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4 Things We Do Everyday That Cause Neck Pain …(And What You Can Do Ease It Quick!)

Apr 23, 2021

4 Things We Do Everyday That Cause Neck Pain
…(And What You Can Do Ease It Quick!)

When you sleep at
night, do you find yourself sleeping on your stomach? Or with more than one
pillow in a twisted position?

When you’re relaxing
at home, do you find yourself looking up at the TV screen with your chin poking
up and forward?

When you’re out and
about do you carry your bag on one shoulder? Or hold your heavy brief case in
one hand?

Do you ever suffer
from stress or anxiety?

Chances are, you’ve
answered ‘yes’ to at least one of these questions.

I may be wrong, your
bag might not be heavy, and you might sleep with just the one pillow, but the
reason why I guessed you’d answered ‘yes’ to one of these questions is because
over the years, almost every patient that walks into my clinic who has been
suffering with neck pain, has been doing one of these things.

So it’s no surprise
that during my time as a Physio that one of the most regular injuries I see is

‘neck
pain’.

And without even
realising it, things that we do every day can cause it.

So let’s take a look
4 of the most common everyday mistakes I’ve found my patients doing that cause
their ‘neck pain’…

1. Watching TV

Watching TV is a
habit – not saying it’s good or bad! But the real issue with watching TV,
is

HOW you watch it!

Are you doing it the
way I see most of my friends and family watch it… With the TV hung above the
fire place high on the wall, kicked back with your feet up (and neck!), while
watching your favourite TV soap opera?

Even though you might
think it’s comfortable and relaxing, truth is, there could be a problem waiting
for you! If you’re watching TV like this it can be strenuous for your neck and
head.

A lot of people make
the same mistake, they don’t realise that the position they have it in, can
actually affect their body and health.

Anyway, how to fix
it? There’s a reason why TV stands are almost always the same height, and any
decent one will mean that if you’re sitting on the sofa watching TV, the TV
will be at eye level.

Watch TV so your head
isn’t looking upwards, or reaching out, and this should help you avoid
headaches, eye trouble and muscle tension.

2. Your Bag

Carrying your bag on
one shoulder, or holding a heavy brief case in one hand is something most of us
are guilty of doing, but did you know that’s also one of the main causes of
aches and pains in your neck and shoulders?

You see, since all of
the weight of your bag is on one shoulder, or on one side of the body, it can
throw your muscles and posture off balance, which is why you sometimes see
people with one shoulder higher than the other!

Another thing, the
way we carry our bags can cause our muscles to become stiff too.

So the way to solve
this problem is reduce the weight of your bag, and to switch up the side you
carry it on periodically.

Switching your bag
over to the opposite side will help to balance out the way your body carries
the weight, relieving any tension built up in your muscles, and solving any
posture problems too! Switch it up every 10 minutes, or every time you walk
past two streets.

3. How We Sleep

Another daily habit
that brings on neck pain is the way we sleep.

You see if you sleep
with your head propped up on more than one pillow, your neck, and back aren’t going
to be nicely in-line – meaning more pressure on your muscles and spine.

And if you find
yourself sleeping on your stomach, your head is most likely going to be turned
on its side – meaning your body is in a twisted position all night for hours!

Although your neck is
built to rotate from side to side, it’s not designed to stay in that position
for hours on end. So if you choose to sleep on your side, use a pillow that
doesn’t prop your head too high up, but in-line with your shoulder instead. And
if you choose to sleep on your back, sleep with one thin pillow so your neck
and spine are nicely straight.

4. Breathing

Check out the way you
breathe.

If you use the
muscles on your upper chest and shoulders to breathe, you may be causing them
to overwork, and in turn cause increased tension in them plus the muscles at
the back of the neck. This tension can progress on to cause pain!

So what can we do
about that?

Well, we can start to
use our main breathing muscle – the diaphragm, in a better way by letting our
tummy rise as we breathe in. This will help ease the work our shoulder and neck
muscles do on each breath.

Now can you see why
you might wake up with a bit of a sore neck?…

For more ways and
advice to ease neck and shoulder pain, go here next to collect your free tips
report:

Neck Pain and Shoulder Pain

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Physiotherapist
  • Are you comfortable working with different people to achieve their health goals?
  • Are you stuck in a boring job with little chance of learning, development or career opportunity?
  • Do you want a fresh flexible opportunity that will allow you to grow professionally and personally?
  • Our dynamic and fun business is looking for the right person to join the team.

Ideal Characteristics Required 

  • People person
  • Highly motivated
  • Outstanding references
  • You actually want to learn and work

Why work at Gav Noble Physiotherapy? 

  • Join an established, respected and busy set of clinics
  • Excellent work environment with learning opportunities in both Clinical & Business

Skills Required 

  • Commitment to ongoing professional development
  • Demonstrated ability to work as part of a team
  • Practical and able to problem solve
  • Demonstrate ability to market and advertise your skills
  • Able to use a computer
  • Strong musculo-skeletal and manual therapy background
  • Relevant Qualification 

Desirable skills/interest 

  • Manual therapy
  • Pilates training
  • Dry needling
  • Kinesio tape
  • Marketing/Business
  • Previous MSK Private Practice background

Perks

  • Opportunities for developing manual therapy skills.
  • Mixed Caseload
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  • Flexibility and freedom to be creative in your approach with patient care
  • Flexible working hours
Client Care Specialist

THIS JOB WILL BE PERFECT FOR YOU IF:

  • Have amazing personal and phone communication skills
  • Have a record of speaking to people at length and the ability to deal with complaints in an empathetic manner
  • An understanding of KPIs in business and the ability to optomise their own performance
  • Help our clients get the best outcomes they can
  • Want to learn on the job and are keen in evolve your current skills
  • Computer and Social Media Literate
  • Able to handle taking payments and managing money

THE OPPORTUNITY:

  • Join a hard working, fun group who enjoy making a difference every day you come into the clinic
  • The opportunity to make a real difference in people’s lives and health through communication and education

IF YOU CAN SEE YOURSELF:

  • Helping potential clients determine if our clinic is the right fit for them and their problem?
  • Answering and returning phone calls of potential, current and past clients?

JOB TITLE: Client Care Specialist

  • Are you comfortable with talking to strangers both in person and on the phone?
  • Are you a motivated to learn?
  • Is being “organised” a top priority in your life and are you able to multi-task and prioritize projects, while simultaneously meeting deadlines and prioritizing your day?
  • Can you communicate effectively with people from all different backgrounds – both written and verbal?
  • Are you able to speak up when you see something that is not working and can you anticipate the needs of other people because you show up for work knowing that the smallest details always make the difference?
  • Do you have a positive outlook on life? Are you flexible and open to change, committed to learning?

THE ROLE:

  • You will be responsible for managing a busy front desk and waiting room.
  • experience, meeting and greeting our patients, answering the phone, converting inquires into paying patients and ensuring that all of our patients are looked after and made to feel welcomed whenever they enter your world.
  • Ultimately, your job is to help us grow the revenue of the clinic by booking in new patients via the phone or those who walk into our clinic directly and excelling at retaining those patients as lifelong customers of the business.
  • You’ll do that by creating the type of customer service experience that patients will be happy to pay for – and just as happy to tell others about.

THE TASKS:

  • Communicate the value of our services (in person and on the phone) and be able to explain how what we do, is worth the price we are asking
  • Successfully handle price objections.
  • Hold a lengthy (at least 15-20 minute) conversation with new patients on the phone ensuring that patients are committed and bought into our service.
  • Provide an exceptional waiting room environment for our patients that they’ll look forward to coming back to.
  • Ensure that people who call requesting appointments are placed on schedule and understand the true time and cost commitment involved in physical therapy.
  • Ensure people show up excited for their first appointment after scheduling.
  • Communicate with patients before, during and after appointments to ensure satisfaction is being achieved.
  • Ensure that all invoices are raised on time, every time and are sent to the appropriate person (in house or externally).
  • Organise and plan all schedules – maximising efficiency and revenue for the clinic.
  • Foster deep relationships with patients ensuring NP score hits agreed levels.
  • Develop and regularly update the procedures library so that every aspect of the role is documented and can be achieved by anyone else in the business.

SKILLS/COMPETENCIES NEEDED:

  • Be able to hold meaningful conversations with prospective patients on the phone for longer than 20 minutes (empathy).
  • Be able to answer all questions asked on the phone in a such a way that increases the likelihood that the person asking will want to become a customer (insightful and knowledgeable).
  • Recall names and faces of patients and in doing so making all our patients feel welcomed and remembered.
  • Provide a warm and welcoming greeting to patients when they arrive in the clinic (experience).
  • Organisation and planning: plans and organises, schedules and budgets in an efficient, productive manner.
  • Focuses on key priorities.
  • Follow through on commitments: lives up to verbal and written agreements regardless of personal cost.
  • Demonstrate an ability to quickly and proficiently understand and absorb new information.
  • Attention to detail: does not let important details slip through the cracks.
  • Persistence: demonstrate tenacity and willingness to go the distance to get something done.
  • Proactivity: acts without being told what to do.
  • Bring new ideas to the company.

WHAT WE WILL DO FOR YOU:

  • Provide you with ongoing training and support in the field of customer service and front desk administration.
  • Give you an amazing environment to work in that includes working with a team of wonderful and very supportive staff – as well as very
  • friendly customers.
  • Opportunity to develop and grow in a team that is value driven and strongly encourages personality based service.
  • Competitive salary with chance to earn even more as we grow as a result of your impact.

Salary: On Application.

Hours: Full time, 37.5 hours.