Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month is March!

March is Cerebral Palsy Awareness month in the UK, and I have therefore decided to blog about my experience of CP as a McTimoney Chiropractor. But first of all I would like to try and explain the situation that we have here in the UK! In an effort to protect the public, we have a system that means that we are very limited in what anyone can advertise that they do in the respect of who or more to the point, what, they can treat. For someone to make claims that their treatment is a treatment for any disease or condition, they have to have clinical trials to back them up. Now that sounds all well and good for stopping people making claims that cannot be substantiated, but it also means that people  are treating many diferent people with different problems and conditions, and seeing excellent results, but cannot advertise the fact, because trading standards states that we must have scientific evidence, empirical evidence does not count in their opinion.

However what follows is my experience and theory about CP and treatment. All babies are born with an amazing amount of potential. It is said (by the experts) that CP is caused by brain damage at birth, but what if this is not the case? What if the brain development is relying on the feedback from the rest of the body to develop these pathways, that the experts call neurons, and what if the baby who is developing CP does not send these messages to the brain to enable it to develop correctly. What if the baby who goes on to develop CP actually has a misaligned spine, to which the muscles are attached via tendons. This baby does not send the correct signals back to the brain so these mucscles develop with tension in them and go on the contract, further pulling the bones out of alignment, ultimately leading to a scoliosis.

 

I have been seeing 5 year old twins in my clinic The Joy of Chiropractic Health Clinic for 15 months now. Believe me, there is no sign of brain damage in them, they are as bright as a button. They were however born very early, too early for their little bodies to take the pressure of contractions through their spines. When they started to come and see me, they little spines were like a branch that had been bent, caused in my mind by the force of the contracion across their spines,as they were lying transversely in the womb.

Their bodies were subjected to 14 hours of contractions before they were born via Caesarean section. When they were discharged from hospital, the discharge letter took a "we will have to wait and see approach" as they could not predict if and what problems they might develop. I put it to you that a check up by a McTimoney Chiropractor at that stage may have had more insight into whether or not those babies would go on to develop problems. I believe that we would have picked up the misalignments in the spine and would have prevented the problems developing. Who knows? but if anyone out there has the money to spend on research, please give me a call.

Just look at the nerves as they leave the spine and imagine the pressure that would be put on those nerves if the spine was out of alignment, as in the image of a scoliotic spine.

 

So where does that leave us, or more to the point, where does it leave those who develop or look after a child with CP? Well if you have been following Marten's progress, you will no doubt know that his parents looked abroad to find ABR, at huge cost to them not just financially but also in time and emotions. ABR treatment is hugely expensive, and although I am not de-crying this treatment, it is such a shame that therapists in this country cannot express the experience that they have in treating this condition because trading standards dictate otherwise. It is such a shame that families are being forced to find vasts amounts of money to undertake ABR, when there are McTimoney Chiropractors in the UK who would get equally dramatic improvements in their children.

So if you or someone you know is caring for a child with CP, and they live near Ayr on the SW coast of Scotland, then direct them to this blog and get them to give me a call. I am always happy to do an assessment, and would not dream of treating anybody that I did not geuinely feel that would benefit from McTimoney Chiropractic. Last but not least, have a look at the video on my website, and see why it is so important to have a straight spine. Structure governs function. Get the structure of the spine right and the function of the body improves in all aspects.

Call 01292 287827

One for the Men!

Last week I looked at the effect on the skeleton of carrying a handbag on your shoulder. Today I am going to look at the effect of sitting on your wallet does. Let's take a look at this picture!

It shows what happents to the pelvis, and the subsequent compensation that occurs in the lower back, or the lumbar spine, when someone sits down with a full wallet in their back pocket! What this picture does not show is that this compensation can continue up the rest of the spine and into the neck, giving rise to headaches! Yes sitting on your wallet can REALLY give you a headache (in some circumstances) This is what I would refer to as a postural problem in my clinic. It has not occured as the result of a trauma ie fall, slip, trip, accident, but it has occured over a period of time. Need I say that the thicker the wallet then the more the spine and the rest of the body compensates.

You may be able to tell that more weight is being sent through the left hip joint here, and therefore it is highly probable that this hip will wear out quicker and ultimatley give rise to osteo-arthritis. Yes, sitting on your wallet could lead to you requiring a hip replecaement in years to come. Not only is the weight being sent through one hip joint more than the other, but the upper body weight has overcompensated back over to the right. This could present in my clinic as a problem in the shoulder or neck area! Which is why, when you go to see a McTimoney Chiropractor, they assess and correct subluxations/misalignments in the whole spine, not just the level that you may be complaining about.

Much of my time in my Chiropractic clinic is spent getting people to assess the things that they do on a day to day basis, that contributes to their problems. It gives me a great sense of job satisfaction if we can work out why someone is experiencing discomfort, and rectify the situation. This really is a simple thing to rectify. The wallet can be placed in a pocket in the shirt or jacket. Not so difficult is it?

Handbags and Gladrags!

Don't you just love science? When you have been doing a job for years, and then "science" comes along and proves that you were right all along! How wonderful is that?

Take this little article that I came across just last week. Now as a McTimoney Chiropractor I get to look at so many women's handbags! or to be more exact, the contents of their handbags. It never ceases to amaze me the weird and wonderful things that we carry around with us, causing our bags to be heavier than we should carefully carry about our person. Just look at this picture and you will see what I mean.

Look at the way that the spine compensates for the bag on the shoulder! Look at the hips, and the weight distribution onto the opposite leg to the one that the bag is being carried on. You can start to see from this picture how carrying something on one part of the body can affect an area in another part of the body.

That is why the McTimoney method of Chiropractic always looks at the whole body. This person could come into my clinic complaining of neck pain, or headaches, but damage is also being done to joints far removed from the area where symptoms are present. So be careful if a therapist only looks at the part that is hurting. Think of it like this, your artereis fur up over a long period of time, but it is not until you have a hart attack that you think you have a problem. The same can be said of your joints. Regular Chiropractic treatment can keep your joints healthy, before you feel a problem in them.

Now back to the handbags. I thought it would be a good idea to get you to assess the contents of your bag. So I am offering a free pot of Proto-col collagen (400mg capsules) to the person with the strangest thing that they carry around with them.Go through the handbag that you used today, and find the strangest thing that you carry around, in it. Post a photo of both your bag and the weird content onto your Facebook page, and you could win yourself a month's supply of Proto-col collagen. Don't forget to leave me a comment with  link to your FB page! I will make my decision on 28th feb, and my decision is final. Looking forward to seeing all your lovely pics!

Referral Exchange Networking Presentation

Having joined the Ayr Referral Exchange in October 2012, I have been keen to do my presentation to the Ayr Exchange as I don't think they have a clue about Chiropractic to be honest, sorry guys I know that some of you do. But how many of you know what a McTimoney Chiropractor does?

Darrin flat out again!

So thanks to Willie Gemmell not being able to take his turn, I stepped up to the plate.

After what I can only describe as a brilliant presentation by moi, (please feel free to correct me if I am wrong,) I sat down feeling that I had got my message across. McTimoney is not just about bad backs, or necks or shoulders, but a way of life that needs to be incorporated into everybody's lifestyle. It should be as well known as your dental check-up or your car service. Since leaving that meeting I have come back to my clinic and the telephone has not stopped ringing from all the people that heard my message and have either decided to listen to my advice, and incorporate McTimoney into theri lifestyle, or they have passed my details on to someone they know. Thanks guys. For those of you who have not yet telephoned, I am now operating a waiting list!

McTimoney Hands ready to perform an adjustment!

The motto of the Referral Exchange is "We don't just Network...We Get Work!"

You certainly do! Have a great weekend and looking forward to helping you guys get fitter and healthier!

...Then I'll Begin!

For those of you who read my blog that was posted yesterday, you will recognise the bottom of these 4 pictures. It is a replica of the picture of someone slumped in front of a computer. Although many professionals will say that this damage is irreversible, it is reversible to some degree with the correct management, in my professional opinion.

Having regular McTimoney Chirorpactic treatment will begin to adjust the vertebrae back into alignment. Add to that exercise to encourage the muscles to strengthen to assist in the correct upright carriage. I personally like my clients to do Pilates exercise, as like McTimoney it is a whole body approach rather than just one area. We also review their seating positions and I will soon be teaming up with the  personnel at Saxen in Newmilns for their expertise in this area. It is vitally important to have the correct furniture  so that you can sit ergonomically to prevent a relapse in sitting habits. Nutrtition is also important to give the body the building blocks it needs to repair the stretched connective tisue ie tendons and ligaments. I recommend Proto-col's Green Magic and Collagen supplements. Green magic is a superfood, and contains high levels of vitamins and minerals as well as other beneficial substances such as Royal Jelly and lactobifudus acidophilos, to aid repair and healing. Investigaions into oral hydrolysed collagen, CH, demonstrate the positive effect on the metabolism of connective tissue. Clinical studies have demonstrated the efficacy of CH in the treatment of degenerative joint disease. It seems to have a positive effect on tendons as well as skin function and hydration. In other words, it makes you look younger! : )

Ok so that is all on posture and office furniture for now. I am happy to take suggestions as to what you would like me to blog about next! Obviously it has to be health related, and I am sorry that I cannot talk about individual people and their health problems other than generically. Have a great day and remember, sit tall!

Are you Sitting Comfortably..........?

At the end of last week I mentioned that I was teaming up with a local company Saxen Ltd as they provide good quality furniture, ergonomically designed for your health. Now I am going to tell you as to why it is important to have the correct furniture, or at least why it is important to sit correctly at all times. Look at this:

Are you sitting like that as you read this? (Note to self, sit up) You can see from this just what your spine is doing if you sit at your desk in this position. Imagine what that does to your posture if you have a desk job and sit like this for hours on end! Chiropractic will help you straighten up the spine, but if you then go back to sitting like this, you will only put it back again. My job as a McTimoney Chiropractor is to advise you as to what you need to do to get long lasting relief. Contrary to what people think, I do not want to see you coming back week after week for ever to straighten you out. That is only good for my pocket, but does little for your long-term health. My aim is to get you back to health and then do check ups at regular intervals but generally no closer than 3 months apart. If we feel that you need treatment more regular than that, then we need to be looking at something else to help you get long term benefit. That could be massage, nutritional advice, looking at the furniture that you use, that sort of thing.

Here's the correct positioning of equipment which we should all adopt.

OK so I am no longer going to sit at my desk, I am heading over to Saxen to see what they have to help me!

Correct Support whilst at Work

I was very pleased to discover today that I have, right on my doorstep, the suppliers of excellent ergonomic office furniture. So many problems that people experience are due to sitting and using the incorrect office funiture whilst at work or in the home office. So discovering Ergocube, right here in Ayrshire is a blessings, because I now have somewhere that I can direct people to, if they need the correct equipment in their office.

It is very early days yet, but I hope to be working closely with this company, getting people the right advice for purchasing office furniture, so as they say "watch this space!"

My advice is still get yourself checked and corrected Chiropractically! But secondly use the correct office equipment to enhance the good work that your McTimoney Chiropractor does!