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I went to the doctors last week because of tight chestedness and now I have an inhaler. I was coughing so much and despite all my efforts to keep away from fluff..I bought a dust extractor and I wear a mask... I still have the damn cough. Now ..because of coughing and constant sewing for Hugglets I have neck and should aches which are driving me crazy. The cough is easing but the shoulder pain is just horrible...
I think it's because of how I sit..and where I sit....any tips?
I have ad this too Jenny.I have a crushed vertebrae thanks to bad posture sewing fr all these years.I have almost cured it with yoga.You shouldreally warm up you neck and shouledr area before you dtart and every hour do a few stretches.Clasp hands with palms facing it and pull as far away from your chest as you can for a slow count of twenty ,then clasp above your head palms out and do the same.The best neck one pulls all the way down your spine and is great but tricky to describe.You need to sit and look forward then keep your body still and slide your head back .You should feel it pull all the way down.To my mind its how E.T. wouldmove his head if you get my drift.I do these every day loads of times and get no aches any more.Good luck.So glad I am not going ha ha.
Diane xx
Thanks Diane...It is a worry,,hairdressing doesn't help either...but OMG does my neck give me some jip. I will take your advice....!!!
Hearts Ease Bearsdiane is there a particular form of yoga you practise? deb
Jenny...I suffer just like yourself, and and although at the moment the main cause is all the bearmaking, I've been told all the years spent in the hairdressing industry is the real culprit. I have been having physio on my neck and shoulders recently and have got a lot of relief...so would recommend it. Also neck stretches...where you keep your shoulders and head facing forward, and tilt your head first to the left as far as you can towards your shoulder till you feel the stretch....and then repeat on the other side...this seems to helps me!
Hope it all soon improves.....see you at Hugglets!
Hugs Yvonne 
Hope
Teddies to TreasureJenny-I have one word for you-CHIROPRACTOR-I suffered unbearably for 9 months-took painkillers etc till my stomach ached and finally decided to visit the chiropractor which I had decided (no offense anyone!) was a "quack". I had many visits to my GP as well but only got more medication. One visit to the chiropractor and the pain was gone then 2 more visits and I am still pain free 3 months later.I have just finished 12 bears (16") so lots of stuffing etc. and no pain.As well I have knit for 6 new babies.Still pain free.They are not "quacks" they are "magicians"I LOVE chiropractors! Good luck Jenny.I truly feel for your pain!
Past Time BearsFirst, Jenny - get a massage and have him/her concentrate on the neck and shoulders. That will give you some immediate relief. An adjustable chair for your work area will also help. I do feel your pain, my friend. :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug:
Back Road BearsI would also recommend a chiro... just remember that not all are the same and practice different techniques depending on where they were schooled. I went to a few differnt ones when we moved here before I found one who wasn't too aggressive and used techniques that worked for me. Ask around first. You might be surprised at the number of people you know who go to one.
The tight chestedness can also be caused from spinal misallignment from bears/hairdressing, sleeping posture, etc. This causes your ribs and chest muscles to be strained and pulled out of allignment which in the end makes breathing dificult, can cut down blood and oxygen supply to lungs, etc. No medical doctor will tell you that however. They only believe in medication. I'm not against medical doctors and I'm not saying a chiropractor is the answer to everything either.... I've found a way to balance the two in the last 20 years.
Another exercise my chiro gave me really helps me after I've been hunched over sewing and helps me wake up without a tight neck in the morning when I do it just before bed. Sit on the corner of your bed or a chair, feet apart on the ground to keep your balance. Bring your arms up, grasping hands in at chest level, elbows straight out to the sides. Then rythemically, not too fast, pivot at the waist as far around to the left as you can go then around to the right as far as you can go. Your head also needs to go with your body turning all the way to each side. Do this 15 times. It helps loosen the vertebrea in your upper back, between shoulder blades, allowing the cartlidge and fluid to move again providing improved blood and oxygen supply to this critical area of your spine.
I also love yoga... not that I'm disciplined enough to get it into my daily routine but I do feel much more... loose I guess is the word, and balanced... flexible too.... when I do it regularly.
Thanks ladies...this is a constant concern when I am preparing for fairs. Also this tight chested cough...It's worrying. I am seeing the doctor tomorrow...I am desperate because I had to cancel Hugglets last time because of a similar thing...it looks really bad but I am in agony!!!!
Posts: 1,836When my neck and upper back are bothering me I swear by warm heat. I use an herbal pack that I can place in the microwave, sometimes I'll spritz with water for a moist heat. When I went to physical therapy they alway had me use 5-10 minutes of warm heat prior to the session...maybe that would help you prior to bear making (???) http://www.natureswaypa.com/index2.ivnu
This is the only site I could find quickly with info on ergonomic sitting with an illustration. (The rest of this site could be horrible, I just wanted a pic) May help with getting your chair set up, or finding a new chair to work at. I use an adjustable chair in the studio and it helps....the way we sit really makes a difference.
http://www.spine-health.com/topics/cd/ergo/ergo05.html
Massages are wonderful!! Just make sure you find someone who will treat you with kid gloves. Some are more geared towards harsher deep tissue massage and that can put you out of commission for a few days if they're really rough and your not use to it. **Drink LOTS and LOTS of water after any kind of massage. Your muscles need it to recoupe and it will lessen any soreness.**
With the cough is there anything at all new in your environment or diet that could be causing the chest/coughing issue. New fur, cleaning supply, personal care product, mold or spores of any kind, food item...anything that may be giving you a reaction? Have you had a chest xray?
:hug:
~Chrissi
I had a chest xray 18 months ago and it was ok....I suspect I'll be having another.I have an inhaler..which does nothing...but apparently the blue ones don't relieve inflamation...and if it's inflamed then I probably need treatment other than just a reliever...we'll see!!!!
I have some Deep Heat!!!! Hope that works!!!!!
dusty attic bearsHi Jenny,
You should maybe try acupuncher. I swear by it. I have acupuncher every two weeks and it is amazing. Where I go you also get a full body massage which is a added treat. Each go costs me £25.00 , but it is worth every penny. I used to get alot of back and neck pain due to bear making and now its all gone.
I think you can also get chairs that correct your posture. That might help.
Hope you are feeling better soon and I will try and come and say hello at Hugglets.
Take care. :hug: :hug: :hug:
I don't know whether to laugh or cry...I suspect that laughter might be the best option...since my last post I did indeed use some Deep Heat cream on my shoulders and neck...within 10 seconds my hands and shoulder had exploded into an angry nettle type rash that looked like dreadful sunburn and just felt like nettle stings...I have never experienced such a violent allergic reaction....I jumped screaming into the shower and stood there fore 20mins and the pain has only just started to go off...but I still look like a lobster...I am having one of those days!!!
Cleathero CreationsI can't offer any advice that has not been given. i will offer hugs for you. :hug:
I am sorry about your reaction to the deep heat it sucks. Maybe some sorbelene cream will ease it or aloe vera. Take care.
Posts: 1,836I don't know whether to laugh or cry...I suspect that laughter might be the best option...since my last post I did indeed use some Deep Heat cream on my shoulders and neck...within 10 seconds my hands and shoulder had exploded into an angry nettle type rash that looked like dreadful sunburn and just felt like nettle stings...I have never experienced such a violent allergic reaction....I jumped screaming into the shower and stood there fore 20mins and the pain has only just started to go off...but I still look like a lobster...I am having one of those days!!!
Oh Jenny that stinks!! I'm super sensitive to those deep muscle creams and rubs too...one word of caution: a lot of those creams use ingredients that are worsened and intensified with water and have to be removed from the skin with (this sounds crazy but) oil...like cooking oil or olive oil. Any cream with the ingredient Capsaicin (or an ingredient that in a variation of this word) is from a hot pepper and can give you a nasty burn..and water will make it worse. We found this out the hard way years ago when my hub had his initial back injury. The stuff burned like heck and made his skin so red. Only after he tried to wash it off did I read the inside of the box and see that water made it all worse. So sorry this is all happening to you 
:hug:
~Chrissi
KiddoBearsThere are heating pads for pain in drugstores,for knees,back,arms. They relax muscle tension and relieves pain.Not the flat ones these are more puffy to put on and you can wear these all day. :hug: :hug: But your best bet is your doctor he would know what to subscribe for your pains and discomforts. :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: wish you feel better what ever you decide. Stress provoks pain so try to relax and not worry to much on your show. What ever comes,comes. :hug:
Newcastle, OntarioOh Jenny, you must be miserable! I'm sorry you've had such a bad reaction to something that's supposed to give you relief. I hope you find something to help you soon.
Chrissi, you are a wealth of information! We have the Lakota topical pain reliever and hubby and I really like it BUT a couple of weeks ago I used it on my knee in the late morning. In early evening, I decided to have a nice hot bath - NOT!!! I couldn't believe how much the water burnt my knee, where I had used the Lakota cream. I had to get out. I just looked at the bottle and the MAIN ingredient is Capsaicin -who knew!! Next time I will have the bath first LOL!
hugs,
Brenda
Bears by EdieI am a firm believer in NUCCA (National Upper Cervical Chiropractic Association) for any kind of pain stemming from the neck. They ONLY work on the upper cervical vertibra (in the neck) and it is a very gentle manipulation - no cracking your spine or anything like that! When I had tendonitis in both my arms - so bad that I couldn't even lift a coffee cup with either hand - I saw several doctors and then went for physio that only made my neck hurt so much I was totally useless and in constant pain from both neck and arms. I finally heard about NUCCA and was willing to try anything so I could get back to making bears. Well it worked wonders and now I have been pain free for over 6 years.
Sure hope you can find something that works for you Jenny!
My son is an ergonomist - www.ergomax.co.za He will go into the workplace, asses it and then advise on changes.
On a video they show you a factory where workers sit in a row- a conveyor belt is moving with each worker placing a lid on each tin that passes- they then show you how they are sitting- some on telephone directories, some on cushions some on boxes, and then you think of this person doing it day in and day out- what damage this causes to the body.
A law which my son worked on in conjunction with a professor at Stellenbosh University has at long last been implemented in the workplace in SA, any upper limb disorder created by your working environment, which results from your employers neglecting to offer the right assistance allows the person to take action against their employer. I think you might find this in practice in Sweden, New Zealand as well.
The same would apply to any one of us who sit and continually make bears, or for that matter sit at a computer.. At no stage do we ever take it seriously until we develop an injury. How often do we get up, stretch our necks and do a few other basic exercise's.
When I do the needle felting classes I show student and tell them why it is important to wear a wrist brace- the cost is not that much- however no one will purchase one- yet the repetitive felting will lead to carpal tunnel syndrome and once affected no ways will it ever be taken away- operations will help, yet scar tissue will build up and this will then tend to aggravate the problem, so then its another operation and so on it goes.
Dale sells special computer stands, a lumbar support cushion, and the wrist braces. His advice to me is to continually to change what I am doing and not to work on one area on a continual basis.
We are really very silly as we all wait until it is too late-( I include myself in this !!!)
Lynette
FenBeary FolkHi Jenny, I understand that for muscular pain, heat is the worst thing to use, I suffer badly due to ironing for a living about 12 years ago and long term computor abuse, for intant relief I use freeze spray (opposite to deep heat) and I also use voltarol pain-eze, you can buy it at superdrug/boots, its magic, a doctor prescribed it to my boss as she was having the same problem but you can buy it over the counter. You still can't beat exercising your neck on a regular basis :hug:
Now a delicate question, do you snore? years ago I had similar problems with coughing and my chest -upper part and when I went to the docs I had to have a chest xray but it came back clear, when I went back the docs asked if I snored, I was a bit indignant but had to say yes, he looked up my nose and found that my nasal lining had swollen and was restricting the air (at this point I had no nasal pain -that came later) The result of the swelling was that I was breathing through my mouth and hadn't realised it. This meant that my throat and down my windpipe was drying up and causing a racking cough, he presribed flixanase, which I have used frequently since, you can now buy this over the counter as well. Over the years I have found that I can go long periods without it but when the weather changes my nose reacts and this year is quite bad, it may explain why it occured this time last year and due to your nose being extra sensitive the fur just irritates it. Hope some of this helps 
Melbourne, AustraliaJenny I can't offer any fresh suggestions, but I find bad posture is usually the cause of neck and back pain in my case and the ergonomic chair definately helped overcome this...together with a wonderful hubby's regular massage technique! 
Back Road BearsJenny..... I've been thinking about you.... what did the doctor say?
Thanks for thinking of me, Daphne!!!....Well..on Friday I ended up on a heart monitor in the hospital. It seems the whole thing is through stress.
I was having panic atacks..still am ..if I think about 'stuff'. I was getting chest pains and was breathless and the cough was dreadful.
Everything checked out fine but when I got home I was still in a state. Funny what your brain can make your body do!!
I went out on Saturday for a bit of down time with my sister and while I was out I still kept getting the tight chest pains. I tried to take deep breaths and put my mind elsewhere when it happened and then...by a miracle I realised that I was in control..the breathing eased up ...the cough is going..and the pains have all but gone...
I sat in the garden yesterday and worked on a bear ...not a cough...not a pain....no breathlessness..
It's been a horrible month... There have been so many things going on in my life that have caused this...and I was blaming my poor little Three O'clock Bears!!!
I really thought that bear making would finish me off. Now I realise that bear making is the cure!!
Back Road BearsOh, Jenny... I'm sorry is wasn't something with a simple cure but I'm also glad you were able to get a diagnosis and can now start working on ways to prevent the anxiety/panic attacks. Were you given any anti-anxiety med or similar? (You may not want to post all of that on a public forum... I understand!). I do hope the doctor was able to give you or point you in the direction of help. Sometimes just trying to control our thoughts/emotions is more than we're able to do and in the end can cause more stress..... do be careful.
Sitting in the garden working on a bear sounds like a wonderful cure! Sitting in the garden doing anything does. I found myself wishing just yesterday that I didn't have anything to do and could just go sit under a tree by the lake and read ALL day. Then I decided I needed to just MAKE time to do that... just for an hour a day even.... some how I feel like my mind and my body need that. So that's my goal.
Perhaps you'll be able to find ways to adjust your routine/schedule to make time for relaxing every day. Yoga, gardening, shopping, a nap.... whatever it takes!
:hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug:
Jenny ,I just went through a very similar thing but mine manifested in such bad clamping of my teeth that I could not speak and was in constant pain.What a weird thing the mind is.I reckon mine was stress over my daughter leaving for uni ,thinking about life without her and how the heck I am going to pay for it all.I started doing far more yoga and changed what I was doing hourly.I have always been a veggie but became vegan during this time and then took up running.I am the opposite to you and I was way worse when making a bear as sitting quietly was my worst time.Its gone now and hopefully when the big day comes and Hayley leaves in just over a week I will have learned how to deal with it.I think its great you fixed it yourself without any medication ,well done.I tend to believe anything we conquer ourselves stays conquered.Good luck at Hugglets.
Diane xx
