Work & Hobbies

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About Backs & Bones

Some occupations cause more stress on the body whether through physical strain or mental stress. Similarly some hobbies also strain the body more…think Rigby…but also think needlework! And horse people have their dedicated section at the end of this page

Why would you need About Backs & Bones?

We become ingrained throughout our lives in adopting certain postures. After a while, it can become very difficult to change as muscles and joints tighten. Osteopathy and massage stretches tight muscles and helps you to strengthen those which have weakened; relieving pain and helping you naturally achieve a more efficient working posture.

About Backs & Bones

Work & Hobbies

Sedentary Work

We work more efficiently and with higher moral when we feel good at work and being comfortable is paramount. It isn’t always necessarily for expensive ergonomic assessments and state of the art furniture; the first step is to become aware of how you are sitting and ask “Do changes need to be made in order to achieve a posture which causes you minimal strain?”

Why Change?

Poor posture causes tiredness as your body uses energy to bring you back into line over your centre of gravity. It also makes you more likely to develop muscle or joint strain such as:

  • ‘Mouse arm’/wrist
  • Tendon strains eg tendonitis, tenosynovitis
  • Muscle strain in neck/shoulders/back/arms
  • Trigger point (tight knot) referral pain from tight muscles
  • Disc protrusions in the neck causing nerve pain radiating to the arms
  • Tennis elbow/golfers elbow
  • Neck or back pain due to joint restrictions
  • ‘Frozen’ shoulders
  • Carpal tunnel syndrome
  • Headaches; from tight muscles or neck joint restrictions

Did you know?

Muscle and joint pain led to:

  • 1 in 4 adults suffering with a muscle or joint strain
  • 12.3 million lost working days
  • Annual cost to employers: £590 – £624 million
  • Up to 30% of GP consultations
  • Most common reason for repeat consultations
  • Second largest group (22%) on incapacity benefit (Occupational Health Statistics Bulletin. Health & Safety Executive, 2004/5, Musculoskeletal Services Framework. Department of Health, 2006)

And all of this is amplified when you are working under pressure.

To book a consultation please call us on: 01332 553 332 or

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Physical Work

People in physical work suffer not only with back pain but also:

  • Neck/shoulder pain from muscle strains, joint restrictions or prolapsed disc
  • Rotator cuff tears or joint dislocations in shoulders
  • Other muscle tears eg biceps, ‘pecs’, hamstrings

Plus a host of other injuries more suitable to the A&E dept rather than our clinic!

We understand the need to return to work quickly and have minimal time off and this needs to be balanced against the risk of further damage, or at least delayed healing.

At About Backs & Bones we can treat you at short notice, have convenient early morning and late evening appointments and we know our boundaries, so we will refer you on if you need more medical help, such as our GP who specialises in joint injections.

This enables you to have an early assessment, early treatment and avoids delays in other medical or surgical attention, should you need it.

We also pride ourselves in helping you avoid further injury so you can work as comfortably as possible for as long as you choose to, rather than having to change your job because of injuries.

It’s a team approach –we patch you up, identify other causes which may have contributed to your-injury and give you the tools to manage yourself –but we are on-hand should you need us again or wish on-going maintenance treatment.

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Driving

Most of us cope well with the unnatural strain of sitting in one position in a vibrating machine- but if you drive long distances, especially under stress or in a vehicle not suitable for your body size or shape, you may soon find yourself with neck, shoulder, upper or lower back pain –even extending into your arms or legs.

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Women are particularly susceptible to injury are cars are designed around male test dummies and the presence of breast make the tests invalid as the seatbelt doesn’t fit correctly; As a woman you are 46% more likely to be seriously injured in a car than a man (Invisible Women, Caroline Criado Perez).

Often the way we sit can have a profound effect and when treating you for driving-related strain, we firstly examine the cause of your particular problem. Next we give you some simple tests so you can check out whether you and your car are compatible. These are particularly useful if you are thinking of changing your vehicle –but you can often alter your seat enough for your car to fit you better.

We then help you to become aware of your own posture : after all –your muscles don’t lie! If they are tight, there is often a good reason and being aware of this can help you minimise the risks.

And when we have helped you feel so much more comfortable after our treatment –we help you to stay that way –with easy stretches you can even do in the car (just stop the car first!).

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Horseriding

We all bemoan the fact that we should be riding better, should be achieving better dressage marks, should be able to avoid falling off in the ménage! So what could we do to improve matters?

Being balanced is integral in enabling our horses to move freely – we know this – we spend fortunes getting them in shape and seeing the horse osteopath/chiropractor/physiotherapist. And then what do we do? Get right back on board not realising it may be us that are unbalanced and contributing to our horses back/neck/shoulder/leg problems.

We usually concede that we could ride better and of-course good quality riding tuition will help us achieve our potential and become more balanced, but if you have been told that you appear restricted or stiff –maybe it’s time to address that?

At About Backs & Bones, Paula, one of our osteopaths, understands the problems riders face and knows exactly how to address them. If your body is built to allow the movement, osteopathy will coax it into complying. If your particular shape does not allow it –we are all capable of different ranges of movement –we can look at ways of compensating.

Often we are stiff in our shoulders – sometimes a legacy of our day job in front of a computer or driving. This restricts the amount of feeling we have down the rein and often causes the horse to lean or fight against us. Or we may have back problems, common amongst those who work with horses- not surprising when we lug horse feed, hay bales and water all day! We may be stiff in our hips, pelvis or low back, meaning we cannot follow the horse’s movement with as much fluidity as we would like, restricting their paces.

We keep treatments to a minimum as we know finances for the horse come first! This is still effective as long as you do the exercises prescribed!

If good riding tuition is needed –we can link with the experts; recommending people we trust. If your own instructor want to talk to us, or jot down the problems being experienced, we will work specifically on those, communicating with both of you if needs be.

If your horse has a problem, again we can recommend a qualified person to help –with your vet’s permission.

To book a consultation call us on:

01332 533 332