Managing Concussion
In the sporting world concussions are one of the most commonly seen injuries, particularly in impact sports. Concussions can also happen in the general population. They are one of the most important injuries to recognise quickly. Appropriate treatment and rehabilitation are essential, because concussion really is a mild form of traumatic brain injury. Just one concussion can increase the risk of long term damage to the brain and can increase the risk of getting another concussion. This is why it is so important to recognise them and get treatment. Not only can you injure the brain when you have a concussion, there can also be damage to the spine and the neck musculature and ligaments. What is Post-Concussion Syndrome? Post-Concussion syndrome is what can occur after the initial injury and can last in some cases up to six months. Symptoms include: headache, dizziness, fatigue, cognitive difficulties (difficulty remembering things or focusing), and irritability, with some of these symptoms being caused by spasms in the musculature of the head and neck. One common muscle involved in head and neck injuries is the Rectus Capitis Posterior Minor. It attaches on the first vertebrae of the neck and occiput, and then has connections […]
Dizziness: How Can We Help?
Dizziness can be a little bit complicated. It can be caused by a number of different reasons, but you probably never thought that your neck could be one of them!? Well Cervicogenic vertigo is exactly that, dizziness that is theorised to be caused from dysfunctional or lack of movement in the neck. 20-58% of people who have had head/neck injuries or whiplash will also experience dizziness How can my neck contribute to dizziness? Typically this specific type of dizziness is seen in people after an injury to the head and neck such as concussion or whiplash. But that is not always the case, sometimes it is also seen in people with severe muscle spasm in the neck or loss of movement in the neck. Proprioception is your body’s ability to perceive where it is in space. Tricky to understand, but basically think about it as your ability to stay on balance. Proprioceptive receptors in the neck can be disrupted through concussion or whiplash injury, thus relaying incorrect information back to the brain about where the body is, causing the sensation of dizziness or the sensation of being pulled to one side, or the room spinning. Along with the dizziness people […]
Warming Up Like a Pro
Why Do a Golf Warm Up? To prepare well for golf takes time and dedication. Our extensive experience with professional golfers on both the European & PGA Tours has shown us that nearly all professional golfers prepare for their round with a individualised warm up program and then hit the range before they play. This has a positive physical and mental impact on their ability to be ready to play and keeps them in a consistent routine. This is not the case for a majority of the amateurs we see at the clinic, below is a sample 5 minute golf warm up you can do before you play, there are no bands or weights required for the routine. Warming up will help prepare your body to play and help to reduce injuries in the long term. If you are suffering from a golf related injury including back pain, tennis elbow, plantar fasciitis or sciatica then contact us today to book a consultation. Yours in Health Lawlor Clinic | Spine & Sport Experts in the Assessment, Treatment, and Rehab of Golf Injuries
How Strong are your Feet?
How strong do you think your feet are? Our feet play an essential role in how we transfer our body weight when we move, provide vital information to our brains for position awareness and sometimes are even called upon to help out our weak cores. We need to look after them and have them strong enough to meet these many demands. Modern foot wear, orthotics and lack of time walking around bare foot all contribute to weak intrinsic foot muscles and it is these which we need to strengthen. Try the following movements shown in the video below to see how strong your feet are 1. Foot Crawl 2. Big Toe Up while keeping other 4 down 3. 4 Toes Up keeping big toe down 4. Toe Pianos 5. Toe Spreads “In order to master it you need to practice it” Start with doing any weak or difficult movements everyday for 1 minute If you would like to book an appointment please contact us today for a quick chat to see how we can help! Yours in Health The Lawlor Clinic, Portlaoise Chiropractic, Golf & Sports Injuries | Active Release Techniques (ART®)
What is Functional Range Conditioning (FRC®)?
Functional Range Conditioning FRC® FRC® is a comprehensive joint training system backed by science and research. Whether you are experiencing joint/ muscle tightness or not, the FRC® approach will help you achieve increased mobility while also aiding to reduce inflammation and pain. It utilises various types of exercises for example Controlled Articulated Rotations (CARs) to promote joint health, mobility and control, and Pails and Rails which uses isometric holds to strengthen the target joints. 3 main goals of FRC® Joint Mobility Joint Strength Body Control What is FRC® used for? Mobility training Joint health and maintenance Joint strength Rehabilitation Performance enhancement The Functional Range Conditioning concepts can be used on clients of all ages and all abilities and has proved to be highly successively with patients of the Lawlor Clinic. If you would like to book an appointment please contact us today for a quick chat to see how we can help! Yours in Health The Lawlor Clinic, Portlaoise Chiropractic & Sports Injuries | Active Release Techniques (ART®)
Treatment of Scars
Scar tissue can be detrimental to body mechanics if not addressed as soon as possible. It can alter proper movement patterns and generate pain and dysfunction in the body. It can also predispose the area to future injury. The aim of therapy is to improve tissue texture, flexibility, local blood supply and drainage. Therefore the earlier and more regularly that a scar is treated the better. Qualities of a Scar Tough fibrous and non pliable, with reduced circulation and lymph drainage Reduced local tissue flexibility, resulting in limited joint mobility Our Approach to Treating Scars Soft Tissue Release: Gentle hands on massage technique applied around and at the site of the scar to stretch the tissues and promote healing Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilisation (IASTM): uses specialised instruments and cream to glide across the scar in a form of cross friction massage to reduce pain and improve pliability of the tissues Dry Needling: needles are applied around the scar site to encourage an inflammatory healing response How Effective Can Treatment be? Below is an example of my own scar healing with the help of treatment following a right clavicle (Collarbone) reconstruction with a surgical plate and pins […]
Arthritis: What you can do to improve and manage your condition
Arthritis Management Anti-inflammatories Antioxidants, herbs and spices are important ingredients in a healthy diet and are very important in helping to treat joint pain and arthritis. Different combinations of these herbs and nutrients are likely to be particularly powerful anti-inflammatories and painkillers, which can improve the progression of arthritis. Natural anti-inflammatories: Curcumin (found in turmeric) Boswellic acid (found in Indian frankincense) Ashwagandha Quercetin (found in tea, red onions, apples, citrus fruits) Ginger Bromelain (found in pineapple) Hope extracts Hydroxytyrosol (found in olives) Cream-based anti inflammatories: Arnica Celadrin Capsaicin Bone Builders The major bone mineral is calcium. 99% of the calcium in our bodies is found in bone. Calcium should be taken in via your diet, but one of the greatest factors in calcium balance is exercise. Studies at NASA discovered losses of calcium in astronauts living in zero gravity conditions. They also demonstrated that weight-bearing exercise (such as walking) can raise calcium levels in the body by 2%, which will help slow down the progression of arthritis. Without magnesium, calcium is unlikely to be used properly. Vitamin D is also needed to enable calcium to be used properly with the body. Boron is involved in the transportation of calcium […]
Golf Injuries: Rib Injuries & Stress Fractures
As many of you will have read over the past couple of days Rory Mcilroy had to withdraw from this week’s Abu Dhabi Golf Championship in the middle east after it was confirmed by MRI that he suffered a stress fracture of one of his ribs. What is Stress Fracture? A stress fracture is a small crack in the bone usually caused by overloading and by an increase in activity. They are normally seen in the weight bearing joints of the body including the foot, shin, thigh and hip. Rory had been doing increased testing with his golf equipment in the off season due to Nike taking themselves out of the golf equipment market. This meant that Rory Mcilroy hit a lot more balls than his standard practice and this is the likely cause of the rib stress fracture as he didn’t have a fall or trauma. What is the recovery time? The most likely recovery time for a stress fracture is about 6 weeks which allows the bone to heal. The patient or athlete is usually prescribed full rest to allow the bone to heal. It will be very difficult to hit any balls during the 6 weeks as […]
Scars Causing Your Pain?
It’s safe to say that the majority of us have a scar of some sort,for example surgical related, c-section scars, appendectomy scars or scars from cuts or broken bones. What is scar tissue? Scar tissue forms after injury to the normal cells of the body and it is the body’s natural response to repair any tissue damage. Scars can however generate its own issues once it has laid down, the effects of which is something we come across daily in the clinic. The effect of scars on the body? Excessive scarring will create tissue tension throughout the fascial system and limit the mobility within the muscles, tendons, ligaments and ultimately the joints. This results in altered postures and movement patterns. When this happens a cascade of compensatory movement starts elsewhere, creating pain and stiffness, such as neck, shoulder and low back pain. The assessment and treatment of scars is often a neglected area in the management of musculoskeletal pain and is of upmost importance, particularly in the case of an unproblematic longstanding scar which may be preventing the patient from returning to full non painful movement. Our Approach? At the clinic we examine and address scars old and […]
Fibromyalgia – How to Manage This Chronic Condition
Fibromyalgia is a chronic syndrome marked by widespread muscular tenderness and pain. Those with FM commonly experience disturbances in sleep, mood, and cognition, as well as having neural symptoms also. Fibromyalgia is characterized by 18 tender points (9 pairs) throughout the body. These tender points are located in the hips, neck, chest, elbow and knee.Fibromyalgia sufferers will have at least 11 tender points and will have had symptoms for >3 months. It is accepted that the treatment of Fibromyalgia is multimodal. Generally, this encompasses relaxation, meditation, exercise, physiotherapy, acupuncture, nutrition, medication and laser therapy. Exercise: Resistance training is a great way to build up muscle strength, power, and endurance. Studies have shown that after 16-21 weeks of beginning a resistance training programme, the tenderness and pain levels in female Fibromyalgia sufferers reduced. The training helped to improve overall well-being, physical function, and muscle strength. After 12 weeks of beginning a flexibility programme, overall muscle and joint pliability and flexibility improved. And, doing 20-30min walks @ approx. 60-70% max heart rate has been shown to improve mood and sleep patterns. Acupuncture: Evidence suggests that acupuncture can provide short term benefits to Fibromyalgia patients, generally up to one month within treatment. The acupuncture needles […]
