Therapeutic Massage Clinic
Helen Richardson
My interest in massage therapy began in 1992 when working as an administration clerk I began to suffer neck and shoulder pain, headaches and other related symptoms. I tried a variety of treatments to help but received the most benefit from massage and so my interest in therapies began. For the past twenty years I have indulged my passion for bodywork therapies training with physiotherapists, osteopaths, chiropractors, sports coaches and medical practitioners. Through continual study and development I bring a whole body approach to the client to encourage well being and positive health. I think so many different aspects can be brought to treatment, it is sometimes like a massage jigsaw fitting all the individual pieces together. I guess that is what I aim to do, to be part of your jigsaw and getting it all to fit together to improve well-being.
I set up the clinic in 2000 to bring a much needed all round approach to therapy and have continuously trained adding to my 'tool kit' of therapeutic techniques and contacts. I have established clinics in Gosforth, Hexham, Sandyford and within the Osborne Clinic in Jesmond but currently concentrate my efforts on the main Ponteland clinic. The clinic is now located in Meadowfield in Ponteland village having moved from Darras Hall Surgery in 2015.
How did I end up here?
My career began in 1993 at the prestigious Ragdale Hall Health Hydro in Leicestershire. I have worked in Spa Management, Perfumery, education, physiotherapy clinics, a GP surgery and the English Institute of Sport over the past twenty eight years.
In 1997 I worked with the Professional Golf Association organising the sports massage for the golfers in the Slaley Hall tournament sparking an ongoing interest in sports therapy which led me to become the first UK therapist to be qualified to Level 5 standard. I have worked with professional and amateur sports people and covered events such as the Great North Run, the 2012 Paralympic Games and the 2014 Commonwealth Games. I continue to work with elite athletes at the English Institute of Sport based at Gateshead International Stadium where clients include Paralympic athletes, England Women's Rugby Union and The Newcastle Eagles.
Aside from studying bodywork therapies and running the clinics I have been a trainer in industry since 1999 and qualified as a lecturer at Northumbria University in 2003. I have worked with Aston Hotels, Gateshead Academy, International Therapy Examination Council (ITEC), St Oswald's Hospice, Ohashiatsu UK and Sunderland University among others.
Apart from increasing my knowledge and qualifications in sport and massage I have an enduring passion for fragrance, which has been fuelled by my study of aromatherapy and essential oils. I blend all my own oils in the clinic and regularly add to more basic blends to suit individual client needs on any given day. I find the combination of scents in the clinic to be intoxicating and I'm not the only one, the 'lovely smell' is often commented on. My other passions aside from study are reading and dancing and I benefit from both in my work. I have had so many book recommendations and the individuality of each person often sends me back to my studies to find ways to help more or refresh my memory. I have even had impromptu dance lessons from clients whose expertise in that area far exceeds my own.
My work has afforded me opportunities to work, not only as part of a multidisciplinary team as at the Olympic and Commonwealth Games, but also to travel. I have visited perfumeries in southern France and was invited to teach massage to physiotherapists in a hospital in Bosnia-Herzigovenia. I find these opportunities to be so helpful to my everyday practise, to see how other people do things and how we learn from each other. I feel I have been privileged to share my life with some fabulous people and and such an amazing profession and I am certainly not done yet. I feel and hope there is more to come and I can't wait.
My career highlights
The Commonwealth Games, Glasgow 2014
The London 2012 Paralympic Games was one of the highlights of my career.
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