Having suffered from back pain for longer than I care to remember, I decide that it is time to quit moaning and act. Keen to try a more holistic approach, I book an appointment with osteopath and yoga teacher Carla Pozner, who comes highly recommended. Carla has a base in Mayfair as well as one in St. John’s Wood, but my initial consultation is in the Mayfair clinic. She is warm and approachable, and I instantly feel at ease with her. We go through my history of back pain and discuss my lifestyle. I’m then asked to strip down and assume a series of postures so that Carla can assess my range of movement (I confess that it is slightly disconcerting having someone stare quite so intently at me while I’m standing around in my underwear, but I know that a thorough consultation is essential to any treatment plan).
Carla uses a structural, naturopathic approach with clients, considering influencing factors such as lifestyle, diet and habitual factors, before deciding on the treatment regime. She reassures me that my issue is muscular and treatable – thank goodness – and sets to work with some gentle manipulation. Exercise is key, she says, in both the recovery from, and the prevention of, many musculoskeletal disorders, so yoga-based postures, meditation and breathing techniques are prescribed as homework. Carla even emails step-by-step instructions to me, so there really are no excuses!
Combining an osteopathic method with the ancient practice of yoga allows for an optimum approach to healing, and it feels proactive and positive to be able to continue Carla’s good work when I am at home. A couple of sessions later I am much improved and feel like I’m armed with the knowledge I need to look after my back and ensure that I never have cause to moan about it again.
25 Springfield Road, NW8 (07968 701665; cpholistic.com)