Low back, mid back, sciatica, disc-related pain
Back pain
The most common reason people come through the door: a low back that went while lifting, a stiff mid-back from the desk, or sciatica down one leg. Examined properly, treated with adjustment and soft tissue work, and given a plan with an end.
Most back pain is mechanical, which is good news: it responds to being moved properly, loaded gradually and left alone by the things that irritate it. The examination is where we find out whether yours is that kind.
On the first visit we take a history, test the movement of each segment of the spine, check the nerves in your legs, screen for the red flags that would need a GP or imaging instead of us, and explain what we found in plain language with a model of the spine on the desk. If it is appropriate, treatment starts the same day: an adjustment or mobilisation to the stiff segments, soft tissue work to the muscles guarding them, and two or three exercises to do at home.
Sciatica, where the pain runs below the knee, gets a specific set of tests for the disc and the nerve root. Most settles with the same approach plus nerve mobilisation and a careful return to sitting and bending; a small number with progressive weakness or changes to bladder or bowel are sent for urgent assessment the same day, which is why we examine first.
What is included
- Full history and examination on visit one
- Red-flag screening and GP referral where needed
- Adjustment, mobilisation and soft tissue work
- Two or three home exercises, not twenty
- Pain and movement scores at each review
- A plan with a visit count and an end date
What it costs
New patient visit £65 including the first treatment where appropriate; follow-ups £42. Most acute low back pain settles in four to six visits over three to four weeks. There is no VAT on chiropractic treatment. All fees are on the fees page; what the first hour involves is on the first visit page.
Questions about back pain
Will you crack my back?
If an adjustment is appropriate and you are comfortable with it, yes; the sound is gas in the joint, not bone. If you would rather not, mobilisation and soft tissue work do most of the same job more slowly. It is your call and we ask every time.
How many visits will I need?
Most acute low back pain: four to six visits over three to four weeks. Long-standing pain: six to ten over two to three months with a review at visit four. If you are not improving by then, we change the plan or refer you.
Book a first visit.
An hour with a chiropractor: history, examination, a plain explanation and a plan with an end. £65, no GP referral needed, most insurers recognised. Online, or ring reception.