The Posture Clinic

𝟳 𝗵𝗮𝗯𝗶𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵

How was your weekend? A penny for your thoughts. We've all heard that age-old phrase which has been readily translated to mean "tell me what you're thinking". I've often wondered where that saying originated from. It turns out that it is over 400 years old and so its precise etymology is not very clear. Evidently , back in 1522 the British pound had a significantly higher value so when Sir Thomas More wrote a penny for your thought, he was actually willing to pay a decent sum of money to understand what you were thinking.

Today the value of understanding the thinking mind is priceless. By uncovering the deeper functions of the human brain and its relationship to our thought processes, we can gain greater insight into managing all disorders that range from aging and dementia to mental illnesses that include anxiety, depression, ADHD, bipolar and personality disorders. If you caught my blog from last week, I dove into the subject of neuroplasticity and the science behind how the brain is physically able to change its physical properties and capacity to learn differently at any stage in life. This led to an increasingly accepted theory that with healthy brain change, healthy thought processes would follow.

Now that I have laid out the foundations for how neuroplasticity exists, I would like to follow up with strategies on how to optimize neuroplasticity and reveal some very essential lifestyle habits worth cultivating that will focus specifically on improving and maintaining optimal brain health.

𝗣𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝟮 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆'𝘀 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗴 as I demonstrate how the path to a healthy mental well being starts with a shift from diagnosing mental illness and symptoms to a healthy brain fitness program. Hopefully this will get you to start thinking that brain care is as important as cardiovascular care, dietary care, dental care and all having the ability to be within your control.

7 habit strategies towards better brain health - askdrbahar The correct type of learning can direct positive plastic changes in the brain. In fact, the brain wants you to refine the manner by which you acquire new skills such that you are fully engaged in the process. Neuroplasticity becomes the brain’s default position. It can undergo changes in its struc...

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁. 𝗔 𝗵𝗮𝗯𝗶𝘁 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝗰𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 ,𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗱𝗮𝘆. 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝟱 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗯𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀

I hope this Thanksgiving finds you warm and safe. For many, this year has continued to pose many difficult challenges, emotional strain and global hardship. If we recall one year ago, we had been completely directed to forgo all rejoicing in person with our loved ones and maintain social isolation within our private dwellings.
There are many who have experienced disappointment, loneliness and depression during the holidays that are meant to lift the human spirit. But it's important to reflect upon the fact that we have come a long way over the past year. We can gather responsibly. Now, more than ever, it becomes a time to shift focus from what has been lost to what remains to be thankful for. It is a time for gratitude.

Being grateful amidst the present strain and remaining restrictions of a pandemic may be more challenging and seemingly unfeasible to consider. How does one experience gratitude when circumstances present a situation where one simply does not feel it?

The answer comes from practice. Gratitude essentially is a figurative muscle that builds its strength from repetition and overcoming resistance. In order to appreciate the good in the face of tribulation, we need the bad. The practice may be deliberate and rigorous, but the rewards are bountiful. Science has proven that the practice of expressing gratitude improves sleep, reduces stress levels and elevates mood. When we engage in gratitude, we enlist the higher developed layers of the brain, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex. This deeper, evolved layer shuts off the more primal, amygdalin part of the brain that controls the fear, anger and stress response. The two parts of the brain always act competitively. It's nearly impossible to feel appreciative when you're angry and stressed. Conversely, when you're in a true state of gratitude, it's nearly impossible to feel wronged or cheated.

The practice of gratitude takes effort. but like all muscles, grows and builds over time. Sometimes it just takes a little creativity and perspective to appreciate our blessings. All one has to do is to stand outside on a clear, fresh day and gaze at the luminous foliage of an autumn landscape. Things could be a lot worse and there are always at least three times a day that something happens that you can choose to be grateful for. We can't directly control the circumstances that dictate our fate during a Covid -19 crisis, but we can control our response to it. Please join me in today's blog as I revisit the theme of gratitude and appreciation. The time is ripe for it.

With much love and appreciation, I wish you and your family a healthy and safe Thanksgiving

The gratitude shift. A habit muscle worth developing today ,tomorrow and everyday. Here are 5 secret health benefits - askdrbahar It’s thanksgiving season in the Canada again. This usually means 2 events are upon us. Its when we look forward to sitting down to an abundant feast while spending quality family time together.It’s a time when we show our gratitude and appreciation for the many blessings we have, while taking ti...

𝑴𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑷𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆- 𝑻𝒉𝒆 4𝒕𝒉 𝒘𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒕 𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆.

𝑊𝑒𝑙𝑙, 𝐼 𝑠𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑓 𝑦𝑜𝑢 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑠𝑡 𝑛𝑒𝑤𝑠, 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑤𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑙𝑦 𝑖𝑛 𝑎 4𝑡ℎ 𝑤𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑛𝑜𝑤. A few short weeks ago, the case counts in Ontario had a trajectory of falling below 100 cases per day and now the week has ended with a progressive spike of 650. Hospitalizations have now doubled in the past 2 weeks and 75% of our overworked physicians, nurses and front line health care workers are suffering from burnout and depression.

𝑫𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒖𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒇𝒖𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒊𝒎?

𝑫𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒖𝒓𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒅?

After all, that 3rd wave was brutal. The thought of having to go through that again is such a dismal prospect. The economy has been beginning to recover, people have started to get back into a favourable groove of activity and social interaction and now bam! - The dreaded delta variant. Studies reveal that it is more virulent and 2.5 x more transmissible than the original covid strain.

My advice is now is not the time to panic or lose faith. The situation is not hopeless. Rather than give way to despair it's time to maintain perspective.

There is that word again- perspective. I have used it countless times in my research and publications. It encapsulates a third of my model for successful lifestyle change. For the most part , I have described perspective in terms of an outlook, point of view and attitude. To create a healthy mindset, I have advocated seeking perspective from as many vantage points as possible. This allows one to see reality from all sides. To appreciate the depth of a three dimensional mountain comes only from exploring it at multiple viewpoints. It metaphorically paves the way to a growth mindset.

Perspective also means having the ability to view things in their true relation and relative importance to others. It is this definition I wish to explore when assessing the reality of the 4th wave. It is not the same as the prior waves. Numbers alone may be very deceiving.

𝑷𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒐𝒅𝒂𝒚'𝒔 𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒈 𝒂𝒔 I uncover the facts surrounding the 4th wave so that it may allow you to put your concerns in the proper perspective.

Maintaining Perspective- The 4th wave is not what it appears to be. - askdrbahar The 4th wave of the covid pandemic demonstrates an excellent example of dynamic perspective. When we consider the word perspective, we often only associate the meaning as a noun used to describe viewpoint, attitude and outlook. I myself have used the word synonymous with mindset when advocating the....

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞-𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐱𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐬

Well here we are in the middle of summer and strangely enough, things appear to be eerily quiet in the world. Have you noticed that there have been no recent explosive headlines lately? Case counts continue to drop, vaccine compliance continues to mount as hospitalizations ease. With all the re-openings, It appears as if the city has truly begun to revert back to a state of greater normalcy. We don't seem to be mired in pandemic news feeds anymore. In fact, most headlining stories are not related to Covid 19. It's time to let it sink in, relax and enjoy the summer.

𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒆𝒕, 𝒘𝒉𝒚 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒌 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒔𝒐 𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚? 𝑾𝒉𝒚 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒘𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒙𝒖𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒂𝒙?

𝑺𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒓: 𝑾𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆.

Yes, even the simple pleasures associated with relaxation and leisure require practice to attain a healthy rhythm of ease. It seems contradictory that a non stressful pleasure that normally requires little energy or effort now warrants deliberate awareness, focus and intention to re- acquire.

However, after prolonged periods of compromised living that have been plagued by economic distress, social limitations, isolation and uncertainty, it is no wonder that we remain skeptical about accepting that the worst is behind us. After all, even with a steadily growing vaccination rate, the threat of delta variants potentially causing 4th waves and impacting September school openings remains a viable possibility.

The reality remains that as global vaccinations continue to mount, the threat of contracting the virus or having a severe reaction to the virus remains low. The bottom line is that the situation will continue to improve over time. Accept it and let that reality sink in.

As for relearning how to relax, it may not come quite as fast for some as others. Even the simplest of activities may have to be retrained back into habits. I find myself still struggling to remember to shave every morning. After months of isolation and wearing a mask which shielded my face, shaving was never a factor in my appearance. Now that I am making more personalized contact with my patients and community, it's time that I re-acquire that once unconscious habit.

There are even more pleasurable activities akin to relaxation that may need to be brushed up on. It's all a matter of setting up a design for daily practice.

Please join me in today's blog as I outline some key strategies to successfully regain the art of relaxation.

The road to re-establishing your relaxation rituals - askdrbahar A renewed healthy emergence from the anxiety ridden circumstances surrounding months of pandemic strife can be extremely difficult for many. Much like soldiers who suffer from PTSD after a turbulent hitch, recovering the ability to resume a comparatively stress free life can be quite challenging. Af...