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Osteopathy

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Welcome!

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This short guide is designed to help you understand osteopathy, whether you are seeking relief from pain or curious about holistic health.

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Osteopathy is a holistic healthcare approach that emphasises the connection between the musculoskeletal system and other body systems. It aims to assist the body's self-regulating capacity, taking into consideration lifestyle and environmental factors.

Conditions Treated

Osteopathy can help with a broad range of conditions, including but not limited to:

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     Back and neck pain

     Joint pain

     Headaches and migraines

     Digestive symptoms

     Stress-related conditions

     Chronic tension and inability to relax

     Arthritic pain

     Fibromyalgia

     Frozen shoulder

     Generalised body aches and pains

     Hypermobility

     Minor sports injuries

     Muscle spasm

     Neuralgia

     Sciatica

     Repetitive Strain Injury

     Whiplash

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What to Expect During Your First Visit​

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Initial Consultation: We'll discuss your medical history and concerns.

Physical Examination: A thorough assessment of posture, mobility, and discomfort. Please consider appropriate underwear, bring shorts and a singlet if preferred for your examination.

Personalised Treatment Plan: Customised strategies that include hands-on treatment and self-care advice.

Ongoing Support: Lifestyle coaching and exercise/movement to maintain your well-being.

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Please refer to the General Osteopathic Council in the link below for further information and orientation about what to expect:

Visiting an osteopath - General Osteopathic Council (osteopathy.org.uk)

Here is a video to watch:

Visiting an osteopath (youtube.com)

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How Many Treatments Will I Need?

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This varies depending on your condition and its duration. Some conditions require a combination of movement, exercise, and lifestyle modifications beyond the treatment room. Your ability to work collaboratively with the osteopath will reduce the number and frequency of visits. It is common to have 3-5 treatments in close succession to establish a stable change. If the issue needs more intervention a treatment plan will be discussed with possible referral or collaborate with other healthcare practitioners, such as personal trainers, Pilates instructors or nutritionists to help sustain progress. However, this varies based on your specific needs and realistic goals; discussion with the osteopath is an essential element of your treatment and care.

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How will I know that osteopathy is safe for me?

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During the consultation we will ask detailed questions about your condition and medical history. It's important to inform us if you have experienced any aggravations of your condition with previous interventions especially if you feel fearful about or uncomfortable during treatment. These factors can affect your response and communication is key. We may ask you to grade the pain to better understand your pain tolerance. Occasionally pain can flare after a treatment which can be a normal response, and it's important to let us know in order to modify our approach.

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Can I Claim on My Private Medical Insurance?

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Many private health insurance policies provide cover for osteopathic treatment. To confirm the available level of cover and whether you require a referral from your GP or specialist, check with your insurance company before seeking osteopathic treatment.

Client Stories

Case 1

Male in late 40s with a chronic knee pain of a 20-year duration following an injury in his 20s. The client had not been well managed at the time of the injury, and so had never been properly rehabilitated back to full function. At the time of presentation, scans showed that there was some wear and tear at the joint, but not to a degree that was out of the ordinary explaining the intensity of his symptoms. The initial consultation was to get a very detailed history of the initial knee trauma, and the circumstances that had led to him not getting the intervention that was indicated. Then we tracked the symptoms over the course of the next 20 years along with any intervention that he had had, and how he felt it about the efficacy of the treatment. We also looked at what he thought was wrong with his knee, and his own ideas and future projections as well as what he thought was the right course of action that he needed to take.

Working in this way, it became evident that there were some very understandable and powerful beliefs in place that were interfering with his capacity to progress his knee function. An example of these were “all or nothing” thinking where he pushed himself to exercise and then gave up in despair when the knee became aggravated. Another element was an unconscious belief that having not been helped in the past, this was likely to occur again in the future. This meant that every time his knee hurt, he had a litany of thoughts, feelings, beliefs and emotions that projected his past onto his future and helped to keep him stuck.

Part of the treatment was coaching around these areas, along with pain science education about the physiological nature of chronic pain. This gave the client tools to be able to interpret and grade his pain and make appropriate decisions about how to rest or challenge his knee. Over time this led to his being able to know how to stress his knee just to the point of change and improve his range, strength and endurance.

Additional elements we worked on were lymphatic drainage of the knee as well as dietary advice to support connective tissue health, nervous tissue health inflammation reduction. Once the client understood how to work with his newfound understanding, he was very self-motivated and able to work on his own with occasional check ins to ensure he was on track.

 

Case 2

Female in her 30s. Highly stressful work, self-employed and running various businesses. Presenting with chronic tension and restricted movement in her neck and shoulders, regular headaches and irritable bowel syndrome. She wanted to improve her health and wellbeing and had recently hired additional help in her business to help with the workload so now had time and energy to pay attention to this. With the initial consultation we looked at all the areas where I could assist with intervention, and where I could refer her to work with additional support to create an effective team that would keep her working efficiently whilst minimising stress. She decided to see me for digestive health, nervous system regulation practice and osteopathy, and to work with a business coach to help her manage her workload effectively. I collaborated with the business coach to feed forward my findings, especially around executive function deficits which the coach was then able to incorporate into their support of our client.

Testimonials

"I’ve been a patient of Antonia’s for a variety of problems over the past 7 years. I am always amazed at how quickly I improve after seeing her, even if I have put off making an appointment for weeks, or even months due to a busy schedule. I am left kicking myself that I waited and suffered through pain. Antonia understands the body like no other practitioner I have ever seen and have recommended her to many friends and family members."

Jo

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"Not only is Antonia’s knowledge of the physical body profound, but her understanding of the mind/body connection has been fundamental in her extremely effective treatments. In her holistic approach, Antonia has been tremendously helpful, bringing in expertise from other areas when needed, from her pool of tried and tested professionals. She is a kind, open-minded, genuinely caring and interested professional of great integrity. I cannot recommend her highly enough."

Amy

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"Antonia’s holistic way of working brings together her learnings from different approaches and practices in a way that means she is able to shape each treatment around my body’s changing needs. Sessions aren’t only physical, Antonia goes deeper so as to understand what my body is asking for, what it is lacking and what I am experiencing in my life at the time that might relate to what is happening in and for my body. I live with quite extreme trismus following treatment for cancer in a salivary gland, which presents me with mouth opening difficulties. My work with Antonia is a constant and growing exploration of the changes within my new body and her insights and knowledge are invaluable. I trust her to help me with my on-going discoveries and I always feel safe in her hands."

Martine (psychotherapist)

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