Sophie Hardy

@spiehrd972
My name is Sophie Hardy and I am married to Phil. We have two kids, Joe and Kate who are the most important things in my life.

Before emigrating from the UK to New Zealand I used to be a Chiropractor. I ran my own busy general practice clinic but 2 days a week I worked with and treated International and Premiership footballers (soccer players). Because of this I have worked with many different types of therapists and have a wide range of skills that I believe are pretty unique in the physical therapy world.

However I have osteoarthritis (OA) or degenerative arthritis diagnosed in my spine at age just 28. I now have it in my hands as well and so have retired from practice.

At the beginning of 2008 we emigrated from the UK to New Zealand to try and find a better quality of life. Although there have been a few hiccups along the way we have found life in New Zealand to be more laid back with less stress and here children are expected to be children and they are happier with a wider variety if interests than we could have imagined or afforded back in the UK.

However retirement bored me stiff so I looked at ways I could help my fellow OA sufferers and have come up with a few tips and advice about OA. If you are interested then go to www.aboutOA.com-it's all free and hopefully will give you some relief too.