It’s easy to get get caught up in the assessment fantasy linking one observation into a suspenseful story of how one pain links to this weakness and then to this misalignment and now we know EXACTLY why you have knee pain, back pain, fill the blank______. But what do you do when that story which led to your treatment choice fails?⁣

Simplify. Complexity makes you overlook the obvious. Break it down into smaller pieces so you are only assessing one thing at a time. I tend to start with one joint articulation in a process known as CARs (Controlled Articular Rotations) analysis.⁣

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Base your treatment on what you see in assessment. If you don’t see it or feel it don’t say it. Your client will try and lead you into their self diagnosis and they want confirmation bias. Don’t fall for it. This is your opportunity to educate them and make them more knowledgeable than your average therapist.⁣

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In treatment trust your eyes and your hands. There is a common trend in manual therapy to find a tool to do the heavy lifting VS developing tactile acuity (surgical like palpation skills). If you rely on tools then what will you do when new technology comes out or worse, if science doesn’t side with how you are applying it? Tools are enhancers, if you make them the main event it will dull your skills. I believe the investment is in acquiring the skills & knowledge of biasing which tissue you are on, the quality of that tissue, and the ability to feel subtle changes as it occurs.⁣

 

🧠 inspiration @drmchivers @drandreospina via FRS Summit 2018⁣