Weight Loss Success Story: Meet John from Stone Ridge

written by Koren Barwis, HHC, CPT

One of John's Weight Loss Tools

Meet John* from Stone Ridge.

John is a husband and father who in March of this year weighed 288 pounds. At 6’-0”, he was roughly 75- 100 pounds overweight and he felt it. John had always been overweight and was never very athletic. He had poor eating habits and snacked constantly, especially in times of stress. “I’d easily eat an entire bag of chips or cookies. I’d get home from work, eat a huge dinner and then sit on the couch and snack more.” 

Everything changed when at his annual physical, John’s doctor said if his blood pressure were any higher, she would have to send him to the emergency room. She recommended prescription drugs to reduce his blood pressure. The experience scared him so much that the next day, John started walking outside and eating healthier food.

“It was important to me to be a role model for my boys. I want them to be healthy and I knew I couldn’t do that without setting an example.” 

 John started eating clean – lots of fruit, vegetables, lean protein, and some complex carbohydrates. “I think I lost probably 75% of my weight simply from eating healthy. If it comes in a package, doesn’t expire within a week or two, is high in fat or 'bad' carbs, I probably won’t eat it. I don’t cheat, I don’t snack, and I won’t eat after 6:30 PM. I drink a lot of water.”

John also went from being sedentary to exercising daily, adding in biking to his repertoire. “I love (actually, crave) exercise now. 7 months ago, I did none of those things and hated working out.”

For the first several months, John’s weight came off very quickly. His clothes fit better and he slept better at night. Then the weight loss slowed and John learned that in order to keep his momentum, he had to push his body harder. He’d bike longer, and tried running, something he never thought he’d enjoy. He has started strength training and even did his first pull-up EVER last week. There is even talk about running a half marathon next year. As of December 1, John weighs 178 pounds — 110 pounds lost in eight months!

John has had to buy all new clothes and does have some extra loose skin, but he believes “these things are a small price to pay for the health benefits of losing the weight.” Throughout his weight loss journey, John has learned a lot and has some bits of advice for those just starting out:

• Figure out what works for you, and make it a passion. If you can seriously commit to 3 months, it just becomes part of your routine and after you see the results, you will probably care more about keeping it up rather than undoing the effort you put into your self-improvement.
• Set a reasonable goal for yourself, hit your goal, and then create a new goal.
• Surround yourself with people who’ll support you and encourage you. Ignore the haters - some people ask “what’s your secret” and get turned off in disgust when you tell them that it’s simply eating right and exercise because they are still looking for some miracle, easy solution.
• Get advice from other healthy people. Everyone has an opinion and the best people to listen to are those who are walking the walk.
• Lastly, don’t view healthy eating as a diet, because that implies that it is temporary. Clean eating is just how you eat - regularly, permanently. It is truly a lifestyle.

I wish I could take credit for John’s success, but he was already well on his way when he came to see me at The Wellness Connection. I simply helped him gain a deeper understanding of nutrition and fitness and encouraged some adjustments and tweaks to his routine and diet. John is one of the most dedicated and disciplined people I’ve worked with. I’ll suggest a change and he implements it. I don’t know his secret, but his story does confirm one of my core beliefs - when you are ready to change, change happens.  

  *John’s name has been changed.
  (Photo credit: Flickr, gingerchrismc)

Refreshing Cranberry Infused Water

by Peter Baverso, Fitness Director 

Fall has arrived and that means cranberries are back on the market shelves. Don’t just wait for Thanksgiving to enjoy this seasonal favorite - you can enjoy the refreshing flavor every day - in your water bottle. Don’t bother with commercial flavored waters that don’t provide the freshness your body craves. In just a few minutes, you can make your own infusion packed with cranberries which are full of antioxidants and vitamin C.


Here is a simple and easy way to perk up your hydration habit with cranberry infused water you can make at home.

Simply wash a handful of cranberries and place them in a heat-proof container. Add a few
slices of lemon, a few sprigs of mint (I like orange mint for this water) and some fresh ginger. Add some hot water to infuse the flavors and allow the infused water to cool before drinking. If you prefer cold water, you can fill your container half full with hot water and then add some ice. Since you are using fresh ingredients the flavors last so you can refill your bottle throughout the day.

What Can Acupuncture Do for You?

by Justin Short, licensed acupuncturist

“What can you do for my issue?” I get asked this by almost every prospective patient. Whenever I hear this, I think to myself “I can stick needles in you, I’m an acupuncturist.”  I don’t say this though, because what they patient really wants to know is how does acupuncture work?  What is acupuncture going to change to make them feel better?

This is where you might hear about Qi, and how acupuncture is the manipulation of a body’s Qi.  This answer is not wrong, but it does not tell you much if you don’t know a lot about Chinese medicine. To answer this question in terms that most people can understand can be difficult.  The short answer is that western science does not know exactly how acupuncture works, but that does not mean it cannot tell us anything.

Many people think of acupuncture for pain relief or for injuries (either acute or chronic).  The mechanisms or how acupuncture can work for this are many.  Firstly, acupuncture can help increase blood flow locally.  Often times with an injury, blood flow in the local area is congested which slows down or prevents healing altogether.  In Chinese medical terms we often refer to pain as “Qi stagnation”, meaning the Qi is not flowing.  Pain from reduced blood flow is one symptom of this.

Secondly, acupuncture can help to reduce swelling.  This ties directly in to blood flow and Qi stagnation.  Inflammation impedes the flow of blood, lymph and nerve impulses through an injured area and will also negatively affect the healing process.  By reducing inflammation and swelling, we are able to let the body do its job better and quicker. There are lots of other ways to reduce swelling, though.  You can use ice or you can take ibuprofen, both can be used for pain.  There are problems with each of these though, that can impede long term healing and can turn an acute injury into a chronic one.  Ice, for example, does reduce inflammation and bring down swelling, but it also congeals the blood and slows down its flow.  So while you might not have as much pain, you are actually making the healing process much harder on your body.  Chinese medicine does not have this problem; we can bring down swelling while at the same time promoting blood flow.  This allows the body to heal quicker and better.  Then you have ibuprofen. This stuff is great for pain relief, as a NSAID it will definitely bring down swelling and it isn’t so cold as ice to impede blood flow.  It is not without its issues though.  NSAIDs such as ibuprofen shut down the body’s natural healing response.  When there is no inflammation, the body does not realize that there is an injury to fix; it thinks its job is done.  This is not the case.  NSAIDs cover up the pain, but don’t fix it, and can even cause an acute injury to become chronic.

Chinese medicine can also help to strengthen muscles and tendons in the body.  This is a side effect bringing more blood to an effected area.  Many chronic injuries can be due to a muscle weakness.  With acupuncture we can help strengthen muscles and help them do their job better by bringing the body’s attention to the weakened area.

So far we have just been talking about pain relief; Chinese medicine treats a whole lot more than just pain.  Firstly, it is important to note that inflammation and reduced blood flow are not issues specific to pain, but can also be the cause of a lot of other health concerns.  Many chronic issues that seem to have no cause can often be from chronic inflammation throughout the body.  Chinese medicine not only helps increase blood flow and reduce inflammation locally (at the site of the injury), but can also do so globally (throughout the whole body).

One way it does this is by speaking directly to the brain to regulate our body’s chemistry (hormones, enzymes, etc.).  Whether it is an emotional issue such as depression or anxiety, or something more physical, such as menstrual issues or digestive upset, Chinese medicine helps to direct the body’s response to these or many other issues.  Each acupoint has unique and disease specific reaction in the body.  This does not mean there is a specific acupoint for every specific symptom.  What this means is that each acupoint used will affect the body differently, but in the way the body needs.

Acupuncture does not treat or fix symptoms; rather it brings your body’s attention to a problem and helps to give it the tools necessary to make things better at a deeper level.

These are just a few of the ways acupuncture works to make you feel better.  It is important to note that all of these mechanisms (increasing blood flow, reducing inflammation, and hormone regulation) can help with a variety of issues.  They are not specific to pain or to digestive issues or any set of symptoms.  Acupuncture works with your body, no matter the problem, to help you feel better.

If you want to see how acupuncture can work for you, setup an appointment with Justin by calling our office at (703) 327-0335.

Handwriting Tips for Your Kids

by Sally London, Pediatric Occupational Therapist

Despite the increased use of technology, handwriting remains very important for the success of each student. Some children have difficulty with transferring their thoughts to paper and exhibit problems with letter/number formation as well. This is usually referred to as Dygraphia. Most children with writing difficulties demonstrate problems with letter/numbers formation and sometimes with reversals. Reversals most often are found with letters/numbers “b,” “d,” “p,” “q,” “3,” and “9.”  Formation of letters from bottom to top instead of top to bottom is often noted. This has to do more with how the student is taught to write his/her letter/numbers. Segmentation of letters and starting letters from right to left are sometimes observed. Children who have problems with handwriting are shown to produce less written work and dislike the task of handwriting due to frustration. 

The way that a child holds his/her writing tools is vital to success with letter/number formation. In the past the use of a dynamic or mature tripod was considered to be the standard. This is no longer true as it is recognized that children often hold their writing utensils with other functional grasps. Obviously some grasps are more functional than others such as a thumb wrap.
There are various options to making handwriting less of a chore and provide success for children. The use of different pencil grips for assistance with correctly holding writing tools, spacers for placing appropriate space between words, and highlighted paper to assist with the placement of letter/numbers have proven helpful for the production of written work.  However, an Occupational Therapist can be instrumental in the instruction of letter/number formation as well as with determining what adaptive options will provide the child with the ways to be more successful with written work and volume. 

Some sources for pencil grips, adaptive paper, and spacers are listed below.
www.Achievement-Products.com
www.Abilitations.com
www.TherapyShoppe.com
www.ReallyGoodStuff.com

If you are concerned about your child's handwriting or learning, contact us at (703) 327-0335 to setup an appointment with our pediatric occupational therapists. 

"Check Out" Susan This Saturday

Wellness Connection founder Susan McCormick was chosen to be part of The Human Library, an  innovative program at The Gum Spring Library this Saturday.

The Human Library is a living, breathing library where humans are the books and visitors can check them out. Spend up to twenty minutes with the human books, asking questions and hearing their stories.

Susan will be one of twenty participants including a trapeze artist, wounded warrior, and a ghost hunter.

Learn more about The Human Library.

The Power of the Group

by Susan McCormick, The Wellness Connection, LLC Founder

I lost my first husband in a car accident in 2002. Broken, I immediately went to therapy searching for help. My therapist recommended a grief support group for me to attend. My initial reaction was "why would I want to go to a place where everyone is as sad as I am?" It wasn't my nature to share my inner most fears with family and friends – let alone with absolute strangers. I could not have been more wrong…group was the most important aspect of my healing process and facilitating support groups is now one of my favorite things to do as a mental health therapist. 

In groups, we shed our "masks" and reveal all parts of ourselves – the good, the bad, and the really ugly. What is most amazing is that in spite of our differences as people, there are many more ways in which we are alike. Getting validation from others and learning that we all have similar struggles helps reduce our sense of isolation and intense feelings of being alone. I felt such relief and comfort to be around other people who really just "got it" and that made all the difference in my recovery. 

Groups can often feel like an extended family (hopefully without the drama). They offer support, establish trust, and provide a safe place where all emotions are accepted. Through this experience, participants often develop new skills to relate better to others, which extends far beyond the group. Even those that just show up and say nothing, still walk away having learned something or identifying a new way to handle a situation.

For many, joining a group can be uncomfortable because they may not know anyone – therein lies the magic. Everything that takes place in group is confidential. The fact that others to whom you have no original connection are facing the same situation may help you open up and truly explore a path to feeling well again. In group, hope is often restored.  

Support groups can help with most of life's challenges: grief, parenting, weight loss, addiction, and more. If you are struggling, take a chance and join a support group...I did and I will be forever grateful.

Check out The Wellness Connection's Support Groups page for our latest support group offering. 

Now Offering AromaTouch Therapy

The Wellness Connection is pleased to announce that we are now offering AromaTouch Therapy, either as a stand alone service or addition to our massage packages.

AromaTouch Technique is a clinical approach to applying essential oils along energy meridians and visceral contact points of the back and feet to help balance sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems of the body. Developed by Dr. David Hill, a leading expert in integrative medicine and therapeutic applications of essential oils, the AromaTouch Technique improves wellbeing by reducing physical and emotional stressors and by supporting healthy autonomic function. The technique is simple and intuitive and uses dōTERRA’s CPTG Certified Pure Therapeutic GradeTM essential oils for an unparalleled grounding experience for recipients.

Ralph Miller, CMT, our resident Massage Therapist, is certified for the application of essential oils for stress management, immune system enhancement, inflammatory response, and homeostasis. Essential oils can also be incorporated into any massage experience for relaxation or to address muscular tension. 

Call (703) 327-0335 to schedule an appointment today and experience the benefits of AromaTouch.