What can Matthew tell the Royal Yachting Association about back pain?
In a former life, I was a watersports instructor here on the South Coast, and while I still know a few movers and shakers from the glory days, I am about 20 years out of the loop.
This former life of sun, sea, sand, chafing, sunburn, hypothermia, hyperthermia, soggy wetsuits and low-quality accommodation caught up with me when the Royal Yachting Association asked me to run a couple of CPD workshops at their annual Training Conference at Wyboston. This event is attended by sailing, windsurfing and powerboat instructors and coaches from all over the UK, and is where new ideas and information is shared.
I have spoken a few times to rooms full of junior doctors, and my second job is lecturing to final year chiropractic undergrads at AECC University College, but the thought of jumping back in to the water sports world and speaking about spine care felt more daunting somehow. I gained incalculably from my time in the industry, and this felt like an opportunity to put something back in – perhaps to repay a debt. I’m looking at you, Lol, and you, Dave. This mattered, and I wanted to get it right!
So what did I tell these hardened, seasoned – and current – professionals? We talked about the discs in the spine. We talked about what injures them, and how to know when an injury is likely to happen. We workshopped some common boat-driving scenarios, and how we can stack the odds in our favour. The big take-home message was that disc injuries are a well understood phenomenon. This is biomechanics, people, not chiropractic! The sailing toys have moved on in the last 20 years, but sitting in a dinghy with rain running down your neck hasn’t changed, and nor has back pain.
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the RYA conference team, and Rachel Andrews particularly, for placing blind trust in me to deliver something worthwhile. Cheers Rach!