Month: December 2016

What if you woke up on Christmas morning and there was a letter under the tree that read…

“You’ve been very good this year. Next year, you can get one massage, every month… on me. You deserve it! – Santa”

How would you feel? Next to a winning lottery ticket, this would go down as one of the best gifts ever, right?!

Well, you have a chance to make that a reality! It is that time of year for our Annual Facebook Massage Membership Contest! One lucky winner will receive free monthly massages for all of 2017.

How to Enter

• Visit our Facebook page at facebook.com/bodylogicvb and be sure to ‘like’ us, if you haven’t already.
• Click on the contest tab on the left sidebar.
• Fill out the short form.
• For extra bonus points, share with your friends and family.
• Be sure to be extra good for the rest of the year so Santa sees.

….that’s it!

One lucky winner will be chosen at the end of the month. Good luck and Happy Holidays from all of us at Body Logic!

For over a year now, we have had the pleasure of having JoAnn on our team as one of our amazing massage therapists. However, this month we have the task of saying goodbye to her. During her time here, as many of you know, JoAnn has been very diligent in learning a new side of working with the body as she has been attending multiple intensives in the John Barnes’ Myofascial Release Program and has become very passionate about what Myofascial Release can do for the body.

What exactly is this technique, you may ask? According to JoAnn, “The John F. Barnes’ Myofascial Release Approach (JFB-MFR) is not massage, it is a safe and effective hands-on technique that involves applying gentle sustained pressure into the myofascial restrictions to eliminate pain and restore motion. This is different from other forms of myofascial release which are more along the lines of deep tissue work focused on treating problem areas. JFB-MFR treats the problem areas by treating restrictions throughout the three-dimensional fascial web of the entire body. Somewhere within that web lies the cause as well as the symptoms and all are treated simultaneously, wherever they occur, helping to facilitate homeostasis (balance) within the tissue down to the cellular level.”

In plain terms, it is an amazing, gentle hands-on way to help the body restore natural form and function outside of the world of massage. We are very proud of JoAnn and all that she has learned and accomplished and wish her all the best in her endeavors as a Myofascial Release Specialist.

As many of you may already know, one of the perks of our new office is the addition of a space that is dedicated to education. It is our goal and mission at Body Logic to help educate the Virginia Beach Community about tools that can be used for self-care leading to a healthier lifestyle. We want you to feel good!! Our first group of classes, led by Dr. Amanda, is ready for release! Mark your calendars, tell your friends, and come learn with us as we enter our first calendar year at our new location.

January 10th (Tues) 6-7pm: Jump Start Your Year: Change Your Life in 10 Days 

• Learn about our 10 Day Blood Sugar and Inflammation Programs and start 2017 with a happy and healthy lifestyle.

February 7th (Tues) 6-7pm: How to Keep Your Heart Healthy. 

• If you or someone you love is currently taking a statin medication, this class is a MUST!

April 4th (Tues) 6-7pm:  Stress Awareness: Get Your Pep Back in Your Step

May 16th (Tues) 6-7pm: Skin Health: Repair Now for Years of Youthful Skin

July 11th (Tues) 6-7pm: All About Arthritis

September 12th (Tues) 6-7pm: Cancer Awareness: What Do Genes Have To Do With It?

October 10th (Tues) 6-7pm:  Celiac Awareness: Educate Yourself about Gluten

December 5th (Tues) 6-7pm:  Stay Healthy While Celebrating the Holidays: The Power of Sleep

Mental health disorders affect over 400 million people worldwide every single day. Due to the varieties of conditions and how little is still truly known about the brain, treating mental illness becomes a bit of a guessing game between types and dosages of medications and treatments to find what works and doesn’t work. For many, there is no magical combination that truly does work. This has many people turning back to traditional, natural therapies for helping to alleviate the symptoms. Although not appropriate for all mental disorders, massage therapy is gaining more scientific backing that it is a great way to treat depression in conjunction with working with your mental health professional.

Just the idea of being able to lay uninterrupted on a warm massage table in a safe, still environment is enough to perk anyone up with warm and fuzzy feelings, but there is a lot behind why this is so effective. As a society, we are always on the go- rushing and doing. Very seldom do we ever take the time to reflect on our own needs and provide ourselves with the love and self-care that our mind, body, and spirit so desperately calls for. Here are some of the reasons of why massage can help pull us out of the dark clouds of depression:

• Reduction of Cortisol Levels – Often known as the “stress hormone,” cortisol can build up in the body and prevent the good, happy hormones, such as serotonin, from building up inside. An hour massage can lower cortisol by an average of 30% allowing the serotonin to increase at the same time. Serotonin also helps the body in the reduction of pain. So, 60 minutes on the massage table can literally help you feel better inside and out and help you to better process what life has to throw at you for days and even weeks after.
• The Anxiety-Depression Link – Anxiety and depression are often treated hand in hand. For many, the inability to keep anxiety levels down causes depression to creep in. The body tension, nervous energy, feeling of being unable to complete the simplest tasks are just a few of the effects of anxiety that leave the person exhausted and at wit’s end. Thus, the individual becomes overwhelmed with the feeling of drowning in their anxiety and become depressed. Massages are scheduled times that a person can escape from the grip of anxiety and for even a short period of time find relaxation in the body and the mind.
• Power of Touch – From the moment that we are born, we crave touch. Just as a baby is calmed by the touch of their mother, we are also calmed by the power of touch in a safe environment from someone who is in tune with our healing. For those suffering with depression, the isolation can be the worst. Sometimes is an intentional withdrawal and others it is not; however, massage can often be the only type of physical human contact the individual is receiving and that can be huge for lifting the spirits.

Of course, these are just a few of the ways that massage can help to ease the symptoms of depression. As you can see, massage has a HUGE impact on the mind-body-spirit connection and can play a key role, along with the care of a mental health provider, to ease the burdens of certain mental disorders like depression.

Throughout history essential oils have been used for the treatment of many conditions of the body, mind, and spirit. For example, frankincense has long been used in churches to assist in bringing people to a relaxed meditative state. Aromatherapy, or simply the use of essential oils for therapeutic purposes, has a direct correlation to impacting the brain’s healthy and happy function as inhaling these airborne molecules have a direct path to the brain. This can be very instrumental in the treatment of some mental disorders such as depression and anxiety.

At a very basic level, it seems to make sense that in smelling something pleasant, your mood is lifted for a period of time. From a scientific perspective, this occurs because as the airborne particles of the essential oils pass through your nasal passages, they connect with the hypothalamus which is what governs physiologic functions such as temperature regulation, thirst, hunger, sleep, mood, and the release of other hormones within the body. So, if we want to have an impact on our moods, our quality of our sleep, and essentially how we feel in a non physical way- this is what we need to focus on. Choosing essential oils with properties of what mood we wish to manifest allows us to ‘program’ our brains to feel better.

So, how can this help with mood management and counterbalancing the effects of depression and anxiety? We want to tell the body that we want to be happy and calm so it produces the hormones associated with happiness – such as serotonin. If we are feeling depressed and lethargic, we want to use an oil that promotes the body to feel happy and full of energy. If we are feeling anxious and not getting good sleep, we want to use oils that are comforting and produce feelings of relaxation and peace.

Here is a starter list to get you thinking about how you can use these oils for mood management and to help counteract the effects of depression and anxiety.

Bergamot – Elevates mood/ Helps promote a good night’s sleep/ Relaxing and calming

Melissa – Penetrates deepest layers of human psyche/ Restores clarity and security/ Eases grief and soothes sadness/ Uplifting and calming

Patchouli – Allows oxygen to cross the brain barrier/ Stimulates the senses/ Uplifts the mind/ Calms the body/ Reduces mental fatigue and lethargy/ Helps manage anger

Peppermint – Reduces mental stress/ Induces a state of relaxation and regeneration/ Calming effect on the central nervous system

Roman Chamomile – Calming in distressed situations/ Muscle relaxant

Vetiver – Brain oxygenating/ Brings thoughts and actions into focus/ Helps stabilize mental and physical energy/ Restores balance and harmony /Relieves absentmindedness, creates clarity

Ylang Ylang – Soothes anger and frustration/ Uplifts and creates sense of peace/ Minimizes aggressive behavior/ Stimulates enthusiasm/ Helps to improve harmony and confidence/ Helps to recognize enjoyable experiences

It is estimated that 1 in 5 Americans experiences mental illness in a given year. Many challenges come along with suffering a mental illness. Prevention and pro-activeness are two of my favorite approaches. Whether you are already challenged or want to prevent future challenges, I like to empower patients with the knowledge of what they can control… and our diet is one of those things! We have the awesome ability to choose from a wide variety of food and drink. What are you choosing for your mental health? Here are a few recommendations to help make those choices a little bit easier next time.

1. Skip the pastry and pick the protein– There are so many reasons this statement is important on a daily basis, especially during the holidays, but we will keep our focus on mental health. Did you know that the neurotransmitters, the communication tools for our nervous system, are made from amino acids, the building blocks of protein? Our bodies are capable of making some of the amino acids needed, however there are 8 remaining “essential” amino acids, meaning we MUST get those from our diet. Two important neurotransmitters related to mental health and well-being are Dopamine and Serotonin. Some of you may be familiar with Serotonin because that word is included in a very common drug class used to treat depression: Selective-Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors or SSRIs. The mechanism of these medications is to increase the level of serotonin in our brains. I invite you to be proactive and reap the benefits of consuming more protein and increase your own Serotonin levels! Animal protein is the best source for all amino acids, in fact eggs have the highest concentration. Plant proteins are also a good source, however it is important to note that different plant proteins must be combined to ensure the consumption of all the amino acids.
2. Load up on the Omega-3 Fatty Acids– Did you know that the brain is the organ that has the highest concentration of lipids (fats) in the body? Not all fat is bad for you, but not all fat is created equal. The gray matter of our brain is estimated to contain 50% fatty acids of which 1/3 are Omega-3’s. It is strongly documented that for proper fetal brain development high levels of EPA and DHA (both Omega-3 fatty acids) are needed in the mother’s diet. Without the foundation set during development, a baby can struggle with cognitive development for the rest of his/her life. We should continue to ensure a diet rich in Omega-3’s for ourselves as adults! Experimental studies have shown that over time diets lacking in Omega-3 fatty acids can lead to “considerable disturbance in neural function.” I highly recommend considering a high quality like Standard Process’ Tuna Omega-3 Oil or Cod Liver Oil. There are also dietary sources in both seafood and plant form.
3. Keep the alcohol intake reasonable– Although alcohol intake initially leads to a more excitable or energized state, the end results can be harmful to your mental health. As blood alcohol content lessens our brain’s response is fatigue, confusion, and depression. The extreme levels of mental states combined with behaviors that often lead to regret can be overwhelming for some people. Yes, there are potential benefits of moderate alcohol intake… but please keep in mind that moderate refers to 1 drink for a woman and 2 drinks for a man.
4. Remember your vitamins and minerals– Our intake of vitamins and minerals is directly impacted by the food choices we make. There is no comparison between the nutrient content of a big, dark-green leafy salad and a quick meal on the go from Taco Bell. It is now widely accepted that some sort of nutritional supplementation is needed today to combat the lack of nutrients in the typical American diet. However, have you stopped to consider your medicine cabinet? Many major side effects from the daily consumption of drugs, even medicinal, lead to nutrient deficiencies. For example, did you know that medications, like SSRIs, can actually inhibit the absorption of minerals such as Calcium? Other minerals that reflect negative mental health status when less that adequate levels are ingested include chromium, iodine, lithium, selenium, and zinc. As for vitamins the B-vitamins are most commonly recognized for their role in brain function. Folate (folic acid or B9) is frequently discussed during pregnancy due to its heavy involvement in neural development.

The information in this article was adapted from Understanding Nutrition, Depression, and Mental Illnesses published in the Journal of Indian Psychiatry. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2738337/