Osteopaths use touch, physical manipulation, stretching and massage to increase the mobility of the joints and relieve muscle tension. This, in turn, enhances the blood and nerve supply to tissues and triggers your body's own healing mechanisms.

Suitable for all, treatment is available for babies/ children, ante/post natal women, older people, manual workers, office professionals and sportspeople. Commonly seen problems include back pain, changes to posture in pregnancy, postural problems caused by driving or work strain, the pain of arthritis, menopausal symptoms and minor sports injuries.

Jacqs, our resident osteopath, employs a combination of techniques with her patients and describes osteopathy as "a holistic treatment philosophy which educates our clinical reasoning when treating our patients. We may use a combination of structural, cranial and visceral techniques".

Cranial osteopathy is a gentle but profoundly effective technique that can help with stress and anxiety as well as physical symptoms and is ideal for children and babies.

Visceral techniques can be extremely helpful in treating women's health conditions such as endometriosis, pelvic pain, menstrual problems, c-section scarring and back pain.

Combining Pilates and osteopathy is particularly beneficial for rehabilitation and treating back pain. As Jacqs is also a qualified clinical Pilates Instructor, she will usually incorporate Pilates-based exercises into rehabilitation programmes.