by Matthew Bennett It’s not unusual for us to see patients at Sundial who have quietly carried on coping with back pain for months or even years. An unexpected crisis brings them in to see us, when they often realise they could have dealt with chronic pain long ago. It’s human nature to put small…
Disc Bulge on Your MRI? Here’s What the Research Says A guide for Brighton, Hove and Sussex residents worried about a disc bulge, protrusion or herniated disc by Matthew Bennett Seeing the words “disc bulge”, “protrusion” or “herniated disc” on an MRI report is one of the most unsettling moments in a person’s back pain…
By Matthew Bennett If your heel pain seems to get worse just as the weather improves, it’s not a coincidence. Every summer here at Sundial we see a rise in patients coming in with sharp, stabbing heel pain that often started, or got noticeably worse, once flip-flops came out and the daily step count went…
by Matthew Bennett If you’ve pulled something gardening, tweaked your back lifting a grandchild or in the gym, the instinct is usually to stop moving and wait it out. It’s a reasonable instinct, but for most everyday muscle strains it isn’t the fastest route back to normal. A short period of protection in the first…
By Matthew Bennett If you are anything like us, you may have been inspired by recent play at Wimbledon to pick your racquet up again. If you now have a nagging ache on the outside of your elbow that flares up every time you lift the kettle, turn a key or shake someone’s hand, there’s…
By Matthew Bennett Summer in Sussex tends to mean one thing for a lot of our patients: it is finally time to get away. Whether that is a long-haul flight, a road trip down to the coast or a few nights somewhere with an unfamiliar mattress, travel puts your back and neck through a set…
By Matthew Bennett and Matt Cunningham If you have been living with persistent back or neck pain for months or even years, you are far from alone. Chronic spinal pain is one of the most common reasons people over 50 seek help, and it can quietly chip away at the things that matter most: walking…
by Matthew Bennett If you have been trying to get an MRI scan through the NHS and finding the wait frustrating, you are not alone. Across Sussex, and across England more broadly, waiting times for diagnostic imaging have stretched considerably in recent years. For anyone living with back pain, neck pain or a persistent joint…
By Matthew Bennett It’s one of the questions we hear most often at our Brighton clinic and it almost always comes from someone who already suspects the answer, but wants to hear it confirmed by someone they trust. Am I too old to start strength training? Is it too late to make a difference? And…
By Matthew Bennett There’s a particular kind of frustration that comes with recurring back pain. It starts to ease, you feel like yourself again, and then a few weeks later it’s back. You’ve rested, you’ve stretched, you’ve probably tried a new chair or gone down a YouTube rabbit hole. And yet, here you are again.…
