a sport is always physically demanding. The pressures of being a competitive athlete take an emotional toll as well, although may not be as evident because many athletes do not admit they have a mental illness nor do they take the appropriate steps to seeking help. Professors Lynette Hughes and Gerard Leavey believe that athletes are “vulnerable to mental illness” because elite sports call for “investments of time and energy, often resulting in a loss of personal autonomy and disempowerment for athletes.” Oftentimes, athletes feel distress when their beloved pastime becomes a stressful occupation. When athletes consider their sport as a huge part of their identity, and this essential part of themselves begins to cause them stress, that’s when psychological disorders start to develop.
Getting Rid of that Pain in the Butt: Piriformis Syndrome
Experienced frequently by runners and athletes, piriformis syndrome is a condition that has to do with pain in the buttock region due to spasms in the piriformis muscle. It is a neuromuscular disorder that oftentimes extends down and irritates the nearby sciatic nerve, causing pain, and numbness and tingling along the back of the leg and foot. Though the condition can vary in the severity of discomfort experienced by the patient, piriformis syndrome is more often viewed as an irritating and cumbersome condition than as a serious debilitating injury. While many who experience it find the recovery process lengthy and frustrating, understanding the condition itself and its causes and prevention strategies can help those who experience it to understand the process of recovery better and why it is important to stay consistent with treatment.
Pediatric Chronic Pain
Pain is something all of us, no matter who we are, have experienced firsthand. Physical pain is indiscriminate and, unfortunately, children are just as likely to experience pain as adults. However, diagnosing and treating pain in a child is very different from doing so in an adult, and often requires particular attention. Because the presence of chronic pain in a child’s life has the potential to be debilitating on more than just a physical level, a well-rounded approach to treatment is absolutely necessary to promote, to the extent that is possible, a quick recovery and return to normality.
Shingle Pain: Post Herpetic Neuralgia
The varicella zoster virus of the herpes family, is a highly contagious double-stranded DNA virus. More common during childhood, this virus initially manifests as chickenpox in a non-immune or incompletely immune person.
Eye Pain
Discomfort or pain in the eyes can be alarming, as it may lead to serious problems in the future. It is always important to maintain good care of our eyes, especially since it is relatively easy for them to become irritated or infected. Eyes are also subject to diseases, and so due to the multiple ways that can affect our eyes, it is important to be aware of common eye problems. The few that will be discussed are diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and cataracts, although there are many diseases that can contribute to the degradation of eyes.
Barriers to Healthcare in NYC
Living in in a large metropolis like New York City, it is always important to address health concerns, considering the small and cramped spaces us New Yorkers find ourselves in. Many of us are lucky enough to afford healthcare, but how do we acknowledge and support those who can not? Unfortunately, certain barriers to healthcare prevent many New Yorkers from being healthy and it’s time to talk about how and why this is such a problem.
Migraines: Just Another Headache?
Migraines affect nearly one billion people around the world [1]. In the United States alone, 18% of women get a migraine every year, as do over 6% of men, with a lifetime risk of 43% and 18% respectively [2]. These rates differ with age.
Managing Spasticity
Have you ever experienced traffic on a freeway and wondered why? Without a single red light, you’d expect constant movement, yet your car and the cars surrounding you are unable to move an inch forward. Contrary to expectations, it is the nonstop green lights themselves that allow the jam in traffic.
Intrathecal Pain Pumps
Medical jargon is so vast and esoteric that when a physician described your upcoming procedure, it can sometimes be more daunting than comforting. For this reason knowing what tools are being used around your body is beneficial. In this article we will define and explain intrathecal pain pumps.
15 Health Foods to Add to Your Diet
Everyone wants to be super healthy, but is that dream really ever accomplished for the average person? With a daily routine jam-packed with work and extracurricular activities, we often forget to focus on the one thing that contributes most to our health: food.
The Many Varieties of Pain
Pain can be a very relative concept, often making it difficult to classify. Everyone has experienced the desperation of not knowing how to explain what they are feeling - I have actually experienced this situation recently.
The Vast Field of Pain Management
For many of us, pain is merely an unpleasant but rare experience that is a temporary inconvenience stemming from a passing illness or slight injury. We might burn our hand on the stove on Monday, but by Friday the stinging has gone and the redness has faded from our skin. Yet, pain is not bound to these temporary and inconsequential terms for all
Minimizing Opioid Risk
Opioids: while in today’s society the word often carries a negative or stigmatized connotation, when used properly opioids can be one of the most effective options for pain relief. Although they do carry their fair share of risks, there are ways to minimize such dangers and still reap the benefits of such a powerful pain medication.
What is Fibromyalgia?
Picture this scene: you are sitting in a doctor’s office, wondering if this will be the appointment that finally sheds light on your situation. You’ve been feeling strangely sensitive to touch and temperature changes in recent months. You’ve even noticed more widespread pain throughout your body, which has made it a bit more challenging to sleep and has made you more fatigued.
Diet and Disease: How Your Diet Can Predispose You to Illness
If I were to say “obesity,” it might make you think of other words such as unhealthy, or disease. While it’s true that a lot of people correlate obesity with unhealthiness, you may not know the extent of the diseases that can come along with it. Even without being obese, ones diet could still increase the risk of various diseases.
6 Natural Anti-Inflammatory Supplements to Treat Arthritis
Arthritis can cause life-changing pain that can debilitate performing daily tasks. Out of many, there are three main types of arthritis: Osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and Psoriatic arthritis. Osteoarthritis comes with age and overuse of joints. As the cartilage breaks down within joins, the bones starts to grate, causing severe pain and inflammation.
Physical Therapy is Important! Here's Why
Rest! It’s the first thing we do or need after suffering an injury or muscle pull. Injuries can have a debilitating effect on one’s way of life, whether they are hindering work, preventing exercise, or limiting interactions with family and friends. That’s why for some, the initial decision is to endure the pain and try to continue on with their lives. Obviously they soon realize that this isn’t the best idea.
Diet and Pain Management
Maintaining a healthy, balanced diet is an effective approach to pain management. For the many individuals with chronic pain, medication may not always be the best answer, and incorporating an anti-inflammatory diet is the most beneficial method to reduce or eliminate pain. Although there is no cure-all food to get rid of pain, a balanced combination of the right types of foods would certainly help.