Dr Alex Ritza – Your Downtown Toronto Chiropractor

CHIROPRACTIC CARE CONVENIENTLY LOCATED NEAR YONGE AND BLOOR

RATED ONE OF TORONTO’S BEST CHIROPRACTORS ONLINE 

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The One Thing Holding You Back From Better Health, Weight Loss & Feeling Your Best…….

Have you ever had a problem that you tried to tackle yourself but really knew that it was something you should have outsourced or asked for help with?

I would be shocked if everyone didn’t put up their hand for this! Whether it is work, family life or even our own bodies, I think that a lot of us have trouble giving up control and autonomy, and asking for the help we need.

I am no different and have a huge problem with this, which recently got me in to trouble with my knee – but more on this soon!

We live in an era where the access to knowledge is infinite and the line delineating expert and charlatan is becoming harder to distinguish. Furthermore, it seems that there is a growing movement wanting the autonomy to “hack” their own bodies and manage their own health concern and problems. People want to do it themselves!

You do not have to look any farther than the thousands of Instagram and YouTube “Rehab specialists”, the millions of followers of people like Tim Ferriss ( I am a huge fan too!) or the truly great content from people like Dr Kelly Starrett that is being used by millions of people worldwide trying to “treat themselves”. Whether it is foam rolling, rehab exercises, mobility drills or wacky nutritional cocktails, the internet is abound with potential solutions to every ache and pain.

There is nothing wrong with being proactive, taking a vested interest in your health and trying to improve how you feel, move and perform all by yourself. Anything that gets people more proactive and driven towards improving their health I am for.

Research has shown that only about 1/3 of patients that are prescribed exercise from a medical provider will do them and compliance can be even lower in some circumstances. So I love that people are searching out the internet for fixes to their back pain, shoulder pain, runners knee and headaches.

But what happens when those efforts are misguided, are not the best course for achieving one’s desired outcome or might even be harmful?

I am not sure if the desire to self diagnose and treat is born out of frugality, finances, not knowing a health care provider, or difficulty asking for help but I do know that I am guilty of this for the latter reason.

(I recently did a Facebook live show talking just about this issue so you can always watch this if you would prefer it to reading.)

I think that a lot of us have trouble asking for help especially when it comes to our health and bodies. Whether it is an unwillingness to seem vulnerable or embarrassment if you are a health care provider, it is difficult to make that first call for the help you know you need and will benefit from.

I am of the belief that this precarious mindset is  one of the biggest reasons why people do not get the health outcomes that they want. Rather than working with an expert that designs a specific plan to address the core  problems causing the collateral damage that plagues our health, the “do it yourself” approach often leads us to flounder repeatedly.

I can think of countless example:

• Following random blogs and books for weight loss strategies without identifying the unique factors affecting your phsyiology – maybe you need a high fat diet and low card or vise versa
• Designing a workout program without a background in human physiology that results in pain, frustration and / or misery

or my personal favourite

• Using stretches or exercises a friend or colleague has shown you to try to tackle that sore back, hip or knee that may in fact be a serious problem

It is difficult to find good people and to ask them for help. It takes time and an investment to correct a problem rather than avoiding or masking it.

But when you can use a professional’s expertise and leverage your investment with the years of training and time it has taken them to develop mastery at their craft, the results are exponentially better.

I recently finished a longer Saturday club (bike) ride and my knee was in enough discomfort that I knew this was going to be a problem that needed some TLC. Despite good core strength, a properly fitted bike and no obvious reason for this sudden knee issue, I had developed a repetitive strain injury that is likely iliotibial band syndrome.

Upon arriving home I immediately went to work with my tool kit of electroacupuncture, icing, stretching, foam rolling, tape, more electroacupuncture, and some choice expletives directed squarely at my sore knee.   Normally this care would go along way but for this issue my body was not responding to my own self-care. The tools I have at my discretion were not what was needed.

Even with all the tools and expertise I have, I know that this issue is largely because the muscles around my ITBand are so tight and stuck together that someone’s touch is going to be needed to inflict some pain and help separate all the tissues adhered to each other.

Next I had to do something that I normally find really difficult to do …. I had to book a massage.

“So what is the big deal with that?” Well like I said, I am terrible at asking for help!

I am good about getting adjusted by my chiropractors regularly, I work with great massage therapists and love getting massages. Nonetheless I am terrible at reaching out for their help even though I know it helps and always scold myself after for not doing it sooner.

Two massages later and the knee is almost back to normal.

The takeaway for me is that it is always better to ask for help when I need it and despite one’s level of knowledge, an outsider’s perspective is often better at solving the problems that we are not in a position to handle ourselves.

For you, I hope that you will consult an expert the next time you have a health problem that is holding you back from the life you want to be living so you can get the results you want and deserve.

– Dr Alex