BELIEF IS THE FIRST STEP

A year after the initial injury, Ramage went on to achieve her goal of running a marathon. It was an experience she loved every step of the way. “I had a party the whole way around. It was the best. I could not have been in a better mindset, and I probably annoyed everybody around me because I was having a little dance party at every kilometre marker,” she laughs. Dedicating all of her time and effort into the mental preparation was vital to her success. “I ran across the finish line feeling great. Nothing would have stopped me.” Looking back, she says the most fulfilling part of the experience was learning to take her own advice, something that has since made her a better osteopath. “I think my clients have a lot more belief in what I’m doing because I can say ‘I’ve been there. I’ve done it myself and I know that it works’,” she says. “Healthcare-wise, so much of what you do is mental. And if you don’t buy into your own treatment programme and your rehab, then it’s never going to happen.” Not only has the experience fostered more trust with her clients, but it has given her an appreciation for the ups and downs of rehabilitation. “It’s not all just going to get better straight away. There will be little mini setbacks. If you prepare somebody for them before they even come, then it becomes a lot easier to deal with when they get there.” Now a mum to two young boys, Ramage says the experience has inspired her to set even bigger goals in the future. For her 40th birthday in 2026, she aims to compete in the Coast to Coast multisport challenge, which sees competitors running, cycling and kayaking from the west to the east coast of NZ’s South Island. “I now know that as long as you tell the body to do something, it will do it, as long as you believe you can.”