Have you ever wondered what makes our bodies do what they do? Why we move, talk, breathe and everything in between? Well, there is one system of the body that is primarily responsible for driving all those things… your nervous system.

What is the nervous system?

The nervous system is a complex collection of nerves and other nerve tissues that intertwine and interact with all the other 10 systems of the body. Even though it is found throughout the whole body, it equates to less than 5% of the total body mass, making it one of the smallest systems of the body. This is hard to get your head around when you consider there are billions of nerve cells (aka ‘neurons’) that make up the system. It’s mind-boggling stuff!

The nervous system is made up of two main parts:

❖ Central Nervous System (CNS)
❖ Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

Central Nervous System

The CNS is made up of the brain and spinal cord. The brain is housed inside the skull and connects to the spinal cord through a hole in the base of the skull. The spinal cord runs down the centre of the body and is protected by the spinal column, which is made up of numerous vertebrae (the bones of the spine). The main roles of the CNS include:

❖ Processing incoming sensory information from inside and outside the body
❖ Sending out commands to the muscles to contract
❖ Sending out commands to glands to release hormones
❖ Acting as a control centre for emotions, thoughts and memories

Peripheral Nervous System

The PNS is made up of all the other nervous tissues that sit outside of the CNS. The nerves that travel from the brain (i.e. cranial nerves – of which there are 12 pairs) and spinal cord (i.e. spinal nerves – of which there are 31 pairs) to the rest of the body and back again make up a large part of the PNS. There are also various other types of nervous tissue that form this system.

The PNS is further broken down into the following parts:

❖ Somatic Nervous System (SNS) – Also referred to as the ‘Voluntary Nervous System’ which controls the voluntary movements of the body.
❖ Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) – further broken down into sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions (the parts of our nervous system that control our ‘fight or flight’ and ‘rest and digest’ responses, respectively)
❖ Enteric Nervous System (ENS) – relating to the gut

All the above subdivisions of the PNS have a sensory part which transmits information to the brain and spinal cord, and a motor part which transmits information to the body to drive an action. For example, the motor part of the SNS drives contraction of our skeletal muscles allowing our bodies to move. Whereas the motor part of the ANS drives contraction of smooth muscle (found in the arteries and the gut) and cardiac muscle (our heart muscle). The main difference being, the SNS works on a voluntary basis as mentioned above (i.e. we choose to move our arm), and the ANS works on an involuntary basis… it is automatic (or autonomic, hence the name) and all actions occur without us choosing or even really knowing about it (i.e. our heart beating). Cool, huh?!

Functions of the nervous system

OK, so we’ve just thrown A LOT of info at you, but hopefully you are starting to see how the nervous system is made up and what jobs it is responsible for. The main overriding job of this system is to control the internal conditions of the body so it can function correctly. We move, we talk, we breathe… and everything in between!

If you’re a visual person and need to see or read a real-life example, then think of the nervous system as working like this:

❖ You are standing at a pedestrian crossing and the green figure lights up with a corresponding beep. The sight of the light and sound of the beep stimulate receptors in the eyes and ears. This is sensory information.
❖ This sensory information is then relayed to the brain and processed, and a decision is made on what to do (this is actually known as integration, if you really want to know).
❖ The brain then decides which muscles to contract to allow you to walk across the crossing to the other side of the road and signals them to move. This is the motor function.

So just remember… sensory, processing and motor, and you have the basic functions of the nervous system under wraps!

Right… who is ready for their exam?!

This month we find ourselves fascinated by quadricep strains and hope to share a little information and advice with you. If that interests you read on, but if another injury or ache or pain is your priority right now, please call us on 93794151. The team at Radius Osteopathic are here to help with hamstring strains, bicep strains, triceps strains, calf strains… and even aches and pains that have nothing to do with strains!

So, you’ve strained one of your quadriceps… Firstly, ouch – we know that can be a real pain. But we want to reassure you that with the right knowledge and some help from an osteopath, you’ll be back on your feet in no time.

What Is It Exactly?

First things first, let’s understand the anatomy. The quadriceps muscle group is a powerhouse located at the front of your thigh. It’s responsible for extending your knee and helping you kick, jump, and run. Maybe you don’t run like Usain Bolt, but your body’s movement potential and power is amazing when you start to really consider its mechanics!  The quadriceps are so named because there are four of them (quad like a quad bike – you get it!) You’ve got the Rectus Femoris running down the centre of your thigh, the Vastus Lateralis on the outer side of your thigh, the Vastus Medialis on the inner side of the thigh and the Vastus Intermedius deep between the vastus lateralis and vastus medialis. Sometimes, these muscles can get overstretched or overloaded, leading to those unwelcome strains.

How Bad is It your quadricep strain?

Now, there are three grades of quadriceps muscle strain, and each one brings its own set of challenges:

Grade 1 – The Mild One:

A grade 1 strain is the least severe of the bunch. It happens when only a small number of muscle fibres get torn. You might feel some mild discomfort and tenderness in the affected area, but it won’t stop you from going about your daily activities. It can be tempting to ignore it and just get on with things – but this might be detrimental to your healing in the long-term. So challenge yourself to take proper care of this injury.

 Grade 2 – The Moderate Trouble-Maker:

A grade 2 strain is a bit more intense. This time, a more significant number of muscle fibres get torn. Ouch! You’ll likely experience pain, swelling, and maybe even some bruising around the thigh. Moving your leg could be tricky, and walking might not be as smooth as it used to be. A challenge here is to care for your leg, but not fall into a poor movement pattern while you work around the injury. This can create more problems throughout the rest of your body – which is the last thing you need!

Grade 3 – The Severe One (Or the Great Escape):

A grade 3 strain is the big kahuna, and it’s no joke. In this scenario, the muscle suffers a complete rupture. Yep, you heard that right – it tears all the way through! The pain will be intense, and you may even notice a divot or dent in your thigh where the muscle used to be. This one might take you off your feet for a while, and you’ll need some serious TLC to get back on track.

How Did This Happen?

So, how does all this quad strain mayhem happen? Well, it can come about in a variety of ways:

• Overexertion: Pushing yourself too hard during exercise or physical activities, like sprinting or weightlifting, can put a strain on those quads.
• Sudden Movements: Abrupt changes in direction, especially when running or playing sports, can cause the muscle fibres to go “uh-oh!” and decide to take a break.
• Weak Muscles: If your quadriceps muscles are weak or imbalanced compared to other leg muscles, they might not handle the workload and could get strained.
• Lack of Warm-up: Skipping the warm-up routine before getting into the action can leave your muscles unprepared and vulnerable to injury.
• Fatigue: Tired muscles are more prone to strains, so it’s essential to listen to your body and not push it beyond its limits.

Bad luck plays into these things too of course. But it’s a good reminder that warming up, listening to your body, using proper form and cooling down properly are essential.

 How Can My Osteopath Help?

Alright, now that we’ve got the lowdown on quadriceps muscle strains and how they happen, let’s talk about what an osteopath can do to lend a helping hand during the healing process.

Osteopaths are like the masters of the musculoskeletal system. They understand how the body works and can work their magic to help you recover from that quad strain:

 Assessment and Diagnosis:

4. First things first, the osteopath will give you a thorough evaluation. They’ll ask about your symptoms, examine the affected area, and might even use imaging tests to get a better look at what’s going on beneath the surface (usually only required for more severe and complex injuries). This will help them determine the grade of your strain and tailor a treatment plan just for you.
5. Manual Therapy:
   Osteopaths are experts in manual therapy techniques, and they’ll use their hands to gently manipulate and mobilise the affected area. This can improve blood flow, reduce muscle tension, and speed up the healing process.
6. Rehabilitation Plan:
   As you move through the recovery stages, the osteopath will develop a tailored rehabilitation plan for you. This might include specific exercises and activities to progressively challenge your quads and get them back in top-notch shape.
7. Prevention Tips:
   To avoid future quad strains, the osteopath will share some valuable prevention tips. These could include additions to your warm-up routine, muscle-strengthening exercises, guidance on how to pace yourself during physical activities and other lifestyle tips like gait adjustment and postural advice.

Remember, every quad strain is unique, and the healing process can vary from person to person. So, don’t rush it! Listen to your body, follow your osteopath’s advice, and give those quads the TLC they deserve.

In no time, you’ll be back on your feet, enjoying life to the fullest, and saying goodbye to those quad strain blues. So, take care, be patient, and let the team at Radius Osteopathic guide you to a full and speedy recovery! Call us for an appointment today on 93794151].

Symptoms of a lumbar disc prolapse vary from mild to severe and can affect the whole body (from the limbs to the bowels, as well as, of course, the back.) It can have a serious impact on your ability to carry out everyday tasks and can be debilitatingly painful. Sometimes its onset is sudden, especially when trauma or injury to the spine causes it. More often though it creeps up on you. In fact, at Radius Osteopathic we’ve treated patients that lived with lower back pain and stiffness for months before they sought treatment!

A Bit of Poetry… Why Not?

Discs bulge, nerves complain,

Lumbar pain brings me such strain,

Osteopathy brings ease again,

Healing hands my spine regain!

Apologies for that little flight of fancy. It’s funny how relief from pain can leave you feeling euphoric (and poetic). Let’s get serious again and think about what’s happening and what we can do about it.

What is Lumbar Disc Prolapse?

Lumbar disc prolapse occurs when the soft, jelly-like centre of a spinal disc in the lower back (the lumbar spine) bulges through a tear in the outer ring of the disc. This can put pressure on nearby nerves, causing pain, numbness, and weakness.

What are the Symptoms of Lumbar Disc Prolapse?

Symptoms of lumbar disc prolapse can vary depending on the severity and location of the affected disc. The most common symptom is lower back pain that radiates down the legs, often accompanied by numbness, tingling, or weakness in the affected areas. Other symptoms may include muscle spasms in the lower back or legs, limited mobility or stiffness in the lower back, and bladder or bowel dysfunction. Yikes.

How is a Lumbar Disc Prolapse Diagnosed?

Your osteopath will take a detailed history of your current symptoms and history at your first appointment. They will conduct a physical examination and perhaps order imaging tests. Not all lower back pain is caused by a lumbar disc prolapse and it’s important that we understand your particular condition. Whether it’s a prolapse or something else causing your symptoms, the right treatment is crucial to prevent further damage to the structures supporting your spinal cord.

Why Has This Happened?

A lumbar disc prolapse can occur as a result of wear and tear on the spine, sudden trauma or injury, or degenerative changes in the spine due to ageing. The condition may also be more common in individuals who perform repetitive bending and lifting movements, and in those who have poor posture or weak abdominal muscles. Some of this might be out of your control, but understanding the link between core strength, healthy posture and mindful movement can help you recover quickly and reduce (or maybe even prevent) future problems.

What Can My Osteopath Do?

Osteopathic treatment for a lumbar disc prolapse might include manual therapy techniques, such as gentle spinal manipulation, soft tissue massage, and stretching exercises. Osteopaths may also provide advice on posture, ergonomic modifications, and exercises to improve strength and flexibility in the lower back and core muscles. In the most severe cases, surgery may be necessary to remove the bulging disc and relieve pressure on the spinal nerves. If that is the case, we can work alongside your orthopaedic team to ready you for and rehabilitate you after surgery (and work with you to make reoccurrence less likely). That all sounds a bit scary – let us assure you that in most cases surgery isn’t necessary: manipulations, postural adjustments, stretching and strengthening exercises can be sufficient to bring you back to healthful, easy movement.

So, if you’re experiencing the symptoms of a Lumbar Disc Prolapse (especially if the symptoms are getting worse over time) call us for an appointment on 93794151. The osteopaths at Radius osteopathic are here to help.

Walking would appear to anyone as being a simple action carried out by many people, every second of every day across the globe. For the average Joe, walking is simple. We learn to walk from a very young age, and then we don’t really have to think about doing it after that… Until something goes wrong with the body. Read on to find out more about the wonderful phenomena that gets us humans around from A to B.

What is gait?

The manner or pattern in which we walk or run is referred to as ‘gait’. This word is pronounced exactly the same as the word ‘gate’. Although it seems a very simple thing to do, and indeed most of us are able to carry out this task with incredible ease, it is possible only through a combination of extremely complex bodily movements. It is something many of us take for granted, unless you have experienced not being able to walk properly, or at all. You can think of gait as a repetitive, controlled fall with a forwards movement in a straight line.

Phases

It is useful to think about gait as a cycle of movements. The human gait cycle starts when the heel of one foot touches the ground, and ends when the same heel touches the ground again. The whole cycle can be broken up into two main phases:

• Stance or support phase: This begins with the heel of one foot hitting the ground, moving through to the whole foot (as it keeps contact with the ground) and ending with the heel lifting off before moving into the…
• Swing phase: This begins when the toes of the same foot lift off the ground, swinging the leg forward before the heel hits the ground again to begin a new cycle.

While one leg moves through the stance phase, the other leg is moving through the swing phase. The whole cycle takes approximately one second in the average adult and results in the forward movement of the body. It gets you from your bed to the toilet first thing in the morning, then to the kitchen, your workplace and finally back to bed again.

Functions of gait

It might seem silly, because the main function of gait is to allow us to move our bodies. But, when broken down, gait comes with many benefits:

1. It provides support to the head, trunk and arms as we move
2. It helps us to keep an upright, balanced posture
3. It allows us to control foot movements, so we can dodge obstacles in our path
4. It creates energy through muscle contraction to begin, maintain and speed up movement
5. The action of the muscles involved provide shock absorption to the many forces acting on the body as we move

What can go wrong?

Our gait can be affected in many ways. Some effects can be serious and devastating, resulting in permanent change to the way you move. A person who experiences a stroke may end up losing function in the muscles that control ankle movement, leading to a ‘drop foot’. This causes the toes to catch the ground as they swing their leg through which can easily lead to a person falling. The neuro-degenerative condition, Parkinson’s Disease, can result in a person having a ‘shuffling gait’, where the feet essentially stay in contact with the ground permanently and the person moves by shuffling or dragging their feet along the ground. This issue, like many other problems that can lead to significant changes in the gait cycle movements, is a huge risk factor for a person falling, and potentially experiencing a life altering injury (i.e. a serious head strike or hip fracture).

Other effects may be less severe and reversible following correct rehabilitation of the problem. A simple knee injury is a good example here. You twist your knee playing basketball and that knee becomes painful. The pain causes you to shift your weight to and favour the other leg, leading to excessive strain on that side of the body. The body will compensate well to keep you moving, even if not in the usual smooth manner. Eventually the knee injury heals, but it is quite possible you will be left with unresolved strains and tensions running up the injured and uninjured sides of the body. And this is why you should always get us on board from the word go!

We can help

Osteopaths are experts in human movement. We know how you should move. We are trained to recognise when things are not quite working properly. And we know how to get you back to your true self. Don’t take a chance on it. A simple injury that is not treated correctly from the beginning can lead to bigger problems down the line. Be smart, seek help from professionals (i.e. us!) and enjoy the fact you can walk unaided or unhindered for years into your future.

Do you have an injury or condition affecting your ability to walk normally? Call us today on 9379 4151 to book an appointment.

Are you experiencing wrist pain or numbness in the fingers and hands that worsens at night? Carpal tunnel syndrome could be to blame. It’s a painful and debilitating condition that causes hand and wrist pain due to pressure on the nerves in the wrist. Read on to learn about carpal tunnel syndrome, what causes it and how it can be managed with the help of osteopathic therapy.

The carpal tunnel

The carpal tunnel refers to the narrow part of the wrist that opens to the hand. The median nerve and flexor tendons run through the carpal tunnel, helping to give feeling and movement to our fingers and thumb. The carpal ligaments and wrist bones surround the carpal tunnel, creating a rigid boundary.

What is carpal tunnel syndrome?

Carpal tunnel syndrome is caused by the tunnel narrowing or the flexor tendons swelling with nowhere to go. This compresses the median nerve and reduces blood flow.

What are the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome?

The most common symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome include:

• Numbness and tingling in the thumb and fingers or palm that can feel like pins and needles.
• Weakness in the muscles of the hands; difficulty gripping things.
• Swollen fingers.
• Nerve pain in your wrist or hand that can be severe.
• Pain that radiates up your arm.

What causes carpal tunnel syndrome?

Inflammation can cause the swelling that compresses the median nerve. A number of conditions can cause this and are linked to carpal tunnel syndrome, including:

• Diabetes
• Thyroid dysfunction
• Fluid retention in pregnancy
• High blood pressure
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Wrist fractures

The condition can be aggravated by repeated motion of the wrist when using a keyboard or mouse, using hand tools or power tools for extended periods of time or overextending the wrist when typing or playing piano.

Why is carpal tunnel syndrome common in pregnancy?

Carpal tunnel syndrome is common in pregnancy, with 3-5 out of every 10 women experiencing the condition. This is because pregnancy hormones promote fluid retention and swelling, and soften the ligaments. This causes the median nerve to be squashed in the carpal tunnel. It’s important to seek treatment to manage your symptoms, as the condition can continue after birth and be exacerbated by lifting and holding your baby in certain positions (e.g. while feeding).

How can osteopathic treatment help?

Osteopathic treatment can help to treat the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. As osteopaths, we will assess your symptoms and come up with an individualised care plan to reduce your symptoms and manage your pain.

Your treatment plan will depend on the symptoms you’re experiencing and may include ice therapy, gentle soft tissue massage, and joint manipulation. Exercises and stretches may be included as part of your treatment. Commonly with carpal tunnel syndrome, it is advised to take regular breaks from repetitive tasks and reduce movement of the wrists. A splint may be used to help with this.

If you fear you’re experiencing carpal tunnel syndrome, come and see us at Radius Osteopathic, Essendon. We are here to help! We will assess your symptoms and come up with a treatment plan to help relieve the pain. Call us on 93794151 or find us at http://www.radiusosteo.com.au to make an appointment.