This is a patient’s honest account of his low back pain journey at Prestons Health, treated using a Cognitive Functional Therapy approach: 

Following our little chat at the Health Fayre I am only too happy to put some words together in praise of what you guys have done for me.

Lower back pain is the curse of my family. My Father suffered terribly, my younger brother still does. I have had problems on and off for over 40 years.

I spent years lying on my back dosed up with pain-killers only to later be told that this was more harmful than good and that I should ‘potter’ and try move about gently to stop the back muscles from locking up.

The last episode was so painful that I had to seek major pain relief from my GP. He counselled physiotherapy but advised that the NHS service would mean a 4/6 week wait and I really needed something more immediate. He offered me a couple of local Private Physiotherapists to try if I could afford it and, as Prestons was the closest to home, I gave you a call.

Luckily there was a free appointment with your good self that very afternoon and I was only too happy to take it in the fervent hope that you would be able to offer me some relief.

I turned up for the appointment full of Temazepam and Co-codamol and wondered what I had let myself in for.

Well, the appraisal was much less painful than I thought it might be although the subsequent manipulation of the muscles in spasm wasn’t quite as much so.

And then you introduced me to breathing.

Did I know about this you asked.

Of course, I says, I’ve been breathing all my life.

No you say, about taking a deep breath and exhaling when moving rather than holding your breath and tensing up.

I had never heard of such a thing and my first thought was this was a load of nonsense. Then I tried it and was amazed. Doing this when sitting or standing up turned what had previously been a painful exercise into something much more bearable.

I now do this each and every day when moving about, standing or sitting or doing anything at all strenuous. I still find it difficult to believe but I know that somehow it works.

Subsequent appointments led to more manipulation and the introduction to various exercises specifically designed to use those back muscles that had been in spasm on a more regular basis so that when they came under pressure they didn’t immediately go back to that state.

Now every morning after my shower I get down on the floor and go through those exercises. It takes less than five minutes. I do the same when I get home from work and change clothes and again just before going to bed. (I sometimes miss this one if I’ve been to the Pub.)

I had a holidayrecently and my wife was amazed when I did this in the Hotel room.

All of this, in conjunction with a Work Station appraisal which helped greatly by moving screens etc to a better place, has made a massive change to my well-being.

I no longer slouch at my desk. I no longer sit there for hours on end and get ‘set’. I take a shortstroll round every hour or so, in line with your advice, and I feel so much better.

If only I’d been exposed to this sagacity some years ago I wouldn’t have suffered half as much as I actually have.

I now have the confidence to do things I would previously have shied away from for fear of ‘doing’ my back.

You really have made a huge impact on my well-being and how I do things.

Thank you so much for that.
John Skeels

My Pain Journey & Prestons Health

My journey with persistent knee pain started when I was 19, I was at Uni and started training to run the London Marathon. Despite being an avid runner since a child, during my training I started to develop knee pain which ultimately lasted a few years on and off. Long story short, my pain got so bad that I struggled to walk, I was rarely leaving the house and when I did it was in a wheelchair. I went to see several healthcare professionals over this time, including my GP and physiotherapists, most of which weren’t sure what was wrong. After failed attempts at finding help, I booked an appointment at Prestons Health as recommended by a family friend.

I can honestly say that I feel Helen was the only professional who really listened to me – about how I was feeling and the pain I was experiencing. We went through everything together, not just my pain and medical history but other factors in my life such as social interactions, sleep, work, etc. I feel that this holistic method really made me feel confident in Helen and her approach. We formed an exercise programme with small yet achievable goals for me to tackle in between our face-to-face appointments, including strengthening exercises. My progress was slow at first but it was still progress and gave me the motivation to keep pushing after struggling for so long.

I had regular check-ins with Helen, which gradually got further apart as I was learning how to listen to my own body and make changes when needed. At appointments, we would go through what was working and what my challenges were – and adapt my exercises and training plan accordingly. It felt reassuring to know that I had someone I trusted to guide me during this difficult time, and who empowered me to give my input into how things were going.

There were many things that I found helpful during my physiotherapy sessions. First of all would be going through my strengthening exercises. Helen would take the time to demonstrate any new exercises, making sure we tried them together and that I felt comfortable with doing them on my own at home. I also received a digital copy of my training plan with images/videos of the exercises so I could refer back to them when needed.

Another thing we implemented together was a list of “Big Wins”. Helen suggested that I started a list of everything I accomplished and all the milestones I hit – it didn’t matter if they would be small things for someone else – to me they were a big win. The list was something I could always look back on if I needed a reminder to keep going. My big wins list now spans over 3 pages and remains on my wall so I can always take a look when I feel that I need to.

Unfortunately I can’t sugar coat my journey to say that I was magically healed over night, but with an achievable plan, lots of dedication and hard work – I have made more progress in my recovery journey that I ever thought possible. Helen and Prestons Health certainly were a big contributing factor for this. Helen put up with me through a lot of frustrations and tears but remained patient and focused on helping me not only survive but thrive despite living with pain.

Where am I now? After a few years I can say that I am living a fulfilling life and have managed to cope with my pain. Yes I still get pain most days, and some days it really does hurt, but my pain does not control my life anymore – I do! I have hit some pretty amazing milestones since my recovery journey began and now have a one-way ticket booked to live my dream in Australia. All of these things I once thought would never be possible but here I am. If anyone out there is struggling with pain and feeling hopeless, I would really recommend contacting Prestons Health because it just might change your journey, like it did mine.

“B”

Our main clinic location is within David Lloyd Club in Thorpe Wood, Peterborough with a satellite clinic in Oundle School (students and staff only). Please contact us on 01733 565911 for more information on our clinic times & locations.