Spondylolysis, which is a stress fracture of the spine due to overuse, is one of the most common causes of back pain in adolescent athletes. The stress fracture is in the posterior part of the spine, in an area called the pars interarticularis.

I qualified as an Occupational Therapist almost 25 years ago and I have worked in various fields from brain injury to general medicine. I have developed an interest in working with children with neurodivergence, sensory processing difficulties and coordination disorders.

I’m Danielle Egan, a physiotherapist originally from the United States and I am so excited to join the team at McGowan Physio! I graduated with my Doctor of Physical Therapy from University of Delaware in the USA in 2019 after I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Biology.

McGowan Physio has celebrated its 3rd Christmas being open just over 2 years since October. The clinic has welcomed many new and familiar faces over the past year and most memorably opened its door for its first international educational meeting and course in September.

In September 2023 Niamh and the McGowan Physio team welcomed Dr Manuel Rigo of Barcelona Scoliosis Physical Therapy School (BSPTS) and his international team of teachers to the clinic. It was a brilliant week spent learning and enjoying great company. The international team consists of physios from countries all over the world and we were lucky to have 20+ leaders of scoliosis care with us for 6 days.

Hello everyone, it is great to have an opportunity to talk to you about my career and research. I am a Children’s Nurse for the past 30 years working across Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) at Crumlin and Tallaght Hospitals. I have been a staff nurse, clinical educator, and manager before moving full time to University College Dublin as a Lecturer in Children’s Nursing in 2016.

Being a second year physiotherapy student in UCD, I had the opportunity to go on an observational placement for two weeks in March. I chose McGowan Physio after getting some recommendations, and I am so delighted that I did. I have always been interested in being a physio from a young age.

I want to get experience working in a physiotherapy environment because I have had an interest in physio since I tore the tendon in my leg. The recovery process took months and I really had to work hard with exercises to build up strength in my leg.

I was introduced to Niamh through my brother who has EDS and POTS. He needed a specialized physio who understood his condition and Niamh was perfect for him. My dad asked Niamh to help me with strength and conditioning to help with some physical issues I have. I found that she’s so good at explaining what I need to do and she really helps me to understand why I need to maintain my physiotherapy. She has helped my brother and me so much and we’re both really grateful to her.

Recovery from Scoliosis Surgery

I don’t remember a lot about that year anymore but I do know how important it was to have goals and things to look forward to. I had the goal to run at least part of the 5km Darkness into Light walk/run held a few months later in May. I trained for it as part of my recovery as we had a 5km loop near my house that was later used for this annual walk. I managed to run just under half of the 5kms and walked the rest with my mother.

Kayaking from beginner to representing Ireland

I joined the club soon after and started going on river trips and learning the skills needed for whitewater and river running. Since then I have progressed through my level 2 and level three skills and am currently working on level 4 skills and potentially becoming a qualified instructor in the future.

Facing Scoliosis Surgery as a Young Athlete

When we found out that I had scoliosis and was in need of corrective surgery I decided to try everything that I wouldn’t be able to do for a year during the recovery process. I had my surgery in 2014 when I was 13 years old.

2022 has been an incredible year. We celebrated our 1st Birthday this year and our team has grown from two to five! We are loving the buzzing atmosphere in the clinic and enjoy seeing our regulars as well as lots of new faces coming in.

Siobhan O’Connell has had the biggest impact on my career and has helped to shape me into the Physio and the person I am today. I worked in Siobhan’s physio clinic, Trimetrics, when I lived in Vancouver.

As a team we are thrilled to be able to bring Dr. Deirdre Walsh, counseling psychologist, to McGowan Physio. So often our patients struggle not only with physical problems but also with their emotional health. This is completely normal and all part of the human experience.

Insights from our transition year student.
This week during my work experience placement I got to see some patients who are hypermobile. In this short written piece I’m going to try to explain why people with hypermobility are more likely to get injured, using the knowledge I received from Niamh, Garett and the, “Too Flexible to Feel Good” book by Celest Pereira and Adell Bridges.

Hello, my name is Mia Keane and this week I’ll be doing my work experience placement in McGowan Physio. I’m 16 years old and I’m from Dublin. I wanted to do my Transition Year work experience in McGowan Physio for a number of reasons. First of all, I have always had a great interest in the area of healthcare, as I think I would suit a job where I could help and talk to people every day.

This month, McGowan Physio is one year old. What an incredible year it has been.
We have taken this month to reflect on the year; to consider what has gone well, what we can improve and what else we want to achieve. It feels like this journey is very much just beginning.

Dr. Manuel Rigo is top in the field of the conservative management of Scoliosis. It was a dream achieved to get to study with him and to learn his concepts and strategies. Garett and I both felt extremely grateful to get the opportunity to go and we fully embraced our time on the course.

September is one of my favourite months. It used to be because of all the GAA finals but now I enjoy the change of pace from the busy and fun summer back to routine which brings with it lots of fresh ideas, new energy and the possibility of change.