As the prolific author and holistic medicine advocate Deepak Chopra has been known to point out, longevity is more than just extending your lifespan—it’s about living well for as long as you can. According to new research from the American Medical Association, folks in the United States tend to live much longer now than ever before—but the majority of them spend about 12 of those years suffering from pain or illness.  

Nearly a quarter of Americans report living with at least one chronic pain issue, and men are especially vulnerable. On average, men experience 2.6 less years of vibrant health than most women do, the American Medical Association continues.  

As our nation turns its attention to Mental Health Month, we cannot overlook the connection between staying mobile and relieving pain to embrace true longevity. So, for this month’s Community Spotlight, I want to hand off the microphone to someone who sees the importance of that connection on a daily basis: Dr. Eric Winder, longtime lead practitioner of Gentle Bay Chiropractic and a longtime contributor of Natural Awakenings.     

Natural Awakenings: Here in the U.S., June is known as Men’s Health Month. As a chiropractor, advice can you offer men to help maintain their longevity, mobility, and quality of life?  

Dr. Eric Winder: Men are funny—we often take better care of our cars than we do our own bodies. Even if men pay attention to fitness and nutrition, we can still neglect aches or pains that start to limit us. Men often learn early in life to ignore pain. But we don’t tell our cars to just “suck it up” when they aren’t running correctly.  

Just as you need to change oil filters, rotate tires, and repair dents or scratches, it’s important to take care of your own body’s glitches before they turn into serious problems. I find the majority of muscle or joint pain issues have their roots in connective tissue restrictions, or muscular imbalance, or both—and these problems in a human body are fixable.  

NA: Can you elaborate on those sources of chronic pain, stiffness, or movement restrictions that you often come across—and how fascia relief therapy can resolve these issues?  

Dr. Winder: As I said above, muscular imbalance is one common source of these problems, but it is best treated by an expert who has the skills to assess your posture, golf or tennis swing, and so on. This is certainly something we do at our office.  

A much larger problem is stiffness in the fibrous connective tissues—known as fascia—which cover the muscles, bones, organs, joints, and other bodily tissues. Fascia can become stiff from trauma such as car accidents, falls, sports injuries, or surgeries. Because fascia has millions of nerve endings that help guide our coordination, alignment, posture, and stability, fascia restrictions can cause major problems.  

Fascia restrictions confuse our “internal picture,” which can lead to misalignment, instability, and muscular imbalance which, in turn, cause pain, stiffness, weakness, and inflammation. Fortunately there are simple, effective ways to release restrictions in fascia, restoring motion and alignment.  

We mainly use gentle, hands-on compression and stretching of the fascia to treat these problem areas. The effects are often rapid, with immediate noticeable improvements in muscle tone, strength, and joint motion. Lasting pain relief usually starts within a few visits.  

NA: Why is it important to seek care and treatment for pain relief as soon as possible. What are the potential risks of dismissing an issue and allowing it to fester?  

Dr. Winder: The risk of not treating pain and stiffness is that it can develop into a larger problem. It’s like when a car gets knocked out of alignment by a pothole. At first, you notice a minor pull in the steering, but if you don’t fix it, the tires start to wear unevenly, then the front end starts to shake. If you still do nothing, eventually it could wreck the ball joints. 

In a human body, the muscles can become imbalanced trying to compensate for misalignment and instability, which can make them susceptible to strains or injuries. Restricted joints can cause inflammation, often leading to arthritis, bursitis, or tendonitis. This can continue to snowball until there’s so much dysfunction that treatment becomes difficult. Relieving fascia restrictions early relieves pain more quickly and prevents further issues down the road.  

NA: Are there any specific wellness routines or lifestyle habits that you practice on a regular basis to optimize your own health and quality of life?  

Dr. Winder: The health of our bodies is a “use it or lose it” proposition. I bike regularly in the cooler months and swim in my pool or the Gulf as the seasons warm up. I perform body-weight calisthenics exercises consistently, too. While I do eat occasional comfort foods like pizza or steak, I mainly consume a low-inflammatory diet with lots of fish and vegetables. In recent years, I’ve been realizing the importance of stress management, so I meditate and slow life down enough to make sure I don’t burn out or start sleeping poorly. Lots of water and restorative sleep are crucial, too—oh, and I get my fascia tuned up on a regular basis.  

Eric Winder D.C. is the lead practitioner at Gentlebay Chiropractor uses gentle manual therapy and rehab techniques to help patients with a wide range of pain and injury problems. Dr. Winder’s offices are located in Sarasota and Osprey. For more information and to schedule an appointment, call 941-957-8390 or visit https://gentlebay.com/