Bradley Blair Osteopath

Bradley Blair Osteopath Osteopathy

Posterior abdominal wallWhich psoas muscle is missing?
15/09/2025

Posterior abdominal wall

Which psoas muscle is missing?

13/09/2025

In this clip, I’m applying a technique that I often use when treating neck pain. What starts as part of the examination becomes treatment in itself. I place my hands under the head to feel how the cervical spine moves, and I slowly guide the neck into rotation. As I do this gently and gradually, the neck usually starts to feel less restricted. Along with the rotation, I also add a light traction to the cervical spine. The combination of traction and rotation can help reduce that sense of tightness and improve comfort for the patient.

10/09/2025

To the lady who felt the need to tell me the colour of her skin — something I could quite clearly see anyway — and then reported my post on subluxation. I’m not sure what you hoped to achieve by doing that, because as you can see, the post is still up.

Like most people who get upset, you didn’t actually take in what I wrote. You let your emotions run the show instead of reading the words properly. If you had, you probably wouldn’t have got so wound up.

Anyway, I do hope your day is as pleasant as you are. 😃🫡

10/09/2025

Innervation

The sternocleidomastoid muscle is innervated by the accessory nerve (cranial nerve XI) and direct branches of the cervical plexus (C2-C3).

People often get told their pain is down to a single muscle being “weak,” “tight,” or “not firing.” Once that seed is pl...
10/09/2025

People often get told their pain is down to a single muscle being “weak,” “tight,” or “not firing.” Once that seed is planted, they spend years obsessing over it—stretching, strengthening, or releasing that one area—when in reality, the body doesn’t work like that. No muscle operates in isolation. Movements and symptoms are the result of multiple joints, muscles, and the nervous system working together.

Fixating on one muscle also gives people the illusion of control: “If I just fix this one thing, I’ll be fine.” But what usually happens is frustration, because despite all the work they put in, nothing changes. That’s often because the problem wasn’t about that one muscle in the first place. Pain is complex, and most of the time it has more to do with sensitivity in the nervous system and how the body perceives threat than with one “bad” muscle misbehaving.

A more helpful approach is to look at overall movement, build tolerance gradually, and get the nervous system comfortable with variety. That’s when people start to feel freer, rather than stuck chasing after one supposed culprit that was never really the issue.

10/09/2025

Upper back treatment using the Tend Focus This patient came in with upper back pain and some neck discomfort. Any time someone presents with neck or upper back issues, I always assess and treat both areas, as they work closely together. In this clip, I’m using the TEND Focus device around the scapula and mid-back region. The aim is to reduce that sense of tension, improve local mobility, and help the patient feel more comfortable in their movement. Tend uses Direct Vibration Therapy, sometimes known as Focal Vibration therapy.Focal Vibration Therapy (FVT) is a type of therapy that involves the use of high-frequency vibrations to treat muscle and joint pain, stiffness, and other musculoskeletal conditions. This therapy is typically performed using a device that generates vibrations, which are then applied directly to the affected area of the body.The theory behind FVT is that the vibrations stimulate sensory receptors in the muscles, tendons, and joints, which can help to reduce pain and improve flexibility and range of motion. To get your discount use this code: BradleyBlair_TEND

People spend years chasing so-called “muscle imbalances” or “asymmetries,” convinced they’re the root cause of their pai...
08/09/2025

People spend years chasing so-called “muscle imbalances” or “asymmetries,” convinced they’re the root cause of their pain. They stretch, strengthen, and obsess over trying to “correct” something that isn’t broken in the first place. The reality is that these little differences are normal. Almost every human on the planet has them, and they don’t need fixing.

The problem is that someone online, or a practitioner looking for repeat business, told them otherwise. They framed it as the explanation for pain and sold the idea that unless it was “fixed,” you’d never get better. That message sticks because it sounds simple, and people want simple answers. But it’s not true.

The turning point comes when someone finally tells you the truth: what you’ve been chasing doesn’t need correcting. It’s just your normal anatomy. That realisation is freeing. People stop treating themselves like they’re broken and start moving, exercising, and living without obsessing over imaginary faults. And very often, they feel better because of it.

Pain isn’t about “imbalances.” It’s about how your nervous system is protecting you. Once you understand that, you stop fighting battles that don’t exist—and start focusing on what actually helps.

Invest in continued learning, but do it strategically. Chasing every weekend course is just an expensive way to avoid ad...
07/09/2025

Invest in continued learning, but do it strategically. Chasing every weekend course is just an expensive way to avoid admitting you’re not confident in your core skills yet.

One of the biggest mistakes new therapists make is chasing every single weekend course. Shoulder masterclass, fascia release, cranial update, the latest taping method, another manipulation seminar… it never ends. Before long, you’ve spent thousands, collected a pile of certificates, and you’re no more confident in clinic than when you started.

Here’s the truth: signing up for endless courses is often a way of avoiding the real issue — a lack of confidence in your core skills. You don’t need ten different manipulations for the same joint. You don’t need three separate courses in dry needling to feel “ready.” What you need is to slow down, master the basics, and actually put them into practice.

Strategic learning means asking: does this course genuinely fill a gap in my knowledge, or am I just hoping the next thing will magically make me feel more competent? Most of the time, it’s the latter.

Investing in learning is important — but do it with purpose. Build depth, not just breadth. A few well-chosen courses that complement your clinical approach are worth far more than a wall of certificates that never get applied in practice.

07/09/2025

The diaphragm is an unpaired, dome shaped skeletal muscle that is located in the trunk. It separates the thoracic and abdominal cavities from each other by closing the inferior thoracic aperture.

The diaphragm is the primary muscle that is active in inspiration. Contraction of the muscle facilitates expansion of the thoracic cavity. This increases volume of the the cavity, which in turn decreases the intrathoracic pressure allowing the lungs to expand and inspiration to occur.

The diaphragm is a musculotendinous structure with a peripheral attachment to a number of bony structures. It is attached anteriorly to the xiphoid process and costal margin, laterally to the 11th and 12th ribs, and posteriorly to the lumbar vertebrae. The posterior attachment to the vertebrae is by tendinous bands called the medial and lateral arcuate ligaments.

Motor innervation of the diaphragm comes from the phrenic nerves (C3-C5). These nerves innervate the diaphragm from its abdominal surface after they pe*****te it. Sensory innervation (pain and proprioception) at the central tendinous part is innervated by the phrenic nerves, while the peripheral muscular portions are innervated by 6th to 11th intercostal nerves.

The diaphragm is one of the main muscles of respiration. When the muscle fibres contract, the diaphragm is flattened. This increases the volume of the thoracic cavity vertically, which decreases intrapulmonary pressure, and air enters the lungs.
When the diaphragm relaxes, thoracic volume decreases, intrapulmonary pressure increases, and air flows out of the lungs.

Sensory transduction and adaptation Mechanoreceptors convert mechanical stimuli into electrical signals by a process cal...
07/09/2025

Sensory transduction and adaptation

Mechanoreceptors convert mechanical stimuli into electrical signals by a process called transduction. Before the stimulus arrives (1), the mechanoreceptor is at rest. Thus the potential across the membrane is at resting membrane potential, being more negative on the inside of the cell. At rest, the sodium ion (Na+) concentration is higher in the extracellular fluid. Once the stimulus (touch) is applied (2), the mechanoreceptor (a tactile corpuscle in this example), gets mechanically deformed. This deformation opens mechanically-gated sodium channels in the receptor’s membrane, allowing ions like sodium (Na+) to enter the cell. The resulting change in membrane potential, which here is depolarization, is termed the receptor potential. If this receptor potential is strong enough to bring the membrane potential to a specific threshold (3), an action potential is generated. This action potential is then propagated along the peripheral process of the sensory neuron towards the spinal cord.

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Botany Specialist Sports Osteopath, , 42 Ormiston Road, Flat Bush
Auckland

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Monday 9am - 8pm
Tuesday 9am - 8pm
Wednesday 9am - 8pm
Thursday 9am - 8pm
Friday 9am - 8pm
Saturday 10am - 1pm

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