Whole Health Physiotherapy

17/07/2024

I see many patients who have been diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis. Unfortunately the majority get told there is nothing that can be done except for surgically removing their knee and replacing it with an artificial one. While this is sometimes necessary if all else fails , there are lots of things to try before replacing the knee joint should be considered. 3 vital things to do if you have been diagnosed with knee OA are 1. Undertake a well prescribed exercise regime, with a focus on building leg strength 2. Lose weight if you are overweight 3. Receive high quality information on OA from your health professional. Remember also that pain with activity doesn’t generally mean harm to your knee is occurring. Also that just because your scan looks scary, it doesn’t mean you can’t have success with a non-surgical approach. Reach out to your physio or GP for more info on a non-surgical approach to knee OA.

05/07/2024

Many regard the body as a ‘machine like’ structure where we simply take out bits that are ‘broken’ and fix or replace them. It is more helpful to think about the body much like an adaptable ecosystem than a machine 🤖

02/07/2024

27/06/2024

Whilst back pain can vary from a nuisance to being a terrifying condition, on the whole it’s a very normal condition to have. Most of us will get it in some form, and most will recovery well over a few weeks. See an evidence-based practitioner to help you recover swiftly if it doesn’t seem to be doing so on it’s own.

17/06/2024

Often I see patients present to the clinic who have low back pain but their scans have indicated there is little wrong. It’s frustrating for the patient no doubt as it can make them feel like they are making it up, or they are carrying on about nothing. However this happens because back pain (and much musculoskeletal pain) doesn’t need structural damage to cause it. Stress, poor sleep, lack of exercise/movement are just some of the things that can increase the likelihood of pain developing. This combined with the fact that tight muscles don’t easily show up on scans, and you can begin to understand how a scan can be often unhelpful when formulating a back pain diagnosis.

06/06/2024

Treating tendons is all about loading them. Not too much, not too little, progressive overload. A bit like Goldilocks and porridge temperature 🐻🐻🐻

05/06/2024

The late great Max Zusman was a lecturer up at Curtin University when I was a student 25 years ago. If only I’d known back then just how far ahead of his time he was with his thinking. RIP Max ✊

01/06/2024

Whilst you can’t make yourself immune to developing a tendon injury (tendinopathy), you can certainly reduce the likelihood. Staying strong by using some form of resistance training, and progressing load (eg. running, jumping) gradually are two key things you can do to reduce a tendon becoming problematic. Remember, ‘tendons hate surprises’.

28/05/2024

‘Hurt does not equal harm’. It can do of course, but much of the time when we experience a pain (particularly an old one flaring up) it doesn’t mean that actual tissue damage has occurred. Pain science is a complicated area, but rest assured that if you are someone that regularly suffers with pain, movement and loading is good for your body, and if there is some pain produced in doing so, it may well not be a cause for concern. Chat with your physio or doctor if you’re not sure.

27/05/2024

Our gym has been progressively stacked with the latest technology from the exercise rehabilitation world. For those that haven’t seen the in action, it is a mind blowing, space age piece of equipment which can generate resistance of up to 200 kg! While there are far too many pieces of equipment to list you can rest assured knowing we have what it takes to deliver an incredible rehab experience.

27/05/2024

Don’t get me wrong, scans (X-ray, CT, MRI etc) are extremely useful and incredibly important at times. However it is a fact that they are performed far too often unnecessarily. It’s important to remember that scans will very often pick up and report on things that have nothing to do with your pain. A disc bulge is a good example. 50% of people in their 40s who have no back pain will have visible disc bulges if an MRI is performed. These are simply ‘wrinkles on the inside’ and not pain producing in the above mentioned group of pain free people. The reverse occurs too whereby a patient gets a clear scan (nothing wrong structurally) yet they have considerable pain. As a practitioner it’s important to always remember to ‘treat the person, not the scan’.

26/05/2024

Backs are much more robust than many people give them credit for. They simply don’t ‘pop out of place’ and need ‘putting back in’. Though it’s a frequent thing we hear at physio clinics.. ‘my back has gone out, can you put it back in for me’. Backs get strained and sprained, tight, stiff and sensitised, but they don’t just slip out of place. Good news hey 💪! And if you have made a full recovery from your back injury, it is basically 100% likely that you don’t need to keep going month after month to ‘keep it in alignment’. Please save your hard earned money 💰