Kristen DeJong, RMT
Shawnee Trail N7M6K4 Chatham, ON, Canada

Good News! I will be remaining OPEN during the province wide shut down! Looking forward to seeing you all!

I currently have one opening left in April for a massage treatment! Saturday April 10 at 9am! Who wants it?!I currently have one opening left in April for a massage treatment! Saturday April 10 at 9am! Who wants it?!

Clients! Please check your email regarding a very special announcement! See you all soon!

Introducing the newest member of our family a couple of weeks early! Kinsley Kristen Badder She was born very quickly at 3:54 this morning weighing 7lbs 1oz! We are in love!!

As I begin my Maternity leave, I would like to say a huge THANK YOU to all of my amazing clients for all of your support as I started venturing out on my own. It has been a huge success and I am super thankful for each and every one of you! I am excited to start my leave but I will miss you all so much while I am off for a few months! I wish all of you and your families a very Merry Christmas. I look forward to seeing you again in the near future! Take care and stay safe! Kristen DeJong, RMT

SHOULDER HYPERMOBILITY - ANATOMY, CAUSES, EXERCISE Joint mobility and muscle, tendon and ligament flexibility occur along a spectrum with everyone displaying ...individual levels of mobility/flexibility; hypermobility is an extreme form of connective tissue laxity which can cause structural dysfunction, pain and a multitude of long term problems. You can’t change your natural predisposition toward hypermobility but you can change how you control it. Women have a higher pre-disposition towards symptoms of hypermobility, due to their individual levels of oestrogen, progesterone and relaxin produced within their bodies during the menstrual cycle and pregnancy. Men, due to their hormonal make up, display lower levels of individuals with hyper-mobility. Hypermobile people feel tight; it’s most likely that muscles are fighting to hold joints together because tendons are lacking tension. At best, stretching is only going to feed into the dysfunction. Some individuals have more congenital laxity than others. This essentially means their tendons and ligaments have a bit more give to them. As a result, they can have substantially more flexibility because of the lack of passive stiffness. This means the muscles have to work harder to create stability at the hypermobile joints. This can often be accompanied by feelings of pain in end ranges of movement and general fatigue. KNOW THE SHOULDER To understand how your shoulders can lose stability, it helps to first understand their basic structure and proper functioning. There are five parts of the shoulder joint: 1. The scapula (or shoulder blade): The scapulae are flat bones in the upper ack that connect the arms to the trunk and serve as the foundation for the shoulder joint. The scapula transfers force from the shoulder joint to the trunk. 2. The glenohumeral joint: This ball and socket joint is where the head of he humerus (upper arm bone) meets the shoulder blade. It allows for tremendous range of motion but tends to be unstable because the contact area between the humerus and the shoulder socket is very small. 3. The rotator cuff: The muscles and tendons that make up the rotator cuff compensate for the glenohumeral joint’s lack of stability by pressing the humeral head into the joint during heavy lifting and high-speed activities. It’s like a set of magnets that suck the humerus into the shoulder socket for added stability. 4. The shoulder capsule: This ligament tissue encapsulates the head of the humerus and attaches to the shoulder socket through a layer of cartilage called the labrum. The shoulder capsule is the primary source of structural stability in the glenohumeral joint. 5. The scapular muscles: The muscles that connect the shoulder blades to the rib cage, spine, collarbones and upper arms enable the shoulder blades to move in various directions. They also stabilize the shoulder during movements such as throwing. Ideally, each part of your shoulder would do its job exactly as described, but the relationship between mobility and stability can go bad when one or more elements of the shoulder structure loses its ability to function optimally. ACTIVATION / STABILISATION Activation and stabilization become increasingly important for the individual with instability or hypermobility. However, the approach to stabilization is similar to any client working on a corrective shoulder program. Shoulder stability begins with scapular stability. If the client demonstrated more downward rotation of the scapulae, instead of the scapula truly sliding down the ribcage, emphasis should be placed on teaching proper depression. Further, optimal retraction and protraction must be taught. Single Arm Depression (monitor the position of the shoulder blade to prevent downward rotation): 12 reps with 5-second isometric hold, repeat on other side Modified PlankDepression Protraction: 12 reps with 5-second isometric hold The rotator cuff is also important as these muscles provide additional stabilization to make up for the lack of joint integrity. Two methods for taking advantage of rotator cuff activation in the client with joint hypermobility are compression and distraction. Supine Distraction/Shoulder Packing: Stabilise shoulder as partner pulls up. The shoulder should remain retracted and properly depressed: 12 reps with 2-second isometric hold, repeat on the other side Static Push-up with Arm Lifts: Lift the arm as high as possible while maintaining shoulder stability. Alternate sides for a total of 16-20 reps An often-overlooked technique which cannot be forgotten in the hypermobile client is perturbation training. Perturbation is when something stable is pushed out of balance and then must return to its stable state. There are many different highly-effective methods of perturbation training, such as the Body Blade that generates a wave action to increase stability demands. However, if a tool like the Body Blade is unavailable, then a simple resistance band or tubing can suffice.

Happy Halloween from my little dinosaur! Enjoy your weekend!

Opening available this FRIDAY at 1130am! Let me know if you’d like to get yourself in for a treatment! I am currently FULLY BOOKED until mid December!Opening available this FRIDAY at 1130am! Let me know if you’d like to get yourself in for a treatment! I am currently FULLY BOOKED until mid December!

Clients! Take a look at this article if you are struggling with neck pain! Great read.

Happy Thanksgiving from my family to yours!

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! I am so thankful and blessed to have you all as clients! Enjoy your Thanksgiving!

I have opened up a few extra days on Schedulicity! If you’re looking to book an appointment please send me a message or schedule online! Here is the link to my Schedulicity page: https://www.schedulicity.com/scheduling/KD85S3