I often discuss the ‘disabled people are inspirational’ issue with friends and family. ‘Inspiration P0rn’. I am often told I’m inspirational, some times I smile and say thank you while rolling my eyes, sometimes I challenge the person in question and at other times I take it as a compliment. I could lecture about this…Continue reading Misplaced Inspiration – Being Healthy is HARD
Tag: Health
The Problem with Pain Scales
Throughout my Occupational Therapy training and my short but already meaningful career I’ve heard two key phrases in relation to OT. ‘Holistic’ and ‘Client centred’ .. even as students who struggled to explain exactly what being an OT involved we all knew that we had to practice holistically and be client centred [1]. So, we…Continue reading The Problem with Pain Scales
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Self-Care isn’t Self-Indulgent
In my work as an OT and in my life in general I often come across phrases that make me sad. I have lost count of the times I’ve heard ‘I don’t have time to pace’. This phrase is usually followed by a list of things the person does for others… I often have to…Continue reading Self-Care isn’t Self-Indulgent
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Dr Google & The e-Patient Experince
In this online age, access to medical information is faster and simpler than ever before. The ease with which patients can search for symptoms, diagnoses and treatments has plays a big role in the the e-patient 1 movement. About 5% of all internet searches are about medical information 2 . Support groups, patient advocacy groups…Continue reading Dr Google & The e-Patient Experince
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Physiotherapy Expectations With Hypermobility Syndromes
Physiotherapy is the treatment of disease, injury, or deformity by physical methods such as exercise, movement, manual therapies and education1. It can be used along side medication and traditional pain management strategies and is often used following surgery too. I often (and quite correctly) see people recommending physiotherapy to treat Hypermobility Syndromes like Ehlers Danlos and Marfan…Continue reading Physiotherapy Expectations With Hypermobility Syndromes
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Flare Up Planning with Shona
Something a little different for this blog post. I recently had the pleasure of working with Shona of My Marfan Life. Here, she share’s her experiences working with me and a bit about her life with Marfan Syndrome. “Recently I had the pleasure of having a 30 minute consultation with Jo to create a flare up…Continue reading Flare Up Planning with Shona
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Bolderwood Deer Sanctuary, The New Forest
Bolderwood Deer Sanctuary is situated near the heart of The New Forest National Park. The Deer Sanctuary provides a convenient and fairly accessible way to get close to a variety of deer, semi-wild ponies and other wildlife. A large car park and shed-like set of toilets are all that stand out on arrival. The car park…Continue reading Bolderwood Deer Sanctuary, The New Forest
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Wheelchair Propelling Techniques
This ‘Wheelchair Propelling Techniques’ section might (at first) seem pretty self-explanatory. You sit down and push with your hands right? Well actually there’s a bit more to it. Little adjustments with your body can make a big difference. Lets start with simply moving a chair over smooth ground. Make sure you’re siting comfortably, don’t slouch…Continue reading Wheelchair Propelling Techniques
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Sleep Hygiene – Tips for getting a good nights sleep
In this modern age of late night TV and smart phones by the bed, getting a good nights sleep has become somewhat of a struggle. Throw in any kind of health problem and restful sleep becomes almost impossible. ‘Painsomnia’ (insomnia caused by pain) can cause particular problems. This post will explain the basic principles of…Continue reading Sleep Hygiene – Tips for getting a good nights sleep
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Using Splinting with Hypermobility Syndromes
Using splinting is one common strategy for managing the symptoms of Hypermobility Syndromes such as Ehlers Danlos. People with a hypermobility syndromes (HMS) often have very poor proprioception, this basically means we don’t really know where our own arms and legs are so we tend to have a lot of accidents compared to ‘normal’ people.…Continue reading Using Splinting with Hypermobility Syndromes
