To think of muscle problems as just the result of weaknesses is far from the truth and overly simplistic. While absolute strength is a component of stability and control without timing and co-ordination with the other muscles it may only serve to further your injury. When a muscle switches off, unless it is a “flaccid paralysis” it doesn’t switch off completely. What actually happens is that the muscle doesn’t engage with the right amount of force during the required phases of a movement. In other words, it’s a force of contraction and timing ‘muscle patterning’ issue. -     ..read more

So I always get asked, “Is it a muscle or a joint problem?” Well, there are 2 answers to that, bear with me whilst we go on a circular conversation here. Now, if you are asking which tissue is injured and producing pain it can be one or the other, or both or neither. Answering the question this way is what we call the reductionist approach to problem solving. One the other hand, if your approach to problem solving is holistic it can never be one without the other. The problem will always be both, regardless of which particular tissue is actually injured or generating the pain. Muscles and join ..read more

Sciatica is often used to describe back pain that is associated with varying degrees of leg pain. Saying I’ve got sciatica because you’ve got pain in your back and leg is like saying you’ve got a headache…there can be many causes and not all are actually true sciatica. True sciatica is caused by ‘pinching’ or inflammation of the sciatic nerve which is the longest and largest nerve in the body. It is composed of nerves that originate from both the lower back and the sacrum. Other muscle and joint injuries can also mimic sciatic type pain. The two more common ones are hamstring injuries and sacr ..read more

What makes the "cracking" sound when i get adjusted There are many misconceptions around what that “crack” or popping sound during an adjustment means. The most common we hear from our patients are -          It the sound a joint makes when it goes back into alignment -          It is the sound of the bones rubbing together Well, neither is true. Synovial fluid in a joint has gases dissolved in it. Because joints are sealed hydrostatic environments when they are decompressed, negative pressure builds and ..read more

Shoulder Bursitis and Subacromial Impingement of of the 2 most common causes of shoulder pain. If you’re reading this blog with interest you probably already know a bit about these injuries and have possibly even had some treatment. A quick Google search will describe these injuries well so I’ll leave you to that if you haven’t already. In this article we are going to take a broader view to some of the contributing factors which you may not have considered. When treating shoulder bursitis and subacromial impingement anything that has the potential of altering the normal biomechanics of the sho ..read more

Abdominal separation is where the connective tissue, called the linea alba weakens and thins resulting in a separation in the midline of the rectus abdominus muscle. This can leave a bulging in the midline on contraction and a hollow you can press in. This separation can range from as small as half a finger to as big as being as a whole fist. As a side note, this can also occur in men particularly in association with truncal obesity. Abdominal separation is a whole body issue and aside from the stress of a growing tummy during pregnancy is influenced by your posture, the way you move, breath a ..read more

I started practice when advertising meant not missing the cut off date for the yearly Yellow Pages entry. If you did you were sent off into purgatory for the year and bumped to the bottom of next year’s list. It was also a time pre-devices. It was pre-smartphones, pre-tablets, pre-taking your laptop to school and pre-fortnite. It was a time when kids had kids spinal problems and adults well…unfortunately had adult problems mainly in the form of postural stress and strain and spinal wear and tear. Fast forward 20 years and now we are seeing adult problems becoming kids problems.   Children ..read more

Heartburn or Acid reflux clinically referred to as GERD (gastro oesophageal reflux disease) is commonly treated as a food related problem with medication given for relief and nutrition advice to manage. There is now a growing body of research supporting what we have been seeing clinically in practice for years, that posture can often be the root cause of the problem. Even more so now with the pervasive use of digital devices in all their forms, postural distress has become the new normal wreaking havoc with our digestion and health in general. Having a hunched over posture reduces the nor ..read more

Being in ‘Flight or Fight’ mode is being in that primal stress response that enables us to deal with perceived attacks or threats to our survival. It’s all about getting you physically prepared to literally run or fight for your life. The response is hardwired into our brains and can be difficult for many to control.  When we face real dangers to our survival, the fight or flight response is essential. However, most of the stresses we are exposed to these days are not life threatening but initiate the same response. Stressors like rush hour traffic, deadlines, arguments or conflict, raisi ..read more

Shoulder pain is the 3rd most common cause of musculoskeletal consultation in primary care. Furthermore, this is not forgoing when someone presents with shoulder pain but the problem is not the shoulder. An example of this that is very common is referred pain referred from the neck. In the instance where shoulder pain is because of an intrinsic problem in the shoulder the 3 most common causes are: 1) Subacromial Impingement Syndrome 2) Rotator Cuff Injuries 3) Adhesive Capsulitis The signs and symptoms can overlap greatly so these can be easily confused. Each requires a unique approach for pro ..read more