I am Catherine Duggan founder of The Grange Park Practice located in North London. I began my career in healthcare in 1986 where I trained and qualified as a Registered General Nurse. In 1992 I decided to retrain as an osteopath after predominantly working on medical and surgical wards at University College Hospital (UCH) London. I spent the next four years at The British School of Osteopathy completing my degree in 1996. After working as an assistant to experienced osteopaths andincreasing my techniques and palpation skills, I opened a practice in Bloomsbury with a colleague. Following the birth of my daughter I decided to start a practice from home which would be easier on family life. The Grange Park Practice is now in its 15th year.
I treat pain and dysfunction by encouraging the body to start a good healing process thus reducing pain and restoring normal function. Osteopathy concentrates on the musculo-skeletal system, treating faults that occur because of injury, stress or disease. We prompt the body through various techniques to work as efficiently as possible. Osteopaths don’t just treat backs, we treat all joints including jaws, feet, wrists and hands.
This is a technique the osteopath may choose to restore normal function by applying very gentle pressure. This may often be the treatment of choice for babies and children. However some adult patients prefer this approach too. After birth the babies body needs to decompress from the forces exerted on it as it descends through the birth canal. Usually this will happen spontaneously as the baby cries, sucks and feeds. However, if the birth process has not run smoothly, the baby may require some help to release these compressive forces. The mother may choose to consult an osteopath with their babies feeding problems, excessive crying, irritability, wind and sleep disturbances. Catherine has completed the award for paediatric osteopathy (APO) at the Osteopathic Centre for Children in London and now volunteers regularly helping to run the clinic, treating babies, children and new or expectant mothers.
This is a western approach to acupuncture. The presence of a sterile needle under the skin, stimulates the bodies immune response to begin repairing and help to reduce pain. The practice of ‘dry needling’ involves inserting an acupuncture needle into a trigger point and is typically used to treat the pain associated with injuries. A trigger point is a tender spot in a tight band of muscle which causes pain when pressed or squeezed.