Melissa Schoer-Clinical Myotherapist

04/08/2025

Hey all! I'm out of the clinic for the next 2 weeks (hopefully the painting side of things is over pretty fast 🥲)

I'll be back on the 18th of August
I won't be monitoring my emails, socials or work mobile in that time so if you need an appointment or anything else before then will likely get back to you faster than I will (don't want to get paint on my laptop.. ya know)

See you in a couple of weeks!!

10/06/2025

💃🏻🕺🏼🪩
We are so excited that this Is actually happening!
🎟️Please buy a ticket and come along and have a fun night out supporting the amazing charity .
I just know that are going to make this an amazing night! They’ve already been so generous and supportive!

First 50 tickets are at an early bird price of $70!

https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__ravencollective.org.au_products_goldfields-2Dhealth-2Dcollective-2Dcharity-2Dball-2Dproudly-2Dsupporting-2Draven-2Dcollective&d=DwMFAg&c=euGZstcaTDllvimEN8b7jXrwqOf-v5A_CdpgnVfiiMM&r=olWXnp2s08vim8UQGDH2xvQ6HHbXzs7bj3c99Ywa71s&m=y8U7DDbhUf-vBSoSG1r0ioK1E5JvyjlF_pHyPUyPlHSUz7FDxTXAKEAa7cBfoFMk&s=mW4_6cLL7lNm7qlTGmaEjWW1Z6AjYZjPTn-t_Fc3ES0&e=

05/05/2025

Long post incoming sorry not sorry

At the start of 2022 I decided to go back to study: Master of Science in Medicine - Pain Management, online at University of Sydney

My passion for pain management comes from a very personal place with my own history of musculoskeletal pain and endometriosis, and also from friends, family and patients who seemed to be falling through the cracks.
Watching so many people be left to live with chronic pain or pain in end of life because they have exhausted pharmacological and surgical methods of treatment is honestly heartbreaking.
I thought there has to be something we can do to help all patients experiencing short or long term pain, especially in cases where conditions can't be completely resolved because of illness, end of life, or other reasons. Why is no one focusing on non-medical treatment to address quality of life? Looking at people as a whole and working with their body and nervous system to teach them how to take control of their pain and improve function? Yes, complete resolution is not always possible, but the impact that some level of relief can be for a person with persistent pain is profound.
This is something I've always tried to do in practice, but in patients with long term conditions I often see people lose touch with what they are feeling, losing the ability to listen to their body and be part of their own management plans.

The three years were harder than I imagined they would be, not only because of the long weekends and late nights studying, but because of the unexpected personal trials along the way. The significant toll that came with family members going through the same conditions as the case studies I was researching hit me hard. That and the professional trials that I underwent in this time caused me to take a much needed semester break, because burnout happens people and it should not be ignored!
The things that helped me come out the other side was highlighted to me in those hardships, the knowledge that there were still people out there who needed help, and that the healthcare community needed health professionals who are not only well educated but are constantly striving to provide high quality, patient centred care.
I did get a bit emotional sitting in the Great Hall on campus today thinking of everything I overcame in these years, it's not often I feel proud of myself, but it did happen a tad today.

It is because of this rough patch that I feel stronger than ever emotionally and professionally. I feel so strongly about the rights surrounding patient autonomy and will continue to not only treat my patients as such but advocate for them outside of my consultation room.

My amazing clinic owner Steph let me condense my full time hours to 4 days so I could have a weekday to study as well as my weekends. My colleagues both in and out of Goldfields Health Collective have always encouraged and inspired me to keep learning, I'm incredibly lucky to have ended up at a clinic that prioritise patient well-being to the same extent as I do.
My amazing friends who put up with me, either sending me words of support when I was staying up until midnight finishing assignments or readings, or even keeping me company on study dates and coming over to body double with me in the hopes my brain would kick into gear. A special mention to my old housemate Thea who kept a constant supply of tea on my desk, dinner in front of me on rough weeks and for confiscating my phone from me when I was procrastinating, I appreciate you so much!
Of course I have to mention all of my wonderful patients who cheered me on along the way!

And of course my family, all 50 thousand of you of course but special mention to my immediates who somehow convinced me that learning was a good idea... and also for understanding when I couldn't always make it down to Melbourne as often as I'd like on weekends because I had to study, for coming up for sleepovers to catch up and making me take a break. For letting me ignore you a tad when you did come up and cooking me dinner and putting it on the desk in front of me so that I'd at least eat something. For dad doing lawn mows and for mum doing the washing when you came up, it's amazing how checking a little thing off your to do list can make such a big difference.

All those asking what's next... give me a few years to get the hecs down then come talk to me 😂

01/07/2024

It can be really easy to stiffen up as it gets colder ❄️

There's a lot of different reasons this can happen, when it's raining I'd definitely rather be reading on the couch than going for a walk or working in the garden (speaking of I need some new book recommendations please and thank you)

It's important to remember to keep as mobile as you can in the cooler months to maintain mobility and strength/conditioning
BUT
This doesn't mean sporadically deciding to spend 5 hours in the garden when the weather is good, or taking to the gym and lifting your maximums... you all know who you are

Our advice is to:
- Keep up your mobility, whether it be movement in daily activites or specific exercises
- Don't go 1000% on activities, especially ones that you haven't done in more than a month or so. Ease back in with less intensity and a shorter duration so that we don't need to see you in here
- Warm up, if you are doing activity in the cooler months wear warmer clothes when warming up, and make sure to allow yourself a bit of extra time to get the body moving

If you need any help with specific exercises or a bit of a plan of action to resume an activity without your body protesting then please reach out 😊

21/05/2024

On Sunday I finally completed my 35km Bloody Long walk for Mito disease research

With 8 hours of almost constant walking I'm not sure if it tested my physical or mental strength more. Very thankful to of done this with some of my beautiful family 💙 when's the next one guys? 😂

I'm taking this week and next week off work for a but of a recharge and to make the most of uni being done for the semester 🙌
I won't be watching my emails, work phone or these socials so anything you do send I will respond to in my first few days back from the 3rd of June
If there is something you need sooner contact

And as always... don't do anything silly until I'm back 🤪

28/04/2024

I just really like magnesium guys.. and I've fine tuned the whole DOMs recovery thing...

I didn't run but did do an 18km walk this weekend in preparation for a 35km walk in a month... I would not be able to stand if I hadn't stuck to these steps (pun intended..)

Happy Monday!

Another massive congratulations to those who participated in the Ballarat Marathon as a runner, volunteer or training buddy.
Also props to everyone else who got out and active on the weekend!

You are probably feeling your body (in all the areas you didn't know would be sore.. like shoulders?? really??) today.

Tips for the next few days:

- Baths! We know that we love a good bath here, and a favourite mantra is 'when in doubt.. magnesium'. Magnesium is amazing for a lot of things as we know, but specifically in this case is great for pain reduction and has been shown to help with the neural processes that power inflammation reduction. You can either have this in a bath or a leg soak in a large bucket if you're just aiming for the calves (ideally up to knees).
MASSIVE TIP: a lot of our patient's go to is epsom salts, which while it does have magnesium in it doesn't absorb or stay around in our body as long as we think. Magnesium Chloride has a much higher absorption and retention in the body.. meaning you only need 1-2 cups of this stuff in a bath as opposed to a whole bag of epsoms for a similar result. We have some big bags in the clinic, message us if you want any put aside as I imagine these will be popular this week 😂

- Make sure you stay hydrated, electrolyte replenishment is so important especially if you lost a lot of fluid on the run.

- Keep moving even though its a bit owie... nothing strenuous but try to avoid limping, just some gentle slow walking is better than fast hobbling. We don't want to create any problems, and your body will warm up and be less sorer more fasterer.

- Stretching... again is going to be a bit owie, but importantly remember to BREATHE, you will feel the relax instantly upon breathing out. Remember you will definitely not got as far as you normally do, but thats completely normal.. and if you weren't like that I would be surprised honestly.

- If you need a bit of help settling your symptoms down make an appointment, if you don't have to be uncomfortable then why be uncomfortable... you're worth it 😘

As always feel free to get in touch with any questions!