Reopening clinic and the introduction of The Mummy MOT

It’s been a busy few weeks here at reformPhysio & Pilates. My diary has been getting increasingly busy with online appointments, Pilates classes are filling up and Antenatal Pilates has launched.

I am returning to work at The Little Clinic on Countesswells Road, on Saturday 11th of July. I have prepared my PPE and am screening all patients before appointments, to ensure that face to face appointments are appropriate. You can read more about reformPhysio & Pilates COVID19 policy here. Hopefully I will be able to reintroduce online booking soon.

As well as returning to face to face practice I am now able to offer The Mummy MOT. I had originally been due to complete the training for this in March but coronavirus stopped that. Fortunately the brilliant Mummy MOT team have taken their training online and I spent the weekend improving my knowledge of all things Postnatal Physio. There was some brilliant pelvic floor anatomy, discussions around diastasis and a really tough postnatal rehab session! Many countries in Europe offer postnatal Physiotherapy as standard, so it’s brilliant to be able to offer this excellent service to Aberdeen and shire.

Stay safe and well, remember your face masks If you’re heading to the shops and I look forward to seeing you in the clinic or Pilates class soon.

Laura

Knee Osteoarthritis

Did you know up to 18% of the over 45 population has osteoarthritis of the knee?

Osteoarthritis usually develops slowly and is characterised by periodic flare ups of pain, where pain/swelling may increase.

Physiotherapy has a significant role in the management of flare ups of osteoarthritis. Exercising regularly can significantly impact the symptoms of knee osteoarthritis. Strengthening the muscles of the thigh can reduce some of the load going through the painful knee join, thus decreasing pain/increasing function.

The video below shows three simple exercises that can be carried out at home with no equipment.

Please get in touch if you have any questions, or would like to make an appointment for individualised advice.

Antenatal Pilates

Finally, Antenatal Pilates is here!

I did my training in Antenatal and Postnatal Pilates a good few years ago and have been keen to start an antenatal class ever since. Unfortunately I’ve never been able to find a time that worked, as I had limited evenings that I could get out to work or find available studio space and most antenatal women are working or have children with them through the day.

So, the arrival of COVID-19 and online classes, has had a tiny silver lining after all! As I don’t need to leave the comfort of my own home, I am now able to launch Antenatal Physio led Pilates classes on a Monday evening 7-7.50pm.

During these classes, we will concentrate on maintaining strength, mobility and flexibility as well as improving pelvic floor awareness and strength. It’s also a great way for mums to be to meet each other.

I can’t wait to start these classes on Monday 22nd June.

And a wee note, these classes are open to women anywhere, not just here in Aberdeen. It is wonderful to be able to reach women all over the world with virtual classes.

Covid-19 Service update

I’ve been a little quiet about a return to face:face work. This is because there is just so much to consider, with policies from my professional body, the CSP, and the Scottish government to follow to ensure you are all kept as safe as possible. School being out and a lack of childcare also complicates the planning a little at the moment.

I think we are some weeks away from being able to offer ‘real life’ appointments, but once we get the go ahead, I will be ready! 

There will be a lot of changes to how face:face practice will run, but I will keep you updated with all these practicalities as I plan to reopen. 

My understanding of the current guidance is that virtual appointments should be used as a screening tool for everyone initially & face to face appointments will then be offered if required and once Covid 19 screening is completed. 

If you have any physio concerns, please don’t put them off until we are back to ‘normal’, embrace the virtual appointments as they are going to be with us for a little while.

Online Pilates class bookings

To streamline online booking, Pilates class bookings and payments will be moving here to our website. You can book in now via the ‘Book Online’ tab, for classes starting the week of 8/6/20.

This system will mean classes are easy to find and book on a pay as you go basis. Unfortunately you won’t be able to book multiple classes at a time (yet!).

I’ve attached a video to demonstrate the ease of the new system.

Pelvic floor & Prosecco event

This week saw me run reformPhysio & Pilates’ first online Pelvic floor & Prosecco event. This was something I have had in mind for a long time, probably a couple of years. The original idea was to run a real life evening session where women could be educated on the Pelvic floor and relax with a glass of Prosecco. With the current lockdown, I decided to take the evening online and ran it as a Zoom event.

I told some of my own pelvic health story, followed by a scoot through pelvic floor anatomy, function and dysfunction. We covered areas including incontinence, pelvic pain and prolapse. We talked about when to seek help and who from as well as what actually happens in a women’s health appointment.

We finished up with some pelvic floor and core exercises and a chat about some of the current technologies available to help the pelvic floor.

I really enjoyed the evening and look forward to leading more. If you are interested in attending another event or are part of a group of women that you think would be interested in a personalised event, please get in touch.

Stretching

I hope this update finds everyone safe and well.

It’s been busy here continuing with online Pilates classes and Physiotherapy appointments.

As so many of us have had changes in our routines recently, I decided to post some videos outlining simple lower and upper back stretches along with simple neck stretches, to try and keep people mobile and comfortable. I’ve been amazed at the response to the videos, with over 1.7k views of the back stretching clip.

I’ve put all the videos together for you here, I hope you find them useful.

Laura

We're not stuck in lockdown, we're safe in lockdown

I hope this finds everyone safe and well.

It’s been a challenging few weeks getting used to our new socially distant lives, with many of us working from home and trying to educate our children too.

I’ve been working over the last few weeks to get reformPhysio & Pilates fully operational online.

Pilates

Pilates classes are now successfully up and running (booking here), with four classes a week running on live on Zoom. I love the live aspect of the classes as it still allows me to see everyone, input/correct form and most importantly get a bit of chat! There have been some new faces and the classes have now spread out of Aberdeen. My aim is to try and go international!

Online Physiotherapy

Physiotherapy appointments are also up and running using my usual booking software, with no additional downloads required. There’s great instructions here.

As so many of us are busier in the garden or maybe starting a new form of exercise, injuries and niggles will still happen. Although I can’t offer any hands on treatment, an online Physiotherapy appointment is still a really valuable resource. There appointments will aim to get to the bottom of your problem and provide individualised exercise and advice to get you back up and running.

Ask the Physio

Last week I asked facebook and instagram followers for any requests on specific content they would like to see. I have since been working at putting videos online to meet these topics. My first post was regarding hamstring strength, there will be some foam rolling videos to follow along with calf strengthening advice. Self assessment of RAD has also been posted. Please get in touch with anything else you’d like to see.

Online Physiotherapy appointments

We are now up and running with Online Physiotherapy appointments. All appointments can be booked via the ‘book now’ tab. This will take you into our booking system which supports booking, payment and the running of the video appointment. Once you have booked your appointment you will receive a confirmation email with a link to your online appointment. At the time of your appointment, click that link & we will see you there!

The technology is super simple, no additional apps to download and it works across all platforms.

Online Pilates

This week saw reformPhysio & Pilates trial our first online Pilates class. I decided to use Zoom, to allow me to see and correct class participants. We had a couple of teething issues, which have now been resolved so I am delighted to now roll out weekly classes on a Monday evening.

Classes will be booked on a weekly basis using eventbrite. This gives a little more flexibility as everyone’s circumstances are changing so quickly at the moment.

The first Monday class on 30th April was fully booked within 2 hours! So there is now a poll running on the reformPhysio & Pilates facebook page to gauge interest in other class times/availabilities.

To ensure I conform with my insurance requirements I will be sending out health screening questionnaires before the classes to anyone who has not previously attended.

I look forward to seeing you online soon!

Laura