Here at the Monkton Farleigh Osteopathic Practice Katie and Lucy offer modern/medical acupuncture as an adjunct to their Osteopathic treatment. We consider it another tool in our tool box to help repair the musculoskeletal system and resume full function and health. There is some confusion amongst patients as to what acupuncture is and how modern/medical acupuncture […]

Reported in the latest edition of ‘The Week’ is the first robust physical evidence that ME is a biological illness and not a psychological disorder or ‘yuppie flu’! A team at Columbia University looked at the immune systems of 298 sufferers and noted distinct patterns in their immune biomarkers. In particular they had raised concentrations […]

Modern day sedentary lifestyles include lots of sitting at computer screens which can bring about poor head and neck posture. This can result in muscular fatigue and neck and shoulder pain.

Try this exercise to learn to lengthen the back of the neck:

Lie on your back with the hips and knees bent. You […]

The muscles around the shoulder blades connect the arm to the body. A good shoulder blade position is important for the muscles of the arms and neck to work properly and in balance. We often see patients at the Monkton Farleigh Osteopathic Practice that overuse […]

In an ideal posture the ribcage should be positioned over the pelvis. People are prone to flaring the ribcage forwards which can tighten the muscles at the back leading to stiffness or discomfort.

Try the following exercise to become aware of the position of your ribcage:

Lie on your back with the hips and knees […]

You will often hear pilates teachers referring to the ‘centre’ or the ‘core’. In reality this consists of three postural muscles that should work together to form a natural girdle of support around the low back, abdomen and pelvic floor. If this system is failing then we are more prone to low back pain.

Research […]

Many of us do not use our full lung capacity and deny ourselves the benefits of correct breathing. The aim in Pilates is to improve the mechanics and the depth of breathing, which is essential to oxygenate the blood and remove waste products. When we inhale the lower rib cage should expand upwards and outwards […]

The Pilates method is recently being used more and more in the rehabilitation setting. Traditional exercises can be broken down and made suitable for those who are recovering from injuries, and then can be progressed until full fitness and healthy movement is achieved. There is increasing evidence that rehabilitation using pilates can increase the stability […]