Getting Started & What To Expect

Your First Visit – the Initial Consultation

When you visit our practice for the first time we like to have plenty of time to meet you and make sure that we understand your reasons for seeking our help.

With this in mind, we ask you to allow about an hour for your first visit, during which time we will:

• Take a full history of your health, with particular focus on any past or present issues that may be causing you concern.
• Carry out a thorough physical examination that will include an assessment of your posture, movement patterns and any other relevant clinical tests that may be required
• Explain the results of your examination in a clear, jargon free way
• Explain what is involved in any treatment that may be required, and
• Answer any questions you may have.

In most cases – assuming that we feel we can help you and that there are no contraindications to care – we also aim to provide some initial treatment to help address any pain you may be experiencing and begin the process of improving the function of your body.

Your Second Visit – Establishing a Treatment Plan

No two people are the same, so your second visit to our practice – which generally requires about 30 minutes or so – enables us to see how you have responded to the treatment you received on your first visit and use this feedback to create a personal treatment plan that is most suitable to you.

This treatment plan “organises” your care, taking into account the nature of your problem and individual factors such as your age, your general health status, your treatment goals and so on.

As part of this process your treatment plan will also ensure that the care you receive from us is carried out in a convenient and affordable way, and provides you with a good idea as to:

• How much treatment you are likely to require
• The time frames over which this treatment takes place, and
• How to combine this treatment with exercise, nutritional changes, massage, the care of your G.P., or other initiatives that might also be involved in helping you achieve your treatment goals.

The Treatment Process

The “hands on” treatment we provide generally takes place over a period of time, and is usually accompanied by appropriate suggestions regarding exercise, healthy nutrition, postural advice, stress management or other lifestyle issues that may be relevant to you.

Your treatment progress is continuously monitored throughout your care with us – and if any concerns arise we may seek the input of your G.P. or other suitable health professional – but people who follow the guidelines set out in their treatment plan will generally begin to notice steady improvement in how their body feels and is functioning within a reasonable period of time.

Staying Well In The Future

The physical demands of life are ongoing. Prolonged sitting, sporting mishaps, work stresses, the gradual effects of ageing – it all builds up, and often leads to the kinds of problems that cause people to seek our help.

Once these initial problems have been addressed, people often want to know what they can do to help ensure that they continue to stay active and healthy in the future, and a significant part of the care our practice provides focuses on helping them do just that.

This preventative or wellness orientated aspect of our practice is designed to help anybody who wants to be able to perform at their best, but it is particularly popular with people who have been frustrated by years of chronic or recurring difficulty with their health in the past and did not realise that this model of health care was available, and with many of the families that we work with.

This preventative and wellness based approach also has the added advantage of being one of the most cost effective ways to use the care we provide.