Direct joint work
A quick, shallow thrust to a specific joint to restore movement. It is the technique most people picture, and it is well suited to stiff, non-irritable spines. You will always be told before it happens.
Chiropractic care · Riverbend
Your back does not need a lecture. It needs a plan you can keep.
Apricot Works is a two-room practice for stiff mornings, desk-bound necks and the ache that shows up every time you lift something awkwardly. Unhurried assessments, plain explanations, and care that stops when you no longer need it.
- Session length
- First assessment runs 45 minutes. Follow-up visits are 20.
- What to wear
- Loose, comfortable clothing you can move in. No gowns here.
- Referrals
- You do not need one. Bring any recent imaging if you have it.
What brings people in
Most weeks look like this
If something below sounds like your week, an assessment is a sensible first step. If it does not, say so in your request and we will tell you honestly whether we are the right room for it.
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Lower back stiffness
Worst in the first hour of the day, easier once you have moved, back again by evening.
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Desk neck and shoulders
Tightness that creeps up from the shoulder blade and settles behind the eyes.
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Recurring tension headaches
Often tied to jaw clenching, screen height, or a neck that has stopped rotating evenly.
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Sciatic-type leg pain
Pain that travels past the knee, with or without pins and needles down the calf.
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Lifting and garden strains
The twist-and-lift injuries that feel minor for a day and then refuse to settle.
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Pregnancy-related pelvic ache
Side-lying positioning and gentle work through the pelvis and mid-back.
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Post-run hip tightness
Usually a loading problem rather than a spine problem. We will say if it is.
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Stiffness that came with age
Maintaining rotation and comfort rather than chasing a spine from thirty years ago.
Your first visit
Forty-five minutes, no surprises
Nobody relaxes in a room where they do not know what happens next. Here is the whole appointment, in order.
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01
History, properly
What hurts, when it started, what makes it worse, what you have already tried, and what you actually want to get back to doing. Bring a list if it helps — most people forget half of it otherwise.
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02
Movement assessment
Standing, seated and lying tests of how your spine and hips move, plus orthopaedic and neurological checks where they are relevant. You stay in your own clothes throughout.
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03
Findings, then treatment
You hear what was found and what it means before anything is adjusted. If treatment is appropriate, it usually starts the same visit — manual adjustment, soft tissue work, or low-force techniques depending on what your assessment showed.
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04
A plan with an end
An expected number of visits, two or three exercises to do at home, and the marker we will use to decide you are finished. If you are not improving as expected, we change the plan or refer you on.
How we work
Three ways of treating, chosen for you
The technique is a decision, not a house style. What you get depends on your assessment, your comfort with hands-on work, and how irritable the area is on the day.
Mobilisation and drop-table
Slower, graded joint movement or an assisted table section instead of a thrust. Chosen for irritable presentations, pregnancy, older patients, and anyone who would simply rather not be adjusted that way.
Muscle and fascia work
Sustained pressure, active release and stretching for the muscles guarding the painful joint. Often the difference between relief that lasts two days and relief that lasts two weeks.
Between visits
The part that does the heavy lifting
Treatment opens a window. What you do in the days between appointments decides how long it stays open. Everything we send you home with is short enough to actually happen.
- Two or three exercises, not tenA short sequence you can finish in five minutes, written out with the reps and the reason for each one.
- A movement snack scheduleGetting up every 40 minutes beats one long stretch session. We will help you decide where it fits in your day.
- Heat, ice and when each is uselessPlain guidance on which one suits your presentation, and how long to use it for.
- One setup changeScreen height, seat depth, mattress, car seat, or how you lift the toddler. One change at a time, so we can tell what worked.
- A flare-up planWhat to do on the bad day, what is normal, and the signs that mean you should contact the practice sooner.
Questions
Asked in the room, most weeks
If yours is not here, put it in the appointment request and it will be answered before you book anything.
Does an adjustment hurt?
Most people describe pressure and a brief release rather than pain. Sore, guarded muscles can be tender while being worked on. If anything is genuinely painful, say so and the technique changes — there is almost always another way to treat the same joint.
What is the cracking sound?
It is gas moving within the joint fluid as the joint surfaces separate slightly. It is not bones grinding, and the sound is not a measure of how well the treatment worked. Low-force techniques often produce no sound at all and still restore movement.
How many visits will I need?
You will get an estimate at the end of the first appointment, based on what was found rather than a standard package. Many straightforward presentations settle within four to six visits. We review at visit three, and if the plan is not working we change it or refer you rather than repeating it.
Will I have to keep coming forever?
No. Care here has a defined endpoint and we tell you what it is on day one. Some people choose occasional maintenance visits for long-standing stiffness; that is a preference, not a requirement, and nobody will be signed up to anything open-ended.
Is it safe during pregnancy?
Pregnancy-related back and pelvic pain is regularly treated here using side-lying positioning, cushioned support and low-force techniques. High-velocity work through the abdomen and pelvis is not used. Tell us the stage of your pregnancy in your request so the room is set up before you arrive.
Do you see children?
Children are seen for specific musculoskeletal complaints — sports strains, posture-related pain, and similar — with a parent present throughout and a visit that is mostly assessment and reassurance. We do not treat children for non-musculoskeletal conditions, and we will tell you plainly when something belongs with a GP or paediatrician.
What should I bring, and can I eat beforehand?
Bring comfortable clothing you can move in, a list of any medication, and any recent scan reports or images. Eat normally; a light meal an hour or so before is fine. Arrive a few minutes early if you would rather fill in your history sheet unhurried.
What if chiropractic is not the right answer?
Then you will be told at the assessment, before any treatment plan is proposed. Some presentations belong with a GP, physiotherapist, podiatrist or specialist, and a few need urgent medical review. Identifying that quickly is part of what the first visit is for.
Request an appointment
Tell us what is going on
Send a short note and you will get a reply with two or three suggested times, plus an honest answer about whether an assessment is worth your while.
- Clinic days: Monday to Friday, with late assessments on Tuesday and Thursday.
- New assessments are 45 minutes; follow-ups are 20 minutes.
- Please give 24 hours' notice if you need to move an appointment.
- Replies are sent by email, usually within one working day.