Why Physiotherapy and how is it different?

Whether you are young or old, very fit or just unfit, strains and injury can spoil your enjoyment of life.

Your body is complex and wonderful.

It cleverly monitors itself and adapts for internal and external changes without us even being aware – and most of the time it works really well

Just being able to stand up and walk is incredibly complicated and needs your muscles, bones and tendons to all be working together

Our bodies depend on muscles, even very small ones, constantly working either with or against each other to keep us in a state of equilibrium. Many of these subtle adjustments use our core muscles which are making little pushing or pulling adjustments to help us move smoothly or indeed just to sit still or not fall over when we walk

Nearly all our muscles are in pairs and the ideal situation is when these are balanced. However, if one of the pair becomes stronger than the other or starts to “over adjust” then over time muscle tension builds up and we notice the end result – pain

Just as the words of the old song “Your foot bone’s connected to your leg bone etc” all our muscles and bones are interconnected so that something out of line in one part of your body will trigger many adjustments to correct it – all pushing and pulling and working harder than they need - which may well cause pain elsewhere in what seems to be a totally unrelated area

And all that unnecessary muscle work will certainly make you feel sore and tired!

What is Physiotherapy?

Physiotherapy is the careful assessment, treatment and management of your body to help these joints, muscles and nerves function to their full potential.

Chartered Physiotherapists use a wide range of specialist skills including manipulation and mobilisation of joints, massage and exercise therapy to reduce pain and stiffness as well as taping to support weakened muscles
Electrotherapy techniques such as ultrasound and laser are sometimes used to speed up your body's ability to repair damaged tissues.

Your Physiotherapist may suggest Acupuncture or Hydrotherapy as being appropriate for your treatment

All of our physiotherapists are registered with the Health Professions Council HPC and Chartered
Society of Physiotherapists CSP and the Organisation of Chartered Physiotherapists in Private Practice OCPPP known as Physio First.

What do we treat?

Back Pain: disc disorders, sciatica, low back pain and sacroiliac joint problems
Neck pain: stiff neck, whiplash and headaches, dizziness
Face and Jaw pain: Temporomandibular Joint pain – TMJ, Jaw clicking
Joint problems: arthritis and frozen shoulder, painful knees and hips
Arthritic conditions: Osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Ankylosing Spondylitis
Sports injuries: pulled muscles and sprained ligaments, with rehabilitation back to sport
Seasonal injuries: skiing, gardening, football, rugby and tennis
Work-related: hand & arm pain RSI, general postural problems – sitting in front of a computer and commercial driving
Soft tissue injuries: tennis elbow and sprained ankle, Achilles tendon and torn or damaged ACL
Post-operation conditions: hip and knee or total joint replacements, back surgery, arthroscopy
Neurological conditions: Strokes and Parkinson’s Disease, head injuries, nerve injuries           
Children’s problems: Sports Injuries, Growing Pains, Juvenile Arthritis

Our role as Physiotherapists is to find where the root cause of the problem is and to rebalance and “re-educate” the muscles groups between there and where you are feeling the pain. Your role as our Patient is to relearn your correct muscle control and posture..

...and to enjoy moving freely again