Got big plans this Easter long weekend? 

Whether your going camping with the family, planning on doing some extra DIY or just having a few days of R&R around the house, we here at Metro Health hope you have an enjoyable Easter weekend.

It can be really annoying than when your body can’t keep up with your plans though!

The week after easter, I normally have a rush of bookings for acupuncture to treat back pain. Why? Alot of times people plan a big DIY weekend for Easter holidays. If used to working in an office 9-5 and then pull a four day stint of gutter cleaning, painting and gardening don’t be surprised if you pull up a bit sore.

There are some easy ways to prevent back pain: 
1) Pace yourself.
2) Warm Up – treat your DIY like going to the gym
3) Vary your jobs so your not doing too much repetitive motions in one slot.
4) If you feel sore from working, take a break and stretch,
5) use a heat pack at the end of the day’s work for about 20 minutes then have a little stretch or walk around.
6) Have an acupuncture or massage treatment before Easter weekend as a way to get blood flow moving which will help by loosening muscles – so your not starting out too tight!
7) Take a warm bath with Epsom Salts.

If you do injure yourself, seek out treatment with Acupuncture ASAP. Chinese medicine promotes early treatment, and you will usually need less treatments for acute problems.

Marie has appointments on Easter Saturday from 9:30-2pm.

WRITTEN BY MARIE HOPKINSON, Chinese Medicine practitioner