Assess
Physical screening and performance testing to find what is limiting you. Carly takes a full history, examines how you move and load, and measures where it matters, so the plan starts from numbers rather than guesswork.
Physiotherapy for a stiff, sore neck and the headaches that often come with it, with hands-on treatment and targeted strength work at UNTIL Marylebone, Canary Wharf and Soho.
Overview
Neck pain is very common and most episodes settle within a few weeks. It often comes with stiffness, aching across the shoulders, and a headache that starts at the base of the skull and spreads forward. A headache driven by the neck is known as a cervicogenic headache.
Long hours at a desk or behind the wheel, poor sleep, stress and a sudden jump in training can all play a part. Carly starts by working out what is driving your symptoms and screening for the small number of headaches that need a doctor instead.
Treatment through physiotherapy combines hands-on work to ease pain and restore movement with exercise for the deep neck and upper back muscles. If you drive, race or train hard, performance coaching builds the neck and trunk strength that helps you hold position for longer, and performance testing measures it so you can see progress.
Hands-on treatment and simple daily exercises restore the range you need to check a mirror, reverse the car or look over your shoulder without bracing for pain.
When the neck is the source, easing stiffness in the upper joints and building endurance in the deep neck muscles often reduces how often the headaches come and how long they last.
Carly looks at how you sit, drive and work, then builds the strength and movement breaks that let you hold position for longer without the familiar ache setting in.
Targeted cervical and trunk strength work, built up in stages and measured, so your neck copes with sustained load lap after lap or game after game.
Your assessment includes screening for warning signs. If anything points to a cause outside the neck, Carly will tell you plainly and point you to the right medical care.
Why it happens
Long periods in one position, such as desk work, driving or looking down at a phone
Weakness or low endurance in the deep neck and upper back muscles
Sustained load on the neck from sport or motorsport, without the strength to match it
Stiffness in the upper joints of the neck, which can refer pain into the head
Poor sleep, an unsupportive pillow or high stress, all of which increase muscle tension
A whiplash-type injury from a fall, collision or crash, once cleared by a doctor
Your first session is a full hour with Carly. She takes your history, asks what you need to get back to, then screens how you move, how strong you are and what the problem area is doing under load.
You leave with a working diagnosis in plain English, the first steps of your plan, and a clear idea of how progress will be measured.
Sessions are £150 per hour, by appointment at UNTIL Marylebone, Canary Wharf or Soho. You can refer yourself; no GP letter is needed.
A clear path from first assessment to being back at full output, measured, not guessed. Every session is one hour with Carly, at UNTIL Marylebone, Canary Wharf or Soho.
Physical screening and performance testing to find what is limiting you. Carly takes a full history, examines how you move and load, and measures where it matters, so the plan starts from numbers rather than guesswork.
A programme built around your goals, your sport and your calendar. You leave knowing what is driving the problem, what you are going to do about it, and how progress will be measured from one session to the next.
Coached sessions and progressive loading, adjusted as you improve. Strength, control and conditioning are built in stages, with the load moved on only when the last stage has been earned.
Back to sport and racing, with objective measures to prove it. The decision to return rests on retesting against your own baseline, so you go back with evidence rather than a feeling.
Treatment approach
Assessment separates neck-related headache from other headache types, then hands-on treatment and specific exercise ease pain and restore the movement you have lost.
See treatment detail →Progressive cervical and trunk strength work for drivers, athletes and anyone whose neck tires under sustained load, so the problem is less likely to return.
See treatment detail →Measures neck strength and endurance at the start and again as you progress, so changes are tracked with numbers rather than by feel.
See treatment detail →FAQ
Yes. Stiffness and muscle tension in the upper neck can refer pain into the head, usually starting at the base of the skull and spreading to the forehead or behind one eye. This is called a cervicogenic headache, and it often eases when the neck itself is treated.
Call 999 or go to A&E if a headache comes on suddenly and is extremely painful, follows a head injury, or comes with a stiff neck and high temperature, a rash, confusion, slurred speech or weakness on one side of the body. These need urgent medical care before physiotherapy.
Carly takes a full history of your neck pain and headaches, screens for warning signs, then examines how your neck and upper back move and how strong they are. You leave with a plain explanation of what is driving it and the first exercises of your plan.
Usually not. Most neck pain is diagnosed from your history and an examination, and scans often show age-related changes in people with no pain at all. If Carly finds signs that need imaging or a medical opinion, she will explain why and help you get the right referral.
Get Started
Box Box Physiotherapy and Performance • UNTIL Soho, 111 Charing Cross Road, London WC2H 0DT
Book an assessmentBased in central London, by appointment. Sessions at UNTIL Marylebone, Canary Wharf and Soho.