Blog Archive

Your shoulder joints are a marvel — you can reach up high, scratch your back, and extend your arms across your body. There’s no better way to appreciate these joints than when something’s wrong. All of a sudden, you find life to be more challenging without the full use of...

Nagging pain in your wrist, numbness and tingling in your fingers — these are the hallmarks of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), and they’re anything but comfortable. And you’re not alone if you’ve developed this common joint issue. Carpal tunnel syndrome affects up to 5% of the population, with women outpacing...

The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered dramatic changes throughout everyday life — and in the medical community as well. Not only are providers across the country postponing elective procedures, but many are also encouraging people to avoid in-office appointments to reduce their risk of exposure to this highly contagious coronavirus.But what...

Tendon damage anywhere in your body can be frustrating because these connective tissues heal at their own, often very slow, pace. When it comes to rotator cuff tears, which drive almost 2 million doctor visits each year in the United States, this is definitely the case. If you’re dealing with...

You remember a time when you could run up stairs with ease and spring out of a chair without blinking an eye. Today, these same activities come with a fair amount of grunting and groaning as you labor to work with achy, painful knees. You're not alone. To call achy...

Whether you're new to sciatica or you’ve dealt with this condition before, the one takeaway that stands out is how painful the condition can be. Up to 40% of people develop sciatica at some point in their lives, which means millions of people understand the unique pain and limitations that...

Diabetes, which affects more than 37 million people in the United States, can be a life-altering disease thanks to its many potential complications. From losing your eyesight to serious cardiovascular disease, diabete casts a very wide net over your health. One of the more common complications to come out of...

You’ve lost count of the cuts and scrapes you’ve had over the years, and some have left behind little reminders in the form of scars. While our bodies do a great job dealing with these minor injuries, some wounds can benefit from outside help. At Valliant Life Medical, the providers...

Degenerative arthritis, wear-and-tear arthritis — these are the other names for osteoarthritis (OA), which affects more than 32.5 million adults in the United States, and this number is growing. Whatever we call it, OA can be a tricky problem to treat since it typically only gets worse and rarely better. As musculoskeletal...

You’re not so much turning your head as you are your entire body, just to look at something behind you. Or, you wake up some mornings and struggle to lift your head off the pillow thanks to a painful neck. These are some of the more common complaints that people...

Headaches, fatigue, back pain — these are just a few of the potential complications that can stem from a misalignment in your spine. Because the spine is the foundation for your entire body, it should come as no surprise that the health of your spine can cast a very wide...

When you have diabetes, the disease can lead to a host of complications, with peripheral neuropathy at the top of the list. Peripheral neuropathy is the medical term for damage to the extensive network of nerves outside your central nervous system, and the problem eventually affects about half of people with...

If you’re reading this on your phone, that means you’re using your shoulder. All too often, it’s not until you develop a problem in one of your joints that you truly appreciate just how much you rely on that area of your body. This is certainly true of your shoulders,...

You have a joint that’s painful, and you’re tired of waging a daily battle to get comfortable through medications. The next step up is to explore joint injections, an approach that may provide longer-lasting relief. The team of musculoskeletal experts here at Valiant Life Medical offers different types of interventional...

Practically every medical field these days is excited by the prospect of regenerative medicine, whether it’s to resolve an achy knee or fight back the signs of aging.  If you’re, understandably, still a little bit in the dark about this burgeoning approach to health and healing, the team here at...

There are more than 37 million adults in the United States who have diabetes and another 96 million who are prediabetic. If, like these millions of others, you have a diabetes diagnosis, nerve damage is a clear and present danger and something you have every right to be concerned about....

You have a sprained ankle or you’ve torn a ligament in your knee. Whatever the injury (or your activity level), you’re anxious to get back to functioning normally. We’ve long understood that your body heals at its own pace, but there are ways we can give this process a boost...

The holiday season can be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, you love spending time with family and friends. On the other hand, the stress and running around beforehand can take its toll on your musculoskeletal structure, leaving you in some discomfort that can overshadow the holiday spirit. Whether...

If you’re struggling with joint pain and inflammation that’s placing considerable limits on your life, you’re in good company. The Arthritis Foundation reports that more than 92 million adults in the United States have doctor-diagnosed arthritis or arthritis symptoms. Unfortunately, there’s no cure for arthritis, leaving millions of people to...

Damage to the nerves outside your central nervous system — peripheral neuropathy — is a common problem in the United States. Up to half of people with diabetes, for example, experience some degree of nerve damage, thanks to unregulated glucose levels in their blood. No matter how your nerves become...

The prevalence of acute low back pain in the United States is considerable — a quarter of adults report the problem in the prior three months. While there are many conditions that can lead to low back pain, back spasms rank among the more common. Whether it’s your first experience...

In 2019, an estimated 2.4 million people visited emergency rooms in the United States due to workplace injuries. Not only can these injuries lead to ongoing pain, they can also interfere with your ability to work, and you just want your life to return to normal. At Valiant Life Medical, our team is proud...

Your wrist aches or you’re feeling numbness and tingling in your hand — these are the hallmarks of a nerve entrapment condition called carpal tunnel syndrome, which affects 3-6% of adults in the United States. Early intervention for carpal tunnel syndrome is important, as the condition is often progressive, and a great...

As the 4 million adults in the United States who are living with fibromyalgia can tell you, the condition can be difficult under the best of circumstances, as it hijacks your ability to participate fully in life. From heightened pain perception to extreme fatigue, fibromyalgia can be all-consuming. As integrative health specialists,...

Perhaps you read an article about platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy or a friend has recounted their own successful experience with this regenerative therapy. Either way, you’re intrigued and you want to learn more. To help shed some light, our team at Valiant Life Medical pulled together this primer on PRP...

You watch as a loved one struggles to get out of the chair because of arthritic knees and you think, could that be me one day? Perhaps, but you want to take some steps now to resolve any factors that may place you more at risk for developing osteoarthritis (OA),...

If you think that physical therapy is simply another form of exercise, think again. This approach to musculoskeletal health is designed to help you regain your mobility, strength, and quality of life. At Valiant Life Medical, our team places great emphasis on physical therapy, and we’ve found that it’s an...

Your foot falls asleep as you watch a movie and when you go to move it again, you experience pins and needles. This cycle of numbness and tingling is perfectly normal and due to temporarily cutting off the nerves from your brain. If you experience numbness and tingling in your...

Few things can place limitations on your world like joint pain, making moving freely an unpleasant, if not, impossible, endeavor. This type of chronic pain is frustrating, and you want solutions that don’t entail invasive surgeries or risky medications, which is where the right combination of joint injections can be...

Modern medicine has made some great advances in treating musculoskeletal injuries, but this interventional approach has its limitations. Today, we’re beginning to understand that one of the solutions may have been under our noses (or in our blood, in this case) all along.  Through platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy, we’re tapping...

Thanks to the global pandemic, millions of people around the world went from commuting to an office every day to carving out some space at home for remote working. While there are many advantages to this new arrangement (yes, wearing pajamas to work), there are some disadvantages, including less-than-ideal work...

Approximately one out of every six Americans is affected by severe headaches or migraines, leaving them to struggle with recurring head pain that wreaks havoc on their lives. If you count yourself among this unfortunate group, we want you to know there are solutions — such as myofascial release —...

You’re experiencing stabbing pain in your foot or leg, or perhaps your fingers are developing pins and needles for no apparent reason. These are just two instances in which the likely culprit is peripheral neuropathy, which is nerve damage. At Valiant Life Medical, our multidisciplinary team of health care experts...

You’re in pain, but you’re hesitant about seeking an invasive or pharmaceutical solution given their potential risks. The good news is that there is another way to relieve your discomfort through chiropractic care. At Valiant Life Medical, Dr. James Matthew Jernigan and our team have extensive experience helping our patients...

When your muscles tense up or spasm, they can form a knot that can lead to local and radiating pain. The key to untangling this uncomfortable development is to tackle the knot directly to relax the muscles, which is exactly what trigger point injections accomplish. When it comes to managing...

You’ve suffered an injury to a ligament, or you’re struggling with a degenerative condition like arthritis. In either case, you’re likely faced with two options: Managing your symptoms or surgery.  What if there were another way, a treatment that resolves your discomfort and helps your body to heal from within?...

The human body contains almost 46 miles of nerves, and a pinched nerve can develop most anywhere along this extensive network, though some areas are far more common. If you’re struggling with a pinched nerve in your neck, back, wrists, or another part of your body, the good news is...

The human musculoskeletal system is incredibly complex and connected in ways you never thought possible — until pain strikes. This is certainly true of muscle tension, which can create a wide range of problems from chronic back pain to headaches. Dr. James Jernigan and our team of integrative care specialists...

Estimates place the prevalence of people suffering from peripheral neuropathy at about 20 million Americans, though medical experts suspect that these numbers are far higher thanks to underreporting and misdiagnosis. Our team here at Valiant Life Medical is not only well-versed in diagnosing and treating peripheral neuropathy, we also understand...

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy is changing the way we approach many musculoskeletal issues, and we’re seeing great success in this regenerative approach to healing. Despite these successes, there are still many myths that surround this innovative and effective treatment. At Valiant Life Medical, our team helps our patients overcome a...

There are more than 100 different types of arthritis, but they all share one thing in common — they lead to joint pain and inflammation. And when your joints aren’t functioning well, it places great limitations on your mobility.  While most arthritis experts agree that exercise is vital to maintaining...

Peripheral neuropathy affects at least 20 million people in the United States, though researchers suspect this number may be far higher thanks to a general misunderstanding of the problem. To help our patients here at Valiant Life Medical better understand neuropathy, we believe that education is paramount. Through awareness, our...

Nearly everyone gets a headache at some point in their lives, but ongoing problems with head pain is another matter altogether. And chronic headaches are not uncommon. One in four households has someone who suffers from migraines, for example. At Valiant Life Medical, Dr. James Jernigan and our team of...

Around 30-80% of adults in the United States experience tension-type headaches at some point in their lives, and we daresay these numbers may be tipping toward the upper end of the scale given the current state of affairs. To relieve the tension that’s holding your head hostage, one of the...

The prevalence of Americans who are living with constant pain is concerning, as more than 20% of adults cope with chronic pain, and 8% struggle with high-impact pain. A large portion of these statistics are due to musculoskeletal problems, such as arthritis or repetitive stress injuries, which are areas where...

Tension anywhere in your body can cause discomfort, but when the tightness occurs in your myofascial tissue, it drags your muscles, as well as surrounding hard and soft tissues into the equation, causing widespread pain and sensitivity. To release the tension, we use a technique called myofascial release, which can...

Approximately 10% of the population in the United States struggles with a chronic musculoskeletal disorder, leaving them with a considerable amount of pain and limitations. Making matters worse, these disorders often cause tension in your soft tissues, which can lead to trigger points in your muscles and fascia (the tissue...

The world is a far different place than it was just a few months ago. Today, a simple trip to the grocery store is a point of concern. So, we wanted to take this opportunity to let you know that Valiant Life Medical is still open for business, as long...

When you’re dealing with damaged tissue, one of the most important pieces of your treatment puzzle is targeted physical therapy. Through physical therapy, we can help you regain function and mobility, and bring you much-needed relief from the pain. At Valiant Life Medical, we feature an integrated team of chiropractors,...

Maybe you find yourself waking up with increasingly achy knees. Or perhaps you’ve injured a tendon or ligament in your joint while playing your favorite sport. Whatever the problem, the odds are that you may benefit from our regenerative therapies, namely platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy, which taps your body’s own...

In an ideal world, you wake each day with a spring in your step and a smile on your face. Unfortunately, your body often has other plans for you as various aches and pain crop up, and the problem only tends to get worse the older you get.  Fortunately, chiropractic...