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Recovering from Addiction to Prescription Medications

I never thought of myself as an addict, but I did end up addicted to anti-anxiety medication after developing Generalized Anxiety Disorder. At some point, the medicine stopped being a way to deal with the nervousness and panic attacks, and became something my body craved. I knew that I needed help fast. Fortunately, a local drug rehab program includes support for people like me. They helped me wean off the medication, use methods like massage therapy to help my nerves heal, and even provided ongoing counseling for our family. I don't know how I would have made it without their help. If you suspect that your medication has crossed the line from being helpful to hurtful, take heart. Let me tell you about my journey out of addiction and back to wholeness.

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Recovering from Addiction to Prescription Medications

Best Foot Forward: 2 Yoga Exercises For Feet That Ache

by Valerie Stevens

Yoga exercises are a great way to build strength, balance, and flexibility. But if you live with foot pain (whether from a sports injury, a klutzy moment, or even just weak feet) it can be hard to find yoga exercises that will allow you to stretch and rejuvenate yourself without hurting your foot further. So if you're looking for yoga exercises that you can do without causing more damage to your foot, then here's a couple you should know about.

Holding Out for a Hero

The Hero pose is a sitting pose, which is good if your balance is a little shaky or if your feet hurt too much at the moment to put much pressure on them. This pose will stretch out both your ankles (which is good for joint pain) and your arches (which is good for foot stiffness and pain in the balls of your feet). You can use a rolled-up towel or blanket to put between your thighs and calves if you're too uncomfortable without one.

Kneel down on the ground with your calves directly under your thighs. Adjust your position so that your knees touch but your feet are spread slightly wider than your hips, and the backs of your feet are flat on the floor. After a second, spread your feet and calves (while keeping your knees touching) as widely as you need to in order to sit your butt between your feet. Sit up straight and hold the pose for at least a minute before returning to your sitting position.

Dogged Determination

If your foot pain tends to come from a problem with your arches, you really can't do any better than to stick with an old yoga favorite: the downward-facing dog pose. Not only does this pose help to stretch out your hips (which is important, as foot problems generally lead to leg and hip problems as well) but it soothes your aching feet and can strengthen your arches.

The exercise is simple: get down on the ground on your hands and knees, then lift your knees away from the floor, taking your heels along with them. Then, lift your butt into the air so that your body forms a triangle, with the floor acting as the triangle's base. Once you feel stable, push your heels down to the ground (it's okay if they don't actually reach the ground when you first begin doing this exercise), feeling the stretch along the backs of your legs and through your feet. Hold the pose for somewhere between 1-3 minutes, breathing deeply the entire time, before relaxing back to your hands and knees.

For more foot pain solutions, check out websites like http://familyfootanklephysicians.com/.

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