At Challenge Physio I pride myself in providing a different approach to the traditional Physiotherapy methods that many of you may have already experienced. So, to kick-off my new blog, I figured going back to the start would be a sensible way of trying to explain what this difference is.

When I say ‘going back to the start’, what I intend to do is challenge you to consider the entire body and realise what an amazing machine it is!

‘Everything you do, takes ALL of you’. Read it over and over again until it drops in, until you process its meaning.

Everything you do, takes ALL of you… means literally that! As you are (most likely) sat down reading this, you need to understand that ALL of you is involved in the process. Not just your eyes and brain to read and understand, but EVERYTHING… even your little toe! Seriously, to actually sit comfortably and focus your attention and energy on reading, your body is reliant on adequate circulation. That’s where the little toe comes in! It, along with the rest of your foot, helps to maintain good circulation, pumping blood back to the heart. Moving your feet whilst being sat will literally be fuelling your brain! Not to mention its muscle fibres aiding in balance of the sitting posture.

In order for us to achieve any given task, action, thought or function, our ENTIRE being must be involved. A fascinatingly complex series of processes goes into everything we do, millions of times each day, both consciously and sub-consciously.

Why is this relevant to Physiotherapy and more specifically, pain and injury management?

Well, if you intend to truly solve and recover from injury or dysfunction, then ultimately you need to work out the cause of the symptoms. This approach isn’t new and is often cited by therapists who help people with their problems. However, the moment you give consideration to the above statement – ‘Everything you do, takes ALL of you’ – then the realms of what can be considered as the cause immediately become much, much greater!

Considering the whole human being during an assessment could absolutely mean that:

The way in which your foot and ankle never recovered from that horrendous sprain years ago has now led to your hip and back pain.

Your low back pain could be related to organ inflammation from a dietary intolerance.

The posture you have sustained at work for the last 50 years is now refusing to let you enjoy your retirement.

The emotional stress you are harbouring can present as a physical pain.

The reason you can’t achieve your sporting PB is because your lungs haven’t recovered from the chest infection you suffered last year.

That’s the Challenge Physio difference. An amalgamation of several diverse and holistic evidence-based teachings, along with over 15 years of intuitive clinical experience and reflective practice enable me to consider your ENTIRE being when assessing your problem.

In my opinion, if you don’t, you may well miss the underlying cause of your symptoms and be left experiencing the same, or further problems, in the near future.

I’ll be following this introductory blog soon with some more thought provoking insights into how the body works. In the meantime, if you have a question you’d like me to respond to, please feel free to get in touch via email, Facebook or Twitter.

Keep breathing!

Rob