5331-R2_CC_BIM_December-2017_WebNewsletter

The Back in Motion ® ommotion

I didn’t do anything, so why does my shoulder hurt? We're changing people’s lives, be a part of it.

The rotator cuff is fairly intricate, but you don’t need to traumatically do something to it in order to start feeling pain. Mechanisms of injury include gardening, yard work, shoveling, and even playing pass with your kids. A lot of the time it’s more wear and tear over time that causes shoulder pain. In fact, the number one culprit of shoulder pain that we most often see is…wait for it…poor posture. When our backs and shoulders tend to be a little more rounded forward it really closes down the area where the rotator cuff attaches into the shoulder. The muscles and tendons are coming in from the back, top, and front of the shoulder and shoulder blade and attaching to the front of the shoulder joint. So with bad posture, as your arms are rounded forward, if you try to move your arms overhead it pinches

on the tendons and over time causes inflammation. That also leads to weakness in the area, which then leads to poor mechanics in the shoulder joint itself; then the cycle of more impingement and more inflammation continues. Signs you need to go to physical therapy • If you are doing something simple like reaching into the cupboard and consistently notice some pain. • Pain when tucking in a shirt or putting on a belt. • For women, pain in the shoulder and arm when fastening a bra behind your back. • If lying in the same position for a while brings pain or soreness that does not go away.

www.mainephysicaltherapy.com

You pay a lot for insurance. Why not make the most of it?

PHYSICAL THERAPY

Is anything small bothering you now or do you have a reoccurring injury? Now is the time to get physical therapy and say goodbye to pain. At Back inMotion® Physical Therapy we provide personalized help looking into your insurance benefits and help you make the most of your 2017 and 2018 insurance benefits. If you are having any pains, dysfunction, or other general physical therapy concerns take advantage of a free pain consultation at our Gorham, South Portland, or Portland clinics to see if physical therapy is right for you.

Featured Employee: Jamie Holt, Patient Reception

Where are you from? Pearl River, NY – 20 miles outside of NYC What schooling/training do you have? Muhlenberg College, Allentown, PA How long have you been with Back in Motion ® ? One year come the end of December What is your best work story? The PT staff willing to be “pied” by patients for our Patient Appreciation party. What are your hobbies? Eating, reading, and movies….probably in that order.

Photo courtesy of Audra Photography

What is one interesting fact about you that most people don’t know? I think I am the most boring person I know. Where do you see yourself in 10 years? Don’t ask me this question, please…

2 Exercises to help prevent shoulder pain: 1) Forearms on the wall – Stand with a staggered stance, forearms pressed into the wall, elbows just below chest height. Gently push forearms into the wall and slide up as far as you can without shrugging your shoulders up. Do 3 sets of 10 repetitions (Shown Left)

2) Prone ‘I’s and ‘Y’s – Lying on your stomach with arms hanging down, gently squeeze your shoulder blades together and down toward your back pockets. Slowly bring your arms up over head to make an ‘I’ or ‘touchdown’, thumbs should be pointed toward the ceiling. Again, only go as far as you can without shoulders shrugging up toward your ears. The ‘Y’ is essentially the same but you bring your arms up and out slightly to make a ‘Y’ shape. Do 3 sets of 10 repetitions. This exercise can be done one arm at a time at the edge of a bed or couch. (Shown Right.)

Kim Pelletier, PTA

Kim Pelletier, PTA

Back in Motion Message Board

HAPPY HOLIDAYS! – We will be closed Monday, December 25th and Monday, January 1st in observance of Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Winter Weather Policy– WE ARE OPEN! We will be here for you no matter what so be sure to come to all of your appointments. Please do your best to give us a 24 hour notice if you need to reschedule an appointment for a different day or time due to weather. DRIVE SAFELY!

Wish Ryan Martin, Phil Joseph, Lisa Welch, Amethyst Hersom, Tyler Chamberlin, and Jordan Hopkins HAPPY BIRTHDAY this month! Congratulations to Jamie Holt, she is celebrating her first anniversary with us this month!

Back in Motion ® Gives Back - We only have a few more weeks to collect gifts for Family Crisis Services. Our Giving Tree is well on its way to completion but we have some last minute gifts to purchase. Stop by, pick up an ornament tag with a gift written on it from our tree and bring the unwrapped gift with tag back to the clinic by Friday, December 15 th . Thank you for your generosity and kindness this holiday season.

94 Main Street Gorham, ME 04038

Call today for a free consultation!

GORHAM: (207) 839-5860 SOUTH PORTLAND: (207) 799-8226 PORTLAND: (207) 699-4111 www.mainephysicaltherapy.com

Susan N. “When I began I couldn’t do lateral raises or raise my arm above my head. They TOTALLY fixed my shoulder

Patient Success: Patient Success:

These people give you personal attention. They look you right in the eye, they remember your name, you see the same people every time, and they know exactly what is going on with you. The staff was totally invested in my problem and trying to fix it for me. I can’t say enough about Kim. She is just WONDERFUL; she really wanted to make sure I reached my goals. And even after I was done…they called me! They did follow-ups on the phone; no one ever does that. They just wanted to see how I was doing and that was nice.”

didn’t hurt. I was too nervous to go for x-rays or anything else so I just lived with the pain. When they fixed it I was amazed. Why did I wait!? I mean, that was so stupid!

about it. I just compensated for the pain; I would always reach with the side that

this shoulder moving again. For 15 years I was in pain and I never did anything

which had been bad for about 15 years. I couldn’t believe in 6 weeks they got

The Back in Motion ® ommotion