How We Help
How We Help
We work better together
Whether you have back pain, a tendon injury, pelvic floor problems, arthritis, problem scars or you're a new mum needing a post baby check up - find out how we can help you below.
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Tendon Injuries - how best to manage them
Tendons attach muscles to bones to allow you to move. Tendon damage can occur from acute trauma such as a tear to a repetitive strain or overuse injury.
We often see recreational and elite runners unable to run due to their symptoms and amateur sports people unable to participate in their chosen sport due to their tendon pain. Common areas of the body affected are Achilles pain, tennis elbow and outer hip pain.
Tendons need to be loaded in the right way, with the right exercises. We can provide accurate diagnosis with use of an ultrasound scan and report which is often used to guide treatment planning.
James came to see Guy at the clinic with Achilles tendon pain following an increase in his walking and running. A diagnostic ultrasound scan revealed a swollen tendon on the initial assessment. A combination of hands-on therapy with shockwave, massage and a graded strengthening plan meant his pain subsided and he managed to get back to running.
Back Pain - don't let it get you down
Back pain will likely affect all of us at some time in our lives. The intensity of pain can be distressing at times, especially if you don’t know what you have done or how your injury occurred.
It can be difficult to know the best way to move or get comfortable, and whether to rest or stay active. This can make activities such as sitting at a desk, bending and walking difficult and also impact on work and leisure activities.
Back and neck pain often respond very well to physiotherapy, graded exercise and education to build confidence in your ability to move.
Margaret was lifting her dog into the back of the car and felt a sudden twinge in her back and pain down her leg. She was unable to move comfortably, preferring to lie flat and she was worried about what was causing her pain. After a thorough assessment, Guy reassured Margaret about the cause of her symptoms. After a course of physiotherapy and graded exercises, Margaret was back walking her dog pain free.
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Post Pregnancy MOT - the essential post baby check-up
Having a new baby is physically and mentally tiring and having dedicated time for ourselves can be a challenge.
Knowing when and how to start exercising can be confusing and returning too soon can cause problems such as back pain, increased doming within the tummy muscles (diastasis of rectus abdominus DRA) and bladder leakage or vaginal prolapse symptoms.
Sarah delivers the New Mum MOT which is a unique post-partum assessment including a thorough understanding of each mum’s pregnancy and delivery (whether C-section or vaginal delivery); this assessment is still relevant many years after pregnancy. The new mum MOT assessment ensures that advice is specific for each woman; treatment is always personalised depending on what you would like to be able to achieve and what your specific concerns are.
Below is an extract from Rachel’s blog - her experience of the New Mum MOT.
“Sarah asked me some detailed questions about my health, pregnancy and birth experience. Despite these being personal questions, Sarah made me feel totally at ease and it actually helped me process my birthing experience. It was reassuring to hear someone who is genuinely passionate about helping women get to know their bodies and how best to recover safely and appropriately. Overall, I feel that every mother should have a New mum MOT. We don’t really discuss the issues that we can have post birth.”
Pelvic Floor Problems - vaginal prolapse & pessary fitting
Pelvic floor dysfunction can affect up to 1 in 3 women in their lifetimes. Pelvic floor problems can contribute to symptoms such as urinary leakage, pelvic organ (vaginal) prolapse and pain. Unfortunately, due to the intimate and embarrassing nature of these issues, people can often take months or years to seek the help they need.
Pelvic/women’s health physiotherapy is highly specialised and treatment is holistic and individual in nature. Patients regularly tell us that they don’t know if they are doing pelvic floor exercises correctly; Sarah routinely uses real time ultrasound scanning to help her patients with this and ensure that they are effectively activating their pelvic floor muscles. This is an invaluable piece of equipment for this hidden part of the body.
Internal pelvic floor assessment may also be offered following discussion with Sarah; this helps to better identify specific muscle function and can focus treatment.
Sarah offers a pessary fitting service for women who need further support for managing symptoms of vaginal prolapse - more about pessary for prolapse.
Mary came to Baslow Physiotherapy as she was leaking when running. This was making her feel frustrated and angry that her pelvic floor was letting her down. Due to this she had stopped running altogether and was avoiding social events due to fear of further episodes. Sarah and Mary worked together to identify when leakage was happening and after a full assessment, Mary started a progressive programme of muscle strengthening and graded return to running. Four months later, Mary has confidence in her body and pelvic floor to be able to run again and has even entered her first half marathon!
Arthritis - how we can help
Arthritis is often thought of as “wear and tear” and can be felt as a deep throbbing ache in a joint, occasionally with a sharp pain or catching sensation. It can be very limiting for joint movement, associated flexibility and function.
Arthritis can affect one or multiple joints and it can lead to a reduction in activity and can significantly affect activities of daily living. Lower limb joints, such as hips and knees are the most commonly affected and therefore walking, going downstairs and kneeling are common complaints.
Treatment for arthritis can vary between individuals, this is why a thorough, individualised assessment is required prior to commencing treatment. Lifestyle changes can make a big impact to pain and function. This is in addition to other options, such as joint mobilisations, soft tissue massage, acupuncture for pain relief and targeted exercises to regain range of movement and strength.
Nigel was struggling to walk around his local golf course. This was impacting on seeing his friends and getting him down in mood. Guy helped to reduce localised swelling and improved joint range of movement, which gave Nigel relief of some of his symptoms. He also advised Nigel on ways to improve his muscle strength to best support his knee with specific exercises. Nigel was able to return to regular golf, with good self-management strategies and overall more confidence in his knee.
Why wait for tomorrow?
Book your appointment today to get the help you need
Scar Therapy - giving you scar confidence
Scar formation is normal after an incision or cut is made with surgery, injury or burns; however, some scars will naturally heal better than others due to our collagen and genetics.
We know there any many benefits to scar therapy and getting the correct advice and guidance can make a huge difference; this can be weeks, months or even years after an operation. Scars disrupt healthy tissue and can lead to tightness, tethering and can make the tissues feel ‘stuck’ and restrict the feeling of moving freely.
Nearly all types of scars will benefit from scar therapy within the body. Scar therapy involves hands on therapy, light mobilisations, massage and stretching if required. You should feel empowered about how to touch your scar, ways to optimise healing, reducing any itchiness and tightness and reconnect with your body.
Kate came to see Sarah 6 months after having her second baby via C-section. She was feeling anxious about some tightness and itchiness across her new scar, despite it healing well overall. Scar therapy commenced on Kate’s first appointment with some gentle hands-on therapy and Kate was taught some techniques to continue with at home. Due to the look of Kate’s scar, Sarah also recommended use of a silicone strip (Scarban C-section recovery kit) to aid with healing, in addition to some specific exercises to help increase movement and mobility in Kate’s scar. Sarah saw Kate four times and within that time her scar flattened, changed colour and was no longer itchy. Kate was able to progress through pilates-based exercises and felt much stronger in herself. She was also pleased with how her tummy looked; especially in standing with less of an overhang.
FAQs for Baslow Physiotherapy Services
Physiotherapists are well placed to diagnose and treat tendon and muscle injuries. These include common conditions such as tennis elbow, golfers elbow, Achilles pain, rotator cuff (shoulder pain) and plantarfasciitis...to name a few.
Tendon injuries can affect people at different stages of their lives, often more common over the age of 40 years old. Tendon injuries can be linked to a change in training or overuse injuries such as walking/running much further than usual, or painting a wall for an extended period of time.
At Baslow Physiotherapy we offer packages of treatment for tendon injuries as they often need consecutive sessions of treatment. Packages of treatment start at £162 but vary on which type of treatment is needed.
Musculoskeletal injuries can take a few months to improve and follow up sessions will usually need to be spread out over time. A gold treatment package at Baslow Physiotherapy would be a recommended option to ensure full recovery, this is £252.
Physiotherapists use a thorough screening process of questioning followed by hands on clinical testing. At Baslow Physiotherapy we also use diagnostic ultrasound scanning to look within the body, this gives moving images and a written report is generated following this assessment. We also have access to shockwave therapy which can be transformational for some tendon injuries.
If you are living in pain or discomfort and unsure as to what to do in relation to pelvic floor dysfunction such as urinary incontinence or pelvic organ prolapse then pelvic floor physiotherapy can give you the knowledge and confidence to better control these issues.
Pelvic health or women’s health physiotherapists specialise in the treatment of pelvic floor problems. Sarah has specialist training in fitting vaginal pessaries for women suffering from symptoms of vaginal prolapse.
Pelvic floor dysfunction such as urinary incontinence, vaginal prolapse and pelvic pain can affect women at varying stages of their lives; most commonly during and/or after pregnancy and around menopause, this can be up to 1 in 3 women.
Most pelvic floor problems will require thorough assessment and personalised treatment planning over time, depending on the problem. At Baslow Physiotherapy packages start at £182 but this varies on individual needs.
Pelvic health physiotherapists use digital palpation to directly assess the pelvic floor, grading scores are used to measure risk of vaginal prolapse and muscle strength/co-ordination to best determine treatment options. Real time ultrasound scanning can also be key in examining the pelvic floor, providing moving images from external scanning. This can be really insightful for patients to see how to best contract and relax this vital muscle group during rehabilitation and for future pelvic floor health.
Scar therapy performed by a physiotherapist can be very helpful in the optimal healing of many scars, especially after surgery. Physiotherapists can offer the correct advice in a timely way after surgery with advice on scar care, massage techniques and specific stretches and exercises to optimise scar recovery.
Scar tissue will never be the same as original tissue, that’s just the way our bodies heal. It is likely that we will all have scars of some sort during our lives, some people heal very well and other people benefit from scar therapy to get the best outcome in terms of function and cosmetic appearance.
Scar therapy often needs a few sessions of treatment and for this reason we often discuss a package of care for scar treatment. The cost of appointments and packages vary depending on the types of scar and how many sessions you need.
I cannot recommend Sarah highly enough and only wish I’d found her sooner. She is incredibly knowledgeable and professional but also very friendly and puts you totally at ease which incredibly important. She has absolutely made me appreciate me the importance of post natal physio and I will definitely be going to see her again at a much earlier stage if I’m lucky enough to have another baby. Thank you for everything Sarah!
Holly
I had problems with adhesion from scar tissue on my stomach. Sarah, through tissue massage and guiding me through specific exercises managed to sort this for me, and I will be forever grateful. She is an amazing woman... very professional and makes you feel at ease right from the start. The treatment room also shows the high level of professionalism that she and her husband have. This was a specialised area of physiotherapy and she did it with absolute confidence and compassion. She's a very special, and personable woman. Thank you.
Sally
The nature of individual health problems means that previous success in helping patients with these problems is no indicator of a guaranteed positive outcome for everyone. We are unable to predict or guarantee outcomes for any patients.