More Skills, Fewer Pills

By Ann Carver

Take Control of Your Life, Decrease your Stress and Pain, Improve Sleep and Cognition.

This book teaches the skills you need to be in control of your pain, sleep, stress, function, and balance as well as techniques to keep your brain young. "More Skills, Fewer Pills" is a treasure of little known, yet highly valued health tr

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ann Carver
• Release date: Dec 13, 2019
• ISBN: 9781087924793

Book preview

PRAISE FOR THE BOOK

As a practicing physical therapist for 48 years, I have focused on treating and educating patients on their selfcare and wellness.  I wish I had this book to give to every patient and colleague.  Instead of people buying 20 self-help books, they can read this one as a summary of information. Ms. Carver has compiled the pearls of years of lectures, research articles, peer-reviewed manuscripts, and books into a simple, concise book encompassing the best of eastern and western health knowledge, covering all parts of the body.

Following the stretching, exercises, relaxation, diet, and breathing techniques will improve your quality of life. We all have the power to do this, and this book clearly explains the tools. Every pre-operative person should read this book for controlling post-operative pain to help prevent the huge opioid problem in the United States today.

This book should be mandatory reading for all wishing to stay as active, balanced, and healthy as possible for as long as possible and is a perfect gift for all our loved ones. I recommend all health care and wellness providers reference this book to their clients. This is the Dr. Spock How To... book for adults.

Carolyn Bloom, PT

Past President of Kansas Physical Therapy

Past President of the APTA section on health policy and administration

Founding and Honorary Member of the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapists

Owner, Bloom and Associates Therapy, PA

MORE PRAISE FOR THE BOOK

Ann Carver, MS, PT, is a uniquely gifted physical therapist, devoted yoga teacher-practitioner, and transformational healer. With More Skills, Fewer Pills, Ann is casting out to us a brand of woven wisdom garnered from 60 years of integrating sound research findings with her profound emotional attunement, sensibilities, and concern for promoting others toward their search for well-being.  Her approach generously empowers others to shift from passive-dependent experience of their lives and care, to one of internalized confidence and competence with a set of skills that is life affirming and esteem enhancing.

So, grab on tight, pull in with all your might, and put into practice this gift that is a lifeline to movement towards finding your physical, emotional, and perhaps even spiritual best.

This is the culmination of a master treater’s lifework.

Richard M. Shapiro, PhD

Licensed Psychologist at the Menninger Foundation, Topeka, KS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My editor, Cathy Spitzenberger, who turned ideas into organized thoughts.

My illustrator, Elizabeth Pesl, who gives us a visual understanding of my words.

Cooper Woodring, without whose encouragement and wisdom this book would not have been written.

Dr. Deborah Carver Hodges who broadened my discussion of migraines and brain health and also spent hours (hours that she did not have) editing and making recommendations.

Dr. Diana Carver Lee, whose encouragement and practical insights, helped me through the process.

My friends, Judith Cutright, Danniece Bobeche, Cissy Means Ellis, who served as editors and encouragers throughout the process.

Table of Contents

Prologue

CHAPTER ONE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 1

Proper Breathing to Relax the Body and Quiet the Mind

CHAPTER TWO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 21

Three Breathing Techniques to Reduce Blood Pressure, Pain, and Stress

while Improving Concentration and Sleep

CHAPTER THREE . . . . . . . . . . . . .page 41

Three Relaxation Techniques to Reduce Stress while Promoting Sleep and Healing

CHAPTER FOUR . . . . . . . . . . . . . .page 61

Migraine Headaches

CHAPTER FIVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 83

Physical Techniques to Reduce Pain in Specific Body Locations

CHAPTER SIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 135

Situational Awareness to Reduce Seniors’ Risk of Falling

CHAPTER SEVEN . . . . . . . . . . . .page 149

Caring for the Brain as We Age

Prologue

This book teaches the skills you need to be more in control of your pain, sleep, stress, function, and balance as well as techniques to keep your brain young. More Skills, Fewer Pills is a treasure of little known yet highly valued health treatments that are a delightful marriage of Eastern spiritual disciplines with Western scientific medicine.

Based on the knowledge I have obtained from the six decades of teaching hatha yoga and treating patients with physical therapy, I offer a practical, step-by-step concrete guide of do-it-yourself skills that have worked with my students, my patients, and me. Specifically, as a yoga teacher and student of Eastern medicine, I share techniques that have been practiced for thousands of years. As a physical therapist, I’m offering newer science-based Western medicine techniques that have benefited my patients to help them live with less pain and improved function. I have included the methods used and the results of my thesis/study on hypertension in which my patients/subjects lowered their blood pressure. I have been evaluating and refining these techniques during my more than fifty lectures/speeches to universities, hospitals, and civic organizations. I served as a consultant to the world-renowned Menninger Foundation when they sponsored workshops on wellness for U.S. business executives. The feedback I received from the many presentations was positive and reinforcing. The goal of this book is to share some of those tips that I have learned and used so that you, too, can lead a happier, healthier, and more functional and beneficial life.

My goal is not to diagnose or treat you, but to provide you with hope and assurance that there are skills that work, but only if you practice them. The skills I teach will not exclude pills, if medically necessary, but will hopefully reduce your dependence on them. Always discuss any changes with your health care provider.

I have also addressed the concerns of most adults regarding cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s. Is there anything we can do to prevent or slow down the progression of these diseases? Is there anything that we can do to avoid falling? Is there any hope for all the pain in our joints? Everyone sometimes needs help. My book will give you some practical skills and suggestions.

Surprisingly, the most powerful techniques to help you deal with both physical and mental stress fall into the category of breathing, so I will start our discussion with how you breathe.

Life is breath. He who half breathes, half lives. – An ancient proverb.

Please Note: The information contained in this book is based on the author’s experience, studies, and research. It is not intended as a substitute for consulting your health care provider. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision, and any questions regarding the appropriateness of the procedures should be addressed by your health care practitioner. The publisher and author are not responsible for any adverse effects or consequences resulting from the use of suggestions, preparations, or procedures discussed in this book.

CHAPTER ONE

Proper Breathing to Relax the Body and Quiet the Mind

Of course, I’m breathing correctly; I’m alive. Maybe you are, but maybe you are not breathing correctly. Hopefully, by