Physiotherapy
We have a team of Physiotherapists with a broad range of skills to help you recover from pain, weakness, stiffness and/or loss of movement caused by injury, disease, illness or ageing.
If you are new to Physiotherapy, you might like to better understand what it is, why you need it and how it works. For those of you who understand Physiotherapy and are looking for a reputable Physiotherapist, book your appointment with us or see a list of our practitioners.
What is a Physiotherapist?
A Physiotherapist is a university qualified clinical health professional trained to use physical techniques to rehabilitate and improve a person’s ability to move by working with your joints, bones and muscles.
Your Physiotherapist will use their extensive knowledge of the human body (it’s anatomy and physiology) to assess and treat a variety of health conditions. Their aim is to help restore aching, stiff and dysfunctional muscles and joints back to health.
How does Physiotherapy work?
In Physiotherapy or physical therapy, a trained and qualified Physiotherapist will complete a thorough assessment of your symptoms or condition, diagnose the problem, and help you understand what’s wrong.
They will then develop a personalised treatment plan taking into account your lifestyle, capacity, recreation or sporting activities. They will track your progress and make adjustments to your treatment accordingly.
What treatments do physiotherapists prescribe?
Exercise therapy and rehabilitation
To strengthen and improve mobility.
Strength and conditioning training
Including stretching, core stability training and muscle re-education.
Joint manipulation and mobilisation
To reduce stiffness and improve flexibility.
Mobile aids
For example splints, crutches, walking sticks, wheelchairs or taping and strapping.
Soft tissue massage
To help with mobilisation of muscles, tendons or ligaments.
Hydrotherapy
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Acupuncture and dry needing
Electrotherapy
Taping and strapping
What conditions do Physiotherapists treat?
What are the reasons people see a Physiothrapist?
Sports Injuries and Sports Physiotherapy
It’s surprisingly common to sustain an injury while playing a sport. Injuries are caused when you overuse a part of your body or muscles, have a direct impact on your body parts or experience a force greater than your body part can structurally cope with. These injuries commonly result in bruising, sprains, strains, or joint injuries. No matter what your injury, it is important you have it investigated as leaving your injury untreated can lead to far more severe consequences.
Sports injuries are classified either as acute or chronic. A sudden injury, such as spraining your ankle, is called an acute injury. An injury caused by repeated overuse of a muscle joint or group, poor technique, and structural abnormalities can contribute to the development of chronic sporting injuries.
Ankle sprains, bruises, concussion, cuts, abrasions, dehydration, tooth damage, knee joint injuries and nose injuries are all common sports injuries.
Treating sports injuries
The treatment needed if you sustain a sporting injury will depend largely on the type and severity of the injury. If the pain continues for several days, make sure you see your physio or doctor as sometimes something that seems as simple as a sprain may actually be a more severe injury like a fracture. You must ensure you give your body time to rest and recuperate before using the injured body part or muscle to avoid worsening the damage done.
Sports Physiotherapy can help with sporting injuries by rehabilitating the injured site, helping you develop strength and flexibility, or developing an exercise regime to help your body return to its original level of fitness. At Phytness, our team of Physiotherapists treat people from a variety of sports, ranging from amateurs to professionals. Our team will put together an appropriate rehabilitation program based on your sport and your goals.
How to prevent sports injuries
Reduce your sports injuries by:
Warming up beforehand
Wearing appropriate footwear
Using safety guards such as pads, helmets and mouthguards
Avoiding exercise during the hottest part of the day
Maintaining overall fitness throughout the year
Avoiding overexertion
Using good technique
Use cool down stretches after sport
Allow recovery time between training and sporting sessions.
Spinal Pain
Spinal pain one of the most common reasons people visit a physiotherapist. In all cases, early assessment and treatment is important to reduce the severity of the problem and to help with early prevention and treatment. Some spinal problems can involve your nerves, causing weakness, numbness, or pins and needles.
Treatment for Spinal Pain
Your Physiotherapist will carefully review your symptoms and will often use biomechanical diagnosis to identify the areas of the spine and it's surrounds that have pain and dysfunctional movement. Depending on what is wrong and the severity of the problem, your Physiotherapist may use joint manipulation, mobilisation, soft tissue treatment, traction, exercise and patient education to help treat the pain. Your Physiotherapist can help identify whether further testing, such as blood tests, CT scans or MRI scans are required to identify underlying causes of your spinal pain and to help with diagnosis. Your Physiotherapist may also work with you to develop a self-management plan - this will include things you can do at home/work to manage the pain.
Pelvic Dysfunction
Would you believe that one in five women (Zondervan and Barlow 2000) and one in 12 men (Ferris et al 2009) suffer from pelvic pain? Pelvic pain can be felt anywhere in the pelvis, from the tailbone to the rectum, perineum or genitals. Pelvic dysfunction can affect your bladder, your bowel, sexual function or all three. For some people, diagnosis and treatment of their pelvic pain can take years - especially if they don't seek help. Pelvic Physiotherapy can help both men and women with diagnosis and treatment of their pelvic pain.
Some of the symptoms of pelvic dysfunction are:
Bladder leakage when you cough, sneeze, laugh or exercise
Finding it difficult to control or empty your bowel or bladder
Accidentally passing wind on a regular basis
Painful sex
Pain in your pelvic area
Incontinence
Pelvic organ prolapse
For women:
A bulge at the front of the vagina
Feeling like your vagina is heavy, uncomfortable, dragging or dropping
For men:
A bulge in the rectum
Feeling the need to empty your bowel but not actually needing to.
Treatment for pelvic pain
If you are experiencing any of the above symptoms, it is advisable to seek medical treatment to help diagnose and plan your treatment based on your individual situation. Pelvic Physiotherapy can help you with diagnosing the cause of your symptoms and putting together a treatment plan which may include manual therapy, education, exercises and self-management strategies. The sooner you seek treatment, the better the chances are of catching and treating the problem before it becomes severe.
Vestibular Dizziness and Rehabilitation
Many people will experience being dizzy at some point in their lives. To feel dizzy generally means you feel either light-headed, faint, woozy, unsteady, are losing your balance or feel like your body is spinning or moving to one side - or all of these. You could feel dizzy if you stand up too fast, drink too much alcohol, or have been spinning around a bit. Unfortunately, there are people who struggle with dizziness on a more regular basis, causing an issue with their ability to balance.
Often, dizziness can be caused by problems or illnesses within the inner ear (vestibular system). The vestibular system helps you control your balance. Vestibular dizziness is usually triggered, or aggravated, by moving your head or body, or even simply turning your head in a particular direction causing you to feel dizzy, vertigo (a false sense of spinning or moving sideways) and/or imbalance.
Diagnosis and Treatment of Vestibular Dizziness
It is important that you are thoroughly assessed so you can be properly diagnosed.
You may need to undergo a range of tests to confirm your diagnosis, including:
a review of your medical history
detailed questions about the nature of your dizziness
specialised balance or hearing tests
a CT or MRI scan of the inner ear or brain
tests for specific conditions.
At Phytness HealthCare we have physiotherapists who are trained in vestibular rehabilitation who can assist with diagnosis and formulate a specialised treatment plan which will typically include vestibular exercises designed to re-calibrate your balance system. Your program may include:
exercises to reduce your dizziness
balance exercises
eye-head coordination exercises
specific mobilisation techniques to clear loose crystal structures from the semicircular canals that can cause dizziness (called BPPV)
patient education.
Do I need a referral to see a Physiotherapist?
No, a referral is not needed to see a physiotherapist. However, sometimes your GP will refer you to a Physio to help you from pain, stiffness, loss of movement and/or weakness.
