Treatments used
Physiotherapy is a scientific, evidence-based practice. Physiotherapy will help you restore, maintain and maximise your strength, function, movement and overall well-being. Rebecca uses the following treatments to achieve this:-
Advice and education
Knowing what you can do to help yourself at home, work and play is a very important part of treatment to prevent reoccurrence. Rebecca gives comprehensive and individualised advice regarding injury management and prevention.
Work place ergonomic assessments
As a physiotherapist, Rebecca is the ideal professional to conduct an ergonomic assessment. She has an extensive knowledge of the biomechanical functions of the body and the effect different stresses have on it. She can provide a comprehensive workstation ergonomic assessment for your workplace or home office. An individual’s workstation should be suitably tailored to meet their needs in order to minimise their injury risk. Poor workstation setups commonly cause neck, shoulder and back pains, repetitive strain injuries, visual impairments and poor posture. The work station assessment often in clues chair and desk height adjustments, mouse and keyboard positioning corrections, sitting posture education, display screen adjustments, change in feet positioning and advice on any beneficial therapeutic equipment to reduce strains on the body
Massage
Massage has been used in Eastern and Western cultures to help relieve pain for thousands of years. By moving soft tissues around an injured area the blood circulation can be enhanced. This aids the resolution of inflammation and accelerates the healing process. The soft tissues and fascia become more flexible.
Massage can also help reduce muscle spasm (increased muscle tone). After an injury to protective muscle spasm can occur. Muscles have an optimal length to generate force. If the muscle length is reduced, due to muscle spasm. they are unable to generate as much force. Their function is compromised. Massage can reduce muscle spasm, restore muscle length and hence optimise muscle function.
Rebecca uses a variety of massage techniques. Rebecca uses deep connective tissue massage to help reduce tension in tight muscles and fascia.
Rebecca uses Swedish massage techniques to encourage the resolution of swelling by directing inflammatory fluid towards the lymphatic glands.
Rebecca uses trigger point massage for pain relief. A trigger point is a site of increased irritability in a tissue that demonstrates a hypersensitive reaction to mechanical stimulation (pressure or traction) and causes (‘triggers’) an additional physiological reaction. Symptoms can be localised to the trigger point or much further away from the trigger point i.e. referred pain. By massaging the trigger point the muscle tension is reduced and the local and referred pain subsides.
Electrotherapy modalities
Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (T.E.N.S)
In the 1965 Melzack and Wall published their ground breaking ‘Pain gate control theory’. This provided an explanation for the transmission of pain signals between the brain and body parts. T.E.N.S helps block the transmission of pain signals to the brain by providing an electrical current to act on the ‘pain gate’. It is non-invasive and administered via a small, portable, battery operated device. The electrical current is transmitted to the body via self-adhesive electrode pads. T.E.N.S also increases the release of the body’s naturally occurring pain-relieving hormones (endorphins).It can be used for several hours a day and is helpful in the management of acute (recent) pain following an injury or chronic (longstanding) pain. It can provide a means of pain control which enables an individual to reduce or stop pain medications which may be addictive and/or have unpleasant side effects.
Exercises
Rebecca uses exercise software recommended by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy called ‘Trackactive’. This enables her to send her clients exercises via email in a pdf format with accompanying videos.
There is research evidence that shows individuals who experience neck or lower back pain do not use the muscles that stabilise their spine the same way as they did prior to their first episode of neck or back pain. Retraining the muscles can significantly reduce the risk or reoccurrence of pain. Many of the exercises given by Rebecca to help her clients manage their spinal pain are pilates-based exercises. The exercises increase the strength of the muscles stabilising the spine and and increase joint mobility.
Individuals are at more risk of falling if their balance, proprioception (awareness of joint position in space) and lower limb muscle strength are poor. Rebecca provides individualised exercise programmes to improve balance, joint proprioception and muscle strength. Rebecca can refer individuals who have fallen or are at risk of falling to the ‘Steady Steps’ exercise programme organised by Edinburgh Leisure.
Joint Mobilisations
Joint mobilisations reduce stiffness in arthritic joints and swelling in inflamed joints. Gentle joint mobilisations increase the blood circulation, reduce pain, stretch tight soft tissues and increase range of movement.
Joint supports
Sometimes joint supports may be helpful to encourage pain-free movement during sport and/or activities of daily living. Rebecca can provide advice regarding the purchase of joint supports, lumbar rolls (back supports) and shaped pillows (cervical supports)
Number of treatments
The number of treatments clients require depends on the complexity and duration of the problem. A combination of telephone consultations (advice and exercises sent via email) and ‘hands-on’ treatments may be needed.