Questions Answered

What is Osteopathy?
What do Osteopaths treat?
What should I wear?
What shoud I expect?
What is pain?
What can you do for my pain?
Can I bring a friend or relative?
Does it hurt?
Do I need to see my doctor first?
How many treatments will it take?
What do I do now?

We have attempted to answer some of the frequently asked questions regarding our services and osteopathy in general here.

Please choose the appropriate question to your left. If your question is not here please do not hesitate to contact us.

What is Osteopathy?

Osteopathy is an established healthcare profession which assesses each person as a whole rather than just a collection of separate problems. Osteopaths believe that the structure of the body influences how it functions and therefore if they can alter the structure, returning it to how it should be, then function will improve and pain reduce.

Osteopaths use their hands as their main tool to assess the body looking for areas that aren not functioning correctly and then helping correct them to restore function and reduce pain.Techniques used include stretching, massaging, articulation (gentle movement of the joints) and manipulation with the aim of getting dysfunctional joints working better and reducing the tension in tight, over-stretched muscles.

What do Osteopaths treat?

The most common conditions that we treat are:

However, patients have found osteopathy helpful for many other conditions. If you want to find out more, please call and we will be happy to talk to you.

What should I wear?

As with any medical examination, you will probably be asked to undress to your underwear, so please wear something you are comfortable in.

What Should I Expect?

A private one hour consultation and treatment

What is Pain?

Pain is a warning signal that something is wrong. It is one of the body's natural defence mechanisms to alert you to a problem but also it is there to stop you from damaging your body further.

Look on it as a red traffic light.

Osteopaths diagnose the cause of pain and can often do a great deal to help reduce the level of your pain and suffering.

But what directly causes pain? Often, it is the result of localised swelling of injured tissue which creates pressure on nerves.

What can you do for my pain?

The skilled techniques of osteopathy can allow you a speedy return to normal activity.

If you have had the pain for a long time and other forms of treatment have not helped, osteopathic treatment may be beneficial, although it may require time and patience.

The osteopath will look at how your whole body functions and so be able to reduce strain on the painful area caused by mechanical problems elsewhere.

There are times when it is wise for you to take medication as well as receiving osteopathic treatment. Osteopaths frequently work in close co­operation with your doctor.

Can I bring a friend or relative?

Yes,if you wish, you can have someone present throughout your consultation and treatment.

Does it hurt?

Some soft tissue treatment may cause discomfort during treatment. Your osteopath will tell you what to expect, and will want you to let them know if you are in pain. You may feel a little stiff or sore after treatment. This is a normal, healthy response to the treatment.

Do I need to see my doctor first?

You do not need to see your doctor first if you are paying for your own treatment. However, some insurance companies require you to see your doctor first. Osteopathy is available on the NHS in some areas, and national guidelines say it should be available everywhere for low back pain.

How many treatments will it take?

Treatment lengths vary and can depend on the nature of the presenting complaint, whether it is acute or chronic, whether there is tissue injury and how well your body responds to treatment.

Between 2 to 6 treatments is common, initially with treatment at weekly intervals to see some improvement, then gradually spacing out appointments to wider intervals.

Conditions which have been present for more than 3 months, or where there is a history of recurrence, may take longer to resolve.

There may also be long-term benefit in having 'maintenance' treatments to ensure that structural issues don't result in a recurrence of the problem or that stresses and strains that you can't avoid don't have any lasting effect. These are typically 4-6 weeks apart.

What do I do now?

Simply go to our Contact Page.

There you will find details so you can email us, telephone us or arrange your first visit.

We look forward to hearing from you!