The below freezing temperatures lead us to believe that winter has finally arrived here in Maine! Usually you are one of two types of people throughout the winter months in the North East. You either love it or hate it. Not very often do you find someone who is somewhere in the middle of that spectrum. You love it or hate it, plain and simple.
     For many of us who "love it" and enjoy skiing, showshoeing, snowmobiling, sledding or any other "s" verb you can think of to describe snow activities,  the sight of the first snowfall is invigorating! Of course, along with the beauty of perfect snowflakes falling from the sky, comes risk of suffering from many different types of winter related injuries. 
    First and foremost; winter driving. As a physical therapy clinic, we are not going to teach nor give you pointers on how to drive in the snow, but we will say this: SLOW DOWN!!! If you have somewhere that is imperative you get to during a storm, please give yourself enough time to get where you are going and travel at a moderate pace.  We see a number of patients at Head to Toe who have suffered injuries from automobile accidents, and we would love to see that number decrease. Nobody likes getting into an accident that could possibly have been prevented. 
    Once you have gotten where you are going, try to be aware of your surroundings. One in three adults age 65 and older suffers from a fall each year, with this statistic greatly increasing throughout the winter months. If it has recently snowed or rained with falling temperatures, there is a good chance the ground is going to be slick. Walk lightly, take baby steps and use assistance whenever possible. Who cares if you "look silly", take charge of your risk of falling and don't become a statistic. 
    Another danger in the winter months is hypothermia. Often people associate hypothermia with winter sports, or even have visions of people climbing Mt. Everest, but it can occur a lot easier than you may think. According to The Center for Disease Control: Hypothermia most commonly occurs at very cold environmental temperatures, but can occur at even cool temperatures (above 40 degrees) if a person becomes chilled from rain, sweat or submersion in cold water. Hypothermia warning signs include shivering/ exhaustion, confusion/ fumbling hands, memory loss/ slurred speech or drowsiness. If you think you or someone you are with could be suffering from hypothermia, immediately take a temperature reading. If it is below 95 degrees seek medical attention at once! If symptoms are not extreme, get into a warm room and begin to warm the body with an electric blanket if possible. Remove any wet clothing and continue to stay warm and dry until internal body temperature increases to normal. Of course it is always advisable to seek medical attention even if you do not feel your symptoms were severe, its better to be safe than sorry.
  Along with the colder weather comes achy joints and pains not often felt in the summer months. Though we cannot change the weather,  we can give you ways to cope with how it affects you. One major pain-saver in physical therapy use is aquatic therapy. Our pool is kept at 85 degrees, the warm temperature aids in moving stiff sore joints and to be honest, the warm pool just plain feels good in the winter months! If aquatic therapy is not your thing, we have many other land-based routines that will help ease the pain felt throughout winter months. 
    Though winter is often an enjoyable time, it is more enjoyable if you use caution and are aware of winter injury risk factors. We hope everyone has a fun winter, and always remember Head to Toe PT is here for you if you need us!!