Therasuit Course

It’s been a while since I’ve posted, so I thought I’d let you know what I am up to.

Next week I am on my way to Michigan to attend the Therasuit training.  I’m quite excited to learn about a new and effective method of therapy.  Hopefully I can post while I am there to let you know how things are going.

Check out the website and let me know what you think.

Are the children you know getting the physiotherapy they need?

Here is the letter I am circulating to get the word of mouth out.  Feel free to pass this on to anyone you think may benefit.

Thanks!

My name is Heather Branscombe and I am a physiotherapist who has worked with children for the past 10 years.  For most of these years, I have been frustrated at the lack of affordable and easily accessible rehabiliitation therapy for children, espeically for those in school.  This frustration only increased as I  became a mom of a school-aged child with cerebral palsy.  Now, I have decided to do something about it.

I am pleased to announce that as of April 2, 2007 I will be opening my own full-time physiotherapy practice dedicated to children and adults with special needs.  I will be able to see clients at their home, in the community, or at Abbotsford Physiotherapy.  And, unlike most physiotherapists, I will be able to charge more reasonable rates for my service.  This is because I am able to be more efficient by running some of my practice through a clinic, as well as using some great additional team members to enhance your service. What this means is that there will finally be affordable and accessible physiotherapy for people with special needs in the Fraser Valley area. 

Are your students getting the most out of their PE programs?  Do they need a movement program that not only gives positioning ideas, but also ideas on how to painlessly improve their gross motor skills?  I will be running gross motor skills groups for children and youth with special needs starting in April. 

Do you know a student that would benefit from physiotherapy at home?  Is getting to a clinic too much in their otherwise busy schedule?  I am pleased to offer a comprehensive program that includes myself as well as a trained physiotherapy aide to come on a weekly, bi-weekly or monthly basis to monitor, address and progress your students gross motor skills.

I would appreciate if you could please pass this on to any parents or teachers who you think may benefit from this service.

I can be contacted with questions or for further information at abilitiesrehab@gmail.com or at Abbotsford Physiotherapy at  604-854-6310.

Thank you,

Heather Branscombe, PT 

Torticollis: What is it and what do I do?

You have a new baby.  Everything seems great.  They’re the cutest baby ever (or so you think so) and they tip their head ever so sweetly to look at you…or is it torticollis?

Torticollis is a condition of shortened muscles in the neck, generally on one side.  It is usually the sternocleidomastoid (say that five times fast :))  or SCM muscle that is shortened, and it makes it more difficult for a child to bend their head to the opposite side and to turn their head towards the shortened side.

There are lots of reasons why it happens, and short of some very rare reasons due to a vision problem, skeletal, or other brain problem, it generally is very easy to fix.  This website gives you a lot of great tips and information on what it is and what to do about it.  Don’t forget to see your local physiotherapist who knows about kids, because he or she can be sure to screen out some of the more rare reasons that may require more help than a few stretches.

Good luck!

Photo courtesy  jen14221