Loss of Proprioception, sounds scary? Not really…
 
Proprioception is the ability for your body to sense where a joint is in space. Proprioception is what makes it possible for you to put a spoon in your mouth with your eyes closed. It is also the reason we don’t roll our ankle every time we step awkwardly on a small rock or fall over going to the loo in the dark.
 
Every joint in the body contributes to proprioception, and if this area is injured it can make it harder to work out where your body is in space, what it is doing, and how to prevent further injury. The most common areas we see this problem is in the ankles, knees, hips, spine, shoulders and hands.
 
Proprioception in our lower limb and spine plays a huge role in our sense of balance. This is what makes it possible for us to correct our footing to prevent slips, trips and things like ankle rolling. This sense of proprioception comes from nerves within the skin, ligaments and muscles and is often disrupted after an injury to ligaments, tendons and muscles, or after prolonged periods of immobilisation (such as casts and braces).
 
Loss of proprioception in the knees or ankles can leave you feeling more unbalanced, or less stable than before. You may find yourself stumbling more frequently, rolling your ankle or having difficulty standing on 1 leg while putting your pants on – that may present a problem …. :)
 
When our proprioception is reduced we are more likely to re-injure the area or cause other problems.
Improving your proprioception after injury is an important part of rehab and allows you to get back to doing the sport you love or work you need to do.
 
Treatment may include balance exercises, hands on techniques, taping, and always targeted exercises specific to you and your injury.
 
Talk to us today about how we can help you regain your proprioception and prevent future injury!
 
☎️ 6352 3131
✉️ [email protected]
ℹ️ www.tablelandsphysio.com.au

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Kids who are involved with sport often experience knee pain related to the tracking of the knee cap and/or growing pain underneath the knee cap.

To help this:
- strengthen muscles of the inner quads
- stretch the hamstrings
- get the correct shoes (we often recommend ASICS)

Kids with heel pain? This is generally correlated with an increase in activity and/or growth spurts. Often the diagnosis of this is Sever’s Disease. This is a common cause of heel pain, particularly in young and physically active people. Between the ages of 8 and 14 years the leg bones experience a period of growth. This may lead to heel pain during or after physical activity.

So what can be done to help settle this pain?
- Relative rest; you don’t need to stop everything, but you want to reduce activity levels
- Ice
- Foam rolling/Calf stretches; be careful not to over-stretch though! Seek advice from a Physio if you have any concerns/questions in regards to this
- Supportive shoes

If these simple steps don’t help, it may be worthwhile to have a chat with one of our Physios here at Tablelands Physio for some professional advice (02) ‪6352 3131‬, or your local Physiotherapist.