Nicholas Coysh Is Backing Carers During Back Care Awareness Week

Back Care Awareness Week (7 – 11 October 2013) is focusing on Caring for the Carers and Nicholas is supporting local carers by offering them £10 off all treatments this week plus free 15 minute spinal/postural assessments and advice.

There are around 6.5m unpaid carers in the UK who frequently put the needs of others before their own, sometimes sacrificing their own health and wellbeing. In a recent survey 83%2 of carers reported that their caring responsibilities had affected their physical health, which includes injuries sustained through manual handling. A report by Carers UK and the University of Leeds calculated that carers’ willingness and ability to provide care saved the NHS and social services around £119bn3 a year. But a carer’s ability can be compromised if they suffer an injury or develop pain that isn’t treated.

Through gentle manipulation of the body osteopaths can help to heal injuries and relieve pain caused by imbalances, stress or the awkward movements that are sometimes needed when caring for another person. They can also offer advice on how to manage pain and look after your back to prevent problems from developing. Speaking about Back Care Awareness Week Nicholas said, ‘Carers have a vital role in looking after the wellbeing of others, often to the detriment of their own health. I wanted to help carers look after their own backs for a change.’

To claim your offer, call Nicholas on 07817934270 and book your appointment

Advice for carers to help them look after their backs

  • Think before you help someone – don’t risk a disc by lifting or manoeuvring someone on your own if they are too big for you
  • Never twist and bend your back when lifting an object or helping to support someone
  • When lifting keep the person or object close to you and always bend from the hips and knees
  • Avoid straining yourself when providing aid for someone, always ensure you are in a safe and good position to help that person – look after yourself first so you can look after them
  • If you are looking after someone on a regular basis and this requires lifting or handling, try to find some changes you could make which reduce the physical stress
  • Pace yourself with your activity, its usually when we rush things that we tend to hurt ourselves
  • Take regular exercise yourself so you are fit and able to help others

Useful Statistics

  • Most of us will look after someone who is sick, frail or disabled at some time in our lifetime
  • There are approximately 6.5m unpaid carers in the UK, this equates to 1 in 8 adults
  • 1.4m carers take care of a friend, relative or partner for more than 50 hours per week
  • Social services and the NHS rely on carers’ willingness and ability to care, their caring saves the economy around £119bn per year
  • 38% of carers provide physical help, such as helping people get in and out of bed or up and down stairs (of those providing more than 20 hours of care this rises to 54%)

Carers’ Health

  • In a survey for Carers’ Week 2012 83% of carers reported that caring had affected their physical health, this includes injuries as a result of manual handling
  • Very few carers have a GP that provides regular carers health checks or did home or telephone appointments
  • Many carers find it difficult to find the time to look after their own needs, putting off their own treatment or discharging themselves early from hospital because their caring responsibilities can’t be covered
  • 16.5m carers is based upon 2011 Census data, 2 Carers Week Survey 2012, 3Carers UK and University of Leeds (2011) Valuing Carers 2011: Calculating the value of carers’ support

More tips on back care can be found at www.backcare.org.uk, simple exercises for maintaining a healthy spine can be found at www.osteopathy.org