Bones Are Living and Dynamic Tissue: Say NO to Osteopenia & Osteoporosis!
I never thought I would give bones too much thought or time other than when driving up and down town during Halloween; until back 6 years ago when I suffered the tragic accident of unexpectedly breaking my wrist while skiing. Please read on, this is after all a story of the impossible becoming possible with many twists and a successful ending to boot!
Needless to say, skiing can be very dangerous; however, at the time, I was actually not doing a blue, black or double back diamond run but rather joining my son skiing down a very flat and green run; when all of a sudden I hit a bump of snow that prompted me to be sent into the air and since my writ was strapped on my ski poles strap; I had no choice but to land with the full force of my body onto my twisted wrist which sounded like a tree branch breaking upon impact producing a haunting C-R-A-C-K sound still ringing in my ears to this day. At that moment, I just knew I had been victim of my very first and only fracture ever! Just a short months prior to turning 50! My wrist looked like a Lego piece shattered into pieces!
Sadly, this came as a complete shocker to me since I had always been a very physical active person, with full participation in sports since very young and I had always kept in great condition training, running, and later becoming a yoga instructor for over 20 years by the time of the accident. Yes! I was an vegan unprocessed raw-living foodist in terms of my lifestyle but I had been eating and leading a pristine and clean life for over 30 years! This entire fracture ordeal (which one day, I will retell in detail) led to an series of surgeries, medical appointments, many casts including a dyna-splint which is like a metal medieval torturing device I had to wear for months to force my wrist to gradually move and to recover my ability to supinate in what seemed like several years of physio and intense recovery. I’m honored to inform that with my determination, insistence and disciplines helped me defy science and all odds and finally be able to move once again and use with an almost normal range of moment my wrist.
Well the reason I’m relating this story is to help anyone who will benefit from my personal experience and to give them hope ahead for their future! After my first surgery the person casting me mentioned that I might benefit from having my bone density checked. This led to a Dexa scan which gave me what felt to me at the time like a “death sentence” the diagnosis of: Osteopenia. At that point, I learned that as a Hispanic descendent born and raised in the city with the most sunshine all year around in Argentina after over 30 years living in Canada, nobody had ever mentioned I should have been taken a vitamin D supplement. I was astonished to find out that I was totally deficient! This in part, along with perhaps my menopausal age, explained the reason for my weak bones. I then started obsessively studying the topic of bones and how they function, heal and grow in the human body. This became even more of an obsession and determination when I year later in my second Dexa scan I was diagnosed with Osteoporosis, just in the very onset of my early 50s! I was devastated but eager to find a way out of this predicament meds free!
The way Ostesporosis was introduced to me was literally like the worst irreversible condition leaving me powerless to be able to change anything to reverse or improve my horrible predicament of having more potential future fractures along the way. Immediately I told myself: “I will not take any medication!” I will reverse this and I will be living proof that if there is a will, there is a natural way!” And so, I obsessively embarked in the journey of learning as much as I could about the human skeleton which supports us and all our functioning while dwelling in this human body while on this earth.
I soon learned that Bones are living tissue which have their own blood vessels and are made of various cells, proteins, minerals and vitamins. They are not static or dead things at all! But rather than they are constantly remodeling, which is the process of removing old or damaged bone and replacing it with new bone. This process helps maintain the structural integrity of the skeleton. This translated to me like incredible hope!
Bone remodeling is a lifelong process that gives rise to a mature, dynamic bone structure via a balance between bone formation and bone resorption, as follows:
· Bone formation: Osteoblasts create new bone tissue, a process called ossification.
· Bone resorption: Osteoclasts destroy mature bone tissue, a process called bone resorption.
This was terrific news because it put me from a passive patient to expect endless fractures and potentially not be able to engage in running, twisting in my yoga practice or if falling having the risk of intense fractures; to the possibility of having a proactive role as an active participant of remodeling my bones, as well as of, supporting my own bone health and even why not reversing osteoporosis in spite of all odds.
I learned that first of all Dexa scans are not necessarily the most effective tool since being a light woman it make sense my bone density may appear to be less compared to a heavier individual; it is somewhat expected that less bodily surface correlates potentially to less bone mass; but having said that there are better ways to know if your bones are strong such as what happens when you have a bad fall. If you survive without a break a significant fall, this is the best test to know your bones may not be that bad after all. Please do NOT attempt to perform this test on your end. This happened to me naturally whenever falling accidents at random just happened to take place; and I was pleasantly surprised that whatever I had changed in my life and I was doing, was working for me; since I never broke again another bone in spite of flying in the air after tripping in the forest and landing on rocks and in spite of going over the bicycle handle bar a couple of times. Please as you read this, ensure to keep in mind that I am NOT a doctor, qualified or specialized in the subject of bones other than being a humble Yoga Instructor who covered basic human anatomy during my yoga training. I feel it is important and essential to clarify that all this valuable information I am kindly sharing here is only my own personal experience and I am only sharing things I individually experienced and learned on my own personal path. Read at your own risk and know that this is not intended to be medical advice. Please practice safety and ensure to seek the advice from a Certified Doctor should you require it.
Going back to my personal story, I did learn from my research that most medications for osteoporosis rather than helping build strength in the bones, only ends up building the density in the bones while making them harder and more prone to actually breaking, including the jaws. I am grateful I never considered the meds the path since I attempt to stay away from medication at all costs. Instead, I chose the path less travelled, perhaps more engaging on my end yet more rewarding in the long-terms and needless to say cheaper in cost! I believe my approach empowered me by committing myself to building strength in my bones and developing my muscles which support my bones. I accomplished this by incorporating randomly and freely in my daily life as per convenience some resistance training and pushing and pulling exercises which I included as part of my flowing daily chores in my daily life. Mostly I spent time lifting my own body weight in my yoga practice and getting an aerial yoga swing which, I installed in the center of my living room to do. I also reviewed my mineral and nutrient intake in my raw living vegan lifestyle and I started becoming more conscious of taking all necessary bone supporting minerals in adequate amounts in their natural form whenever possible and ensuring nothing essential was missing or below requirements in my diet; including vitamin D and increasing a bit my protein intake as well. This in combination with my weight resistance and bearing certainly must have made a huge difference for the better. The analogy that best described the two paths: meds or natural nutrition and weights is again similar to that of a tree branch. If the branch has no air or porous but it is flexible it will not break (this was the goal and aiming result of my approach); yet if the branch is solid with not air pockets but it is hard wood it may become too stiff, unbending and definitely more prone to breaking (the results long-term with the meds approach) than the one which is porous yet flexible. Thus, I decided to forget about the fact that my bones were weak and focus instead on building my bone strength and flexibility instead while dedicating myself in body, mind and spirit towards achieving this goal wholeheartedly.
For those who don’t know much on the subject, Osteoporosis is a disease characterized by low bone mass, microarchitectural deterioration of bone tissue leading to enhanced bone fragility, and a consequent increase in fracture risk. Thus, the definition itself brings forth the concept that not only bone mass, but also microarchitectural quality is an important determinant of bone strength. Areal bone mineral density (aBMD) is currently the gold standard for the diagnosis of osteoporosis, however, it has its own pitfalls. Trabecular bone score (TBS), a novel tool in the evaluation of osteoporosis is an indirect indicator of bone microarchitecture. However, areal bone mineral density (aBMD) assessment by DXA (dual energy X-ray absorptiometry) being the gold standard for non-invasive diagnosis of osteoporosis doesn’t provide information on bone microarchitecture. Also, around 50% individuals with fragility fractures can have aBMD value in the osteopenic/normal range, which suggests that in addition to bone mass, there are other factors that determine bone strength. Finding out this information, convinced me even more to dedicate myself toward building my bone microarchitecture.
Putting all my initiatives into active action brought about well-deserved fruition over a period of a few years. The date came when I finally had my DEXA scan last July, 2024; and I was rewarded with the impressive and fabulous news that, defying all science and odds from my original lifelong irreversible osteoporosis diagnosis; the actual opposite was possible! Meaning, I had reversed my osteoporosis diagnosis! As a matter of fact, I didn’t even have osteopenia but rather low bone mass that again, considering the fact that I am a light 55+ woman in her menopausal years, it is not bad at all. Although I am still not at the normal range (which is compared to the typical 35-year old womnan) I believe my bones are just fine! I am confident if I keep on the path I am at the moment in due time, I will continue to build stronger and more flexible bones; after all bones are not static but living and dynamic tissue!
In the end, embracing this golden information I have discovered to work for me and embracing it a my own treasure natural program which I have gathered throughout so much researching an digging the truth about bones during these years, I believe wholeheartedly that I will continue to strengthen and develop strong and fracture-resistant bones to last me a lifetime. Currently my fracture risk has diminished from having the bones of an 80-year old lady in m y50s to only a mere 10% probability, which is amazing news for me! I’ve been able to become living proof that bones can improve and dynamically become stronger and more flexible! In addition, from this very low potential fracture risks to my benefit, it is important and it gives me peace of mind to know that for the most part bone break due to falling; so, if we avoid falling by developing great balance we are, in turn, even more unlikely to ever experience fractures! Yoga has given me the gift of balancing which daily keep me stable on my feet; fully safe and sound from risky falls. Nothing like a good dose of prevention to ensure long-term health!
I have now emerged from that black cloud of negativity from my original osteopenia and osteoporosis death-sentence to now welcoming my healthier bone mass, bone structure and microarchitectural bone quality in its fullest strength, while doing the proper required job at supporting my muscles and offering me maximum flexibility to embrace my golden years with joy and grace.
If anyone wish to discover more about all I’ve learned during my own personal journey and happen to be looking for best ways to support one’s bone health and overall well-being long-term, feel to reach out to me to book a life-coaching and well-being private session. I will be happy to hold your hand along your way towards embracing the best in you and come through it all with stronger and healthier bones than ever before!
After all, with knowledge, commitment to applying what works and lots of discipline, commitment, dedication and ongoing support; the impossible can always become possible! Even building better bones!
At least, that has been my own personal story thus far…
Veronica Munoz
info@hockleyyoga.ca
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