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ISSUES TREATED

Osteopathy can treat a variety of musculoskeletal issues.

  • Neck Pain

  • Headaches

  • Mid back pain

  • Low back pain

  • Shoulder pain

  • Elbow pain

  • 'golfers' & 'tennis' elbow

  • Wrist pain

  • Carpal tunnel syndrom

  • Hip pain

  • Assess posture

  • flexibility issues

  • Knee pain

  • Ankle & foot pain

  • Sprained ankle

  • Pain associated with Pregnancy

  • Disc 'bulges'

  • 'Sciatica'

  • Jaw pain

  • Manage arthritis

Headaches

The two main type of primary headaches I come across are migraine and tension type headaches.  The next type referred to as a secondary headache is the cervicogenic headache.  All three present differently and often tension type headaches and cervicogenic type are misdiagnosed as migraines.  This is because these types of headaches can be terribly painful, as painful at sometimes more so than migraines.

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I myself get migraines, tension type headaches and the odd cervicogenic headache.  For me the most painful is the cervicogenic which for me are infrequent.  I more commonly get mild tension type headaches.  I watched my mother suffer from migraines growing up, she would often spend up to a week in bed with a bad migraine.  

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This experience of having seen migraines at their worst and having been through headaches myself gives me a unique insight in to what you're experiencing and how to manage the conditions.

'Pinched nerve' in the neck

This is probably the most common acute neck complaint I see.  It is often referred to a 'pinched nerve' as that is basically what it feels like.   It can range in pain levels from excruciating to a mild pain.  The mechanism actually isn't a pinched nerve but a small component of the joint called a meniscoid (not like a meniscus in the knee) becomes 'pinched' in the joint causing pain. 

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This often occurs without a specific onset, most commonly people wake up with it so it seems as though they slept on it wrong. It can occur traumatically, I myself have done it lifting weights (shoulder press and a shrug once) and I've also done it doing a spinning kick in martial arts training.  Typical characteristics of the issue are listed below.

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  • The pain is usually one sided, commonly in the mid neck

  • The pain can radiate up and down the neck to the shoulder blade

  • Typically the pain is made worse looking to the same side, bending to the same side or looking back and up on the same side

  • In my experience it occurs on the left side in about 2/3 of cases

  • Pain killers rarely help the pain much

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The good news is despite the high level of pain of this issue it isn't actually serious and there is no 'damage' in the neck.  The pain is disproportionate to the injury.  This is an issue osteoapthy can help.  On average it takes 3 treatments to resolve with the majority of symptom improvement the day after the treatment.  All cases vary though.

Shoulder Pain

The shoulder is referred to as the shoulder complex for a reason.  Diagnosis and treatment of shoulder conditions is complex!  What complicates issues further is that a study by Girish et all (2011) found that men aged 40 to 70 that had no shoulder symptoms or pain, 22% had rotator cuff tears, 70% had bursal thickening and 96% had shoulder abnormalities.  This demonstrated that it's possible to have abnormal scan findings and that these findings may not be the source or cause of your shoulder pain.

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In my experience most shoulder issues come from imbalances between front and back structures and positioning of the shoulder under load.  Most people now have seated jobs, we work at desks, drive cars, sit on devices and this all leads to forward movement of the shoulder blades.  This in turn changes how the upper arm bone the humerus sits in the socket.  This leads to inefficient mechanics of the shoulder, repeated loading in these positions can cause some tissues to become overloaded and eventually fail (with strain or pain).  

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If you have had ongoing shoulder pain at a low level it is a sign that your shoulder complex isn't functioning well and that the loads being placed on it are greater than the shoulder's capacity to deal with the load.   This usually doesn't mean you have to stop exercising completely but you really should have it looked at to determine what the issue is and how to continue exercising without aggravating the condition.  

Mobility/Posture/Stiffness

Your body is a complex machine that responds very well to movement.  It is important to move the body out of it's normal planes of movement daily - even if it's just 5 minutes.  When it comes to posture I prefer the term position.  Your position changes throughout the day, in some planes and movements you will be very efficient (good position or posture) and others not so much.  Your position is also affected by the load on it and how long it is being loaded.  The greater and or longer the load the more likely your position will change.

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Most of us are stuck in the confines of restricted inefficient positions and postures throughout our days.  Sitting or standing in the one place consecutively for hours at a time can contribute to immobility and stiffness which in turn will affect your ability to easily move in and out of and to hold different more challenging positions. 

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I can help you become more mobile by active releasing taut and restrictive tissues, articulating, mobilising and gliding joints coupled with a home mobility program to sustain and improve your mobility beyond hands on work. 

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