Seasonally Decreased Immune Function Around the Holidays

Shorter days and colder weather cause people to stay inside more, reducing the amount of natural vitamin D they make, which is a key immune system booster.

The human immune system is highly complex and multi-faceted. Seemingly an infinite number of things can affect our internal landscape and alter how our immune system defenses respond to and fight foreign invaders to keep us healthy. The misconception a lot of people have is thinking that we want a super active immune system that is like Rambo, an ultimate killing machine! Really what we want is a balanced immune system, that neither swings into hyperactivity nor falls into decreased function. If our immune system functions too high, we end up with autoimmune disorders – this is when the immune system attacks our body’s cells, not just foreign invaders, if it is not functioning as it should, when exposed to germs we get sick and have to fight off an illness.

Did you know that just the time of year can affect our immune system function? Just the fact that the daylight does not last as long can cause our immune system to be less responsive. Shorter days and colder weather cause people to stay inside more, reducing the amount of natural vitamin D they make, which is a key immune system booster. An alternative for the individual not wanting to go outside is supplementing Vitamin D into their diet.

Another thing that can depress our immune system function is increased sugar intake. High sugar intake causes a process in the body that creates an inflammatory response. This inflammation taxes the immune system making it more difficult to fight the germs it needs to. Decreasing sugar intake and getting 15-20 minutes of sunlight each day can normalize and improve immune system function.

One last note on stress, our immune system is affected by the presence of the stress hormone Cortisol. Increased levels of Cortisol in the body will fatigue our immune system to the point where it cannot keep up with the presence of foreign material. This is why people who are undergoing chronic stress tend to get sick more frequently. Finding ways to manage stress around the holidays can keep you out of the doctor’s office!

Remember the goal is to have a balanced immune system. Enjoy your holiday, get some sunshine or supplement vitamin D, reduce sugar intake, and manage stress for a healthy holiday!

Dr. Jeremiah Morgan is a licensed Chiropractic Physician, Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, and Certified Active Release Technique provider. He practices in Downtown Matthews at Pro Active Chiropractic.

What is a Tension headache? (And what to do about it)

via Unsplashed

If you have ever experienced pain behind the eyes, pressure and/or throbbing in the head, the feeling like you have a band wrapped tightly around your noggin, then you have likely experienced a tension headache. While these headaches are less severe, they tend to be more chronic in nature, and those who suffer from them feel these symptoms most or all the time. What can happen when not accurately diagnosed is a tragic cycle of overmedication and frustration for the patient.

via Unsplashed

When a patient complains of chronic headaches, they have usually tried over-the-counter medication, which helps for a while but doesn’t last. Then, depending on how bad their symptoms are, they are either prescribed a stronger medication or referred to a Neurologist for a consultation. If the patient is never referred to a conservative care provider like a Chiropractor, Physical Therapist, or Massage Therapist, then they are likely prescribed a migraine preventative and migraine treatment medication which will not reduce any tension causing the symptoms in the first place. It should be noted that this is referring only to patients with a diagnosis of tension headaches. Headaches are broad in presentation and can have multiple contributing factors and patients that truly suffer from migraine headaches receive benefit from the more pharmaceutical interventions. But if the diagnosis is inaccurate, then the patient is started down a course of care that is ineffective.

What actually is a Tension Headache?

via Unsplashed

“Tension headache” is the common name for the medical diagnosis “cervicogenic headache.” This term indicates that the headache originates from the neck or Cervical region of the body. Specifically, the musculature in the back of the neck are chronically tight, which compresses the joints of the cervical spine and puts tension on the Occipital Nerves. The Occipital Nerves travel up the back of the head and are responsible for the throbbing and pressure that are common symptoms of tension headaches. One quick way to test for this is to apply steady pressure to the base of the skull along the back of the neck. If pressure there relieves the headache symptoms, then you likely are having a tension headache.

What can help?

Conservative care is the most effective treatment for tension headaches. Chiropractic care has been shown to reduce intensity and frequency of tension headaches. Other alternatives like Massage Therapy and Acupuncture have also shown to be successful in treating the symptoms of this condition. These methods focus on correcting the cause of the condition by reducing the tension of the neck musculature which reduces the compression and tightness that causes the tension headaches.

Avoid the Summer Injuries

“More injuries occur during the summer months than at other times of the year.”

With the warm weather approaching, people are getting outdoors and becoming more active. Accordingly, the health care profession is gearing up to start treating summer-related injuries. Adults and children are both getting outdoors and being active more with the changing of the seasons and whenever people are more active, the more likely they are to get hurt. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, “More injuries occur during the summer months than at other times of the year. In addition, injuries are much less frequently reported near the end of the calendar year.”

One of the reasons for Spring and Summer injuries is the quick transition from being indoors and inactive to being outside and exercising. The muscles, tendons, and ligaments are not used to producing and transmitting force which can result in either traumatic injury (like a sprain) or an overuse injury (like shin splints). Either way, you could be trading your summer of fun in for a summer of Physical Therapy.

Here are two ways you can do to help avoid summer injuries:

Warm-up

This is the #1 way to help avoid injury during activity. It doesn’t matter if it is yard work or a pick-up game of basketball, spending five minutes could save you weeks of recovery. Warm-ups not only prepare your muscles to contract better, they also improve your nervous system function, cardiovascular health, and will actually help you perform your task at a higher level. So if you are looking for a leg up in your backyard ultimate frisbee game, take the time to warm up If you are unsure about what a proper warm-up routine looks like, here is a good instructional video from YouTubers TheLeanMachines.

Spend 3 weeks going slow

If you are trying to get back into shape over the summer months and have been inactive for a long time, then you should spend the first three to four weeks doing lighter weight and lower intensity during your workouts. This may sound like a long time, but the biggest threat of injury comes with going to hard too soon. It is better to take three weeks and let your body accommodate to the workload. Remember, health is cooked in a crockpot, not a microwave.

Summer should be about fun, vacations, and activities. Avoid a trip to your local doctor by taking the time to avoid injuries before they happen!

Dr. Jeremiah Morgan is a licensed Chiropractic Physician as well as a Certified Active Release Technique provider. He currently practices in Downtown Matthews at Pro Active Chiropractic.

55+ New Friends Meetup Group

More than one dozen men and women residing in the towns surrounding Matthews meet three times/week for a Squirrel Lake walk and then coffee at Publix at Fincher Farms. Called the "55+ New Friends Meetup Group," they range in age from 55-80's; none are originally from North Carolina and have moved here from as far away as England, as well as from other states across the country. Matthews resident and New Friends Meetup founder, Anna Langill, started this as a way to connect people with same interests. "There wasn't a way for seniors to meet each other," she said. They also meet up for holidays and go to movies, dinner and other events. 

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

The People of Matthews: Four Buddies on Bikes

Four buddies out for a ride on a warm fall day, biking their usual daily "60 miles or so." Ranging in age from 44-68, they had stopped to check one of their bikes. Members of various local biking clubs, the oldest one (left) has clocked in about 14,000 biking miles this year.

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

Crews Road: Where line dancing is alive and well

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

Driving down Sam Newell Road near Crews Road, on Wednesdays, between 12:30 – 1:30 p.m., one might hear the sounds of songs like “Achy Breaky Heart,” “Electric Slide,” and “Uptown Funk” along with laughter and exclamations emanating from the Crews Recreation Center.

Here, line dancing is alive and well, thanks, in part, to a determined long-time Matthews resident, Belinda Burgess-Purcell, 68, who is the class teacher.

“It’s all about having fun and getting some exercise,” she said. “I make so many mistakes that it makes them real comfortable,” said Belinda, laughing. “I have two rules – try to go in the same direction and have fun.  Just stand there and boogey. I don’t care what you do, but keep moving.”

Five years ago, Belinda approached the town to offer her services. “I don’t get many opportunities to dance anymore,” said this lifelong dance enthusiast. “We don’t go to bars, or across town to (other) line dancing… (This type of dance) reaches out to a bigger crowd. It’s good exercise without having the (expectations) of other dance classes.”

Now, five years later, the crowd continues to grow. On a recent Wednesday, twenty people, ages 40-90, attended the class. Nearly all of the participants were women.  “There are more women who love to dance than men,” said Belinda. “Most of these ladies’ husbands don’t dance; it’s hard to get on the floor by yourself and dance. For people who are a little bit shy, it allows them (some anonymity),” she said.

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

Having struggled recently with ailments and surgeries, this is an opportunity for Belinda and the others to keep moving. “I do this because I want to do this,” she said. “The biggest thing about this class is that sometimes others get real serious about line dancing.”

“I have two rules – try to go in the same direction and have fun.  Just stand there and boogey. I don’t care what you do, but keep moving.”

— Belinda Burgess-Purcell

“At the beginning of the class, I tell them this is for fun, this is exercise….It’s more about doing an activity,” Belinda said. “Dance affords cardio, balance, rhythm - all the things we can (focus on) as we get older. Losing our balance becomes more (prevalent). I’m trying to work in stuff (routines) that’s supposed to help.”

Line Dancing with Belinda Burgess-Purcell

Crews Rec Center 1201 Crews Road, Matthews, NC 28105
Phone: 704-708-1287 Wednesdays, between 12:30 – 1:30 p.m.

Bowspring Yoga

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

On Tuesday and Thursday mornings and Wednesday nights, in Room 102 at the Matthews Community Center, at least one dozen participants are moving into positions, sweating and sometimes groaning during their weekly Bowsprings yoga session.

While groaning is rarely a reflection of pain, rather, just a sign of exertion and movement in ways not seen before, some of the contortionist-looking postures may sometimes appear counter-intuitive to more traditional forms and methodologies of yoga.

Where, for example, you might hear an instructor exhorting you to draw your bellybutton toward your spine and tuck your tailbone slightly under (traditional Downward-Facing Dog). Here, with bent knees (Crouching Cat), you would be asked to bow your belly forward as you move your hips up and back, maintaining the low back curve.

This is one of the newest forms of yoga, started in Colorado seven years ago by Desi Springer and John Friend - both long-time yoga teachers. It is being taught in Matthews by yoga teacher, Linda Oelschlaeger, 71, from Weddington, who has been teaching at the Matthews Community Center for 18 years, six of which have solely focused on the Bowspring technique. Oelschlaeger is the only Bowspring teacher in the Charlotte region and only one of a few Bowspring teachers in North Carolina.  

Photos by Cyma Shapiro

According to the Global Bowspring website, Bowspring yoga is a mind-body practice which focuses on moving toward a specific geometric shape through 10 key areas of the body in a dynamic neutral position. The practice seeks “proportionally ideal curvy alignment between the head, neck, ribcage, waist, and pelvis, in which functional movement is optimized with the least amount of force required.” With this methodology, connective tissue can elongate, not by straightening limbs as other methods require, but by curving it.

For Oelschlaeger, who studies with both Springer and Friend, Bowsprings was the next step both in her own personal practice and in her teachings to others. “I just worked the (new exercises) in as a general process,” she said. Some people liked the new change, others dropped out. But, she encouraged her class to stick to a process that requires at least a few months of constant practice, to see positive outcomes. “With practice and time, Bowsprings becomes more natural,” she said.

(Several class participants have been involved with Linda’s Bowsprings yoga for years, choosing not only to become close to other class members, but to support, meet up with and form friendships outside of class.)

“Many older people who have had injuries may appreciate the way it relieves pain and the therapeutic aspect of it,” she said. “It resonated for me. I liked the way it felt in my body. It’s challenging and I felt I could access different parts of my body which I felt I couldn’t access with (other) yoga,” said Oelschlaeger.

“It is a natural, animalistic, primal type of movement,” she explained, noting that there are other traditions and methods which are also moving more toward curvy alignment now and a curving (not a straightening of) the knees.

Photos by Cyma Shapiro

“Because it is curvy and dynamic and we pulse and move, as long as you do it with healthy alignment…I know I like it and I know that others appreciate it. The thing is that it can appreciate into your daily life – how you stand, how you bend over when you use the dishwasher, or how you squat to pick up something. So, using those principles in every movement you make is freeing. Ride a bicycle, climb a mountain, run…you can use that (same) alignment,” said Oelschlaeger.

Unlike more traditional forms of yoga with time-worn poses and phraseology, Bowsprings intent, positioning, framework and even terminology is different. Hence: Earth Foot, Crouching Foot, Zig-Zag Legs, Salt Hands, Seed Hands, Harvest Hands, Dome Hands and Jewel Hands, for example. Full-body movements include pulsing or jumping.

In a traditional yoga class, you start on your mat in the middle of the room with a prescribed sequence of movements. In Bowsprings yoga, it varies from one class to the next, beginning with simple warm-ups and moving on to more strenuous/rigorous movements and poses including arm and leg stands on both the ground and the walls.

Six-year student, Vicky Derrer, 69, of Weddington, said she likes the feeling that she hasn’t “failed” if she can’t do all the poses perfectly. “I love the focus on alignment, balance and deep stretching,” said Derrer.  

“I had never taken yoga classes before I started with Linda five years ago. Bowspring yoga has helped me with strength, flexibility, (and made me) more aware of my posture - all the things that are important as we age. AND, Linda is the best!”

— Anne Murray

“I had never taken yoga classes before I started with Linda five years ago,” said Anne Murray, of Weddington.  “Bowspring yoga has helped me with strength, flexibility, (and made me) more aware of my posture - all the things that are important as we age. AND, Linda is the best!”

“I was in the class and had a new-found respect for her students, because it was tough!” said Melissa Johnson, Cultural Recreation Manager for the Community Center. “Her students are all incredibly strong!  They may not have started that way, but this type of yoga definitely builds strength and stamina.” 

In all her sessions, Oelschlaeger reserves the last class for movement with music. “They’ve had eight weeks to learn about alignment,” she said, adding that on that day, they are allowed to move as they wish (with her promptings).

Oelschlaeger hopes to continue teaching and doing yoga for at least twenty more years. “I am grateful for this process. It helps me get stronger. I was in a lot of pain when I started yoga. It’s helping me more and more. I feel like I’m still evolving. I have no pain anymore. I am grateful.”

Bowspring Yoga with Linda Oelschlaeger

Matthews Community Center, 100 McDowell St., East, Matthews, NC 28105 

Cost: Eight sessions: $80 (Matthews residents), $85 (non-residents); Drop-ins: $12

Choose your day: Tuesday: 9:30-11 AM, Wednesday: 6-7:30 PM Thursday: 9:30-11 AM

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

Matthews Mojo Runners: Running Adorned

Despite cold, humid weather Saturday morning, more than eight people showed up in their finest Halloween attire (ranging from a touch of orange to a full body Monsters, Inc. suit) for Mojo Run Club’s annual Halloween run. Dubbed the (annual) “Halloween Costume Run,” the event is held as a way to combine the business of running with……well….fun!

Photo by Norah Burke

“Halloween is my very favorite day of the year,” said Bethany Salisbury, VP of the Charlotte Runners Club and organizer of the Matthews Mojo Runners runs. “I'm crazy about th(is) holiday and the only thing I like more than actual Halloween (day) are costumed Halloween runs!” she said. (One year, Salisbury tried to run in a Halloween tutu and witch's hat and learned the hard way that that didn't work! Another year, she dressed up as an injured runner and the next day she hurt her knee!)

The group, an offshoot of the Charlotte Running Club, runs weekly each Saturday at 8 a.m. from  Temple Mojo (195 North Trade Street) in the center of town to the Greenway and back – approximately five miles, (although some members meet at 6 a.m. or even 7 a.m. and run to the Sportsplex beforehand). They now call the group the Matthews Mojo Run.

Photo by Norah Burke

To support the event, partner Temple Mojo offered pumpkin beer and Bethany baked cupcakes to share with the runners after the event. They were joined by more friends to imbibe. “Not everyone dresses up but I always do,” said Bethany. “I like to bake something pumpkin-related to share with the runners afterward, while we drink our coffee (and beer!). It's always a really fun time.”

Photo by Renee Garner

Photo by Renee Garner

Photo by Renee Garner

Photo by Norah Burke

Photo by Norah Burke

Photo by Norah Burke

Photo by Norah Burke

Celebrate the Tatas

Photos by Cyma Shapiro

Dozens of women attended the 7th anniversary of Hadassah Charlotte’s “Celebrate the TaTas,” on Sunday, Sept. 23, at the McDowell Arts Center in Matthews.

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

This will be the first of four annual events designed to raise money for the Hadassah Medical Organization’s Breast Cancer Research in Jerusalem, Israel. This year’s events will raise about $50,000; cumulatively, the group has raised nearly $500,000 in the seven years of existence. Other events this fall will be Novant’s Mammovan and “The Big Reveal” at Queen Park Social club in October. For the large upcoming soccer tournament, women will fly in from the Carolinas, Georgia, Tennessee and Virginia to join teams such as “Cleats and Cleavage” and “Akuna MaTatas,” emblazoned with such shirt numbers like “34DD.”

On this day, women come to have their “TaTas” painted, eat, schmooze, be pampered, made-up and buy jewelry. While the event is intended to raise money and awareness, and celebrate and empower women in a creative and fun atmosphere, it’s also a day of “sisterhood,” according to Charlotte founder Talia Goldman. “All these women become your sisters.”

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

“My mother has had breast, lung, melanoma, colon, and breast (cancer) again,” she said. “I realized that this is in my DNA. I just needed to do something. I wanted to do something that was educational, creative and empowering.”

Citing the organic and communal nature of the group, the events, the sponsors, the artists, and the volunteers, Goldman attributes its success to how much it touches people, most especially, women.“Everyone knows someone (with breast cancer), is in support of someone, is (doing this in) memory of someone, or knows (and supports) Hadassah,” she said.

“Celebrate the Tatas” was started by Goldman, but has spread to New Orleans, San Francisco, Atlanta and several cities in Florida. The events are intended to bring together survivors, supporters and friends and family members affected by breast cancer. This year’s local sponsors include Novant Health, Harris Teeter, Whole Foods, Dillard’s (employees donated their time).

Although Goldman has relinquished many of the overall responsibilities to other women, she sees the growth, passion, and mission for this as infinite. “Someone asked me the other day, ‘When are you going to stop doing this?’” she said. “(I answered) When are they going to find a cure?”

Photo by Talia Goldman

Mojo Saturday Morning Bike Run

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

At 7:30 a.m. on most Saturdays, dozens of bikers will gather to start their weekly exercise from the train rails in front of Mojo’ Cycles on an approximately 30 or 50 (sometimes 70!)-mile loop which will bring them back home again. (They might also have taken a similar ride on Tuesday or Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.)

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

This is a chance to meet up with friends, see the countryside or just get some exercise. The average rider here is in his/her 40s, prompting bike shop owner Jimmy Johnson to comment that this is a great aerobic exercise they can do – one which only requires muscle, stamina and a tweaking of accessories to accommodate aging bodies.

As millennials stake a claim to leaving cars parked during weekends, Johnson sees “more interest in biking than ever,” especially off-road biking, made possible by the increasing number of Greenways and biking trails being constructed in and around Charlotte.

To accommodate the often large crowd during holiday runs, the group is often escorted by police to Independence Boulevard and beyond, ensuring their safety.

Photo by Cyma Shapiro

This is a decades-old tradition Johnson feels strongly about continuing, adding, “It’s good to leave from a bike shop, (just) in case you need something.”

Mojo Cycles
105 W Charles Street
Matthews, NC 28105
704-817-0009

TUESDAY - FRIDAY: 10am - 6pm
SATURDAY: 9am - 5pm
SUNDAY &  MONDAY: Closed