Are you thinking of booking your first physiotherapy appointment?
Is physiotherapy right for you? A Physiotherapist can help with a wide range of musculoskeletal injuries. That is they work with you muscles, joints and bones. Whether you have sprained your ankle, have chronic low back pain or various other musculoskeletal injuries, your physiotherapist can help you.
You don’t need a referral to see a physiotherapist, however if you have seen your GP or specialist prior to making your appointment, then bring along any recent scans and information from your other providers.
Never been to a physiotherapist before?
That’s okay, here’s what to expect at your first appointment:
- Make sure you are wearing comfortable clothing and appropriate for the area you need looking at, ie. Shorts for knees and hips, singlet or sports bra for shoulders.
- Turn up a little earlier than your appointment time, as there is often paperwork to fill out prior to your appointment or fill out our online registration form.
- Your appointment will start with your physiotherapist asking you some questions about your issue. This helps to narrow down the possible causes of your problem and direct the next phase of your appointment.
- Your physiotherapist will then ask you to do some movements, prior to some specific testing and palpation of muscles, joints, ligaments and tendons. These movements and special tests allow your physiotherapist to diagnose your issue. From there, they will work out a treatment plan and give you likely prognosis and time frames for healing.
- A big part of your treatment is education on your injury, what to avoid to prevent it getting worse and what to do to help it feel better. Your physiotherapist will give you what they think is appropriate for your stage of injury. This could include stretches, exercises, self-myofascial release techniques, joint mobilisation or the use of heat/ice or braces. They may also recommend Shockwave Therapy or custom orthotics.
- Your Physiotherapist will also let you know approximately recovery should take. This varies slightly from person to person and is dependent on a lot of factors. It is important to try to keep your appointment timings. Each appointment builds upon the last and the aim is to return to full strength and prevent re-injury.
Choosing a Physiotherapist
To get the most out of your physiotherapist you first need to feel comfortable with your physiotherapist. Then it’s important to choose a physiotherapist that works in your area of injury. Most physiotherapist know a little about most injuries – to find a physiotherapist that is right for you, visit Our Team.
Book an appointment
Need to see a Physiotherapist? Book in for your first physiotherapy appointment now with one of our team by calling 0410 559 856.
For more information, please see our FAQs or contact the clinic.
