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Chronic Shoulder pain: Consider this


Chronic Shoulder pain: Consider this

The shoulder is one of the most complex joints in our body. I always say to my patients, there’s a trade off between mobility and stability. If joints are mobile, usually not so stable, like the shoulder. If a joint in stable like the hips, mobility can become an issue.

Shoulder pain can have many different causes. It can range from trauma, bio-mechanical dysfunction, instability, etc..

One cause can be coming from your neck. That’s right, your cervical spine.

Let’s have a look at the image below.


Our Cervical spine houses a bunch of nerves that we call the brachial plexus. These nerves come out like branches and supply sensation, motor control to our upper limbs. When these nerves get damaged (trauma) or has a poor environment (spinal degeneration) surrounding it, it can cause the “symptom” of shoulder pain, but the “CAUSE” is actually stemming from the cervical spine. When is the last time you had your spine checked?


Posture Talk: Upper Cross Syndrome


Posture Talk: Upper Cross Syndrome

Being in the heart of the Sydney CBD means that we see a lot of office workers. Now one of the most common concerns for patients is their Posture. Is your head always forward, shoulders slouched, feel the constant need to stretch out your mid back and neck? You may have “Upper Cross Syndrome”. Let’s have a look at the image below.


Upper Cross Syndrome essentially describes muscle imbalances of the upper back and neck. The ‘tight’ muscles are predominantly the Upper Traps and Levator scapula. These muscles help elevate the shoulder and the shoulder blade. Tight Pectorals (chest muscles) roll the shoulder forward, further accentuating poor neck biomechanics. The inhibited (weak) muscles are the Deep Neck flexors which bring your chin towards your chest and the Rhomboids and Serratus Anterior, which stabilises your shoulder blade and prevents them from rolling forward. Just to be clear, this posture can be caused by other issues in the spine, not just these factors. However, if you do find yourself slouching at work, addressing these issues just may be the solution you have been looking for!



Neck stiffness & pain: Consider this

Now by far one of the most common issues that I see as a Chiropractor is neck pain/dysfunction/stiffness whatever you may want to call it. It’s super uncomfortable to have Chronic (lasting longer than 6 weeks) neck issues as you use it for pretty much everything. Everyone has probably had an episode where by their neck muscles feel very “tight” and leads to them getting headaches/migraines. If this is you, you need to read on.

Now having tight muscles can be from various causes. From overuse, past trauma, muscle imbalances from poor posture, occupational predispositions and the list goes on. One factor that many seem to overlook is structure. Our spine is designed with curves, what we label as ‘Lordosis’ and ‘Kyphosis’ (see image below)


Our neck has a natural curve we call cervical lordosis (a reverse C curve) and we want to maintain that. Why?

Let’s look at this image below. Can you see all those ligaments behind the vertebrae? Not listed here are muscles which we have A LOT of behind our neck. Now imagine over time when your neck loses this curve and starts to straighten (right image). Can you visualise how all these ligaments and muscles are going to have increased tension due to poor structure? What can cause the neck to curve the other way? With our daily habits of looking at our phones, sitting in front of our desks at the computer, and generally just sitting in a ‘hunched’ posture throughout our daily lives has put our necks under a lot more pressure.

If you are one of the people who constantly get massages and never seem to be getting results, this may be your reason. Tight muscles are a SYMPTOM of something underlying. Finding the CAUSE is what we do.



Postural Exercises


Postural Exercises

If you want to improve your posture and decrease pain , theses exercises will help.


Sit up straight with elbows at sides and bent to 90 degrees (right angle).

Push shoulders together and down, with palms facing the floor.

Make a waxing motion in the air while maintaining the above position. **Keep elbows "glued" to sides while completing motion.**

Do this for 20 seconds. Repeat 4 times.

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Stand against wall with feet shoulder width apart.

Gently press low back against wall.

Place back of elbows, forearms, and wrists against wall.

Bring arms up and down slowly in a small arc of motion while keeping elbows in contact with wall.

Do this 10 times.

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Lie on stomach on a pillow, with forehead resting on a rolled towel to keep neck in neutral.

Bring arms out to sides with elbows bent to 90 degrees.

Lift arms up while squeezing shoulder blades together.

Hold each 3-5 seconds, and do 3 sets of 5-10 repetitions.

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Sit up straight on a chair.

Keep elbows very close to sides and pull back on a resistive band as shoulder blades come back and down.

Return to start position slowly.

Do 3 sets of 5 repetitions.

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Sit in chair with back supported.

Tighten stomach as if someone were going to punch it.

Press fingers into abdomen and tighten abdominals even more to resist pressure of fingers. ** keep breathing!!!**

Hold 15 seconds. Repeat 5 times.

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Stand with buttocks, and back against wall.

Bring feet to 12" from wall. **Keep back against wall.**

Lower down until knees are bent to about 60 degrees keeping abdominals tight.

Raise back up to where knees are slightly bent.

Do 3 sets of 10 repetitions.

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Sit at edge of chair with feet slightly behind knees.

Stand up while keeping neck erect and spine erect. Your back should not bend forward.

Immediately return to sitting, but do not put full weight on chair.

Do 3 sets of 10 repetitions slowly.

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The effects of sitting long hours


The effects of sitting long hours

A recent study shows that the average person only spends 1 hour and 15 minutes of their day not in a seated position. Is it any wonder therefore that we are seeing an ever increasing number of injuries simply due to poor posture and poor core stability.


1.       Your body is not designed for sitting, let alone sitting for most of the day. The pelvis was never evolved to disperse weight in a seated posture.

2.       Your body will adapt to any situation which is most common – whether this is beneficial or not.

3.       Prolonged sitting and poor posture is the primary cause of spinal degeneration and overuse injuries.

For this blog, I’m going to give you a couple of simple tips on how to get more movement during your day and simple ways to keep your skeleton aligned and functional.

1.       If you use public transport, get off a stop earlier. Most people are on a rushed schedule in the morning but you just have to make a little time to get a whole lot more movement.

2.       Incidental movement is the new ‘in’ term. It is for a reason though so increase the amount of little patches of movement you get through day. Walk around the office more, get drinks of water, get up and talk to people, use stairs where you can. These little bits of movement really add up when done often enough.

3.       If you do Yoga already, add on one extra class a week. If you don’t do yoga, START!! Yoga is the simplest way to exercise the body in the opposing way to what sitting does. It increases your core strength and stretches your upper body in extension.

4.       Stretch every day. We brush our teeth daily, but what about our spine? Straighten up Australia is a Chiropractic 3 min exercise initiative to improve your spinal health and the way your body functions.

5.       Get adjusted by your Chiropractor regularly. Inevitably with sitting you will load certain parts of your spine which will often get stuck, causing pain or no pain but always causing dysfunction. Getting your spine adjusted by a chiropractor ensures correct spinal movement and counteracts sitting.

Our spine and nervous system governs all functions and organs, and lack of movement and spinal misalignments cause dysfunction and therefore ill health.

If you haven’t had your spine checked, call us now for your initial consultation at Complete City Health.


Scoliosis Yoga Class


Scoliosis Yoga Class

Complete City Health offers specialised scoliosis exercise classes which, when combined with Spinal Decompression Therapy, offers greater long term success rates. Our scoliosis classes are individually tailored to each patients curve, providing a systematic approach to muscular stability around the spine.

Before commencing our scoliosis classes, a complete examination including orthopaedic, biomechanical and radiological exams is carried out to determine the type, nature and direction of the individuals curve. From this we then prescribe a program of exercises that are best suited to the individual and their type of spinal curve. This is essential when appropriately exercising the scoliotic spine as some exercises may have a detrimental effect on the spine and can sometimes worsen or aggravate the condition.

Our classes are under the supervision of highly educated health professionals with specialised training in scoliosis management. We maintain limited class sizes with a maximum number of 10 participants to allow for personal attention from the instructor. Space is allocated for the guardian of minors or for those with limited mobility.

Should you have any questions regarding scoliosis classes please call (02) 9299 1661 or email


How Important is My Sleeping Position? 


How Important is My Sleeping Position? 


You literally sleep nearly a third of your life, so the position you sleep in will directly affect how you feel when you wake up and your physical health. Sleeping positions can affect your general posture and alignment as you expose your body and spine to different twisted or bending positions for a prolonged time, leading to tightness and stiffness when you wake up. 

Many people suffer from headaches, neck and back pain, shoulder and hip problems all from poor sleeping habits and positions. Sleeping on your stomach affects your neck and puts it in a compromising, unnatural position for hours leading to neck pain and headaches. The twisting that also occurs through the rest of your spine leads to back pain. Sleeping on your side, even though probably the second best position to sleep in, can cause shoulder and hip problems. 

The best way to train yourself to sleep is on your back with a nice comfortable pillow. Sleeping on your back means your body is in a natural anatomical position and does not have increased strains or tension on any part of the body. It does however take a lot of will power and effort over time to train yourself to sleep on your back, especially if that is not what you are used to. 


Stop text neck.


Stop text neck.

Repeated use of our digital devices can cause pain and degenerative changes to the neck and
upper back. When forces are applied when the neck is in flexion (when you look down at
your phone) discs, ligaments, nerves and muscles are under undue pressure and can cause
subluxation (misalignment of a joint) which in time will create decay (osteoarthritis) in the
I advise all my clients to make sure they limit use of their smart phone and never use it on
transport which can cause further damage due to the stop/start nature of transport, and
have whiplash-like effects.
Tips for better use:
1. Limit your use of the smart phone or tablet
2. Hold it at eye level
3. Don’t type long emails, if you can use voice recorder instead
4. Get rid of games that keep you on your phone for hours without realizing it.
5. Get checked by a chiropractor, if already misaligned more damage can occur even
with minimal use of the phone.

These stretches can be done daily to help relieve the overused neck muscles.


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Shockwave Therapy


Shockwave Therapy

Shockwave therapy is an effective treatment modality for a range of musculoskeletal and
inflammatory conditions. Shockwave therapy has been shown to reduce recovery times from injuries such as plantar fasciitis (heel pain), achilles tendonitis and medial tibial stress syndrome (shin splints). Research has also shown shockwave therapy to reduce DOMS (that sore, aching stiffness you feel the day after working really hard in the gym!) allowing athletes and those who engage in high intensity exercise to recover quickly and thereby allowing them to consistently exercise at full physical capacity. Shockwave can also help loosen tight muscles (such as your calves and hamstrings) which will further reduce the chance of injury when exercising

So how does it all work?
Shockwave therapy works by using soundwaves to activate the bodies immune system allowing the removal of waste products that build up in the muscles and encourage blood flow to painful or compromised areas.

Now available at our clinic.


Footwear, how do I find the right shoe for me?


Footwear, how do I find the right shoe for me?

With thousands of different brands and even more different models, how does one find the
correct shoe for them? When looking for footwear there are a couple of useful tips you can
adopt to help find that perfect shoe. With dress shoes, it’s a little easier than sport shoes as
we are not putting the same force through the shoe as we would when exercising. However,
our feet are important and we need to keep them in good shape for the rest of our lives.
1. Remove the inner lining of the shoe and place it on the floor. Now stand on it and
you should still be able to see the border of the shoe lining underneath your foot. If
your foot is hanging over the edge of the lining that will lead to an area of irritation
that could cause callus, corns and much more.
2. A firm sole that bends at the ball of the foot is ideal! Chuck out those flimsy ballet
3. A firm heel counter that bends no more than 45 degrees will help keep your heel
nice and stable.
4. Laces, straps or buckles will help keep that foot secure in the shoe and will help
avoid your toe muscles over working to try and avoid your foot slipping out of the

My favourite Female dress shoe brands:
Bared -   

Ziera Shoes - 

Ecco -

My favourite Male dress shoe brands:
RM Williams -

Bared -

Hushpuppies -

With sport shoes, it is a completely different story. Sports shoes come in 4 major support
categories: Neutral, Cushioning, Mild Stability, Moderate Stability.
To know which support category you are, you will need to have an assessment by a
Podiatrist. I can’t emphasise enough how much of a difference the right shoe can make.
If you have never found that perfect set of shoes, or you are currently suffering from foot
pain, please book in for a footwear assessment with a Podiatrist to find the right shoe for you.


Types of Stress


Types of Stress

Everyone relates to stress and knows how debilitating it can be. Stress in small amounts is good for us, although high levels of chronic stress are known to be the leading cause for many conditions and diseases.

There are 3 types of stress:

  1. Emotional stress caused by worry from work, money, relationships and many other like factors.
  2. Physical stress from posture, certain prolonged habits like sitting, repetitive strains and others.
  3. Bio-chemical stress caused by dietary intake, medication or drug abuse and hormonal imbalances.

In order to stay healthy and keep the body in homeostasis or equilibrium we need to manage the stress placed on us. Best way to do this is develop healthy habitual routines for every day to reduce all three types of stress.

Emotional exercises: 5 minutes of daily meditation, silence or self-affirmations. There are plenty of helpful Meditation Apps out there, free to download.

Diaphragmatic Breathing will also help relieve tension and increase oxygen to the body.Perform this by: Place one hand on your side of ribs and the other on your tummy, take a deep breath thin through the nose and expand ribs laterally and tummy outwards, exhale and relax. Repeat 20 times.

Physical stress: daily postural exercises like shoulder retraction and neck extensions 3-5 times a day. See below stretches

Bio-chemical stress: Smoothies and salads daily are a great, quick and yummy way to increase fruit and vegetable intake, and with them your required vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, which decrease inflammation and decrease the stress hormones.


Spinal health week


Spinal health week

May is Spinal Health month and this is when Chiropractors at Complete City Health come together and focus on educating the public about the importance of good Spinal health.

Many of us do not seek help until we have pain or injury, however seeking advice from a Chiropractor for preventative care can prevent many months of pain and treatments.
The spine plays a vital role in our health and wellbeing and according to the recently published Global Burden of Disease study, musculoskeletal conditions have the fourth greatest impact on the health of the world's population.
But how do you know if there is some concern that needs to be addressed and looked at by a
Chiropractor? Well, spinal health problems manifest as headaches, poor posture, neck pain, lower back pain, hip pain and more. So having any of these issues can be a cause for concern.
The increase in spinal health problems can be attributed to sedentary lifestyles, increase use of digital devices and lack of activity at work.

So this May, book your Free Check up with one of our Chiropractors now and prevent spinal issues from occurring.

Phone: 0292991661




Heel Spurs? Heel Pain? Plantar Fasciitis?


Heel Spurs? Heel Pain? Plantar Fasciitis?

A study conducted in Australia showed that 66 percent of people included in the study suffered from foot pain. One of the most common areas of the foot to suffer pain is the heel.  I am sure that you are familiar with the term Plantar Fasciitis? Most of us have all had a friend, family member or colleague suffer from this condition.

Heel spurs are rarely the causes of heel pain but allow Podiatrists to understand a little bit more about how your foot functions. When something pulls on bone, the bone will grow. This is exactly what is happening in the case of a heel spur. This new growth of bone rarely causes pain but we can see that there abnormal forces going through your feet!


Where does the name come from?

The plantar fascia is a thickened band of connective tissue that runs along the bottom of the foot, starting at the heel bone and heading towards the toes. When we see Itis after a word it means inflammation. So Plantar Fasciitis means inflammation of the Plantar Fascia.


Why causes Plantar Fasciitis?

Research has found numerous causes of Plantar Fasciitis such as:

-          Poor biomechanics ( rolling in excessively, High arches, Low arches etc.)

-          Poor Footwear

-          Changes in weight

-          Changes in exercise intensity

-          Changes in exercises regularity

-          Tight Calf muscles


How do we treat Plantar Fasciitis?


The key for treating plantar fasciitis is determining the cause and fixing the root problem. This is why you can hear varying stories from friends/family/colleagues about their Plantar Fasciitis treatment.  Everyone’s treatment plan can be significantly different. The key is early treatment! Plantar Fasciitis becomes more difficult to treat the longer you have the condition. The good news is that with our individually tailored treatment plans you will be seeing significant results quite quickly.