Back and Neck Pain Bath
A lot of people searching for a back or neck physio in Bath have already seen one. If your pain eased for a while and then came back, here is what Physology does differently.
Physology is not a physiotherapy clinic, and James is not a physiotherapist. He is a soft tissue therapist who has specialised in long term and recurring back and neck pain for 25 years, including five years on Everton FC's first team medical staff.
Physiotherapy is rehabilitation based. Physios help with short term injuries and give you exercises to rebuild strength and movement afterwards. Long term pain that keeps coming back is a different problem, and it is the problem we specialise in.
A course of physio for back or neck pain usually works on the area that hurts and gives you rehab exercises to stretch and strengthen it. If your pain has lasted months or years, or keeps returning, the exercises rarely change it.
That is because what is pulling on your back or neck sits somewhere else. Every muscle in your body is wrapped and connected by Fascia, a continuous web of connective tissue. A tight band of it through your hips, Diaphragm or upper back can pull on your lower back or neck every time you move. Strengthening the area that hurts does not release that pull, so the pain comes back.
Tom Myers mapped these connections through the body in his Anatomy Trains work. Helene Langevin and her team found that the Fascia across the lower back of people with chronic low back pain slides about 20 percent less than in people without back pain. Neither of these shows up on a scan, and neither is the focus of most physio appointments.
Here is how a typical physio course and a Physology consultation compare.
| Typical physio course | Physology |
|---|---|
| Rehab based, built around short term injuries | Specialised in long term and recurring pain |
| Exercises to stretch and strengthen the area that hurts | Hands on release of the dense Fascia pulling on that area |
| Looks mostly at the area that hurts and the joints around it | Looks at your whole body, using the Anatomy Trains map of the Fascia |
| Shorter appointments | Two hours for the first session, so we hear your full story |
"I had physio, treatments, sports massage, and scans from professional sports clubs, and through the NHS over several years. None of them could identify what was wrong and none of them helped."
Alger, lower back pain since his teens
"He was a breath of fresh air in terms of how he assessed and treated the injury."
Chris Quinlan, a year of treatment for a back injury before surgery was planned
This is the story we hear most often, and it is why your first session is two hours long. We need the whole history, including every treatment and every exercise you have tried, to find what has been missed.
Most people who come to us after physio have one of the problems below. Each page explains how we assess and treat it.
A sore lower back, a bad back that keeps going, or back pain that has lasted for years.
Neck and shoulder pain, a stiff neck every morning, or neck pain that keeps returning.
Back pain through the 40s, 50s and beyond, including pain that began with a pregnancy.
Stiffness and reduced turning that comes back weeks or months after treatment.
If what you have read describes your experience, a conversation costs nothing.
Get in touch and tell us your storyYour first session at Physology, at WellBath on Woolley Lane in Bath, is two hours long. This is how it runs.
We hear everything: when your pain started, what you have tried, including your physio exercises, and what helped for a while.
Using the Anatomy Trains framework, we look at how your whole body moves, and explain what we find as we go.
We treat in the first session, so you can feel the difference for yourself before deciding on anything else.
You leave knowing what is pulling on your back or neck and what the next sessions will focus on.
No. James is a soft tissue therapist specialising in Fascia and long term back and neck pain. Physiotherapist is a protected title in the UK, used by professionals registered with the Health and Care Professions Council, and we do not use it.
No. You can contact us directly. Tell us what you have tried and what you have been told, and James will take it from there.
Usually, yes. Bring them with you and we will tell you how they fit with what we are doing.
Yes. It is one of the most common reasons people contact us. If the pain keeps returning, dense Fascia is still pulling on that area, and finding and releasing it is exactly what we do.
Get in touch, tell us your symptoms and history, and we will tell you whether we can help and what treatment is likely to involve. Every case is different and we prefer to give you a clear, specific answer rather than a generic price list.
The first session is two hours. We begin with your full history, listening to everything about your pain, your previous treatment, and how it affects your life. We then carry out a whole body Fascial assessment using the Anatomy Trains framework, explaining everything we find as we go. Treatment begins in the first session.
Message us on WhatsApp with a brief description of your symptoms and how long you have been dealing with them. James replies to every message personally, usually the same day, and will tell you whether we can help before you commit to anything. Send a message here.
If you do not feel a measurable reduction in pain in your first session, the consultation is free. No awkward conversations, no conditions. We are confident enough in what we do to put that in writing.
Physology Bath & Bristol
Send us a short message about your back or neck pain and what you have already tried. James replies personally and will tell you honestly whether we can help.
Book a Consultation If no measurable improvement, you don't pay*We currently have 2 spaces available — next opening after that is
"I left it mind blown. James taught me so much about my body that I didn't know and explained everything with videos and pictures. The first treatment helped my pain instantly and then I never looked back."
Isabella Davies, 4 years of back pain
Had tried her GP and physio first
P.S. If physio helped for a while and the pain came back, it does not mean you did your exercises wrong. It usually means something else is pulling on that area. Getting in touch costs nothing.
P.P.S. Our pages on chronic back pain, neck pain and what Fascia is explain our approach in more detail.