Arthur Galletly Sports and Remedial Masseur Member of Association of Remedial Masseurs (ARM)
Medibank Private Members' Choice Provider

9 Apus Close
Rockingham

0407 173 320

"Turning aches and pains into smiles"

Preferred by many FIFO and shift workers

Map of Apus Close - click to open larger map

If you want to find someone closer to home, wherever you are in Australia, whether chiro, physio, osteo, remedial masseur etc
check out the website I created just for you:

www.achesnpains.info
Your Medibank Private Members' Choice provider. Rebates from 30+ health funds. With most health funds you just pay the gap fee. EFTPOS available at my clinic and for my mobile service.
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Just dont rub the fur the wrong way

 

I now have a page on

naturaltherapypages.com.au

I paid natural therapies to make it easier to find my details, but I am using my website to make it easier to find me on natural therapies!

Go figure!

I think my hobby databse www.achesnpains.info has just as much potential as natural therapies if the truth be known.

Providers will be included on achesnpains.info only on client recommendation. A bit like tripadvisor. Perhaps I should have called it painadvisor.com instead!

 

And here is the mandatory link to my facebook page (yawn).

 

Opens my facebook page in a new window

And here are some businesses I recommend:

Mesah View Guest House in Vang Vieng, Party Capital of the world, Laos

Donna Lou's Waxing for Men and Women:

Small version of donna's business card

Homes to lease for FIFO or 457 workers

Hi! I'm Arthur Galletly. (That's Scottish for Go Lightly!)

I trade as The Remedial Massage Guy.

I specialise in ache, pain and headache relief and sports massage to prepare athletes to achieve personal bests in races such as the ironman or half ironman etc and to minimise muscle soreness after the race.

The strange thing is that much of the work I do involves craniosacral therapy, but if I called myself The Craniosacral Therapy Guy, I think I would starve!

I am available from 7am to 10pm by appointment at my clinic, at the beach on fine weekends over summer and provide a mobile service in the evenings. My mobile massage Baldivis service is popular in a rapidly growing area without too many qualified practitioners. However I get clients from Bertram, Wellard and the surrounds of Kwinana visiting me at my clinic or requesting mobile massage. As an early riser I dont mind if you phone or text me any time after 6am to make appointments.

I incorporate some cranio sacral therapy in a special routine I developed to relieve and prevent headaches, relieve stress and tension in the neck, shoulder and back.

The routine also incorporates trigger point therapy, PNF stretching, myofascial release, deep tissue and Bowen as required.

Put another way, I don't just do deep tissue massage. Deep tissue massage helps, but it is just one of the many techniques I use to help the body heal itself and rid itself of aches and pains and headaches...

A carpenter doesn't just have a drill or a hammer, but uses a variety of tools, and remedial massage uses a variety of techniques for the best results.

Woah there tigger

I do a lot of work in the side lying position for people with problems with their iliotibial bands (ITBs), knees, compartment syndrome or athletes and cyclists who benefit greatly from work in this position.

Instant health fund rebates are available for most health funds at my clinic and EFTPOS facilities are also available. I use iSOFT HealthPoint. This is a competitor to HICAPS.

I provide services at my clinic, a mobile service, and at the beach in Rockingham.

I believe I am the only practitioner in Australia offering health fund rebates at the beach!!!

I can provide mobile massage in the suburbs of Rockingham, Baldivis, Kwinana etc.

Gift Vouchers are now available!

I am also looking for work on a FIFO basis. I believe large camps should have someone like me working there as so many of my clients are FIFO workers.

Free first treatment for DVA Gold Card holders
between now and May 31 2013

Why?

Because Gold Card holders are covered for all medical expenses except remedial massage, which is often the most appropriate means of ache and pain relief. I have lobbied both sides of parliament on this issue, unsuccessfully so far.

I will be accepting 2 appointments per day, Monday to Friday. If the response over the next year is positive, I will be organising a petition for remedial massage to be included under the gold card scheme. Maybe the government will listen if the Gold Card holders themselves petition for the service!

First treatment half price for serving navy personnel
between now and May 31 2013

Why?

The lads and lassies in the navy do it tough when at sea for long periods of time, sleeping in cramped positions, particularly submariners. They deserve the best treatment, but I am not convinced they get it. The physios at Garden Island are booked out well in advance. I was going to rent a room in the canteen on Garden Island but it was knocked on the head at the last minute.

Also, my son is in the navy. Whilst he puts a great deal into his job and was promoted, he has seen something of the world with his job which he has loved. Also, my father fought in World War II and I feel a bit guilty to have escaped being in the defence forces after the tragedies that befell other generations, although I was in the army cadets in my teens.

Holidays

We are on holiday to Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia July 22 to August 24

Prices

Clinic prices:

Standard consultation 45 minutes $50
One hour $60 ($50 if less than 1 month since previous appointment)
One hour and a half hours $75
Two hours $100

Please note that my prices are less than those directed by Medibank Private Members' Choice.

From April 1 2012, Medibank's Maximum Agreed Prices are:

  • Consultation over 30 minutes up to 60 minutes $77
  • Consultation up to 30 minutes $52


As you can see, my prices are currently considerably less than Medibank's price structure. However my prices haven't changed for a very long time and need go up from September 1st to reflect increasing costs and to help ensure I repay my debts to the banks, preferably whilst I am still living!

So you have a few months to tell your friends and relatives to try me before my prices go up. I will, however be introducing a discount for health card holders and possibly tight tuesdays or happy hours before 11 am, for example, so that overall my prices will still be below Medibank Private's guidelines for Members' Choice providers.

Visiting Service Prices:

Visiting service in the Rockingham Kwinana area

Rocky city and Safety Bay first hour $70

Port Kennedy and Baldivis first hour $75

Kwinana and suburbs first hour $80

Mandurah and suburbs first hour $100

Then $60 per additional hour

I have also created a facebook page which allows clients to provide feedback on my services.

Medibank Private Members's Choice Provider

Medibank Members' Choice Provider

This means that my clinic has been inspected and approved by Medibank Private. It also means that my prices are reasonable and conform to Medibank's price structure for remedial massage ensuring you get the maximum amount of refund.

Why are HBF so ordinary?

Unless you are in the Wellness package or the Ultimate package, HBF do not give rebates for remedial massage. I have advised HBF of my intention to advise their members to complain until they change their mind. Of the 40 different health funds which recognise me, HBF are far and away the worst provider with regards to remedial massage, yet in WA they have the most members.

What do I do?

In terms of ache and pain relief, my services can be viewed as either a complement to, or a natural alternative to, chiropractic or physiotherapy treatment.

There are many types of practitioner dealing with aches, pains and headaches. I have created a website to make it easier to find the type of treatment that suits you best, and by listing the professional assocations, to make it easy to find someone near you. Check out achesnpains.info

I practice at the beach in Churchill Park, Rockingham at weekends, (weather permitting!) and at my private clinic at 9 Apus Close. I believe I am Australia's only outdoor clinic offering Health Fund Rebates.

Do you suffer from Rockingham Syndrome??

Some of the signs and symptoms of Rockingham Syndrome include:

  • You look after your car better than you look after your body
  • You give your car the good oil and eat junk food
  • You service your car but not your body
  • You put up with aches and pains because you are too busy to deal with them but you fix a flat tyre straight away
  • You expect aches and pains to heal themselves like they did when you were 18 and Superman or Superwoman
  • You dont give anything a chance to heal
  • After getting pain relief you dont follow up with a maintenance treatment but wait for the pain to come back
  • You would rather buy a flat screen tv or an electronic gadget or an accessory for the car than spend money on your health

Be honest, how many of these symptoms do you recognise in yourself?

A favourite with FIFO and Shift Workers

I have many FIFO and shift workers as clients because I understand their problems!!! What you are doing is not natural, and can affect your health in many ways, some of which I can help with, namely tight muscles, stress, aches, pains and headaches. Now if only I could get Twiggy Forrest and BHP and Rio Tinto to accept that Occupational Safety and Health means more than Occupational Safety, it also refers to Health. And not just preventing ill health, it should be about promoting good health! If that were the case, then I and others like me would also be working in larges mines looking after the work force. Working 14 hour days for 12 days straight doing repetitive jobs produces aches and pains. Having a massage would give relief and improve worker morale. I'll get off my soap box now, but one day I am hopeful Twiggy or one of his head honchos might stumble across this website and see that what I suggest will also save money!! I would love to work in a large mine. I could be holding my breath for several years though!

Flexible hours (7 days and most evenings) and mobile service

People want to relieve their aches and pains when they are not working! This is pretty obvious, but people are generally more interested in my services in the evenings and at weekends than they are between 9am and 5pm on Monday to Friday. It makes no difference to a FIFO worker on their week off, but some people want a massage in the evening or at weekends and or prefer the convenience of having it at home. The mobile service may not be cheap, but I have to come from Rockingham. You may be able to find someone closer to you from my other website, www.achesnpains.info

Pain relief patches

Lifewave patches distributor

I have patches that relieve pain, help you sleep, increase endurance in sport, lose weight and avoid ageing. I recently had some feedback from Greg in Geraldton when he ordered a new pack of patches, that the relief from his shoulder pain and tennis elbow pain was amazing. The patches are placed on and stimulate acupressure points via electromagnetic waves.

The patches were initially developed for the USA defence forces to give them increased endurance and strength, but pain relieving properties were also discovered. In this capacity they are used by many leading sports people to increase endurance and performance in a game. However the inventor formed his own company and developed variations to provide a variety of solutions to a range of problems.

For more info visit lifewave.com

Lifewave patches do not use drugs to relieve pain. You can think of it in a couple of ways. Sunlight sends waves which produce Vitamin D and gives you a suntan. Also if you have 20 tuning forks, if you set one off, they all start vibrating. The proteins in the patches break down due to your body heat just as when you fry an egg the proteins break down, so the pain patches last for around 12 hours. I have had several clients in pain who I could not help (I am not Jesus!), but the pain patches did the job instead. I am a distributor of these patches.

Insurance / compensation claim prices

Due to the extra time spent on paper work, writing reports, submitting invoices, and costs due to delays in payment, charges are $65 for a standard consultation and $75 per hour for consultations at my clinic.

Appointment Reminders and Cancellation policy

If you like I can send appointment reminders by SMS or email.

Same day cancellations $5 fee unless I fill the vacated time

No shows ie where no notification is given incur a fee of $15.

Services offered:

  • Ache, pain and headache relief

    Relief from:

    • Aches and pains
    • Tradesman's back
    • Whiplash
    • Sciatica
    • Headaches and migraines
    • Frozen shoulder
    • Carpal tunnel syndrome
    • Lower back aches
    • Fibromyalgia
    • Head forward, round shoulders posture
    • Tingling and numbness
    • Peripheral neuralgia
    • Tennis / golfer's elbow
    • Etc

  • Sports / Deep Tissue

  • Relaxing Massage (Swedish / Hawaiian)

  • Pregnancy Massage

  • Massage parties. Everyone gets a turn at the following: craniosacral therapy, chair massage, deep tissue massage with ache and pain relief. Can do it in a room or by the pool with a gazebo set up for your comfort. I have done a few of these now.

  • 2 Hour Deep tissue massage

    - like you service your car, but this is to tune up and tone up your body for better performance in all aspects of your life, at work and at play, in sports or the bedroom. Includes:

    I have trialled this product on the world's elite athletes at the 2007 Ironman event in Busselton with proven results. If it can produce dramatic results such as slashing 45 minutes off course records in elite athletes, imagine what it can also do as a body tune up for the average person! Definitely performance enhancing! This includes:

    • Deep tissue massage

    • Postural assessment and correction

    • PNF stretching

    • Craniosacral therapy

    • Trigger Point Therapy

    • Myofascial release

    • Positional release

    • Reflexology

    The two hour remedial massage proved popular with readers of the Nova Health Magazine when I advertised there. I have had people driving long distances to my Rockingham clinic to avail themselves of the service, and I have had several call outs to Perth. No one else is offering a 2 hour deep tissue massage. I started it because often in an hour I am dealing with symptoms. I am interested in long term solutions so people dont have to keep paying for treatment. My philosophy includes giving people homework to do in terms of dealing with trigger points themselves, and stretching and strengthening exercises to improve posture. I may lose in the short term, but the number of referrals I get helps my business to grow in other ways!

    Health Fund Rebates apply

    My services now attract rebates from over 30 health funds!


    Arthur at home

    Arthur at the beach
    Painting by Joe Fairley of the Rockingham foreshore, with my massage gazebo in the centre!
    The painting hangs in my clinic.

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    Health Fund Rebates

    My services are recognized by 39 health funds and the list is growing all the time.

    Rebates are available from the following health funds:

    • HBF (Wellness program)
    • Bupa, formerly MBF
    • nib
    • SGIO
    • Medibank Private
    • HBA, now Bupa used to cover all these
    • Mutual Community
    • Bank SA
    • BUPA Australia OSHC
    • ANZ Health Insurance
    • St George Health Protect
    • HealthCover Direct
    • Cardmember Health Insurance Plan
    • ACA Health Benefits Fund
    • Cessnock District Health Benefits Fund
    • Credicare
    • Defence Health Partners
    • Federation Health
    • GMHBA (Geelong Medical)
    • HIF (Health Insurance Fund of WA)
    • Latrobe Health Services
    • Lysaght Peoplecare
    • M.D.H.F (Mildura District Hospital Fund)
    • Naval Health Benefits Society
    • Police Health Fund
    • Phoenix Welfare
    • Queensland Teachers Union Health
    • Reserve Bank Health Society
    • St. Luke's Health
    • Teachers Federation
    • Transport Health (VIC)
    • U.A.O.D.F.S. United Ancient Order of Druids
    • Westfund
    • Manchester Unity
    • AHM Australian Health Management
    • Australian Unity
    • HCF

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    Mission statement

    • To treat every client as the most important client I will ever have
    • To provide the kind of service I wish I could avail myself of. (Unfortunately I can't find anyone locally who provides a similar service, charges similar prices and offers instant health fund rebates!)
    • To provide accessible, cost-effective relief from aches, pains, headaches, whiplash, restricted movement, tight muscles, sports injuries, etc.
    • To give people homework to do in the form of stretches and exercises so they can stay healthy and flexible with minimal healthcare maintenance
    • To provide affordable sports / deep tissue or relaxing massages
    • To provide a remedial massage service at Churchill Park in Palm Beach for visitors and locals alike
    • To lobby to have GST removed from remedial massage!
    • To try to continually update my skills and knowledge

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    Problems I can help with at the beach or my clinic

    iPad neck

    From spending too long looking down, puts tension in muscles in neck, shoulder and back to support the head

    The scary thing is that in a couple of years I will have clients aged nine suffering from iPad neck.

    Frozen shoulder

    ..restricted arm movement, can be due to tight muscles or bursitis, impingement at the acromion process or other injury. If due to tight muscles I get excellent results. If due to injury then some improvement is likely to be the result. Takes time to work on all the muscles that attach to the shoulder!

    Carpal tunnel syndrome

    Sadly many people have operations when tight forearm muscles are the original cause. Involves working the forearm and wrist in a detailed systematic way

    Arm nerve pain

    The problem is that the nerve can be pinched in a variety of places and in more than one place, causing pain, tingling, pins and needles or numbness. Arm nerve problems are as difficult to treat as sciatica, but I have had plenty of good results.

    RSI Forearms

    RSI - Repetitive Strain injury (these days known as Overuse Injury) can happen to people bashing away at computers. Deep tissue and trigger points really get to the crux of the matter before you get carpal tunnel syndrome.

    Relaxing forearms and hands

    Oil based work on the forearms and hands, and upper arms if you wish. When did you last reward your hands? Consider how much they do for you!

    Lower back ache relief

    Tradesmen's back I call this, people bending over all day, resulting in a dull ache across the lower back. This routing includes some stretches for homework to keep the problem at bay

    Lower back pain

    This is much trickier than lower back aches as there can be a whole host of causes including prolapsed disks and nerve pain, damaged vertebrae and so on so takes rather longer.

    Sciatica

    There are generally three places where the sciatic nerve is trapped and remedial massage seems to be more effective than physiotherapy or chiropractic work in the relief of this condition. I have worked on a number of people who have been in pain for many years who have been astounded at the relief they got from me in just one treatment! A lady still drives down from Perth once every six months or so when the problem starts to recur, and she had been in pain for over 20 years.

    Pecs, posture and breathing

    This improves breathing, loosens the pectoral muscles and gets the shoulders back. If you are hunched over a hot computer all day, this is the one for you!

    Deep tissue for legs

    Hamstrings, calves and quadriceps includes stretching and trigger point therapy. ITB work a speciality Great for sports people.

    Reflexology

    A really nice foot pamper with the added benefits of working on other parts of the body at the same time

    Calves and feet

    For people on their feet all day it can be tiring particularly on the feet and calf muscles. Doesn't spend as much time on the feet as reflexology, but does deep tissue and trigger point therapy on the calf muscles

    Leg length discrepancies

    Sometimes the bones are of different lengths in which I can't help! However, often tight muscles are responsible for hiking a hip up one side or rotating the hip forward or back, in which case I can help. Use some Bowen techniques among others.

    TMJ dysfunction

    Temporomandibular joint, basically means you have jaw problems. A little bit tricky to fix as it has two joints. Uses craniosacral therapy

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    Pool / Massage parties

    I have a gazebo, massage chair and massage table so everyone can sample several different techniques - craniosacral therapy (relieves trigger points in neck and improves the head's range of motion and relieves headaches and shoulder tension, sunscreen massage, chair massage, deep tissue massage etc. Could be interesting working with a beautician doing manicures and pedicures at the same time - much cheaper than you all going to day spas!

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    Arthur's background

    Arthur was formerly a TAFE lecturer in IT (for 15 years!, having previously worked for multinational computer companies in the UK), specialising in databases and information systems. Arthur suffered from scoliosis. He was in a great deal of pain, but was only ever able to get temporary relief until he tried remedial massage. The results were such a dramatic improvement that Arthur could do all sorts of activities he couldn't do before. So impressed with the improvement in his quality of life, Arthur decided to make a career as a Sports and Remedial Masseur, and trained with Barry Harwood, Australian College of Myopractic, Central TAFE, Perth Academy of Natural Therapies and the Upledger Institute. Arthur has special interests in fibromyalgia and carpal tunnel syndrome.

    Arthur is proud to be the first person to gain a Diploma of Sports and Remedial Massage from Barry Harwood. Barry is an accredited teacher of the Association of Remedial Masseurs and has been teaching remedial massage and kinesiology for over 20 years. With a TAFE Diploma of Remedial Massage to boot, it means Arthur is better qualified than most masseurs.

    Arthur was masseur at the Rockingham Rugby Union Football Club for 3 years. The players, over those three seasons, gave me plenty of experience of working with sporting injuries! This was a vital part of my training. I thank the Rugby Club for the opportunity to develop and hone my skills.

    Likewise Arthur loves his office at the beach. This consists of a gazebo, massage table and massage chair at Churchill Park opposite Lu Lu's and The Merchant Cafe or the Gelateria depending on the wind and heat! I operate there at weekends and public holidays weather permitting until the end of summer. As I am on my 10th gazebo (they fall apart in the wind), I am unable to work in strong winds. Likewise if it is above 40 degrees I get too dehydrated, as I discovered on Australia Day 2012...

    Arthur is a member of the Association of Remedial Masseurs (ARM).

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    So what is remedial massage?

    I think it is safe to say that remedial massage is the most misunderstood branch of the healthcare profession. The politicians certainly don't understand it, otherwise it wouldn't be the only branch of the healthcare industry attracting GST. Why a visit to a chiropractor or physiotherapist does not attract GST whilst a visit to a remedial masseur does attract GST is a mystery to me, and something I intend eventually to lobby to have changed.

    When studying for the Diploma of Remedial Massage at TAFE I could not get an answer from any of the lecturers I asked when I requested a definition of remedial massage. In my Medical Dictionary, a thick tome, remedial massage does not warrant a mention. So here then is my definition:

    Remedial Massage is a holistic treatment; that is, a treatment for the whole of the body, as well as the area being treated. The primary aim of Remedial Massage is to find and treat the cause of the disorder, not only the symptoms, and that can mean correcting your body posture by stretching dominant muscles and exercising weak muscles.
    Remedial massage can afford relief from:

    • aches and pains
    • headaches and migraines
    • bad posture and its related problems
    • scoliosis
    • kyphosis or lordosis
    • breathing difficulties / asthma
    • jetlag
    • tight or stressed muscles
    • restricted movement
    • stiff or sore neck
    • frozen shoulder
    • tennis elbow or golfer's elbow
    • lower back and hip pain
    • sciatica - nerve pain in leg, if caused by tight muscles
    • short leg syndrome
    • jaw problems
    • dysmenorrhea (period pains)
    • fibromyalgia
    • chronic fatigue syndrome
    • swollen joints and post operation
    • pain in pregnancy
    • post natal depression
    • pain caused by organs being compressed such as kidneys, gallbladder, spleen, liver, pancreas, stomach, intestines, bladder, ovaries

    For further details of these and other conditionsk use the link Can massage help your condition?

    A remedial massage therapist studies anatomy, physiology, pathology and many techniques such as:

    • PNF Stretching to improve range of motion
    • Myofascial release
    • Trigger point therapy
    • Myopractic (a variation of Bowen)
    • Deep tisssue / sports massage
    • Cross fibre friction
    • Swedish Massage
    • Neck, back and shoulder massages
    • Craniosacral therapy - head, spine to sacrum
    • Manual Lymphatic Drainage to ease swelling
    • Counterstrain - a pain free method of loosening tight muscles
    • Acupressure techniques based on the Chinese approach to the Meridians
    • Reflexology - foot massage
    • Muscle Energy Technique - used to correct scoliosis for example

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    So why is there GST on remedial massage?

    I am fighting a campaign to have GST dropped from remedial massage. It is the only branch of the healthcare industry which attracts GST whilst remedial masseurs are also the lowest paid health care workers. It makes no sense when chiros and physios dont pay GST and charge a lot more.

    My letter to the treasurer Wayne Swan proved that he has even less understanding of the benefits of remedial massage than Peter Costello. However, in the 2020 summit they announced proposals for, guess what, a national agengy for preventative health issues! I'd say it is impossible to find anything that helps prevent health problems than regular remedial massage. Accordingly, I have taken up the issue with Kevin Rudd and the Health Minister Nicola Roxon to regulate the massage industry properly and drop the GST. The GST drives the industry underground, forces remedial masseurs to work part time or to leave the industry. Few remedial masseurs gross the average wage of $60,000, and you have all your expenses of towels, heating, oils, advertising etc to take off. If you gross $60,000 you have to pay $6,000 GST. If you gross below $50,000 then you pay no GST. I rest my case, but it seems that politicians are incapable of grasping the simplest ideas, and it also seems that none of them has discovered the benefits of remedial massage.

    I also lobbied the Department of Veterans Affairs to allow Gold Card holders to have remedial massage expenses covered. Gold Card holders are entitled to free health care with the notable exception of remedial massage! I received feedback from the Department that this is under consideration and that the matter had also been raised by the AAMT (Australian Assocaition of Massage Therapists).

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    Secret men's business

    Well the truth is that there aren't that many secrets for men! Men do not have to endure anything like the suffering that women do. Men who stretch and exercise regularly and don't sit on their wallets (which can cause sciatica) are likely to be the picture of health. The reality is that men who have finished with sport tend to stretch less than ladies. Guys tend to shy away from yoga and pilates classes for example. Often lower back pain is due simply to tight muscles in need of a good stretch. A good stretch of the glutes and the psoas muscles often provides relief from lower back pain. I have had a few male clients with sciatic nerve pain caused by years of sitting on their wallets, so guys, wise up on this one!

    Wallets and back pockets don't mix

    Sitting on a wallet for years whilst driving, sitting at a puta or couch potatoing squashes the sciatic nerve until one day you experience nerve pain in the leg.

    Get into and out of a car like a lady with a miniskirt on

    Ladies know how to get into and out of cars properly as a result of wearing skirts, ie both legs together. Guys need to do this too to avoid muscle damage!

    Benign prostatic hyperplasia

    The majority of men eventually end up with this problem sooner or later, generally starting in their fifties. The prostate glands enlarge and the urinary flow is restricted. You urinate smaller amounts, the flow is not as strong, and you have to urinate much more frequently, often in the night. You can turn the tide on this using herbs such as Saw Palmetto or Pygeum. Chemists and health stores stock products containing both, such as Prostate Eze.

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    Secret women's business

    The things we do! Ladies, you look great in high heels, but the truth is that pointy shoes and high heels are likely to cause grief later in life, requiring treatment from the likes of me. Shoulder bags cause you to hike your shoulder to prevent the shoulder bag slipping off. This causes trigger points in muscles such as the upper trapezius and levator scapulae. Trigger points in the upper trapezius refer pain to the back of the neck. This stimulates the development of trigger points in the suboccipital muscles, and these in turn can cause headaches. All this just from a shoulder bag!

    The fact is that women cop a lot more pain than men do. Women suffer a lot more than men do from fibromyalgia, autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, and the list just goes on and on... did I mention headaches already?

    On the subject of headaches, I find that a craniosacral technique helps relieve headaches in many cases, a service I provide at the beachfront.

    Preventing breast cancer

    The government's emphasis is on using mammograms when you are 50 plus to DETECT cancer. Alas, it does very little to promote PREVENTING breast cancer!

    Breast cancer is a disease that has only developed since women started wearing bras. Bras constrict the breast and reduces the flow of lymph. Blood is pumped out from the heart via arteries, and carries nutrients to every cell in the body. It returns in the form of blood (via the veins) and lymph, via the lymphatic system of lymph vessels and lymph nodes. The lymphatic system is like a railway system with stations and trains. Lymph is the liquid which returns toxic wastes, via lymphatic vessels, to the nearest lymph nodes for processing. Most lymphatic vessels are very close to the surface of the skin, so any tight clothing restricts the flow of lymph. The build up of lymph in the breast means that toxic waste accumulates in the breast over a period of years, resulting in breast cancer. You can do yourself a huge favour by regularly draining this lymph when you have a shower. And if this sounds an improbable way to prevent breast cancer, just ask yourself how many men get breast cancer?

    Self massage: Breast lymphatic drainage

    You can perform lymphatic drainage of your breasts every time you have a shower. Do this every day and you will significantly reduce your chances of contracting breast cancer. Using your hands, properly draped, I can show you how, in a none invasive way, or simply explain what to do, by demonstrating the lightness of touch required on another part of the body. Alternatively, get the DVD, entitled Therapeutic Breast Massage, from Terra Rosa.

    Basically, these techniques should be being taught to girls in high school. Hello? Are the Ministers for Health or Education listening? Is there anyone out there?! Throw a little more money at prevention rather than just the cure, the results will be far more satisfactory!

    Baby massage

    There is a DVD available from Terra Rosa so you can learn to massage your baby. I have a number of these in stock at $20 each

    Fibromyalgia

    As stated above, significantly more women suffer from fibromyalgia than men. Often it is caused by physical or emotional trauma which then results is some chemical imbalances so that muscles do not function optimally, resulting in trigger points, pain, and in many cases, insomnia. Some supplements are worth trying. Another is endep (amytriptiline). This prescription drug in larger doses is an antidepressant. In small doses it acts as a muscle relaxant and helps improve sleep. One of my clients heeded this suggestion of mine, went to her GP and tried endep, and got immediate relief from the pain and insomnia of fibromyalgia and now I see her about once a year.

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    A manifesto for mainstreaming remedial massage

    This is an article published by the Association of Remedial Masseurs in their quarterly journal. It resulted in a hostile reaction from some quarters who dont want to see the standards / barriers to entry to the industry raised. However, I see it as the only way forward for the industry in terms of remedial massage earning the respect of the general public and the healthcare industry at large, and in terms of remedial masseurs being able to earn a competitive salary. Here is the article:

    Remedial massage isn't an alternative or complementary therapy. It is the most mainstream health care you can possibly get! I take that as my starting point and wish to paint a case for going about improving our lot as remedial masseurs.

    Firstly, there is GST on remedial massage. Chiropractors, doctors, physiotherapists don't pay GST. All the GST does is drive our industry underground or force masseurs to work part time and work in another occupation. Why should we be operating from spare bedrooms while the chiros operate from the choice corner blocks with free 24/7 advertising? We clearly need to lobby the Treasurer and Health Minister of the incoming Government to have the GST removed.

    Next: The health funds don't understand the benefits of remedial massage. You often have to have additional cover to get rebates for remedial massage, whereas chiro and physio are covered in more basic packages. Remedial massage would save the health funds and their members a fortune if it were covered in basic packages, as members would increasingly turn to remedial massage which is cheaper and more effective than chiros and physios for many aches, pains and headaches. We clearly need to lobby the health funds and incoming Health Minister on this matter.

    Next: The massage industry is completely unregulated. In the US they have LMTs, Licenced Massage Therapists, so the consumer knows where they stand. Here anyone can advertise massage services, so we are up against people who have done a weekend Swedish course, often on centrelink payments who advertise massages for cheap rates, undermining the industry. We need to lobby for regulation of the industry.

    Next: Remedial massage training is insufficient and does not cover a wide enough range of techniques. In my view Remedial massage should be a four year course, probably at University rather than TAFE or other providers. At the moment a Diploma of Remedial Massage is not an end point, it is a starting point. We also have the problem that some providers offer a Diploma of Remedial Massage in just one year.

    I studied with four providers, Barry Harwood, the Australian College of Myopractic, Central TAFE and the Perth Academy of Natural Therapies, so I think my comments about training in general have validity. The problems I see from the learning of techniques point of view is that typically a lecturer demonstrates a technique on a student, then students pair off and practice on each other. Most students don't know what it is supposed to feel like, and the students don't get to work on the teacher. There are also so many techniques that are not included in the Diploma of Remedial Massage that would be covered in a four year course, such as Positional Release / Counterstrain / Orthobionomy, Bowen or Myopractic, Craniosacral therapy, Acupressure, intro to chiropractic and physiotherapy, kinesiology and acupressure, tui na, intros to rolfing, touch for health etc. Release of nerve entrapment is a must. Nerve mobilization, a DVD from Real Body Work is most helpful in relieving nerve issues in the arms for example. The course I attended covered the upper limb tension tests, but failed to adequately address how to relieve the problems you encounter during the tests. Counselling and psychology could also be included. More should also be included on stretching and strengthening. More on postural corrections for head forward, scoliosis etc is an absolute must. Marketing is also a must! I would also envisage much more detailed knowledge of anatomy and physiology, nutrition, pathology, medical terminology, than is currently required, even a course in Latin. Students would be required to spend hundreds of hours simply reading their medical dictionaries with a test from a random page from the dictionary. We need to be able to speak to doctors on their level to gain their respect. Sports massage should be much more prominent. Some courses require you to work 30 or 50 hours at a sports club with a log book in an unsupervised capacity. This is woeful! You should be supervised initially, to deal with sports injuries. I have spent three years working at Rockingham Rugby Union Football Club for three seasons, and it has been a great learning experience. On match days I do warm ups and warm downs and treat injured players when not busy, and on training nights I deal with the injuries they sustain during the games.

    Clinics I have a problem with also. Typically the clientele are massage junkies who like regular, cheap massages, and are used to Swedish massages given by first year students. There simply isn't much in the way of remedial massage happening. The procedure is for a full body massage, half hour face down, half hour face up, without doing postural assessment. The clients don't want the postural assessment to eat into their massage time, they just want to hop onto the table! This is not how the real world works or should work. I don't ask clients to remove clothing unless it is warranted, as I often assess mid treatment to ask them to walk around, sit down, stand up etc to see if the pain has eased. The third and fourth year students should be operating a centre of excellence dealing with people with real injuries, sciatica, frozen shoulder, car accidents, workers compensation etc which charge top dollar and have a teacher supervising only a handful of students.

    More use should be made of DVDs in courses. I have a library of DVDs, many from Real Body Work which I got from amazon.com and the australian website, terra rosa (Terrarosa.com.au), which I view over and over when I am not working. These will all end up as downloadable videos over the internet in the not too distant future I am sure. They help you keep up to date, and I believe that you should be able to cover 10 or 15 of your CPE points simply by purchasing DVDs as a separate issue from books.

    Students who have finished such a four year course would have no problem making a career from remedial massage. As matters stand, I know many who have completed their Diploma but have switched jobs because they cannot make a living from remedial massage. Most remedial masseurs earn less than the average wage. Why? This manifesto aims to correct this in the long run.

    Next: Naming. I am a remedial masseur. I am most certainly not a massage therapist! That is my main reason for being a member of ARM rather than AAMT. To me a massage therapist is someone who has completed a level four Certificate in Remedial Massage.

    Next: Veterans. Veterans get free health cover for everything. Everything except remedial massage that is. I recently got a reply from the Minister of Veteran Affairs that AAMT has put forward a proposal to have their members services recognised. I have requested that ARM follow suit.

    Lastly: We need to create a better definition for remedial massage, as no one has ever been able to give me a definition I have been satisfied with. Once we can do that, we can start promoting it to the general public, for this is what we must surely do to ensure a successful career.

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    Need a good electrician?

    Good electricians who are affordable are like hens teeth. I recently googled electrician 24 hours Rockingham, dialled for a call out, and for 20 minutes work was billed $385 by BT Electrical of Kardinya! That'll teach me to assume that what you are searching for is what you get. It shows how people are happy to trespass into other suburbs and rip people off akin to The Sting as they know they wont be used again. The sensation I felt was similar to being burgled legally.

    So that is my tale about electricians, and if I find a really good electrician with affordable prices, they will be mentioned here...

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