“A gram of prevention is worth a kilo of cure”
Is prevention better than cure as the saying goes? Or should we wait until the problem occurs then deal with the consequences? This is always a dilemma and a thought-provoking argument.
Many problems can be completely prevented, but not many can be completely cured. If you consider prevention in other aspects of life, then it is usually overall cheaper and more cost effective, whereas ‘cure’ can be terribly expensive and not to mention painful. Think about your car maintenance for instance, more often than not, is it usually more costly when something goes unexpectedly wrong rather than its usual service.
You may be thinking but where does Walnut Grove fit into this?
We try to encourage people to come early for treatment. It is more likely that we can then help someone recover from injury quicker, in fewer sessions and then give the correct advice for prevention. Those niggles that you feel that just don’t seem to go away…this is when to seek advice and/or treatment. Rather than, “I felt my back was niggling for a few weeks and then it just ‘went’!” which are words we hear so often, commonly resulting in a longer recovery time and thus more treatment time.
We regularly have people come in for an overall body check when they are not in pain, like an MOT for the body shall we say, but what does this involve? We take a history of any relevant health issues or concerns, and we then examine them looking at how they move and function. We may find areas that do not function as well as they could do, even if they don’t necessarily hurt, and then we advise on how it might be changed or improved. This might prevent pain in the future and frequently we have people comment on how much easier they feel post treatment without thinking they even needed it!
If you are active or into sport we can help with function and therefore performance and it may be that we redirect you to someone else who is more appropriate, for example Functional Fitness, who are based at our studio site. They offer suspension training and other classes at this site. Suspension training strengthens the neurological pathways from your brain to your muscles which can be affected when injuries occur. The movements use the connection from your brain to your body to make these pathways stronger and more connected thus rectifying any weaknesses. It is also a great way of improving strength and balance and improving performance even without the presence of injury.
Daily life itself can seem like an Olympic marathon (trust me I can relate to this!). Juggling kids, job, household chores and then trying to keep healthy and active can seem like an uphill task but with a bit of guidance we can help you prioritise the exercise that is right for you as an individual, tailoring it to suit your needs. This may be a series of simple mobility and strengthening exercises that can be done at home when time permits or it might be signposting you to a Pilates or Yoga class, as another example.
At the studio
We have classes run by fully qualified and experienced Pilates/Yoga instructors and also Physio-led Pilates classes. To start with the less able, Tanya, one of our physiotherapists, runs our popular seated Pilates classes and she also offers Physio-led mat-based Pilates. There are also beginners and intermediate Pilates classes run by Justine and Gemma, for those who are more physically able. Sally, a former nurse, and qualified PT specialist, offers Healthy Hearts and Structured Movement Therapy classes for a different approach to rehab, aimed at those who want to remain active and improve their mobility/health but need more guidance due to underlying health concerns. There really is something for everyone and this is what we pride ourselves in, trying to help people of all abilities from the frail elderly through to the international elite athlete!
So much can be achieved with a little advice. Here at Walnut Grove, we want to give patients the tools so that they feel empowered and can go away and help themselves for the long term, knowing we are here if they need us. Keeping people active, healthy and happy is all we strive to do.
