Lawrence Academy

Health Creator Pro: A Mentorship Designed for Real Health Professionals

Deciding to invest  time and energy into something new – like building a YouTube channel – takes careful consideration. It's not a weekend CPD course! 

You might be wondering:

• “Is this the right time for me?”

• “What if I’m not good on camera?”

• “Can I really get value out of this?”

• “Will I actually have the time to complete it?”

These are completely valid questions. I’ve heard them many times, and I want to answer them as openly and honestly as possible.

Question: I'm not confident on camera or with tech stuff. Will the mentorship help me?

Yes – and you're not alone. It’s very common to feel hesitant.

We address this head-on:

• Camera Confidence: Week one focuses specifically on building confidence.

• Expert Help: You’ll get 1:1 video review + an evening session with professional videographer Dan Latham, plus insights from social media strategist Tor Davies and personal sup

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Shoulder pain is more common than you might think — about 1 in 3 people will experience it in their lifetime. In fact, it’s the third most common musculoskeletal complaint after back and knee problems.

If you’re dealing with shoulder pain, stiffness, weakness, or instability, you may be wondering:

• Do I need surgery?

• What type of surgery is best for my condition?

• When is the right time to even consider it?

In this article, we’ll tackle those questions head-on. We’ll explore the main types of shoulder surgery — including arthroscopy, arthroplasty, and acromioplasty — and explain when surgery can help and when it might not be necessary.

Shoulder Problems: The Big Four

Your shoulder symptoms usually fall into one of these categories:

• Painful

• Stiff

• Weak

• Unstable

Let’s look at each in more detail.

1. The Painful Shoulder

Pain is often the main reason people consider surgery — but rushing into surgery for pain relief isn’t always...

My Yoga Journey - By Chris Norris Phd 

I first became aware of yoga over 40 years ago while still at school.  Someone mentioned that his mother taught yoga and showed us all a couple of poses, and I bought a yoga book and started practising to see what it was all about.  At the time it was the Bruce Lee martial arts craze (the films had just come out) and I used yoga as stretching exercises and took up Kung Fu while in my sixth form.  When I went to physiotherapy college I got more into the science of stretching and also took a meditation course which was open to students.  From then on I used stretching as part of a gym based fitness programme and meditation in the mornings never really connecting the two.

Later in life after my daughter was born I took up yoga again, seeing a Hatha yoga class advertised and practiced it again mostly as stretching in parallel with martial arts, which by this time had become Ju Jitsu.  Following an injury, the martial arts took a bit of a back seat, ...

You’ve probably asked:

Should I focus on YouTube or Instagram?

Both platforms have large audiences. Both offer opportunities. But when it comes to long-term visibility, organic reach, and content performance, they’re very different.

Here’s the truth:
Instagram wants your money. YouTube wants your content.

Why is YouTube Is the Best Platform for Health Creators?

YouTube is more than a social media site—it’s the second largest search engine in the world. And unlike Instagram, where content fades quickly, YouTube videos can grow in popularity over months or even years.

YouTube Content Compounds Over Time

• Evergreen content thrives. Educational videos, tutorials, exercise demos, or condition explainers continue to be discovered long after they’re posted. Often many years after! 
• Search-based discovery. YouTube ranks content based on relevance, retention, and engagement—not just recency.
• Long shelf life. A well-made YouTube video can become a permanent part of your digital libra
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Are you pouring time into your social media content—only to get a handful of likes or the same few people engaging and no real signs of growth?

You're not alone.

In 2024, organic engagement rates dropped to record lows (63% from 2017). In fact, even if you have 1,000 followers, your post might only be seen by half a person.

But here's the thing: low engagement isn’t failure—it's simply how the platforms are designed.

1. Algorithms now prioritise personal connections
2. Platforms prioritise users who pay
3. Feeds are more crowded than ever
4. People are lurking, not liking

To learn more I highly recommend The Social Success for Physical Therapists Guide by my friend Tor Davies, former physio, publisher and now clinic marketing expert. 

I have read it ‘cover to cover’ and you can access it for FREE simply by registering for free on https://co-kinetic.com/

This is essential reading for any health professional using social media to build their brand, attract patients and share experti...

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Here's my recent experience: My latest video on the romantic topic of 'Rotator Cuff Calcific Tendinopathy' was uploaded this week using a title I had asked Gemini to suggest.

I pasted my video script into gemini and asked for 5 keyword rich titles of which I then selected the 1st one on the list.

'Shoulder Calcium Deposits: Causes, Symptoms & Treatment (Calcific Tendinopathy Explained)'

When the video went public it failed to pick up search traffic and I felt that all too common despair that nearly all YouTubers secretly feel very frequently.

The Fix: I knew the solution was a title change. Going back to basics I researched the top ten videos on the topic, filtered by views, and then made a note of the titles and picked out the most common key words. I then used this to create a new title that would appeal to patients more than professionals - because there is more patients looking on YouTube than professionals.

The RESULTS as you can see in the image were rapid and I can now ...

Calcific Tendinopathy of the Rotator Cuff

What Is It?

Calcific tendinopathy is when calcium builds up inside the rotator cuff tendons (usually the supraspinatus). It can cause pain but is often found in people with no symptoms at all.

Who Gets It?

• Common in adults aged 30–60
• More frequent in women
• Linked with diabetes, hypothyroidism, and frozen shoulder
• Not caused by heavy lifting or injury

What Causes It?

The exact cause isn’t fully known. It may involve:

• Tendon cells turning into bone/cartilage-forming cells
• Poor healing or overuse
• Possibly genetic or metabolic factors

It goes through three stages:

1. Pre-calcific – no symptoms
2. Calcific – calcium appears (may or may not hurt)
3. Post-calcific – body absorbs calcium and tendon heals

What Are the Symptoms?

• Shoulder pain (can come on suddenly or build up slowly)
• Worse at night
• Limited movement
• But remember: up to 50% feel nothing at all

How Is It Diagnosed?

• Ultrasound is the best tool
• X-rays can show
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Do your patients complain of leg or buttock pain when walking—but feel relief when they sit or lean forward?

This classic presentation points toward neurogenic claudication, often caused by lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS), a degenerative condition common in adults over 60. As a physiotherapist, identifying the cause of claudication is critical for guiding effective, non-surgical management strategies and avoiding unnecessary referrals or interventions.

Let’s break down what you need to know about spinal stenosis, how to differentiate claudication types, and which exercises and clinical tests can guide your practice.

What Is Lumbar Spinal Stenosis?

Lumbar spinal stenosis refers to a narrowing of the spinal canal in the lower back, often due to age-related degenerative changes. This narrowing compresses the spinal nerves, impairing blood flow and leading to symptoms like:

• Buttock or leg pain with walking

• Heaviness, cramping, or pins and needles

• Pain relief when

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As health professionals, we often encounter patients grappling with an acute onset of back pain. All patients want us to address their immediate symptoms but we can also help them to prepare for flare-ups. In this blog post, we'll explore a few strategies that you can share with your patients to empower them in managing their back pain. They feature in this video that you can share with patients or create your own video. 

Understanding Back Pain: The Role of Pain Memory

One intriguing concept to introduce to patients is "pain memory." Pain memory is when the brain activates the same neural pathways during a current episode of back pain that were previously active during a more intense episode. This can elevate the perceived pain level, even if the current episode is triggered by a smaller stimulus. Encourage patients to recognize when their brain might be producing exaggerated pain signals, especially in the absence of recent trauma. Help them understand that pain is not always indic...

When it comes to AI which category would you sit in?

A:  Ignore it and hope someone switches it off soon.

B: Love it and use it all the time to do helpful and less helpful things.

C: Passionately hate it, the AI future terrifies me.

Not only is AI taking over fast but the speed of development within AI is like nothing we have witnessed in human history.

This blog provides some thoughts on what AI means for us as therapists, across the different physical and manual professions.

But first…

The cautionary tale of Babylon: Once an ancient city with good healthcare (for its time ) it also became the name of a Healthcare tech company that launched in 2013 and went on to win contracts around the world, including with the NHS – Its valuation in 2021 was $4.2 Billion yet in 2023 the company had vanished due to bankruptcy.

What happened to Babylon? Many things, including over reliance on AI and a data breach. For example, a patient presenting with classic symptoms of a pulmonary em...