Go to Your Happy Place

November 21, 2023

The link between postural control and emotion runs deep, revealing itself in common expressions that convey feeling or mindset through a physical image, for example, thrown for a loop, on shaky ground, sure-footed, in a slump, and standing tall. Medicine has also long noted the connection, and in recent years, brain research has uncovered multiple neural links between balance and emotion processing regions of the brain. More than simply causal, how we feel and how we carry ourselves interconnect with…

Conquering Gravity

January 5, 2020

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Balance Science, Balance Training, Fall Prevention

The Conscious Art of Balance Watching videos of my great-niece learning to walk, I am struck by her dedicated focus on the task of upright balance – and the pure joy in the accomplishment of that task. It reminds me of her delight when, as a wee babe, her father would fly her around the room in his arms. Now she flies through space on her own small feet. Balance is a wonder, an amazing feat (no pun intended) that we learn…

Move like a martial artist

July 9, 2019

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Balance Training, Fall Prevention

A wild 4th of July hail storm had me raking up downed leaves in the back yard, adding to my list of summer chores. From carrying bags of potting soil to pulling dandelions, winding up garden hoses, and mowing the lawn, the unending yard work engages me both body and mind. And as creaky knees and aching back threaten to undermine my efforts, these summertime tasks continually remind me to move like a martial artist – no matter the task.…

Balance, Motion, and Space

August 25, 2018

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Balance Science, Balance Training, Fall Prevention

On a beautiful late summer day in the Rocky Mountains, I joined participants at the Easter Seals Rocky Mountain Village Post Polio Wellness Retreat to teach a class on balance. People from all over the country came to Colorado to participate in classes and activities about living with post polio syndrome – a condition affecting polio survivors that includes muscle weakness, atrophy, and fatigue that can occur many years after recovery from the original illness. Post polio syndrome’s impact on balance may result…

Tuning In

March 26, 2018

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Balance Science, Balance Training, Fall Prevention

I had the privilege earlier this month of meeting students and staff at the Colorado Center for the Blind and going along as an observer on a cane travel excursion. Steve, the instructor, and the two students led the way – with their keen perception and their canes – on a trip through downtown Littleton to find donuts and bagels at a shopping center down the road. Throughout the journey, Steve asked the students questions about the surroundings and talked…

Being in Motion

January 4, 2018

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Balance Science, Balance Training

Over Christmas I met my new grandniece who, at the age of one month, loves to dance. Any kind of rhythmic motion soothes and enthralls her. Whether we grooved to Stevie Wonder or waltzed to Frank Sinatra, her cries would cease, her muscles relax, and her eyes brightly turn to the swirling landscape around her. While others in the family were curious to discover the object of little Emma’s gaze, my wonder was with the process of how she responded…

Balance in Caregiving

November 17, 2017

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Balance Science, Balance Training, Caregiving

As Thanksgiving fast approaches, images of past family holidays arise in my mind’s eye, including the memory of the last Thanksgiving with my mother. I vividly see her at age 91 watching her beloved Broncos and playing (and winning) word games between turkey and pumpkin pie. I had the gift of caring for my mother in the last years of her life, and while the unexpected role of parental caregiver at times proved daunting, I gratefully discovered I had a…

Fall Prevention Awareness Day

September 22, 2017

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Balance Training, Fall Prevention

Fall arrived in Colorado today with a curious mix of summer sunshine and a chill wind from the west announcing the inevitable change of seasons. The day also marks Fall Prevention Awareness Day (and the beginning of Fall Prevention Awareness Week); not the prevention of shorter days and cooler temperatures, but a reminder that although the fall season is unavoidable, taking a fall is not. The National Council on Aging (NCOA) started the observance a decade ago to help people understand that…

Fall Prevention: Facts & Tips

August 3, 2017

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Balance Training, Fall Prevention

At a fall prevention event I attended last week, I was surprised to learn that falls are the number one call for help to the Arvada Fire and EMS Rescue in Jefferson County, Colorado. That is, the fire department assists people who have fallen more often than it responds to fires or any other emergency requiring medical services. The Fall Prevention Fair and Cookout was put on by TRIAD, an organization in Jefferson County that helps seniors stay safe in…

Fear and Falling

July 14, 2017

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Balance Science, Balance Training, Fall Prevention

Olympic gold medalist Picabo Street, 1998 winner of the downhill in Nagano, once told a reporter, “Fear is the number one enemy when you’re racing; when you’re afraid your center of balance is back, which is very detrimental to your health.” Detrimental, indeed. Scientific studies have found that, along with increasing the risk of falling and serious injury, fear of falling in daily life leads to activity restriction, a loss of independence, reduced quality of life, and an increased chance of…