Patient Guides
What is osteopathy?
Osteopathy is a system of manual medicine, which means we mainly treat with our hands.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost July 2, 2019
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Health
Exercise and rheumatic disease
Exercise can – at least for a while – suppress local and systemic inflammation.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost June 19, 2019
Spinal Pain
Forwards or backwards?
I’m often asked by patients, “What’s most important for my back – being good at bending forward or at bending backwards?”
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost May 2, 2019
Spinal Pain
What is the pop?
Joint manipulation in the spine is a highly focussed, fast and small movement of the joint.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost May 2, 2019
Patient Guides
Heat or Cold?
Both cold and warmth act as pain blockers, but they have different healing effects.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost May 2, 2019
Spinal Pain
Low Back Exercise – 1
This video shows a simple exercise that can ‘wake-up’ key spinal muscles that, when not working as they should, prevent the spine from bending forward correctly.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost April 7, 2019
Health
Food & Eating – 10 Principles
Some principles of food and eating that you might find useful and interesting.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost April 5, 2019
Exercise
Yoga – I’m unfit and stretchy – should I do it?
Yoga is an excellent and structured program aimed at improving muscle tone and endurance, balance, health and flexibility. But it isn’t risk-free.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost April 3, 2019
Health
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost February 9, 2019
Exercise
Speedy Climbing
A primal exercise is one where the whole body is used in an integrated way.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost December 4, 2018
Health
Hairdressers – stroke risks?
If you are over fifty, always have your hair washed leaning forward over the sink, and never backwards.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost August 8, 2018
Health
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost May 18, 2018
Health
Tailored medicine?
Over the next decade or two, we are likely to see a better understanding of what medicines work best for an individual.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost February 3, 2018
Spinal Pain
How to sneeze!
Sneezing – the wrong way – puts a massive strain through the whole spine. Here’s how to avoid putting your back out through a sneeze.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost November 11, 2017
Technical
The Need For Speed
I wrote a paper on HVT back in 2002. If I remember correctly, I was trying to put my thoughts in order after a spell teaching technique at the UCO. In draft form, it gathered dust on a shelf at the back of my office.
Tidying things up the other day during some lockdown boredom, I stumbled across it. Leafing through it, it was like looking back through time. It did seem a little rambling, to say the least.
But the intention of the paper was good. Why does manipulation (cavitation) of a spinal joint work best with high speed over a short distance? We had this drummed into us at the UCO. Why not slow speed over a longer distance?
So I’ve taken some ideas out of that paper and freshened them up.
Michael Smith BSc (Hons) Ost July 15, 2016