Physiotherapy Services

At Samantha Pledger Physiotherapy we provide a wide range of services to help alleviate your current conditions. Please take a look below at some of the services we offer.

All services are "hands-on" and one to one for the whole 30 minutes

Injury Assessment

A thorough assessment of your injury. Initial consultation is 45 minutes and follow-up sessions are 30 minutes. Prices are very competitive and reasonable, and below current industry recommended prices for physiotherapy consultations.

Treatment Plan

Development of an effective treatment plan which may include: strength and conditioning, joint mobilisations, dry needling, massage, taping, exercise prescription, core stability training, postural and ergonomic advice, health education, electrotherapy( heat or ultrasound), mindful meditation and supportive encouragement.

Yogalates Classes

I conduct Yogalates classes three times per week Mondays at 5.30pm, Wednesdays at 9.30am and Thursdays at 5.30pm. Yogalates is a fusion of Yoga and Pilates and is the brain child of Louise Solomon. It is a modern form of Pilates/Yoga for the Western body and incorporates the best of the Yoga and Pilates worlds but in conjunction with the latest medical research, it has developed and evolved further. A combination of anatomy and physiology has been used to devise and refine a set of safe, controlled and extraordinary effective exercises, putting yogalates at the leading edge of health and fitness.

I also offer 1:1 pilates, yoga and yogalates classes if you so desire.

Classes are 20 dollars and are rebatable by most health funds. They operate on a pay as you go basis and are held on my deck at Errol st, overlooking the Mary river.

Wear loose, comfortable clothing and bring a towel and water.

Dry Needling

Dry Needling is the use of fine acupuncture needles to reduce myofascial pain related to trigger points. Trigger points are irritable, hard "knots" within a muscle that may cause pain over alarge area. Dry needling may release the tight muscle bands and decrease pain.

Dry needling can be used in the treatment of: neck pain, lower back pain, rotator cuff dysfunction, tennis and golfer elbow, anterior knee pain, trochanteric bursitis, plantar fasciitis, shin splints, joint pain and most overuse injuries. The only side effects are sleepiness and relaxation (most candidates report having the best night's sleep ever after a session of dry needling).

Dry needling combined with other techniques including exercises, stretches and electrotherapy (heat) can help you manage your myofascial pain. Samantha is trained in both superficial and deep dry needling, and has been practicing this technique for over 5 years. She has been trained by both Robert de Nardis and Jorgen Forsberg to an Advanced level.

Samantha will perform a thorough evaluation to help determine if you are a good candidate for this type of treatment, so if you are interested please call 0413 379 976 to arrange an appointment. There is no extra cost for this service.

Vestibular Rehabilitation

I have been trained by VEA in "Vestibular Dysfunction and Management Clinical Competency Course" in 2018.

Vestibular rehabilitation (VR) is a specialized form of therapy intended to alleviate both the primary and secondary problems due to vestibular disorders. It is an exercise-based program primarily designed to reduce vertigo and dizziness, reduce gaze instability, and/or reduce imbalance and fall risk as well as address any secondary impairments that are a consequence of the vestibular disorder.

The goal of VR is to use a problem-oriented approach to promote compensation. This is achieved by customizing exercises to address the specific problem(s) of each individual. Therefore, before an exercise program can be designed, a comprehensive clinical examination is needed to identify problems related to the vestibular disorder.

Depending on the vestibular-related problem(s) identified, three principal methods of exercise can be prescribed:

Habituation
Gaze Stabilization
Balance Training