PhysioFunc -Who and Why...

Hi!

In my first post, I thought I would introduce myself, and outline what my goals an hopes are for this blog.

PhysioFunc stems from my belief that we cannot improve patient function without introducing them to total body functional movements as early as possible in their care. The human body is a system made up of a series of inter-linking joints, parts, scaffolding, muscles, tendons, winches, and pulleys, and it is ludicrous to believe that we can treat one area in isolation from another. The human body needs to be viewed as a whole, and treated as a whole unit, for any sort of significant improvements to be made.

Secondly, I am tired of hearing of friends and families going to see physiotherapists for repeated, continuous treatments to 'sort out their back/shoulder/knee pain' which involve something that sounds very similar to a spa treatment, and costs considerably more. I am in the business of repairing the human body, not masking over the symptoms for weeks on end, waiting for mother nature to do my work for me, and heal the patient... This usually involves Work for both the patient and myself: it might be uncomfortable, it might be difficult, but we're not afraid of this, because we're in the business of Results - not an aromatherapy spa day.

Lastly, I just lied. I'm not strictly in the business of repairing people. In fact, I try to avoid this business as much as possible. I truly believe that pre-habilitation is much more important than rehabilitation. Muscle imbalances, inflexibility, and poor proprioception all hamper athletic performance, are directly linked with sustaining injuries. By identifying these issues, and fixing them before they become a problem, you can avoid injury, improve quality of life as you get older, and become better athletes (if that's your bag, baby...)

Who am I? I'm a physiotherapist, graduated out of King's College London. I also have a degree in Sport and Exercise Science from the University of Limerick, in Ireland. I am a Level 1 Crossfit Coach, and spend a lot of my time coaching and training and rehabilitating athletes in Crossfit Central London. Lastly, I am working for Crystal Palace Football Club, a Championship level football team here in London, as an Academy physiotherapist.

Through this blog, I hope to provide meaningful articles on treatment plans for various ailments and injuries I come across through my work, as well as an new research or interesting articles I come across in my reading. I welcome all/any feedback and discussion about anything I post on this blog. Feel free to contact me in the comments section, or through Twitter: @declanhalpin

Thanks for reading, hope to hear from you soon!