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RichT
12 Posts |
 Posted - 03/24/2005 : 07:50:33
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Hello guys
Do any of you have
views on orthotics to correct foot alignment!
In fact it is really the tip of the 'should you throw away all aids
and avoid specific exercises' question.
My thoughts are that as long as you believe that what you are doing
is just a help, then it can benefit. Surely this can apply to
posture correction and even 'back exercises'?
Is it sensible to take the view that we can help the body at the
same time as the mind and that orthotics/ back exercises/ etc. can
help, even though alone they will not cure.
Is this why some of us who apply TMS theory don't fully resolve pain
problems, because we are not using the body mechanics to talk to the
mind, rather just believing that we can reach the body through the
mind.
Anyway my question is just really what is wrong with trying to
correct posture and making use of bio-mechanics?
Sorry if this waffles!!
Rich T
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Dave
USA
1864 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2005 : 08:46:12
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quote:
Originally posted by RichT
Anyway my question is just really what is wrong with trying to
correct posture and making use of bio-mechanics?
It is clearly spelled out in Dr. Sarno's books.
The symptoms are psychologically induced, they do not have a structural origin. If you do anything in the physical realm to try to correct the problem then you are admitting to yourself that the problem may be structural after all. This is just the opening the brain needs to continue its games.
Dr. Sarno's theory has been formulated over 30 years and is based on clinical experience. Step 1 is Step 1 for a reason: repudiate all structural diagnoses. If you believe that your pain is partially caused by bad posture or muscle imbalance or any other structural reason, and you take steps to address those physical issues, then you are not following the TMS approach, plain and simple. |
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Albert
USA
210 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2005 : 10:00:11
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A chiropractor hooked me up with orthodics. I was very hopefull and thinking my back pain would go away. It didn't. It is hard to imagine how one little old insert is going to cause symptoms that exist throughout a person's body to go away.
When you look in the mirror can you tell that one leg is shorter than the other? It is hard to comprehend how something you can't even see would cause a problem. And even if one leg was an inch shorter than the other, orthodics aren't designed to make up an entire inch. Plus it seems that a person's body will make up for such differences.
Consider this possibility. A person with a leg that is shorter than his other leg starts to have back pain at the age of 27. A doctor tells him he has pain because one of his legs is an inch shorter than the other. How come this person didn't have pain during the first 27 years of his life if the one inch is such a problem?
Let's say that a person is 72 inches tall. One inch is 1.3% of a person's height. It is hard to imagine that a person's body can't adapt to such a small differential.
Even if such a differential could make a difference, why would it effect people when laying down or sitting?
Sometimes inserts have a placebo effect. I know a guy who had back pain. He got inserts and his pain went away. But at the same time he developed really bad shoulder pain, had shoulder surgery, and two years later he still has shoulder pain. A case of symptom substitution.
I threw my orthotic inserts out because there is no way that they can have anything to do with the symptoms I've experienced.
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Baseball65
USA
734 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2005 : 10:19:53
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Ditto to Dave and Albert...been there /done that.
Orthotics are a marketing ploy..my hips were 1.25-1.75" out of line depending on which quack was consulted.
I haven't even thought about it in years,because after repudiating the diagnosis I have no pain
Thus..the lifts/orthotics were merely a placebo,and not a very good one.
The back excercises and stretches pre-suppose a structural problem,once again keeping one focused on the physical...only a placebo cure might occur
peace
Baseball65 |
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Jim D.
USA
63 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2005 : 10:39:35
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| My orthotics were prescribed by a podiatrist because I have more or less flat feet and calluses form (which the orthotics prevent). Do people think this is also a questionable use of them? |
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n/a
36 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2005 : 11:19:21
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| I was given orthodics for my feet and had them re-fitted for 9 months. They did not make one bit of difference. The doctor says I have flat feet but I disagree and flat feet would not cause these symptoms I am having. I have also had bone scans and x-rays done along with blood thests for arthritis..........Nothing comes up.... |
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Baseball65
USA
734 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2005 : 12:23:07
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To JIM D.
If you are using them for comforts sake and not to cure a supposed "structural pain" than they are fine....I always buy super wide tennis shoes,because when I crouch at work the crease pinches my skin....that is a comfort issue,not TMS.
The majority of orthotics are as ridiculous as a back brace or corset...even my PT told me after my wife "fell" for the podiatrists deal regarding our son(he has fred flintstone feet)that people with flat feet still walk on the balls of their feet,and that a lot of the concerns are merely extra skin(fat) that don't define the foots arch as well.
I threw away my sons orthotics when my wife wasn't looking.He is a number 3, .400 hitter and has a lifetime 300K's,50 walks,ERA around 1.50.....maybe I should have had flatter feet!!
He walks like an old man in the mornings,and his feet fall asleep easily,but he has never had any pain.If he was uncomfortable,I might have felt bad,but even than,not knowing about TMS it just seemed like a crock.
comfort,on the other hand is a different deal..
I'm sure you're fine.
Baseball65 |
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verdammt
Canada
97 Posts |
Posted - 03/24/2005 : 12:56:02
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I agree. Orthotic insoles are a scam. Don't trust anything prescribed by a chiropractor (especially at $600 a pair). I felt like I was walking on golfballs with mine. They're somewhere in my basement now. The chiro wanted to sell me some orthotic runners and sandals, too.
To paraphrase Dr. Sarno, people got along fine without these things for thousands of years. I'm sure most people aren't perfectly symmetrical, either, but they feel fine.
On the other hand, we do neglect our feet. I'm starting to take pity on them. They take a lot of punishment, carrying us around, immobilized all day in shoes, pounding the pavement, stomping on pedals, bumping into things, shoved under the desk. Give 'em a massage once in a while. They're wonderfully complicated structures, like our hands. |
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Orthotics and posture exercises
