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Sunday 23 October 2011

getter smarter

well, I finally got myself a smart phone - I'd been wondering about it for a while, but having difficulty deciding on whether to or not, and if so, which one, what contract etc...

iPhone, Android, Blackberry - 3GS, iPhone 4, Desire, Wildfire, Desire S, Incredible, Sensation, Torch - were names buzzing through my head; and then trying to figure out what 'pay as you go' means - didn't seem to quite mean what 'pay as you go' meant to me with my old phone (buy it, pay a tenner from time to time - segued into pay a monthly 'add on' if you want internet access, what about insurance? - if your phone is stolen the thief could run up a £5000 bill for which you would be liable -

I was catalysed by going for a walk in the rain with my old phone, which gave up altogether, losing my old messages, and refusing to take any more calls; and the development of an App by a colleague for a conference with which I was involved.

aaand, I am beginning to get the hang of my new phone - I felt mentally exhausted after I had 'gone for it' - but it is really amazing, - the way the messages come through; the clarity of the sound (very important to me - 3GS was one of only two phones (the other one being the HTC Desire) which Which gave 4 stars to for sound quality); and having email sliding through.

wow.

Tuesday 5 July 2011

a bit of summer fun - chi kung and frisbee

Well, it was fun, actually! - even if not super sunny, it was warm enough, and even the occasional rain drops felt quite nice.  We did some do-in and some chi kung walking around the lovely green (if a bit noisy, well this is Milton Keynes) space.  A bit of a chi kung Water stand, and then some frisbee.
fab.
come along
c.

Thursday 26 May 2011

here, catch! - exercises...diet... lifestyle

I've been re-visiting the thinking on how useful exercises are shared and learned.  In part, this has been catalysed by my own health (sciatic?) issues of late.

How do we know which are good exercises?  Why do different practitioners recommend different things?  How far do service users actually learn from the exercises to do?  Should one build on what the client already knows or offer something that the practitioner is more familiar with?

What I notice for me, is that when I am 'sick' I'm particularly unreceptive to learning something 'new'.  It simply can be hard to get a proper grasp of.  So, for me, it feels helpful to build on what I already have and am familiar with.  Also, I don't really feel I want to do anything too painful, and some exercises are outside my present repertoire, so it's a question of finding something lesser that is still relevant.

As a practitioner, I have offered regularly classes so that people can come in and join in, with time put aside, and good amounts of space to do the exercises in.  I have also written up some exercises individually or as sequences for clients to refer to.  Occasionally, I refer to where they are written up in books.  I have pondered having a recommendation list for after a session - might only have one thing on after a session.  But never really actioned this.  As a client, I can see, if handled sensitively this could be helpful - including e.g. amount of time, or frequency to do.  This can otherwise feel a bit too open to interpretation.  Are we talking e.g. 3 hours a day, or half an hour, or even 5 minutes?

allfornow,
feel free to add any thoughts and views you have on this topic.

(Although I have focused on exercise, I think this can be relevant to e.g. discussions on diet and lifestyle, with perhaps particular focus on implications for each - perhaps better address these on a new thread.

allfornow (again).
c.

Friday 20 May 2011

warm blankets - tip

In my quest for pain relief and health, I visited senior shiatsu practitioner, Teresa Hadland (http://www.teresahadland.co.uk/index.html).  She is clearly very experienced and knowledgeable in her use of shiatsu to help her clients, such as myself.  Thanks, Teresa.

Also, I noticed again in this my second treatment with her, her use of warm blankets through the treatment.  It really feels nurturing, and will try to remember this, and find a way to include it in my own treatments.

Sunday 8 May 2011

professionalisation and regulation

I managed to get to the CAMBRA conference in Birmingham last week, despite the pain in my legs/back thankfully.

It was a really interesting and pleasant event.  What a pleasure to have pleasant accommodation, welcoming people, interesting company, and stimulating talks and discussions through the following day.

Two points that stuck in my mind were:

1. (Professor) Julie Stone is so interesting in her view of professionalisation and regulation.  She reminded us that actually the present situation is not so bad.  And suggested that the recent years of professionalisation and regulation have perhaps led to 'us' losing our original passion and radicalism.  Perhaps we need to revisit and recapture some of this?  It was memorable her talking about leading her first yoga class where she worried one of the participants had died.  Brilliant honesty, and food for thought.

2.  Heather Boon made the observation as we discussed research that we should do research that supports ourselves as practitioners, not just research tactically designed to impress the medics (and which probably inevitably will never be considered 'sufficient').  Right on, Heather.

cheers folks
keep hoping the leg/back will improve - it has, but today I stayed inside all day in a sluggish kind of way.
crossed fingers.
catherine.

Tuesday 3 May 2011

home visits

It came strongly home to me 10 days ago when I sustained some kind of back injury, and was pretty much unable to walk - feeling of knives when I tried, and dizziness - how lacking we are in having home visits easily given by health care professionals.

There seems little point, and it is very difficult to arrange transport, in moving painfully somewhere for a professional to assess.  Of course, there may be machines that could be useful.  But I could scarcely stand up, and ringing round was told of forms to be completed and interviews to be had, which I was simply not up to.

Thankfully, and luckily, I contacted an old (brief) colleague who was able to come round that evening, and gave me an immediate treatment without lots of form filling (well, there was one form).  And then another treatment on last Bank Holiday wedding Friday.  He says he just builds treatments into his life, because this flexibility is essential for his (osteopath trained - pain/injury) work.  Thanks, John (http://johnperrott.com/).

I tend to avoid home visits as a shiatsu practitioner because I tend to find spaces too small, and lots of lugging futons through difficult places.  Perhaps I need to reflect again on this, though I'm not really a 'fixer' in my practice.

I also tend to follow a pre-booked schedule because I find it works better for me to plan.  So, what happens to people (like me sometimes) who want a shiatsu, and want it now - perhaps because they realise they need it, or the space opens up in a way that couldn't have been predicted.

nufffornow.
c.

hello folks

this is my first bloggy attempt, so I'll be on a learning curve.


This blog is a place where I plan to ponder issues coming up for me relevant to health care practice - as practitioner, user and onlooker - and related issues.


Do feel free to add your comments but I just ask that we try to preserve good netiquette and comment supportively and politely, even if critically, at all times.


cheers,
c.