Geoffrey turns 60!!! Seen here celebrating his first race at the Caledonian as a senior senior and then at home with some fab 60’s style gurus later that night!
Hello everyone, hard to believe we are nearly off on Christmas breaks again. It has been such a busy year though, and certainly we are all looking forward to a lovely bit of sunshine to do our various activities, and no doubt you will all be feeling the same! It’s been an odd winter/spring, but it will make summer even more special this year I’m sure. Roll on summer!
Geoffrey has just returned from his annual biking adventure around the country, and this time they set sail the week after the shattering earthquake in Kaikoura. Luckily they found Hanmer untroubled and made it through to their accommodation without any dramas. Then began a superb few days riding to the west of Hanmer, before heading to The Old Ghost Road trail, which despite being very beautiful had its challenges for them all, and required two new helmets to be bought in Westport! Geoffrey recommends it maybe as a walk unless you have the latest and greatest full suspension bikes, as it certainly tests skill levels to the max, but he loved it and would highly recommend it! They then voyaged up towards Nelson and rode to Takaka, before heading to the Picton area and starting their ride of the Queen Charlotte Walkway, which was also an interesting ride in various weathers. He was extremely pleased with his Earth, Sea, Sky jacket that we commissioned last year – they are a NZ company who don’t skimp on quality! Being fluorescent yellow, he is easily visible whilst commuting to and from work in winter, and then in West Coast and Marlborough Sounds deluges, it came up trumps! (Just thinking that expression has a whole new meaning since the US election!!). Another spectacular discovery during their time away was how far ahead the whole of the Nelson/Takaha/Motueka area is in terms of wonderful cycleway networks, enabling good safe biking for all level of skill in the region. One of his favourites being from downtown Nelson, up behind the cathedral via the Dun Railway ride and down the Waimea River. Just glorious, and well worth an explore if you are up that way, so do take all your family bikes – you will be astounded by the variety, extent and heavy utilisation of the cycle routes in the region.
Whilst Geoffrey was hard at it on his bike, Barbara voyaged to the NZ Respiratory Conference. It culminated with the release of the latest Adult Asthma Guidelines, which our very own Dr Jim Reid of Caversham, took part in formulating: nzasthmaguidelines.co.nz. We are all very lucky to have a dedicated team at SDHB who keep patients well monitored and managed, and it was nice to catch up with them again there. The problem with asthma as in Melbourne recently, is that it still is very much a killer unless well managed, and with thunderstorms coupled with high allergen counts as there recently, people go from being well to acutely unwell fast, so it should never be taken lightly. Good management relies on preventer medicine use despite feeling well, and the newer drugs on the market that couple together in SMART regimes are making great gains. Check with your Doctor, if this is not something you are familiar with. Another very interesting presentation was on anaphylaxis, as NZ also has a really high level of severe allergy to shellfish, peanuts, and “unknown” triggers. It was good to hear there is a Pharmac review of epi-pens, and in the meantime we were advised that allergypharmacy.co.nz has epi-pens available for $120 with a 6 month use by date. They also suggested downloading a Travel Plan to show to airlines regarding severe allergies. One contentious issue discussed was e-cigarettes. Whilst the contents are questionable still, many of the reports from Europe are recommending these rather than cigarettes as it eliminates toxic second hand smoke. The Royal College of Physicians in UK is now advocating that every smoker in the UK should be switched to e-cigarettes. Unfortunately smoking in NZ is still a big problem: 15% of our population smoke on a daily basis, sadly with Maori having no reduction in usage over 9 years, despite Pakeha rates reducing steadily. We still have 40% Maori women and 37% males smoking, compared to 13% Pakeha women, and 17% male, so those strongly advocating e-cigarettes are those working predominantly with the Maori communities as “vaping” at least limits second hand smoke. There is no regulation in this domain though as yet, so watch this space, as medical communities and researchers confer.
Meanwhile Blair has been busy back in the clinic whilst Geoffrey and Barbara have been away, and keeping as busy as ever with getting you all back to work and play. The Bike Fits and Running Technique analysis sessions have been very popular and we are delighted to be hearing some great reports from those who have had their set ups changed. Geoffrey got his mountain bike reviewed too before his last adventure, and was extremely comfortable, so if you wonder if your set up could be improved, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us. It takes at least 1.5 hours though, so potentially we are looking at 2017, the way the end of this year is starting to fly by!
Nicki has returned from her wonderful two months trip to Europe and she and Jamie had a wonderful time. In her absence some of you may have met Sasha, her very able daughter, who slotted in with great ease after Barbara’s ski binding broke, leaving her with bilateral tibial fractures on the final day of our lovely five day ski holiday with Margie over mid-semester break. Thanks so much Sasha, you were a star, and luckily the accident happened the week before Nicki headed off, so a very concise but comprehensive training handover occurred, and we were all able to somehow manage very well despite Nicki’s absence! It’s great to be back into normality again for Barbara, and thanks to you all for your lovely support along the way – the crutches, wheelchair, raised toilet seats, helping hands, swivel shower chair and other paraphernalia that comes with a significant injury have been returned, and I am back to my usual Mercy work – YIPPEE!!! It’s an interesting experience to be “on the other side” and experiencing nasty leg x2 injuries, but thank goodness for the Physio Pool, where I have spent each week quietly progressing, and all the wonderful care that has got me to this stage! Thanks again also to you all for your encouraging words, and support when needed – it’s been a long haul, but we are there! So much so, that a celebration is in order and off to Coldplay I goJ Surely that is the ultimate goal of rehab to be able to dance the night away!! Can’t wait now!
Talking of the Physio Pool, some of you may have seen the ODT article that featured me (and my legs!) trying to make sure this wonderful resource is kept, despite the upcoming possible new hospital build and land swap ideas between the University and SDHB. I have met so many wonderful, courageous people who just could not manage to keep themselves out of hospital without this amazing resource. All patients are able to access it for a mere $4 a swim if you have a referral from us and you buy a 10 swim concession, so don’t hesitate to ask! It is open 6.45am until 9pm most nights, and both Saturday and Sunday mornings, and really is one of the most cost effective Dunedin assets that exists in this city to progress your rehabilitation and then maintain that gain. It is a beautiful, heritage building that is strong, and its good bones will keep it available for use by all of us as we age gracefully over the next wee bit. We are part of the “Silver Tsunami” that is approaching, so why would we not keep ourselves well using this. It works for injury rehab and fitness building, so do get along there and make the most of this amazing resource, and make sure that if any rebuild occurs on this block, that this fine building stays safely in the corner!
Our Pilates groups continue to grow and we now have four groups on Monday and Tuesday evenings, and next year may need to add another, so do let us know if you or your friends are joining in 2017 to help us with our planning. We had a wonderful dinner out recently, and it was great for everyone who could join us on the night to get to know each other a little more than when working away on the mats and balls. We have a good number of men enjoying Pilates too, so don’t hesitate if you think you might like to in 2017. Classes restart after Term 1 school term starts with Blair and Geoffrey.
Best wishes to you all for Christmas and New Year, and have a wonderful holiday break with lots of activity and fun, and here’s a pic of our children getting festive in
Wanaka and Cornwall. Have fun over summer everyone!
Recent Comments