Top to Tail Self Care in the Days of Covid
March 25, 2020
Life seems to have a new world order these days. Some of that has been pretty great- more time with the family, time to catch up on the to do list, getting the creative juices flowing on how to make life work in this new way, etc. However, for most people this time has brought an onslaught of stress, whether that’s financial, health related (physical/mental), or simply going crazy with the kids at home. Change is never easy, and though we’re all hoping for a quick return to normal, it’s important to do what we can to keep ourselves in good health and spirits while we’re in it.
Below are a couple of self care tips from top to tail today (check back in for hips to toes next!) if you’re on your own to help manage the physical build up of tension, if nothing else!
Start with your jaw muscles- tension in this area builds up in times of stress often without us even realizing that we’re clenching or grinding, and can lead to a variety of symptoms like headaches, toothaches, sinus pain, ear pain, tinnitus, just to name a few. To begin:
Place the heels of your hand just below your cheekbones and, applying a comfortable amount of pressure, drag down to your jaw bone. If you hit any tender spots, hold there and slowly open and close your jaw a few times until the tenderness lessens.
Next, your upper back, aka your scapular retractors! Most of my work entails reducing tension in this area because although most people hold tension in various areas of their body, these muscles complain louder than the rest. I generally don’t recommend stretching the muscles that pull your shoulder blades towards your spine, as they’re most often tight from already being lengthened. Lengthening them more will only exacerbate the issue. Instead:
Grab a massage ball, tennis/lacross/golf ball, water bottle, etc. (I use a cat toy ball. It works!) and place it on the inside of your shoulder blade, then lean into it against a wall. Bend your knees to move up and down the wall, essentially rolling the ball along the inside of your shoulder blade. If you hit any tender areas, hold there and bring your arm up to shoulder height in front of you, then slowly bring your arm in and across your body as if you’re trying to grab your opposite shoulder (adduction). From there, slowly bring your arm away from your body as if you’re forming one side of a T shape (abduction). Continue this until the tenderness lessens.
Lastly, the low back- oh my achey back! There are many reasons low backs get sore, and therefore many different ways to address the soreness that builds there, but to keep this simple, first let’s try a simple stretch for the muscles that support the lumbar sine. Stand a few feet away from a door (how far away will depend on how tall you are- the taller you are, the farther away you’ll stand from the door). Grab the doorknob and lean your hips away. If one side is more tender than the other (for example your left low back hurts more), drop your left hip while you’re pulling your hips away to focus the stretch more on that side. You may feel a stretch up that same side to your shoulder. This isn’t bad- it just means it needs a stretch too. To refocus more on the low back for the stretch, pull a little less with your arms and drop the hip a little more. If you have any questions about these stretches or self care, please feel free to shoot me an email or text, or comment below, and we can do our best to work out slight adjustments that work for your body. Next time we’ll go over self care for the lower body- take care till then
Tags: Coronavirus, Covid, isolation, jaw, jaw tension, low back, low back soreness, self care, Self isolation, self massage, upper back soreness
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