Tag Archives: back treatment

Ever thought about visiting a Chiropractor and wonder what they do?

Chiropractic, Chiropractic for Children, , , , , , ,

Have you ever thought about visiting a Chiropractor but wondered what they do?

 

We took some time to speak to our Chiropractic team – Rebecca Rees (BSC) and Dr Lucy Steel (BSc, MSc, DC) to find out a bit more about what they do, how they could help you and about a typical days work, here is what they had to say:

How long have you been a Chiropractor?

Rebecca: I studied for my BSc in Chiropractic treatment at the Anglo European College of Chiropractic in 1994.  I have been practicing for the last 28 years.

Lucy: I studied for my BSc in Human Biology at Leeds University and my MSc and DC in Chiropractic at the University of Surrey in 2004.  I have been practicing for the last 18 years. I have a special interest Chiropractic during and following pregnancy.

Which governing bodies do you hold membership with?

We are both registered members of the British Chiropractic Association (BCA) and the General Chiropractic Council (GCC).

What is Chiropractic?

Chiropractic is the treatment of spine and mechanical joint disorders. It is a common misconception that Chiropractors only treat backs. They can treat a wide variety of functional and mechanical disorders of any joints in the body.

 

What is a Chiropractic treatment?

Chiropractic treatment focuses on disorders of the musculoskeletal system and the nervous system and the effects of these disorders on general health. Treatment may involve – joint manipulation, soft tissue work, mechanical treatment such as Shockwave, RICE and rehabilitation advice.

What can a Chiropractor treat?

Our Chiropractors don’t just manage back pain but can also help with a wide range of conditions, head to toe, including –

  • Uncomplicated neck pain
  • Acute and chronic back pain
  • Osteo-arthritis (OA) and joint pain (as an addition to core OA treatments & exercise)
  • Leg pain
  • Prevention of migraine
  • Exercise guidance
  • Tension and inability to relax (through lifestyle advice)
  • Rehabilitation
  • Deep Tissue Massage
  • Muscle spasms and cramp
  • Headaches
  • Joint pain

Treatment is supported with individual advice and guidance about lifestyle, work and exercise to help manage a condition. You may be recommended massage, ice or heat treatment and specific exercises which you can safely do at home.

How do you treat these symptoms?

We help manage the discomfort through working on all the joints of the body, concentrating particularly on the spine/ spinal cord. We use their hands to make specific, gentle adjustments (the chiropractic term for manipulation) to improve mobility of joints, efficiency of the nervous system and release the body’s natural healing ability.

What could your clients expect on their first visit?

During your initial consultation we would explain about Chiropractic care and understand your personal situation through physical examination, observations and X-rays as needed. Our Chiropractors support the treatment they offer with individual guidance on lifestyle, work and exercise to help manage the condition.  We will agree a plan with our clients that best supports their ongoing treatment requirements.

Who could benefit from Chiropractic treatment?

People of all ages can benefit from chiropractic treatment, from a newly born baby to  over 100 years of age. Your consultation will be used to assess your requirements and the appropriateness of treatment. Following informed consent, your first visit will include treatment when assessed as appropriate.

Tell us one interesting thing about you?

Rebecca: My belief is that you are never too old to benefit from chiropractic treatment.

Lucy: My passion lies in the care of pregnant women, babies and children, most of my post-graduate training has been in these areas.

For more information or to find out more about how our Chiropractors can help or to book your appointment, please:

Call: 01628 779900

Email:  info@maidenheadpodiatry.co.uk

Visit:   maidenheadpodiatry.co.uk/treatments/chiropractic/

Thinking of going back to high heels?

Bio-mechanics, Chiropractic, Feet, Foot Care, Podiatry, , , , , , , , , , ,

High or low heels?

Now that we have had the first relaxation in the rules that will, in time, lead to us returning to socialising as we knew it, we now have the prospect of returning to wearing high heels.

At Maidenhead Podiatry, our Podiatrists are regularly asked about the long term effect of wearing high heels and it is assumed we will disapprove, but that isn’t necessarily the case. So, here is the low down on high heels.

On the streets of towns and cities all over the country, during lockdown, people have made walking part of their daily routines. Choice of shoes for the task are practical and comfortable, with modest heel, laces and good foot support.

Why would you go back to heels?

There are many reasons for wearing high heels and although they are often worn for work, many reserve them for socialising. Of course, wearing heels can make you feel good, and they can have several effects on not just the foot,

The negative effects of wearing high heels are mostly temporary if they aren’t worn for too long.

Although a modest heel helps the feet work more efficiently, high heels cause you to walk with your weight on the balls of your feet.

How do heels change things?

It is estimated that for each inch of heel, the load on the ball of the foot increases 25%. Therefore, a three-inch-high increases the load by 75% over wearing flats.

Existing (foot) problems that can worsened by high heels include

  • neuroma
  • hammertoes, callous and corns, which are thickened, tough spots on the skin.
  • muscle and joint pain.The body has to adjust for an unnatural gait leading to compensation pain.
  • tightness in your calves and put yourself at risk of knee problems, low-back pain, and even neck and shoulder pain.

However as Podiatrists we are not completely against high heels. For everyday use, shoes with heels that are an inch to an inch and a half are fine. If you wear shoes with a heel of two inches or more, limit wearing them to a few hours, such as at an evening event or a wedding.

When you get home at the end of your day massage your feet and give your calves a nice long stretch too. Also, regardless of whether they have heels or not, always rotate your shoes so you’re not wearing the same pair day after day, This will make sure your feet and calves aren’t moving in the same position for long periods of time.

But I still want to wear them

If you are determined to wear heels then there is a way of telling which heel height could be ideally suited to you – it all comes down to the shape of your feet.

Surprisingly, some women are more suited to wearing skyscraper-high, while others will suffer after mere moments with the lowest of heels.

There is a tongue in cheek way to work out which category you fit into, with a three-step formula to quickly calculate your ideal heel height. Measurement is based on the flexibility of a curved bone that connects the foot and the leg – the talus.

If the talus tilts downwards when you are holding your leg out straight and relaxing your foot, then you have a lot of mobility and can wear high heels with ease, if it doesn’t, then you just aren’t cut out for wearing them and there’s nothing you can do about it.

So how do you measure your ideal heel height?

  • without shoes and sitting, hold your leg straight out in front of you keeping your foot relaxed. If your foot sits at a right angle to your leg without dangling then you have less mobility and will be more comfortable in a pair of flats. However, if the top of your foot follows the line of your leg and your toes pint, then you are a natural heel wearer.
  • to find your ideal heel height, get someone to place a tape measure from your heel in a straight line on the floor, then place a pencil at the ball of your foot at right angles to the tape.
  • Wherever the tape measure hits the pencil reveals your ideal heel height.

This simple formula can make footwear purchases more comfortable, although you still shouldn’t wear them all the time.

If you would like more information or to make an appointment with one of our Podiatrists or Chiropractors, give us a call on 01628 773588 or email info@maidenheadpodiatry.co.uk.

Over doing the Gardening? Top 10 tips from your Chiropractor to take care of your back

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How gardening affects your back

With lockdown anyone who has a garden has been spending much more of their copiously available free time making them look the best they have for years.

As a nation, we love our gardens and spend a considerable amount of time and money on them.  As we rush to get those essential jobs done, there is a risk that we may end up injuring ourselves, especially our back.

What everyone wants is to be fit and healthy enough to sit in their garden and enjoy the fruits of their labour come summer time, so here are some helpful tips from our Principal Chiropractor, Rebecca from Maidenhead Podiatry and Chiropractic clinic:

What can I do? – Top ten tips –

  1. Dress appropriately –

    Don’t wear clothes that are tight or constrict your movement.

  2. Gardening is like any other exercise, you need to warm up first –

    Don’t go straight into heavy garden work, start off with lighter jobs first, this will lessen the chance of muscle strain.

  3. Don’t twist again –

    If you have to use a ladder for any of your gardening tasks, make sure you are always facing it. Rather than lean or reach, move the ladder regularly, always keep your shoulders, hips and knees pointing in the same direction and make sure the ladder is firmly and safely planted in position. If possible, have someone else standing there to keep an eye on things.

  4. Clever pruning –

    Get as close as possible to the things you are pruning; avoid overstretching to reach the area you are dealing with and invest in some long handled secateurs to reach plants and bushes that are beyond your normal reach.

  5. Digging deep –

    When digging, try not to bend or twist during the movement and alternate the foot you use to drive the spade into the ground.

  6. Raking –

    is best achieved with short movements; don’t reach out too far.

  7. Potting/planting –

    Use a mat and kneel when doing close weeding work, planting out or when potting up your plants, it is much better to do this at a table.

  8. Take a break –

    Vary your activity; spend no more than 20-30 minutes on any one thing and take regular breaks.

  9. Be clever with the paving –

    If laying a patio keep the slab close to your body and bend your knees.  It is sometimes better to bend one knee rather two, as your supporting leg gives you a position of strength and if using railway sleepers, two people will probably be needed.  Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

  10. Plan ahead –

    If you are planning a trip to the local DIY store and buying heavy items, such as cement or gravel, buy smaller bags rather than one big bag as they are easier and safer to carry. Shovel the contents of large bags straight into smaller containers or wheelbarrow from the back of the car.  If you are having items delivered, have them unloaded as close to where you need them as possible. This will save the effort of moving them again and a specialist garden trolley might be worth investing in to move these sorts of materials around, especially so if you have lots of patio pots to move.

Our Chiropractors

Rebecca Rees, BSc and Lucy Steel BSc MSc DC have over forty years of experience between them, are members of the British Chiropractic Association (BCA) and are registered with the General Chiropractic Council (GCC).

If you would like more information or to make an appointment with one of our Chiropractors, call – 01628 773588 and speak to one of our receptionists or email info@maidenheadpodiatry.co.uk. 

Visit: www.maidenheadpodiatry.co.uk/treatments/chiropractic for more information on Chiropractic. How it works and what it can do for you.

Need help with your feet or back – use our search bar.

Bio-mechanics, Chiropractic, Chiropractic for Children, Diabetic, Feet, Foot Care, Fungal nail, Gout, ingrowing nail, ingrown nail, plantar faciitis, Podiatry, Shockwave, Swift verruca treatment, Verruca, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Use our search bar the find what you are looking for

Many people visit our website for help or information on Podiatry or Chiropractic.

Both Podiatrists and Chiropractors offer a range of treatments and skills to benefit their patients but sometimes all you need is to be informed.

Below we describe what Podiatry and Chiropractic are and explain many of the treatments and services we offer but if you know what you are looking for then use the search bar in the top right hand corner of the screen.

A large part of what we provide for patients is help, advice and education and this website contains information on definition, diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of conditions and all can be accessed through the search bar.

It doesn’t matter if you are looking for something specific or just curious. Give it a go. Find what you are looking for in our education pages and previous blogs. Click on the search bar.

Podiatry

Podiatry is defined as the diagnosis and treatment of foot disorders; however, we assess, diagnose and treat from the knee down. We also treat warts on hands.

Chiropractic

Chiropractic is the management consists of a wide range of manipulative techniques designed to improve the function of joints, relieve pain and ease muscle spasm.

Chiropractors don’t only treat backs and can help with any soft-tissue or structural issues.

What is Podiatry?

Podiatry like many health care professions has general practitioners and specialists.

A general practitioner will treat anything from corns to verrucas and from plantar fasciitis or heel pain to ingrown toenails. We are all licenced to use local anaesthetic, perform minor surgeries such as ingrown nail removal and dispense antibiotics, if and where appropriate.

We provide vascular assessment and diabetic screening as a matter of course when requested or required. We have Podiatrists with special interests in areas such as diabetic care and biomechanical assessment and gait analysis. Gait analysis includes being filmed on a treadmill followed where appropriate by prescription of custom moulded orthotics together with an integrated exercise and rehabilitation program.

Seven Podiatrists and two Chiropractors trained in using the latest treatment and cutting-edge technology for a range of common conditions.

Cutting edge technology

Shockwave, which is a percussive mechanical treatment for chronic, or long-term, soft tissue pain such as heel pain, Achilles pain, hip pain and of course plantar fasciitis although it can be used anywhere in the body. It is used by both Podiatrists and Chiropractors

We were one of the first clinics in the country to use Swift, a microwave generator for the treatment of verrucas. We also offer salicylic acid, freezing and needling.

We offer all general foot care too including fungal nails, athlete’s foot, splits, fissures and infections. We also provide foot care in nursing and care homes as well as a domiciliary/home visiting service.

Contact us

Hopefully you have found what you are looking for but just in case you haven’t, give us a call on 01628 773588 and let us educate you. To find us follow the map and directions or put SL6 5FH into your sat nav.

We have our own free car park directly outside the clinic. Our premises are disabled friendly with no door thresholds and easy access throughout the ground floor. Let us know if you have any special requirements.

If you would like more information or to make an appointment give us a call on 01628 773588, and speak to one of our friendly receptionists or arrange a call back from one of our Podiatrists or Chiropractors.

And, we will of course cut your toenails too.

Why is my back hurting?

Chiropractic, , , , , ,

At Havelock Chiropractic, our Chiropractors are often asked, ‘why is my back hurting?

Back pain is often thought to be due to “over-doing it”, however, have you ever wondered why so many people injure themselves with simple actions like picking up a pencil or getting out of a chair?

It is important to understand that prolonged sedentary activity can be as bad as excessive unaccustomed exercise and extremely detrimental to the spine.

The Chiropractors at the Havelock Chiropractic encourage you to ‘listen to your body’.

  • It is important to note when you are in pain, how long does it last and how frequently does it return?
  • Is it worse in the morning, through the day or at night?
  • What is the location of the pain, and what is the quality of your pain (ache, cramp, sharp, shooting, burning etc.)
  • What aggravates it and what relieves it?

You may be experiencing other symptoms, such as pins and needles/tingling, cramp, stiffness and loss of motion, headaches, nausea, fatigue, irritability or vertigo, for example. You should not ignore these, be proactive and remember to tell your Chiropractor as soon as possible.

For more information or to book an appointment call us on 01628 773588 or e-mail on info@havelockchiropractic.co.uk