Greg Thurston

Hi, I'm Greg.

I’m from New Zealand and currently live in a small town in Spain.

I was born with a clubfoot and one leg shorter than the other. At 1 day old I had the Ponseti manipulation to straighten my foot. By age 10 my right leg was 11cm shorter than my left. I had the Llizarov surgery and wore a frame for six months... turning screws to stretch my leg a few millimetres per day. A few more surgeries followed, the last one at age 14.

Over the years I've done a lot of yoga, pilates, and others things to improve my body and be well. I've worked with many specialists, physiotherapists, and chiropractors, and have learned a lot.

Some of the posts in this blog will focus on clubfoot, and some will be about broader topics such as nutrition, mindset, habits… anything that helps.

I decided to create this website during lockdown. I was lying on the floor at 4am feeling crushed. My hips had seized up, I had a very concerning electric twitch on the top of my head, and I had constant pain. Like many people, these days were filled with fear… anger… frustration…

But then, at 4am, I was struck with inspiration. I decided to revisit all the things that have helped in the past, and to set my mind to finding solutions. I also committed to making this blog, in order to keep myself moving in a positive direction, and also to share and learn.

The first step was to start working with an excellent chiropractor, who has helped me and taught me so much.

I also revisited everything I’ve learned so far, and started repeating the things that worked… as a ROUTINE.

I have bad days, I have frustrations, but I have also learned many strategies and had many breakthroughs.

So, it makes sense that some others out there won’t have stumbled across what I’ve learned. And likewise, you might be doing things that I haven’t discovered.

Let’s share and grow together!

A few years ago I attempted to get an appointment with a specialist. The purpose was simply to have a conversation about what maintenance steps I could take. I was trying everything I knew, but the pain was becoming a concern.

Well, the letter I received was MIND-BLOWING. It shocked me and kind of broke my spirit for a while. I got a flat out rejection. The Ministry of Health said my problem isn’t a priority right now. End of story. Talk about ambulance at the bottom of the cliff.

All I wanted was advice… so I could continue working and living a good life, rather than becoming a burden on society.

That really drove the point home that beyond childhood surgeries, we’re somewhat on our own (at least in New Zealand… I’d love to hear what it’s like in your country). The fact is, we need to drive our own progress and learn what works, and share it.

So let’s grow together!

Comment on my posts or email if you have something to share! And if you like, signup to my email list and I’ll send you the odd newsletter.

Cheers, 
Greg.