What's/Who's the BEST physio/chiro/etc treatment centre in London?

I am in tears not just because of the pain, but because it's a pain that has been recurring for 8 YEARS, and the "normal" doctors (GP, NHS, etc) have been telling me it's nothing, that I'm too young for any kind of serious injury (19 yrs when it started), that I should go and train with the army...

And yet, each time I try to get any kind of physical exercise (because I am overweight), I get pain somewhere in the back, especially around neck and upper chest area. Yes, running as well. Though this time it came after I tried doing arm weight exercises (very light 3 pound dumbbells).

So, sorry for the time and "whiny" tone, but I just can't stand the fact that this just keeps coming and I have no way of getting in shape without injuring myself - for 8 years now.

I want to try a good physio place. Now, I have been to a few physios/osteopaths but they seemed a bit dodgy and commercial, and the credential seemed dubious.

As in - they all looked too young and too positive to be people I would entrust my health with.

I would appreciate advice about serious professionals, experts, with credentials and valid experience who have delivered results and are known for that.

Please help!!

 

(P.S.: Ideally, I'd appreciate if it is a place where they check the whole body, and tell me what I can do to improve overall my fitness-related problems)

 

(P.P.S.: Oh, and the NHS has already stuffed me with pain killers... I never understood how pharmaceuticals can cure "mechanical" problems. I prefer knowing what pain I have, what triggers it, etc. than hide it / fund the pharmaceutical industry )

Comments

  • How great it feels to be ignored when one is in atrocious pain and doesn't know how to solve it, nor where to go for help.

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  • MillsyMillsy ✭✭✭
    Maybe no-one on here knows the answer Alpha.



    And a merry Christmas to you!
  • maybe people were out running.or that no one lives in london....or that no one knows any experts who look like an expert should to you.....

    I know a great osteopath...but he is not in london and although he might look older now 18 years ago when i first saw him he was rather young and dishy........

    you are asking for something really specific and surprise surprise no one so far on here has an answer.....why not try asking on the forums of a london sports club.........

     

    but with your attitude if anyone comes on here tonight or back on monday when the weekend is over they won't be arsed to give you an answer

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • London School of Osteopathy. Much cheaper than anywhere else, treated by 4th or 5th year students under supervision of their tutors. Only drawback is you have to be available for appointments during the day and at the same time each week.

    Other than that I have also used a place by Old Street roundabout who were very good.

  • My Doctor & Physio are both great, but 250 miles from you, although after 8 years of pain and suffering I suppose 250 miles might not seem too far
  • Seriously - how on earth can you expect any better attitude from someone who is IN PAIN and constantly unsure whether something is happening in their body at a physiological level that public healthcare doesn't seem to give a H about?!

    The very idea that you expect someone IN PAIN to hide their sense of urgency is very insensitive and puzzling. How dare you?

    I hope for you that you will never have experience what I endure.

  • I suppose the next question is, if you are in that much pain why on earth have you waited 8 years to ask for a reccommendation?

    What sort of pain is this and where is it?
    What has the gp said is the cause and why has it not improved?

  • You have seen GPs and physios and osteos and you are pumped full of pain killers yet you have not said what the problem is ???

  • M...eldy

    I have not just waited around for 8 years... As I said, it has been a recurring issue - as in, there were longer periods in which it didn't interfere with my day-to-day life and work. I notice it when doing some very mild level of physical activity, but the sharper pain comes unexpectedly when I try to push to a higher level, or try a new physical activity.

    It's a shap pain at any point on either the left or right side, and could be anywhere along the length of the spine (usually upper part, neck or chest area).

    The issue is also that my "mild physical activity" is just not enough for my weight. I have become overweight since this whole story started, and that is an aggravating factor (I know the weight also contributes to posture and related pain). It's the main reason I try starting new sports/activities/exercises, because I know it contributes as well. But each time something happens, and then I stop doing any sort of exercise for months... that makes me even more overweight!

    8 years ago it was a nightmare and it made me completely loose faith in the public healthcare system. They said it was nothing but still injected me with loads of painkillers for weeks. They took spine MRI and said there was absolutely nothing.

    But what I notice is that each time the sharper pain returns, it's growing in acuteness.

    So... the periods when I have the mild pain have been, fortunately, shorter, and sometimes encouraged me to try new physical activity - but then something happened.

    I have asked before... well, maybe in that period due to my finances I depended entirely on public health, now I have some income so I could afford a bit of private as well. But I just don't know where to start looking.

    Thanks for reading... I just am too tired of this, and it's also making me very depressed!

  • If I remember well, the first GP (8 years ago) and those who took MRI scan of my spine just said it was a muscle stiffness, and laughed me off... They laughed  me off so much that for a period I thought I was just over-anxious. 
    But the pain kept returning, as I just wrote to M...eldy.
    As I also metioned above, I have been reluctant to go to a public healthcare for this kind of issue since then.

  • No you have become over weight because you eat too much
  • Alpha 2 points.......if you can now pay.....find the best local professional sports team.either football, rugby whatever and see if you can pay to see their physios

     

    2nd point  the easiest step is to lose weight without the massive physical exercise.......go for gentle walks everyday building up slowly and keep a food diary of everything you eat........cut back on the crap......you will lose the weight and the walking will get you fit without causing you any pain......

    over time slowly you will get to a thinner fitter you and you can then see if you can start to do other exercise slowly .....

    if there is a problem then it will be easier for the professionals to diagnose and treat without the excess weight

  • MillsyMillsy ✭✭✭
    Some good points made above.

    If you want to lose weight have a very close look at your diet. Weight loss is usually 80% diet 20% diet. So work on that 80% until you can find more help. Walking is also good.

    Personally I find it easier to lose weight when I am not in hard training as I don't feel as hungry all the time.



    What does your current diet look like?
  • millsy.I'm the samer..if I want to lose weight I have to stop my training.during ironman training when i get to 15 hours a week I gain weight

  • Thank you for your advice seren nos and Millsy.
    I follow a very good nutrition and apart from this fitness issue I am very healthy.
    That's why I think my main health issue is bad fitness, maybe bad muscles, etc. and in the long run could lead to more serious complications like spine disk problems, arthritis, atrophy etc.

  • So if you follow very good nutrition you can't be overweight, or you don't follow it very well
  • Alpha, I am a chiropractor. Almost daily I see overweight people with mechanical probs. It is not an excuse to gain weight. It's a simple theory, only eat as many calories as you are burning. If you are very sedentary then you don't need many. Often people don't realise how much they consume. A small plate also helps.

    As for your pain if the MRI says it's ok then it's ok. The problem could purely be an alignment prob in the neck or thoracic spine which then leads to muscle involvement. MRIs are looking for disc, nerve compression, tumours and fractures. You can rest assured that it is none of them. The only thing left is muscle and alignment. If your posture is poor and you sit at a desk all day it will make it worse. My advice is to see a chiro ( non bone crunching one) who does whole body treatment and muscle work all rolled into one. Physio will address the soft tissue but cannot correct the structural alignment. Until that is right, nothing will work for very long. I hope this helps

     

  • Thank you doppyashton.

    My MRI is 8 years old now though. So I fear that if at that time the damage was small/undetectable, maybe it has developed over time? Does that make sense or am I just overthinking?

     

  • Alpha wrote (see)

    Thank you doppyashton.

    My MRI is 8 years old now though. So I fear that if at that time the damage was small/undetectable, maybe it has developed over time? Does that make sense or am I just overthinking?

     

    Has the pain been getting worse over the 8 years ?

  • If I was as overly sensitive as Alpha, I dread to think of the size of tantrum I'd have thrown that as the only person to have actually suggested somewhere that my post has been totally ignored while they continue to argue with everyone else. Says it all really...

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