APPROACH, TOOLS and SERVICES
Your brain can make you better
Most would agree that those individuals with the highest capacity for memory,
focus, and concentration tend to perform best in academic and professional
environments. In fact, in school we used to call those individuals “brainiacs”.
There was something about their brains that made them better. Sports and
athletics were considered…well, different. Physical attributes
seemed to predict success. While sports medicine and performance had traditionally
been associated with cardiovascular and musculoskeletal fitness for decades,
new information has developed, and approaches have evolved. Yes, Orthopaedic
and Musculoskeletal Medicine specialists have contributed greatly to the
development of best practices in treating injury, preventing injury, and
improving function. And the development of Peak Performance programs have
further advanced these foundational principles. But state of the art approaches
are uncovering a significant concept –
At every level of participation, Neurological function separates the average
from above average and the good from the great far more than physical
and musculoskeletal function. Sports Neurology is a new paradigm in Sports Medicine, poised to revolutionize
performance. Consider the following skills and performance characteristics
– all of which significantly improve and optimize sports performance
and all of which are Neurological in nature:
- Vision
- Balance
- Focus
- Concentration
- Reaction and Prediction
- Speed of Mental Processing
- Control of Adrenaline
- Resilience
Whether an individual is a youth, high school, collegiate, elite, or professional
athlete, those with the most organized brains and highest level of neurological
functioning in these areas, will be the best and most productive at their
level of participation. There are typically minimal differences in cardiovascular
fitness, strength, and speed (with occasional outliers) within a specific
level of participation. And excelling in these areas will not matter nearly
as much if the Neurological skills and performance characteristics are
suboptimal.
As with Orthopaedic and Musculoskeletal Medicine, lessons learned in the
evaluation and treatment of athletes can be extrapolated and applied to
non-athlete populations. Youth, adolescent, young-adult, middle-aged and
elderly individuals have long benefited from improved approaches to treating
bone and joint disorders, arthritis, and painful spinal conditions as
a result of advances in treating athletes through things like physical
therapy, biomechanics research, and arthroscopic surgery. Likewise, lessons
learned in the evaluation and training of the brain and nervous system
in athletes is beginning to pay dividends in other populations and contribute
greatly to improved neurological function and quality of life across the
lifespan.
What is increasingly obvious is that your healthiest brain is your best
path to success (athletic, academic, professional, and quality of life).
There are two foundational principles that inform our approach to Sports
Neurology and Pain Medicine:
-
Neuroplasticity: The ability of the brain to form and reorganize synaptic connections.
Especially in response to learning or experience or following injury.
-
Neuromodulation: The alteration of nerve activity through targeted delivery of a stimulus,
such as electrical stimulation or chemical agents, to specific neurological
sites in the body.
There has been a paradigm shift in our understanding of Brain and Nervous
System function. In the old days, it was thought that these attributes
were fixed. If you were lucky, you were born with great vision and balance.
Or you were born “smart” or “coordinated”. If
not, it was thought that you needed to find and focus on your strengths and
compensate for the shortcomings. Likewise, after an injury to the brain or nervous
system the focus was on teaching individuals to live with their “new
normal” – again, primarily through
compensation techniques. However, the concept and promise of Neuroplasticity assures us that the
brain and nervous system has the ability to reorganize synaptic connections.
And that learning activities assist in reorganization. Essentially,
Neuroplasticity shows us that the brain can be trained. This may seem to be a simple statement. But the concept has revolutionized
our approach to sports, academic, professional, and quality of life performance.
Just as exciting is the revolution in Neuromodulation that is currently
taking place. By stimulating the brain and nervous system in certain ways,
we can turn up, turn down, and/or turn off electrical signals and affect
sensory, motor, cognitive, and even behavioral function.
Neuromodulation shows us that we have equalizer-like control over certain
Brain and Nervous System activity. It’s early and there’s lots to learn. But this is revolutionizing
our approach to Neurological, Psychological, Psychiatric, Behavioral,
and Cognitive disorders as well as sports, academic, professional development/performance.
Dr. Williams’ approach to Sports Neurology and Pain Medicine is
grounded in these principles, which are the most critical and groundbreaking
to come along in generations.
Dr. Williams begins engagement with new patients and clients with an expert
assessment. This includes a history, physical examination, record review,
and discussion regarding goals and desired outcomes. He attempts to educate
patients and clients in a meaningful way. The most effective education
results in meaningful knowledge transfer with an emphasis on gaining the
buy-in needed to optimize outcomes. We know that knowledge and insight
have physiological benefits. Neurologically and physiologically, expectation
has real, physical effects on response to treatment. In some cases, our
focus is on introducing new language, constructs, and principles in ways
that his patients and clients understand. In other cases, Dr. Williams
must begin with cognitive restructuring – literally “unwinding”
his patient’s and client’s preexisting and potentially misguided
understanding and expectations, then rebuilding with sound and accurate
foundational principles. This step is crucial to optimizing outcome.
Next, Dr. Williams institutes appropriate testing and assessments, aimed
at evaluating Neurological anatomy and function. These may include combinations
of physical examination features, diagnostic imaging, electrodiagnostic
tests, or functional tests. He is able to accomplish the great majority
of these assessments within the Center for Sports Neurology and Pain Medicine,
or within the Kerlan-Jobe/Cedars-Sinai network. The obvious benefits are
related to the quality of assessment and in negating the need for outside
referrals and cumbersome issues related to obtaining test results or communicating
with outside practitioners.
Finally, Dr. Williams employs state-of-the-art treatments. His goals are
less dependent on pills to “cover” symptoms or compensatory
strategies to “deal with” dysfunction. Rather, he searches
for opportunities to intervene using Neuroplasticity and/or Neuromodulation
techniques. Dr. Williams’ medical interventions, rehabilitation
and therapy approaches depend on his expertise with the Brain and Nervous
System. Dr. Williams’ ultimate goal is to leverage his expertise
and access to athletes and sports-related performance to optimize Neurological
Health across the lifespan.
Dr. Williams has a comprehensive menu and assortment of tools and services
available to achieve your goals. In addition to the expert application
of traditional approaches (medications, injections, and physical therapies),
the following tools and services are offered to optimize performance and
quality of life for his patients and clients:
ABOVE THE NECK AND BRAIN TRAINING
ADAPTIVE CONDITIONING POD
CONCUSSION MANAGEMENT AND REHABILITATION
CRYOABLATION
EDUCATION AS MEDICINE
HF-10 SPINAL CORD STIMULATION FOR PAIN
MeRTâ„ THERAPY FOR ATHLETES
NEUROLOGICAL INJECTIONS
NEUROMODULATION TECHNIQUES FOR PAIN
PAIN MANAGEMENT
QUANTITATIVE ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHY AND BRAINWAVE NETWORK ACTIVATION
SLEEP HEALTH
SPORTS/PAIN PSYCHOLOGY AND BEHAVIORAL THERAPIES
TENSIOMYOGRAPHY ASSESSMENTS
TRANSCRANIAL MAGNETIC STIMULATION