Dr Murray McDonald

31/07/2023

imagine me and you ❤️

20/03/2023

Muscle and/or joint pain are the most common reasons for missing work. There are many complex reasons for this pain – an interaction of human genetics, psychology, lifestyle, social environment, physical environment, economics – but there ARE a few simple things you can do to prevent or manage pain and strain in the workplace!

https://thepaindoctorcpt.com/blog/pain-at-work

13/03/2023

Human beings spend close to a third of their time alive in a state of unconsciousness. Why? Because we would die without it. Sleep is a process of regeneration. Our muscles repair. Our brains consolidate memory. However, lack of sleep (quantity and/or quality) can reduce your body’s ability to repair and adapt. This can lead to a long list of short- and long-term health issues.

03/03/2023

Hip pain is felt when the tissue around the hip (joints, muscles, nerves, etc) is under threat of damage. However, pain is a symptom and may be disproportionate to any actual damage - basically, what you feel might not be as bad, or maybe it is? Okay it's a bit confusing, so let me explain.

https://thepaindoctorcpt.com/blog/hip-pain-101

06/02/2023

Telemedicine is simply healthcare delivered from afar. This can include phone calls, text/email, pictures, and (importantly) video chat. But is it right for you? You can read up about them, right here:

Telemedicine is simply healthcare delivered from afar. This can include phone calls, text/email, pictures, and (importantly) video chat. But is it right for you?

19/01/2023

Look, pain sucks. But it's even worse when you have no idea why it's happening, or what to do next. That's where I come in, and with my Pain 101 series I'll dive into some of the most common pain points. First up, shoulder pain. Take a read 👇🏻

16/01/2023

I'll be speaking at the Interdisciplinary Interventional Workshop hosted by PainSa this Friday! If you're a medical professional, I might see you there. If not, I'll post the highlights of my talk "Evidence into Practice: Converting papers into patient care" on my page. 🌿

13/01/2023

What is pain, actually? It's more than the instant spike of "ouch!" when you stub your toe, it's the stuff that goes on in your brain that tells you you're in pain.
I've done my best to make the science behind it a little clearer, take a read! 🧠

11/01/2023

If you've ever seen me as a patient, I'd love it if you left me a Google review. 🌿
There's a handy link right here! 👇🏻
Thank you. 😄

Post a review to our profile on Google

11/01/2023

New year, new branding, new website!

Have a look. 🌿

https://thepaindoctorcpt.com/

06/06/2022

Posture is usually not the key to solving chronic pain. It's barely even a key. It's occasionally the small, clay frog statue on the porch that you hide the key under sometimes... But I digress.
There are dozens of important factors that impact pain significantly. There are possibly hundreds that impact pain across many domains. And sure - posture is one of them. ONE. And usually tangential at most. Because it's so very dependent on your environment - your posture is arguably just as much a symptom as the pain is! So, assuming that posture is the main problem is... probably wrong. Or at least not the whole picture.
Now, I know what you're thinking:
"But it hurts when I sit too long." It hurts if you do anything too long. The clue is in the name - "too long".
"I just need to sit up straighter." One, there's increasing research that people who sit up straighter have MORE pain, not less. Two, explain to me how you plan on sitting up straighter for longer than 2mins (when you remember to do it at all).
"I slouch all the time." Slouching is usually a very efficient posture and might actually be protective against the development of pain.
See, your posture conforms to your environment. Therefore, if your environment is uncomfortable, stressful, monotonous, sedentary... Do you see where I'm going with this?
You'll probably be better off changing your environment!
Move more! Relax more! Do more fun stuff! Change jobs! Fix the actual problems!
Please and thank you.
TLDR:
1) Stop blaming all your pain on posture
2) It likely isn't the main causative factor - it's probably just a symptom
3) It's much harder to change than you think
4) Even if you change it, it's unlikely to make much difference if the actual causes are still there
5) Fix your life, bud.

13/12/2021

Hello Facebook! Long time...
A few updates on how things are going with the practice and what the next month looks like:
1) My practice (and I) survived 2021! That might not sound like a big deal but some have not been so lucky... I've had to struggle along in building my practice but I am STILL HERE and incredibly grateful to everyone who has supported me ❤️
2) My PhD is ticking along nicely now - two studies are underway with the final two starting in early 2022 (hopefully) 🤓
3) I'M CONTRIBUTING TO A TEXTBOOK! A group of researchers and clinicians are collaborating on a guide to pain and its management and I'm lucky enough to be one of them (hopefully be published early 2023) 📇
4) I'll be taking some time off in Hermanus over the festive season and will be closed from December 23rd - January 2nd inclusive EXCEPT:
- I'll still be available remotely in case you need medical advice
- If you happen to be in Hermanus and struggling we can probably make a plan
- I might be back in Cape Town on December 28th/29th (not confirmed so don't bank on it)

Once again, thank you for all of your support over the last 20ish months of my practice, 9ish years of my professional career, and 35ish years of my life.
Keep well ❤️

04/08/2021

19/07/2021

Blue Bulls fans have 24hrs to respond.

via .app

19/07/2021

I know things are bad. But, if you can, consider supporting a local feeding program to help the thousands of South Africans who can't afford food. And maybe things will be a little better.

The Department of Social Development, through their Sustainable Livelihoods: Targeted feeding programme works closely with a number of registered NPO’s throughout the province to provide food for those experiencing malnutrition and hunger.