Sandy Baird DC of Riverstone Chiropractic providing queer inclusive LGBT chiropractic care for trans patients
Prism Blog, Self Care for Trans Health, Surgical Recovery & Scars

Six Steps to More Comfortable Binding: Part Five

Guest blog from Sandy Baird DC of Riverstone Chiropractic

According to a Health Impact Study published in the Culture, Health, and Sexuality Journal, 97% of people who wear a binder experience uncomfortable side effects such as neck pain, shoulder pain, back pain, and trouble breathing.

Other than limiting the time you spend in a binder, changing/washing your binder often, and avoiding unsafe compression methods such as duct tape and ACE bandages, there are several steps you an take to decrease the discomforts associated with binding.

This collection of tips comes both from my personal experience wearing binders as well as my clinical experience in treating the musculoskeletal complaints that my clients experience from binding.

5. Get adjusted

  • Tight or compressed muscles over time can:
    • Pull on joints
    • Create “stuck” spots in the spine
  • Even after you release the muscular tension:
    • These sticky fixations of the joints can remain
    • They limit range of motion
    • They cause pain
    • They cause sensations of tightness
  • Chiropractic adjustments are the only way to correct these fixations.
    • They can go a long way in terms of:
      • Relieving pain
      • Restoring motion

Look out for next week’s post for tip #6!

The stretches, self-muscle work, and strengthening exercises are from my full core and glutes strengthening program available for purchase at www.engineeringyourbody.com. And if you are interested in exploring muscle-work or joint adjusting to alleviate your muscle and joint pain, you can find out more about my practice at www.riverstonechiropractic.com.

In happiness and health,

Dr. Sandy Baird, DC

Oakland Chiropractor Sandy Baird

 

Bio:
I’m Dr. Sandy Baird, DC. I’ve been providing bodywork in the Bay Area for over ten years now. First as a massage therapist, and now as a doctor who combines soft tissue work with joint adjusting. I feel that it’s important for queers to have a safe space to have their bodies worked on. Many of us already shoulder a lot of extra stress and tension from being constantly judged, worrying about what bathrooms we should use, and having to actively resist and fight back for our rights as our new state of “normal”.

References:
Health impact of chest binding among transgender adults: a community-engaged, cross-sectional study: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13691058.2016.1191675

 

All information in this blog is for educational uses only. Always consult your doctor before taking any herbs or supplements, or changing or discontinuing your medications.

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