 What is microsuction earwax removal? Microsuction earwax removal uses a vacuum to gently remove any excess wax from your ears. It’s one of the most effective services for cleaning your ears and is completed by our ear care professional Ear Irrigation Using a piece of equipment called an ear irrigator, our clinician will gently flush a solution that has been warmed to body temperature around the ear canal to remove the ear wax. This is a particularly useful procedure if the ear wax is too soft and gooey to be extracted with microsuction or if the wax is too deep and close to the ear drum. Manual Wax Removal
Ear wax can be gently removed using microscopic glasses and extraction tools. This method is often useful to dislodge any ear wax that may be too dry for water irrigation to flush out or micro suction to latch on to. Oiling your ears 3-5 days prior to the appointment normally softens the wax enough for microsuction or water irrigation to be successful without the need for manual extraction. What to expect at your wax removal appointment Our specially trained clinician will use the safest method of wax removal to help you hear again.
Before you come in... Things to note about safety Give us a call to before your appointment if you’ve experienced any of the following:
Softening the wax for your appointment It may take more than one attempt to remove your wax. It’s important that the wax has been softened to make the procedure as comfortable and effective as possible – so to prepare for your appointment, we’d recommend using olive oil to soften it. A spray known as Earol is ideal for this. Read the instructions leaflet carefully and use for 7-10 days between 2-4 times daily before your appointment. Other sprays or drops are not always suitable and may prevent us from being able to carry out the removal. Your ears might feel more blocked up after using olive oil and might reduce your hearing – this is because the wax will soak up the oil. If you wear hearing aids, avoid wearing them after you put olive oil in your ears as you could damage your hearing aids (which wouldn’t be covered by your warranty). If you experience a foul taste after using olive oil, stop using it as this might be a sign that there is a hole in your eardrum. If this happens, get in touch with your GP and let us know. For some people, olive oil use might cause some mild discomfort or irritation. If you have any doubts or concerns, just give us a call, or speak to your GP or pharmacist.
5 Comments
 Alex Seymour
Alex graduated from the Welsh Institute of Chiropractic with a First-Class Master’s degree in Chiropractic. After living and growing up in Stroud, he has always had a keen interest in sports, in particular swimming and Water Polo. Alex competed at a high level in his swimming, including becoming National Champion and qualifying for the 2016 Olympic Trials. Chiropractic treatment facilitated Alex throughout his sporting career, making him motivated to help all people suffering with musculoskeletal pain. Alex enjoys treating all types of pain and injuries, including adults and children. Alex utilises a range of techniques for his treatment including Chiropractic manipulations and mobilisations, soft tissue techniques (including dry needling), rehabilitation and home stretches. In his spare time, he enjoys exercising in the gym, travelling to new places and attending local football matches. Alex is a member of the General Chiropractic Council and the British Chiropractic association and will be available for treatments on Mondays from 8.15 – 1pm and Thursdays 8.15 -6pm.  Erica (MacCallum) studied Beauty Therapy Sciences, qualifying in 2006. Very early in her career, Erica found her love of nurturing combined with her instinctive massage skill had her earmarked as the go to masseuse wherever she worked. Throughout her 16 years of experience, Erica has trained extensively in further techniques and is regularly asked to conduct massage training for brands and Spas across the UK & overseas.
With qualifications in Swedish Massage, Sports Massage, Indian Head Massage, Deep Tissue, Pregnancy and Aromatherapy Massage, Erica’s treatments will always combine a variety of techniques and movements to target and treat areas of tension and tightness. She will be working with you to seek out the cause of any pain or discomfort you are experiencing and make appropriate recommendations to achieve continual improvement. Erica’s treatments are always bespoke, depending on your needs at the time. Massage treatments will always incorporate warming and relaxing movements as well as targeted techniques to achieve the best results and ultimate relaxation for you and your body. Treatments available on Monday and Tuesday’s 10-6pm - Commencing October 10th
I am pretty sure that when I look to get my next car that all important 'FSH' acronym will help with my choice as it signifies that the car has a full service history, which means it has been looked-after and more likely, a wise purchase.
Just as our cars are regularly serviced, we all have an annual check-up with a dentist to maintain our dental health, but what about your musculoskeletal health? On the whole, most people think of booking in for a chiropractic treatment when they are in pain or discomfort. But what about preserving good spinal health once you are out of pain? Having a regular maintenance treatment and or a spinal health check-up you can avert tension building up and nip spinal misalignments in the bud, preventing them becoming more serious and painful. A major study showed that on average, patients who have regular maintenance only have one more appointment per year compared to those who have a treatment only when they are in pain. The startling difference is, however, that the latter group report up to 30 days more of debilitating pain per year than the “maintenance group”. In other words, a little maintenance doesn’t cost much more, but pays off in spades. For those with a physical job, it is even more important, as your body is one of the main tools of your trade. Taking care of your spinal health is vital and we would recommend for those in physical jobs to have a treatment once every 3 – 6 months to help maintain optimal health. As your spinal nerves deliver signals to every part of your body to enable it to function healthily, whatever job you do, even if it is sedentary, you can optimise your musculoskeletal and internal organ health by having healthy spinal function. Discover how chiropractic can help you by booking a maintenance chiropractic treatment- you can replace teeth, but your spine is irreplaceable.  We apologise for the radio silence but hope your 2022 has started off on the right foot! The New Year began with a new home for our family. Moving home on New Year’s Eve, is something I would not recommend, but with a little help from friends we managed to uproot and create a new home in Stroud. Moving home is one of the most stressful events in our lives, ranked higher than divorce, childbirth or starting a new job. Not only is there the physical aspect of moving, but there is also ultimately the emotional aspect of letting go and moving on. Endless trips to the charity shops and recycling centres, giving away or throwing away ‘stuff’ that you have accumulated and stored ‘just in case’ stirs up the emotions and raises many questions. Not all is negative re a move or a clear out, it provides opportunities to create new habits, ditch old routines and start afresh. The New Year presents this opportunity, but as we have observed over the past 20 years, January is catch up, clear up and get ready month. When February arrives with the slightly lighter, longer days, we see an increase in the interest for personal training and the desire to create healthy habits. Changes in circumstances can often dictate a change in your regular exercise habit! Moving home, isolating, a change of job, or injury can lead to a break in the routine. This change in lifestyle may last weeks, months or even years, but don't worry, even the most dedicated exercise fanatics have off periods from time-to-time. So, if you have taken a break after an illness, injury, holiday, or apathy, it is still possible to get back into your gym kit and create a new focus and routine.
Naturally, the longer you go without exercise, the longer the process of recovery but if you follow these guidelines, you will help you get back to feeling healthy and vibrant in no time. It will help you immensely if you lower your expectations at the start, as to begin with you may feel a little ‘rusty’ and sluggish. By reducing the pressure on yourself, you may be less inclined to feel frustrated and quit! Gradually ease back into your workouts to avoid injury. Slowly build up to a less-intense version of your regular workout, before ploughing into the ‘intense’ version you were performing before your respite. Keep intensity low (around 50-60% of your perceived ability). Gradually increase intensity and resistance as your body becomes accustomed to your new regime. What should I do next?
Whatever you do, do something. Your time away from training may not have been your choice, but exercise is a cornerstone of a healthy lifestyle. Take time to pause, take a breath, reflect then look at the bigger picture. Try and create a ‘blueprint’ for how you wish to spend the rest of your life. Imaging ourselves at 90, still physically active and mentally alert might mean your lifestyle choices may radically change!  As we race to the end of what feels like a shortened year, we face a few uncertain weeks which would normally be filled with festivities and fun. There would also be a heaped tablespoon full of stress, served with a side of anxiety, this year it has doubled. Normal does not feel like it used to, and we are faced with creating our new normal for the year ahead. Strengthening our immunity, our resilience and our mindset will help us get through the challenges of the year ahead. Placing the emphasis on improving health and fitness in 2022 will dramatically help this cause. Over the past 18 months many of you have discovered the glorious countryside that surrounds us and enjoyed not only the cardiovascular benefits they provide but the emotional and mental well-being they facilitate. Being fit and healthy is not something you can achieve and then tick off on your bucket list, it is a lifelong journey that changes direction as we age and has to adapt to the challenges that life throws in our path. It is easy to write off the month and plan to do the January detox or diet, but what if you could have fun over Christmas without putting on half a stone? Here are a few simple ideas for you to try that will help you keep the ‘Christmas’ weight off this December
Thank you to all 34 diners who attended our ‘Pop Up’ on 22nd November.
Speaking of which, three fantastic events for you to visit this weekend:
Jane Barnes PhD BSc PGDip | Registered Nutritional Therapist and Health Coach
I sometimes think that I spend a lot of my life warning people about the dire consequences of eating the foods that they love and encouraging them to give up many of their regular indulgences……..so I am overjoyed to report the good news ‘Chocolate is officially good for you!’. There is a caveat (yes, I know, there is always a catch) the chocolate must be dark chocolate containing at least 85% cocoa solids or more. A recent randomized controlled trial (1) divided healthy subjects into 3 groups. One group ate 30g of 85% dark chocolate every day for 3 weeks. A second group ate 70% dark chocolate, and a control group ate no chocolate (spoiler alert - no wonder they turned out to be less happy!). The 85% group (unlike the other two groups) significantly improved their mood scores when assessed using a standard mental health questionnaire and they also had significant changes in their gut microbes which may have explained the difference. This study just adds to a long list of the purported health benefits for high cocoa content dark chocolate which contains several compounds (flavonoids, phytonutrients, polyphenols) that are commonly found in foods labelled ‘superfoods’ by marketing departments the world over. Studies have described blood sugar modulating, cholesterol-lowering, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects as well as being linked to a lower risk of developing high blood pressure (2)(3). Natural, unsweetened raw cocoa is one of the most powerful dietary antioxidants as assessed by the ORAC value (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) and walks all over superfoods we traditionally think of as the cancer fighters and heart helpers:
USDA Database for the Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) Now I don’t want to rain on the parade of those who enjoy milk chocolate, but I’m afraid that the evidence suggests that the high sugar and lower cocoa content does away with all the above benefits. As an ex-milk chocolate fiend, myself, you might like to consider following in my footsteps and undertaking some progressive training to increase your enjoyment of dark chocolate. It takes around 3 weeks for your taste buds to adapt to a big dietary change, so start by swapping your milk chocolate for 65% and gradually work your way up until you get to 85% or more.
Thank you to all 32 diners who attended our ‘Pop Up’ on 18th October. This was the first time that Three Storeys had held such an event but shows how wonderful this venue is for a variety of events. Thank you to Nicki for allowing us to run the event and to Chris at the Fine Fish Company for providing the amazing Salmon. I am sure that those of you who tasted it will agree it was excellent and worth reminding you that more high-quality fish available here - https://www.thefinefishcompany.co.uk/
Also, a big thanks to Vicky Keble-Williams for her generous donation of table flowers, they were a real delight! If you are interested Vicky is holding a workshop in December https://www.threestoreys.co.uk/whatsonarticles/amberleymeadow The ‘Pop Up’ was such a huge success, that another one has been arranged and SOLD OUT to those who missed out on the first event. Such is its popularity; we may be forced to run another in January! These Pop Ups are just part of a whole host of events planned at the Three Storeys throughout the Autumn. There will be an INSPIRED Exhibit featuring many of the artists involved with the project from Tuesday 12th October until Sunday 14th November https://www.threestoreys.co.uk/whatsonarticles/inspired The exhibit is situated in the Café and free to visit.  If the weekends deluge was not enough to persuade you that winter is on its way, the clocks going back, and the longer darker nights will have no doubt convinced you.
For many this is not a welcome prospect as it leaves them open to “winter depression". More commonly known as SAD (Seasonal affective disorder), as the symptoms are usually more apparent and severe during this season. Sunlight heighten the brain's production of the mood-enhancing chemical serotonin, consequently the more sunlight we are exposed too, the more serotonin we produce and vice versa! With indifferent weather on the horizon for the next few months, plus the remnants of Covid restrictions forcing many people to work from home, getting into good habits and making the absolute best of the daylight hours available would be a wise choice. To help keep you healthy we would thoroughly recommend a 'fake commute' to work. Fresh air, daylight and moderate exercise will help boost your immune system and your mood! |
Get in Touch
01453 873811
info@personalbeststudio.co.uk
Free Download
Gain access to our free Ultimate Motivation Guide and sign-up to our newsletter!
Archives
November 2023
Categories |
RSS Feed
