Manual Therapy

A Manual Therapist is a trained healthcare professional—who uses their hands to assess and treat conditions affecting the muscles, joints, connective tissues and the nervous system. Their goal is to restore movement, reduce pain, and improve function in the patient’s body, by using a wide skill range of techniques.

Looking for Musculoskeletal Pain Relief.. Use Manual Therapy – Serving Bonny Hills, Lake Cathie and Laurieton since 2015

The Body Technician – is leading the way for Manual Therapy, massage and very specific bespoke Corrective Exercises, providing quality services with a truly patient-centric approach focused on pain, prevention and performance.

How a Manual Therapist Works

A Manual Therapist starts by understanding your concerns through discussion and a client intake form. They then assess your muscles and joints, provide hands-on treatment, and re-assess your progress. Corrective exercises may also be given to support recovery, improve movement, and prevent future pain.

Assessment Types

Range of Motion Tests

They assess how well joints move actively (by the patient) and passively (with the therapist’s help). Also testing muscle range of stretch.

Physical Examination

The therapist performs a thorough evaluation by observing posture, movement patterns, muscle strength & elasticity, joint flexibility, and areas of tenderness or pain.

Functional Tests

The therapist may evaluate how the injury or dysfunction affects daily activities and movement.

Palpation

Using their hands, the therapist feels for abnormalities in muscles and soft tissues, such as tightness, density and swelling. Postural alignment and Joint restrictions.

Treatment Techniques

Assisted Stretching

Targeted one on one guided stretching to Improve flexibility, increase range of motion and optimise body's potential for performance.

Joint Mobilization

Gentle, passive movements applied to joints to improve mobility and reduce pain. Often graded from low to high intensity based on patient tolerance.

Soft Tissue Mobilization

Hands-on techniques to massage, stretch, and manipulate muscles, tendons, and fascia to reduce tension and improve circulation.

Myofascial Release

A specialized soft tissue technique that targets the fascia (connective tissue surrounding muscles) to release restrictions and improve tissue flexibility.

Muscle Energy Technique (MET)

A technique where the patient actively uses their muscles from a controlled position against a counterforce applied by the therapist, to improve joint mobility and muscle function.

Strain-Counterstrain

A gentle positioning technique that places the body in a position of comfort to reduce muscle and tissue tension and alleviate pain via manipulating the nervous system.

Dry Needling &Trigger Point Therapy

Focuses on identifying and releasing "trigger points," which are tight knots or spots in muscles that cause muscle spasms, pain and dysfunction.

Deep Transverse Friction Massage

A technique involving deep, transverse massage to break down scar tissue, adhesions and rehydrate fibres particularly within tendons and ligaments.

Neural Muscular Techniques

Different techniques using the nervous system to either reactivate or deactivate muscles, resetting either muscle memory or resting tone. Increasing joint range of motion by reconnecting the brain with joints full range of motion via stretch reflexes.