Back Pain Neck Pain Knee Pain Leg Pain Shoulder Pain
I have been in practice full time in Plymouth since graduating from the British School of Osteopathy in 1981.. I worked part time for the NHS in their Community Back Pain Service for 10 years involved in ordering MRI scans for patients and assessments for referral to the Neurosurgical team. I have participated in research being a member of the local NCOR research hub and have been involved in nationwide trials, notably the UK BEAM trial and recently the MOCAM trial. I have an interest in treating dancers and have helped Stars of the music industry, theatre, Hollywood and winners of both Strictly Come Dancing and Dancing on Ice. I believe in a Holistic approach and have been a member of The International College of Applied Kinesiology since 1992.
The trouble with back pain is that it can do more than just give you a pain in the back. It can create difficulties with walking, sitting, bending and lifting and can even lead to depression and incontinence. It can also be the cause of pain in the buttocks, groin or legs (commonly called sciatica), in the head, neck, shoulders and arms. It can also be one of the effects of hip, knee and foot problems.
Back pain can result from bad posture, a sudden jerky movement, a lumpy mattress or poor lifting techniques. It can also be caused by injury in a work place, by a sports accident or by muscular spasms. It often occurs during pregnancy or, because of decreased flexibility, as people get older. Read More about Back Pain
Neck pain can have many causative factors from abnormalities in the soft tissues – muscles, ligaments, and nerves, as well as in the bone and the joints of the spine. The most common causes that osteopaths identify and treat are joint dysfunction and soft tissue abnormalities from injury or prolonged wear and tear heavily influenced by poor postural adaptations and mechanics.
Neck pain has numerous causes such as: trauma/accident/sports injury, overuse, wear and tear, and poor posture. They can ultimately lead to pain due to injury of the structures surrounding the spine, such as muscles, joints, ligaments, tendons, discs, blood vessels and nerves. Find out more about Neck Pain
Sudden pain in one of the knees is usually the result of overusing the knee or injuring it. The knee joint is particularly vulnerable to damage and pain because it takes the full weight of your body and any extra force when you run or jump.You’re more likely to experience knee pain as you get older, and people who are overweight or do lots of sports have a higher risk of damaging their knees.
Knee pain can also be caused by injury to the ligaments, tendons (most of the patellar tendon) or cartilage in the knee joint or from a dislocated knee cap. These injuries are found in a wide age range of patients as they can be caused by either degeneration due to old age or during athletic strain.Read more about Knee Pain
The key to understanding Osteopathy is to think about movement. One of the criteria for classifying if something is alive is does it move? Life is about movement, from the transport of nutrients and waste in and out of every cell in the body, to the movement of the respiratory system for breathing. Movement of the cardiovascular system transporting blood around our bodies and the movements of our joints and muscles so that we can live our lives, so without movement our lives are restricted. The quality of ones life can be measured by the quality of all those movements. Osteopathy is about getting the best balance of movement from our bodies particularly the movement of our musculoskeletal system, the quality of which also impacts on the other three types of movement.
Shoulder pain is a common problem treated by osteopathy. There are a number of different reasons that you might develop shoulder pain and your pain could last for a few days or a number of years and could range in its severity. There are several types of treatment for shoulder pain, depending on the cause of your shoulder pain and your symptoms. As well as pain, you may also have reduced strength or movement in your shoulder.
If you are an athlete of a number of sports, then you may find that you overstretch your shoulder ligaments so that you develop shoulder instability. Shoulder pain can be caused by inflammation in the shoulder joint as well as damage to the tendons, ligaments and muscles. In addition, a number of chronic conditions such as osteoporosis or arthritis can increase you susceptibility to shoulder pain and damage. Read more about Shoulder Pain
Neck Pain Treatments 
