Hypermobile people are built differently. And every hypermobile person is unique. This means if you're someone who is hypermobile then you need TRULY personalised care.

I work with injuries affecting muscles and joints all over the body. Some examples of these injuries include:

Shoulder Pain
Rotator Cuff Syndrome
Rotator Cuff Tear
Post-Acromioplasty Surgical Scarring
Subacromial Impingement
‍Hip Pain
Gluteal Tendinopathy
Hip Impingement
Piriformis Syndrome
IT Band Pain

Knee Pain
Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome
Patellar Maltracking
Quadriceps Tendinopathy

Back Pain
Sciatica
Lumbosacral Strain/Sprain
Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction
Disc Injuries

Neck Pain
Neck Strain
Disc Injuries
Cervicogenic Headaches

Ankle and Foot Pain
Achilles Tendon issues
Ankle Strain/Sprain
Plantar Fascitis
Bunions
‍
Elbow Pain
Golfer’s Elbow (Medial Epicondylopathy)
Tennis Elbow (Lateral Epicondylopathy)
Elbow Pain Post-Dislocation

Wrist and Hand Pain
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Pulley Injuries
Trigger Finger
De Quervain's Tenosynovitis
Thumb Injuries

Leg Pain
Shin Splints
Calf Tears

Other
Musculoskeletal issues involving hypermobile connective tissue
Osteoarthritis
Post-Surgical Scarring
Post-Fracture Pain/Mobility Limitations
Post-Stroke Mobility Limitations

Although I work with the patient as a whole (because as I like to say, “Patients are people first and foremost!”) I always ensure that my treatment interventions have a scientific underpinning. The best healthcare is ultimately a marriage of hard science and holism, and this is what I bring to my patients. 

Additionally, I believe that my patients are an invaluable resource when it comes to improving their health. I am thrilled when I see what I refer to as “Expert Patients” in my office, as in my experience educated patients always have better clinical outcomes. I enjoy working closely with patients to recruit them to carry out self-treatment interventions which can include everything from personalised exercise strategies to self-joint mobilisations to self-administered instrument assisted soft-tissue mobilisation. Every patient has different needs and different capabilities, so any prescription of self-treatment interventions is always done with the unique presentation of the individual patient in mind.

In most cases, the amount of years that a patient has had an injury doesn’t affect whether or not it is treatable. Whether or not an injury is treatable typically depends on the type of tissue involved and the nature of the injury. The length of time that someone has had an injury will primarily affect the prognosis (time it takes to resolve). This is why it’s best to get injuries seen to as quickly as possible when they happen.

No. As a UK registered osteopath (GOsC Registration No. 10375) I am classified as a Primary Healthcare Professional. This means that patients can see me directly without a referral from a medical doctor. 

This decision is made on a case-by-case basis, and is informed by the medical history and relevant orthopaedic assessment. I routinely refer for private medical imaging when clinically indicated.

Although many patients feel immediate symptom relief after their appointment, some patients experience what is known as a Post Treatment Response. This varies on a case-by-case basis, but can result in tenderness and/or pain for a few days after treatment followed by an improvement in symptoms. Every patient’s body is unique and responds to treatment in a different way, and this is why I always strive to tailor my treatment strategy to address the specific needs of each of my patients.

The Appointment Rates as of May 2023 are as follows:

IN-PERSON CLINIC
Appointment Rates
40 min (Follow-Up Only) - £140
60 min (New Patient or Follow-Up)- £198
80 min (New Patient or Follow-Up)- £248


ONLINE CLINIC
Appointment Rates
60 min (New Patient or Follow-Up) - £146
80 min (New Patient or Follow-Up) - £188

This varies depending on the type of tissues involved in the injury, as well as the extent of the injury, the injury duration, and any other underlying health conditions that the patient has. I generally recommend that patients book 2-4 appointments over a period of 2 weeks to a month with a reassessment date. We will discuss this at your initial appointment. 

Although most patients self-pay, occasionally patients have medical insurance which covers either part or all of the cost of treatment. This varies depending on the insurance provider as well as your individual policy with them. Please be sure to contact your insurance provider directly in order to find out your level of coverage. 

Insurance coverage varies both between companies and within individual policies. To find out if I am covered by your insurance provider please send an email to alex@hypermobilityhq.com.

For both in-person and online appointments please wear loose-fitting clothing that you feel comfortable in (or gym-kit if you prefer). If you have a lower extremity injury, please consider wearing shorts as this will make it easier to assess and treat the affected tissues.

YES! This is absolutely fine as long as you consent to their presence. That being said, please do let me know in advance so I can ensure that we have enough seats in the treatment room.

Online appointments are done by videocall over a stable Wi-Fi connection. I typically use JaneApp (my clinic booking software) however some patients prefer Google Meets due to greater accessibility features. A comprehensive medical history will be taken, followed by movement assessment and a diagnosis. Treatment will involve clinically guided self-treatment strategies including personalised exercise prescription, an Injury Rate Reduction strategy, and self-directed soft-tissue mobilisation strategy.

In the event that there is a connectivity issue we will reschedule to an alternative time. In my years of offering online appointments this has only ever happened once.

IN-PERSON CLINIC
Mondays 2:40pm-8:20pm
Fridays 8:40am-2:00pm

ONLINE CLINIC
Thursday Afternoons (GMT)

An osteopath is a primary healthcare professional who specialises in the treatment and clinical resolution of injuries involving muscles, tendons, ligaments, and fascia. Injuries to these soft tissue structures often contribute to joint pain. My educational background is different from most UK osteopaths in that I have done multiple university degrees and extensive post-graduate training. 

As a registered primary healthcare professional I am qualified to diagnose musculoskeletal injuries as well as refer privately for medical imaging.

Active Release Technique® (ART®) is a non-invasive treatment system precisely engineered to locate and quickly resolve soft-tissue disorders in muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia, and nerves. With over 500 protocols, ART® approaches the precision of a surgical intervention without making a single cut. Using their hands, ART® qualified clinicians carefully assess and treat along specific anatomical structures, often paying special attention to the relationship between those structures and where they might be getting caught.

I find Active Release Technique® (ART®) effective for treating injuries in hypermobile patients for the following reasons:

It’s a genuinely prestigious and meaningful soft-tissue treatment certification to hold. 
Before I became a healthcare provider I was unaware that many (if not most!) healthcare certifications are granted without any examination or assessment. Not only does any ART® certification require a course plus a practical examination, a requirement of holding a current ART® certification is to recertify AND pass an exam annually. The exams are meaningful and challenging as they are done one-to-one as an examiner assesses the candidate carrying out the treatment protocols. 

It’s resoundingly safe and encourages adapting protocols to suit the patient’s needs. 
As I primarily treat hypermobile patients I routinely adapt and modify ART protocols to suit their needs. For example, I occasionally see patients who cannot lie on their stomachs due to issues with their eyes. In cases such as that example I modify the protocol to suit the patient’s needs. Another common issue I see is that a patient might struggle to do a movement that is part of the treatment on their own. In this case, support is provided as needed or the movement is modified. Good manual therapy/physiotherapy is all about adapting the correct treatment intervention to suit the needs of the individual patient.

It inherently makes the patient an active participant in their treatment.
Because ART® treatment generally involves gentle active movement by the patient as the treatment is carried out it means that clear communication and patient involvement are non-negotiables. It also means that the patient is in-control of the intensity of the treatment, as they can reduce the intensity by reducing the movement that they do. 

It’s structure-specific, and focuses on the relationship of nerves and their connective tissue sheaths to surrounding tissues. 
Unfortunately when many of the patients who see me tell me about their previous manual therapy/physio treatment, it doesn’t sound very good. What they describe often sounds like general massage techniques. 

Although every patient with a musculoskeletal injury benefits from precise treatment, with hypermobile patients this need for specificity is even more pronounced. ART® promotes treatment of specific structures by ensuring that certified providers are capable of differentially palpating between structures effectively. In a treatment setting, this means that instead of just treating your adductor muscle group I’ll be treating your adductor longus if that’s where the injury seems to be. Or instead of just mobilising your thoracic spine I’ll be treating your dorsal scapular nerve where it interfaces with your rhomboids. 

Obviously there are limitations to specificity in the context of manual therapy but I believe that it is important to always be as specific as possible as this leads to better treatment outcomes. 

If you want to learn more about ART® you can visit their website here.

The safest appointment option for patients who are immunocompromised is a remote appointment. In line with current government guidelines, I do not wear a mask for every appointment with every patient, nor do I require patients to do so. That being said, I try to accommodate individual patient requests whenever possible. This includes wearing a surgical mask or FFP2 if a patient requests for me to do so, making sure that the window is open and the fan is on during appointments, and offering patients who are more sensitive to infection risk the first appointment of my clinic day as I will have had time to ventilate the treatment room. 

If you have any further questions regarding this matter please do not hesitate to email me at alex@hypermobilityhq.com