FAQs
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Your initial appointment is an opportunity for me to hear your story and gain an understanding of your symptoms, injury history, health status and lifestyle.
This thorough history taking will be followed by a physical assessment to check your resting posture, and to see how your body moves and walks. At times, I may also test the integrity of your joints, nerves and muscles for example.
Information gathered from the assessment will help us begin the process of understanding what may be contributing to your symptoms. From there, I will guide you towards the most appropriate and time-efficient way to optimise how your body moves and feels.
PLEASE NOTE: I don’t ‘fix you’ - your body heals itself - I am simply here as a guide to highlight areas of limitation in your body, and help you re-educate it to move better. This ultimately gives the body the permission it needs to realign itself.
My way of working is best suited to those of you who value the nature of a process and not those who are expecting a ‘quick fix’.
It's recommended that you come to your appointment with loose clothing that is easy for you to move around in. If you are coming to see me with a lower limb problem, it would be helpful if you could bring a pair of shorts to change into. Similarly, if you are attending with an upper limb issue, consider wearing a simple vest top.
On occasion, it may be more appropriate for you to be seen by another health professional. This could include your GP who may need to be consulted to arrange further treatment or investigation following your assessment.
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CranioSacral Therapy (CST) is a hands-on therapy, where the touch is gentle, non-invasive and usually subtle. However, don’t be fooled! It is a powerful treatment approach that helps to release restrictions deep within the body - specifically the craniosacral system. Amazingly, this frequently frees up space and eases pain, tension etc in other body areas!
The CranioSacral system is a recently discovered physiological system, encompassing the bones of the skull and spine, within which are membranes and fluid - all serving to protect your brain and spinal cord (i.e. your central nervous system).
CST involves the therapeutic application of gentle mobilisation and release techniques to the CranioSacral system. During CST, you are lying on your back, fully clothed. CST involves the therapist using their hands to ‘listen’ in to various parts of the body, usually around the head, spine and pelvis - then applying gentle traction techniques where needed. It is usually a very relaxing treatment.
Effects from this treatment are far-reaching given that your central nervous system affects everything! CST also complements and stimulates the body’s own natural healing process.
I trained through the Upledger Institute - I have so far completed CST1 and will be undertaking CST2 in 2024.
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AiM™ is a movement orientated education system, created by Gary Ward, which teaches a truly game-changing integrated approach to working with the human body.
Gary is the author of the inspiring book What The Foot? where he shares his unique philosophy in the realm of human movement. He is also the creator of the Flow Motion Model™ (see next FAQ)
See Gary make profound changes to one gentleman’s chronic pain within a couple of hours on BBC’s Doctor in the House starring Dr Rangan Chatterjee in this short clip:
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The Flow Motion Model™ is a map of the moving human body, detailing what the body does and when it does it during the journey of the gait cycle. For example, when your heel hits the ground, it is possible to determine what each and every joint in the body is doing in all three dimensions of movement.
The duration of a single footstep is approximately 0.6 - 0.8 seconds. During this time, every joint undertakes every single possible joint motion in all three dimensions. The Flow Motion Model™ documents all these joint actions throughout all the key phases of gait.
The FMM™ serves as an invaluable assessment tool for the human body. It can help highlight what joint actions your body is having trouble accessing. Once these missing movements have been identified, we can show the body how to access these forgotten spaces again. When the body is offered this new movement experience, it’s like it is recalibrated back closer to its truest form - offering freedom from pain and movement limitations.
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Yes - I can provide you with receipts for your treatment sessions which will include my name, work address, treatment provided, as well as my my physio registration and insurance numbers.
At present, I am not affiliated with any insurance companies (such as BUPA, Axa, Vitality) therefore you would need to pay for your treatment and claim back in retrospect.
PLEASE NOTE: Check with your provider if this is possible FIRST.
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I treat a wide range of conditions from head to toe (literally) - such as lower back & neck pain, persistent niggles, tendon pain, sports injuries, ligament injuries, nerve pain e.g. sciatica, shoulder pain, sprains, strains, post-operative care and many more.
In the initial phases of a newer injury for instance, a more localised treatment approach may be taken with the view of reducing pain swiftly, but ultimately the goal of all treatment is to integrate the affected body part(s) back into a fully functioning body.
Please note: You don’t need to be in severe pain before seeking help! It is best to address even the smallest of niggles as soon as possible.
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Yes!
The body has an innate ability to self repair. Acupuncture used alongside physio enhances these natural self repair mechanisms to enhance recovery, reduce pain and improve repair timeframes.
I am trained in Western Medical Acupuncture (through the Acupuncture Association of Chartered Physiotherapists AACP) - it was derived from Traditional Chinese Medicine [TCM] which is an ancient system of medicine which dates as far back as 1000BC.
TCM founded the concept of treating specific points along the body where unseen energy pathways could be stimulated with a needle to affect energy (qi) within the body in order to support the body back to optimal health.
You can book in for just acupuncture treatments however a physiotherapy initial assessment will need to be carried out first.
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Yes! This may be a suggested treatment option for you during your physiotherapy appointment. Massage can help to reduce pain, improve range of movement, reduce perceived muscle tightness and reduce levels of stress.
If you wish to attend purely for deep tissue massage, you will need to book in for a physiotherapy initial assessment first so we can run through a consultation before proceeding with massage.