Expert physiotherapy available in Northwich

Life expectancy is at its all-time high, the fact that so many people are living longer, well into their 80s and 90s is a wonderful ideal. However, the sad reality is that living longer doesn’t always include a good quality of life, it’s not a package deal. Many people outlive their children and their pensions, and end up feeling like they’ve become a financial, physical and emotional burden on their families. Swallowing handfuls of pills every day, losing independence and requiring nursing care is not the way most people would choose to spend their last years. However, there are steps you can take to reduce the risk of this outcome. Making a conscious decision to take small steps (literally) from today, could make all the difference in your life going forward. Physical activity (PA) or exercise, when performed regularly, has been proven to prevent and help manage more than 20 chronic conditions. These include coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, cancer, obesity, mental health problems and musculoskeletal conditions. Sadly, you can’t bank the benefits of exercise from your youth. Ideally being active throughout your lifespan would give optimal health benefits, however research has shown the health gains achieved through PA can be attained at any time. So, it doesn’t matter when you start as long as you start! Now we’re certainly not saying you have to sign up for an IronMan Ultra-Triathlon or become the next Crossfit Superhuman. Physical activity includes all forms of exercise, such as everyday walking or cycling to get from A to B, active play, work-related activity and active recreation; such as working out in a gym, dancing, gardening or playing active games, as well as organised and competitive sport. Physical inactivity is the fourth leading risk factor for death. The latest research shows that a sedentary life is as great a risk factor as smoking and obesity, for heart disease risk. Sedentary behaviour is not simply a lack of activity but a cluster of individual behaviours where sitting or lying is the dominant mode of posture, and energy expenditure is very low. Inactivity was always associated as a cause of being overweight or obese, which in turn results in an increased risk of heart disease and diabetes. However, the most current research has shown that even normal weight individuals that are inactive, are at risk of developing disease. While you can blame it on your job or school that forces you to sit for hours in a day, you can also mitigate the negative effects with just 60-75 minutes of moderate intensity PA a day. Regardless of your activity starting point, there are benefits to be gained for anyone who increases their activity levels. Individuals that follow the recommended physical activity guidelines have shown to have optimal health benefits of a 39% reduced risk of dying from any disease. However, anything is better than nothing – even doing half the amount of the recommended weekly activity has shown a 20% lower risk of mortality. Regular physical activity roughly halves your chance of developing some cancers, like bowel and breast cancer. Studies have shown that people who continued to exercise once diagnosed with cancer had significantly less cancer deaths and any-cause death than those who were inactive. If you’d like to know more, you can download our Gold Standard Physical Activity Recommendations leaflet, along with additional exercise advice for people suffering from the following conditions, all of which can benefit significantly with regular physical activity. 1. Staying Healthy and Preventing Disease 2. COPD 3. Depression 4. Musculoskeletal Pain 5. Type 2 Diabetes 6. Cancer 7. Dementia 8. Falls and Frailty 9. Inflammatory Arthritis and Osteoarthritis 10. Heart Disease You can download all the leaflets at the following link http://bit.ly/34Mj0rk

It turns out that a lack of exercise in our lives is a silent killer. The World Health Organisation lists physical inactivity as the fourth biggest risk factor for death in adults across the world. The latest research shows when it comes to heart disease, leading a sedentary life is as great a risk factor as smoking and obesity. In fact, inactivity in terms of disease risk, is more dangerous than being overweight. If you spend long periods of time sitting, this is particularly bad news, as it increases your risk of heart disease, obesity, diabetes and cancer. The most current research has shown that even normal weight individuals that are inactive, are at risk of developing disease. There is a molecular pathway that is essential to burning fats, that shuts down with inactivity, and that subsequently increases your risk of developing heart disease. And unfortunately you can’t bank the benefits of exercise from your youth, hoping it will help you 40 years down the line. The ideal scenario is to have been active throughout your lifespan, but research has shown that your health can benefit from physical activity at any age, meaning it doesn’t matter when you start, as long as you start! Physical activity performed regularly, can help to prevent and manage over 20 chronic medical conditions. These include coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, cancer, obesity, mental health problems and musculoskeletal conditions. And the good news is that we can combat the negative effects of prolonged sitting (total of 8 hours or more) with just 60-75 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity a day. The reality is that hectic schedules can make it seem impossible to fit workouts into your busy week. The prospect of packing a gym bag, trudging to your local gym, working out, showering, changing, and trudging back to where you came from, can feel like a lot of effort. But when we neglect exercise, we not only put both our physical and mental health at risk, but we also negatively impact our productivity and effectiveness at work. And you would be surprised at the number of opportunities there are in a working day, to increase your activity levels. This doesn’t have to mean running or cycling to work, although that’s great if you can, but you can in fact accumulate activity that is beneficial to health, in lots of different ways during the day. Which is why we’ve put together a collection of resources to help you achieve this. At the following link you can download leaflets, exercise handouts and infographics on the following topics. - 17 Ways to Be More Active at Work - Thinking on your Feet - Why it Pays to Be Physically Active at Work Client Newsletter - Stretching Exercises for the Workplace - Strengthening Exercises for the Workplace - Why Posture Matters - Optimal Desk Posture Infographic - Carpal Tunnel Infographic - Preventing and Treating Carpal Tunnel Syndrome - Carpal Tunnel Rehabilitation Exercise Sheet Click here to download the resources http://bit.ly/374UhA1 As physiotherapists we can help with a wide range of issues caused by long periods of sitting at a desk, including back and neck pains, tingling in your hands, carpal tunnel syndrome, even regular headaches experienced at work. Please get in touch if you need advice and I hope you find these resources useful.

Fact : It is estimated that between 35-43% of the UK population is estimated to suffer from chronic pain, that’s 28 million people. It accounts for 40% of time off work and costs the NHS over £10 billion pounds a year. Fact : It is estimated that 37% of the population of developed countries and 41% of developing countries, suffer from chronic pain. https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/6/6/eO10364 It is one of the most common reasons why people visit Massage therapists and physiotherapy accounting for up to 40% of visits. Other common reasons include rehabbing sports injuries, relief of pain from accidents or muscle strains, relief of stress and as a form of preventative health care. And also, just that good old relaxation that can only come from human touch. What is massage therapy, exactly? People with specific massage therapy training will have gone to school for a minimum of 100 hours training and received skilled instruction in the manual manipulation of the body’s soft tissues, including muscles, connective tissues, tendons, and ligaments. They are highly knowledgeable about anatomy and physiology and are skilled diagnosticians with regards to chronic pain and how to treat it. The underlying idea behind massage therapy is that a relaxed and loose muscular structure promotes the flow of energy through the body, which enables the body to maintain health and heal itself, without resorting to drugs or surgery. Here are some common massage therapy modalities that you may encounter, ranging from simple relaxation to treatment of complex pain issues and connective tissue realignment. Swedish Massage This is your standard relaxation massage. Swedish massage is very popular in spa settings. As one of the most popular types of bodywork performed today, the overarching goal of Swedish massage is the ultimate relaxation of the entire body. It is exceptional at achieving this, easing tension while promoting the release of environmental toxins stored in the body’s fat and epidermis layers while simultaneously increasing the oxygen levels in the blood. Swedish massage has also been shown to produce significant reductions in the stress hormone, cortisol. Trigger Point Therapy and Myofascial Release A trigger point is a small area of tightly bound and ‘knotted’ muscle that will produce referred pain into another part of the body when pressed upon. For example, a trigger point in the rhomboid muscle in the upper back can produce headache-like pain at the base of the skull. Trigger points such as these are often misdiagnosed as migraines. Trigger points range in severity from mildly annoying to completely debilitative. The affected muscle fibres are in a permanently shortened and tense state, and can even pinch nearby nerves, producing even more related symptoms, sometimes spiraling into full-blown fibromyalgia, a disorder of the connective tissues. This is one area where massage therapy has a distinct advantage over every other form of treatment. Conventional medicine’s answer to trigger points is usually an injection of a local anesthetic or a corticosteroid injection. Both of which are temporary, unnatural treatments and in the case of the corticosteroid, actually damaging to the tissues. Massage therapy treats these by the application of pressure directly to the trigger point, going over time from light to very deep, (usually within the same session) whereupon the trigger point will begin to release and relax. Follow-up treatment is nearly always needed to retrain the muscle fibers to lengthen and “smooth” back out. A good massage therapist can often boast a near 100% success rate with trigger point therapy, even when other treatments have failed. Myofascial release is a broader application of this type of therapy that seeks to restore mobility and function to the body’s underlying network of connective tissue that is present in every muscle in the body. It improves lymph circulation (keeping the blood clean) and enhances the muscle’s natural stretch reflex, keeping the body supple and strong. It should be noted that these types of massage therapy are not the same as a relaxing Swedish massage and can sometimes be quite painful as the body relaxes, releases, and returns to normal homeostasis. It’s important to communicate to us during your treatment if you are uncomfortable at any time. Sports Massage As the name implies, sports massage is focused on the athlete. From the highest level of competition, to the casual weekend warrior, sports massage therapists can be found everywhere from weekend 5ks to professional locker rooms and Olympic fields. Sports massage focuses on both pre- and post- event training and recovery. Pre- event for example, may involve stimulating a stretch reflex in the quadriceps muscle of a runner to help lengthen her stride, with repeated treatments resulting in a faster runner who is less prone to injury. Post-event can take the form of a light, relaxing massage to stimulate healing blood flow to an overused muscle group, enabling the athlete to recover safer and faster, and enable them to perform at the top of their game sooner than otherwise would be the case. Rather than a specific technique as in trigger point or myofascial therapies, sport massage focuses on the dual goals of athletic performance and recovery and may borrow heavily on other modalities to achieve these ends. The tip of the proverbial iceberg … The above is by no means a comprehensive list of massage therapy modalities. There are literally dozens of different types of massage, used in everything from lymphatic drainage, body realignment, even neuromuscular therapy that seeks to balance the nervous system. If you’d like to go into greater detail on these and other modalities, and to get the latest, most cutting-edge information on the art and science of massage therapy, pain relief and injury prevention, then please click this link http://bit.ly/35TC9Je to sign up for our clinic newsletter and free downloads (we’ll also include details of any offers or special massage packages where relevant).

Pain means different things to different people, in different contexts, and based on different experiences. Acute, short-lived pain following a traumatic injury, in many cases heals. The pain that becomes increasingly hard to live with and manage, is the pain that has persisted month after month and often year after year, particularly when the source often can’t be diagnosed. Living with chronic pain is almost a disease Its self. It slowly and progressively eats away at you, your confidence, self- worth, and independence. It can consume your life and thoughts, often alienating you from your friends and family even your workplace. Living with pain is exhausting, lack of sleep, anxiety and depression often go hand in hand with pain, which in turn can lead to anger and frustration and problems with your relationships at home and with yourself. And the physical pain can stop you from doing things you love, like taking walks, playing sports and socializing, which also has an impact on your mental health. You know the saying “it takes a village to raise a child”, well we believe it takes an army to survive and thrive with chronic pain. Although it’s important that you are in control and are the driver of your pain management, it would be unrealistic to assume you can do this alone. You need the support of friends and family, work colleges or associates and pain specialists and therapists. Physiotherapists are experts in handling pain, finding the source of the pain and treating your body holistically. Physical therapy can be very beneficial in managing chronic pain by promoting joint movement, using exercises to reduce stiffness and improve muscle strength – all of which can reduce your pain and improve your mobility which may help with daily activities. Specific nerve mobility treatments can help reduce sensitivity to pain and massage has always been a trusty stalwart as it reduces stress and anxiety as well as pain. This month we’ve put together a range of resources that can help you learn to manage this pain, whatever pain level you’re at. We have leaflets on the following topics: - The Strain of Pain: Dispelling the myths behind chronic pain with strategies for managing your pain - Understanding Chronic Pain - Skills to Cope with Chronic Pain - How Physical Therapy Can Help You if You Suffer from Chronic Pain - How Pain Affects Your Life (infographic) - Relaxation for Chronic Pain (exercise handout) - Building Activity into Your Everyday Life If You Suffer from Musculoskeletal Pain - Chronic Pain: Tips for Managing Activity Levels These resources are packed with practical tips and advice, along with worksheets, exercise leaflets and infographics that combine to help you master your chronic pain. You can download the resources here http://bit.ly/34P8hwe If you’re living with pain on a regular basis, there are many ways we can help so if you need advice, please don’t hesitate to contact us.And if you know anyone who could benefit from any of these resources, please feel free to share this blog post with them.

Hip replacements are becoming increasingly common. Currently 1.3 people in every 1,000 will undergo a hip replacement operation, and more than 1.2 million are carried out each year worldwide. The biggest risk factors for needing a hip replacement are age and arthritis, with 85% of people having a hip replacement, also having osteoarthritis. In terms of gender, women have a higher risk of needing a hip replacement (58%) compared with men (42%). Hip replacement surgery in patients aged 45-54 has also doubled in the past 10 years. ##So what can we do, to reduce the risk of needing a hip replacement? Physical activity helps. Running decreases your risk of developing osteoarthritis by 18% and as osteoarthritis is present in 85% of people who undergo a hip replacement, this has a knock-on effect in reducing your risk of needing a hip replacement by 35-50%. And if you’re not up for running that’s OK, walking can also reduce the risk of needing hip surgery, although by a smaller percentage (23%). Almost half of the protective effective of being physically active comes from weight control. The higher your BMI, the greater your risk of needing a hip replacement. And what can you do if you’re already experiencing hip pain? If you need a hip replacement then the sooner you have it, the better the outcome is likely to be and the quicker you will recover from your operation. This is because the more pain you suffer prior to having surgery, the more compensations and adaptations the muscles and soft tissues will have made around the joint, in an effort to try and protect it and you from that pain, and the harder that will be to re-train once you’ve had the operation. That’s not to say it can’t be done, it will just take a bit longer and need a bit more of an investment in your time and energy. The good news is that outcomes from hip replacements are very good. Developments in materials and surgical techniques, mean that the artificial hips are lasting longer, and success rates are very good, with more than 80% of people experiencing pain relief and functional improvement, meaning their daily lives become easier and they’re able to do more. So what can you do to ensure the best possible outcome from hip surgery? The answer is LOTS! And most of it is contained in the following set of leaflets. The goal of this set of resources is to make sure you have access to all the information you need, to ensure the best, most successful outcome, the quickest recovery, the lowest risk of post-surgery complications and the lowest risk of damaging your new hip, and needing future revision surgery. In this set of resources we cover -- · The Hip Replacement Procedure Explained · How to Prepare for Hip Surgery · The Dos and Don'ts Following Hip Surgery · Rehabilitation After Hip Replacement Surgery · A Daily Pain and Exercise Progression Worksheet · How to Climb Stairs After a Hip Replacement Operation · How to Make a Speedy Recovery After Surgery · Post-Surgery Exercise Rehabilitation Handout The advice and exercise sheets -- · Explain what the hip replacement procedure entails · How to reduce the risks of surgical complications · How to keep your new hip safe · How to prepare your home for your return after surgery · How to regain independence as soon as possible · What exercises you can do, and at what stage, post-operation · The exercise rehabilitation leaflet includes interactive links to videos. To download any (or all) of these resources, just click the following link http://bit.ly/2Q9S7s2 And if this isn’t relevant to you, but you know someone who is due to undergo, or has recently undergone, hip replacement surgery, please send a link to this page to them (or a member of their family). I hope you find this information helpful and if you have any questions or queries, please feel free to get in contact with us by calling 01606 227484