Greetings from the GLORIOUS sunshine! Hope everyone is coping ok?? This week’s edition sees the return of the POD! Craig chats to the Profeet team, Michael has a look at L4, and our shameless plug is from Lucy with a bit of inspo for anyone considering a career change…

Clinic Updates
First quiet one in a while! Erana is back in clinic for Team Toots now her arm is on the mend. Thanks to Michael for helping out.

Tardiness & Cancellation Policy
Thanks to all for the feedback on this from last week and for ensuring you let us know in advance. Everyone who has been able to take your spot has been very grateful, so thank you.

We are still experiencing a lot of late arrivals. Cannot stress enough that walking /cycling /skating /scooting to get in to see us are MUCH better options than vehicles with four wheels at the moment. If you are running late, please let us know and we will do the best we can to fit you in.

Holidays & Changes
Tooting: Michael is taking a well-earned break. Off from June 30th and back on July 20th.
Kew: Everyone is in and pretty busy, please book in advance to make sure you get the times you need!
Fulham: Mike and Silva are in as usual and again, pretty busy. Make sure you book your schedules in advance to get the days/times you need.
Marylebone: All hands on deck!
Putney: Bryan is off now and back on June 24th. Grant is off for a long weekend from today and back on the 22nd. Craig is off from July 10th and back at some point in August.

Podcasts
The Chiro.London Pod, proudly fuelled by Ground Coffee Society, chats to the legends at Profeet. We have worked with these guys for a gazillion years and they are the our go-to for walking/running analysis, custom shoes and ski boots. Basically they analyse how you move and make sure you have the right kit on your feet to keep you performing at your best. Our front of house all wear trainers from them. Really interesting stuff.

Check out the episode on our website, Spotify, Apple and Google.

Vertebra of the Week
We’re heading towards the pointy end of Michael’s tour of your spine, and this week it’s the penultimate lumbar vertebra. Please welcome…

L4
The L4 nerve innervates the prostate gland, lower back muscles and feeds into the sciatic nerve as well. Nerve dysfunction here can lead to symptoms in the lower back such as tightness, achiness, lumbago and even sciatic pain.

Because it also affects the prostate gland, damage to the nerve can cause trouble with urination (such as increased or painful urination). It can be a very scary thing, but there can sometimes be a simple explanation for it – although some of these symptoms can present quite severe if left for too long.

Shameless Plug of the Week
Considering a career change? Love what we do? Here is a little plug about life as a chiropractic Student at London SouthBank University from Lucy at Marylebone. Worth noting, Lucy already has a different degree, then worked in some offices before returning to LSBU as a mature age student – it is never too late!

Some of you may have seen me around, I started off working in Putney but now based in Marylebone and I am one of the only CAs to have worked in all clinics at some point (claim to fame). Some of you may already know I’m studying chiropractic in London and wanted to share my experience for anyone who may want a career change, or have a family member, friend or child who might be interested.

In the UK there are 4 Universities that you can study chiropractic: AECC (Bournemouth), WIOC (Wales), McTimoney (Oxford), London Southbank, and an additional course is opening in September in Teeside. The course I am on is the four-year Masters at London Southbank, but some require an additional foundation year to make it five, depending on your previous qualifications. There are only just under 3,300 chiropractors in the UK, so we are a small profession that is hoping to increase as the population grows and more people require our help! My year is only a very small year of 14, as we were the first cohort, but there are now around 33.

The subjects that are taught are anatomy, physiology, neurology, clinical imaging, general diagnosis skills, psychology, rehab, research skills, nutrition, public health and of course chiropractic and manual therapy techniques. Our course also requires placement observation, which allows you to observe chiropractors in different fields throughout the years to get an idea of what areas you’re more interested in. I have just finished my third year and start my final year in July, where we will spend time working in a student clinic treating patients, as well as completing a dissertation.

What I love about studying chiropractic is gaining all this knowledge and knowing I will be able to apply it at the end in practice. Seeing how much people benefit from chiropractic care also makes the all-nighters and endless exams worth it. It’s not an easy degree, and no one should embark on it without knowing what you are getting yourself into. But having a clear goal at the end makes motivation throughout easier as well, as knowing there are lots of different opportunities out there.

If anyone has any specific questions or would like more information, I’d be happy for anyone to get in touch! Email me at here.

Don’t forget: Our current 'Refer a Friend' offer will be changing from Monday 12th July. Get in now if you want to take advantage of this before it ends – your friend will get 50% off their initial consultation, and you’ll get 50% off your next adjustment.

Well, that’s it for another week. We’ll be looking to wind these emails down once we complete Michael’s spine series. Any feedback is always appreciated, you know where to find me.

Drew