Do you need directions?

Who directs you?

Many many people nowadays own and use a GPS in order to get around in their motor vehicles. There are various makes and models on the market but the basic mechanism is the same, you plug in the address or the co-ordinates and hit 'go' and it calculates the route and proceeds to direct you to that destination.

Depending on the settings you set on the device, it may take on the shortest route in terms of time but it may be a little further in distance and vice versa. You can also choose to avoid high traffic areas or choose to go on freeways etc.

For various reasons, I do not use one. Having said that I used one successfully the other day to get to an appointment in an area that I do know well. Once I go somewhere - I can generally get home. Just for interests sake I used it to get home. What a nuisance. I will say that they are useless in a situation when you know where you are going. Anyway, I took its instructions to a point when it was taking me through some dangerous areas. All along I am spending a lot of time watching the little screen which takes my eyes off the road. Then I started taking a different route (to get into an area that I feel safer!).

At first it was fun to see how fast it would say 'recalculating' and where it would direct me next. It got to a point where I thought device was going to start steaming and explode. It was getting angry with me! Eventually the lady and the device gave up and just kept repeating 'recalculating' and 'if possible make a U-turn'. This device was not able to calculate another route even though I was only about 500 meters off its chosen path. While this is going, I was getting agitated and spending more time with my eyes on the small screen than the road!

Another thing that upset me about the experience was that the device was not able to be heard over the radio. It was not a built in model and the music had to be really quiet for it to be audible.

At the end if that journey, I was not relaxed at all and quite unsettled actually and consequently will only use a GPS device if I have to and only to a destination which I am unfamiliar with. Who directs you when you know where you are going in your motor vehicle? Next time you go for drive - engage your brain!

I cannot hear you!!

You can’t tell an athlete to rest!

The most difficult patient is an athletic patient as they never seem to be able to understand or even hear the word....REST! Most of the time an athlete will present with a muscular, ligament or tendon injury. These are usually sprains, strains or complete tears. Below is some education on the difference between sprains and strains.

Strains are defined as partial or complete tears in a muscle and have 3 levels.

·         Grade 1 strain is associated with small tears within the muscle fibers. Muscle strength stays normal and healing typically takes 10-21 days.

·         Grade 2 strains, the muscle fibers are partially torn. The athlete will experience reduced strength and up to four weeks of therapy and rehabilitation is required.

·         Grade 3 strain is a complete muscle rupture. An MRI is needed to fully evaluate the injury.

Grades 2-3 strains will have a reasonable amount of swelling.

Sprains are injuries to a ligament, ligaments are tough fibrous tissue that holds bones together across a joint. This injury can produce pain or instability in the injured joint and is also listed in 3 levels.

·         Grade 1 sprain, there is pain and swelling, but no instability. Like the strains, this injury is associated with small tears in the ligament. Time, rest, ice, compression wraps and elevation are required for healing (R.I.C.E.= Rest Ice Compression Elevation).

·         Grade 2 sprains are partial ruptures that could cause some instability within the joint. Rehabilitation may be required as well as prolonged rest, icing, compression and elevation.

·         Grade 3 sprains may actually feel less painful than grade 2s, but there is a complete rupture of the ligament and much more swelling. A brace and possibly a surgical procedure are necessary for full healing.

It is imperative that we define these injuries and how they should be treated. Most athletes will take anti-inflammatories to help relieve some of the pain from a sprain or strain. This could actually be counterproductive, as it causes more blood to pool into the injury and this prolongs healing and increases scar tissue formation.

Contact details:

Dr Angela Pasteilledes

96 Brand Road (inside TAP Kruger)

Tel: 031 201 1442

Cell: 083 233 1187

Email: chiropractic.angela@gmail.com

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