What Our Patients Say
What others say about chiropractic care can help you make the right health care choice. Review a selection of The House Of Good Health patient testimonials below and please email me or contact the office if you have any questions.
Yours in Health,
Stefan Nilsson
Alice – Aged 9
“Alice first started having issues when she was 3. She was a ‘live wire’ and forever on the ‘naughty mat’ at nursery for misbehaving. She didn’t have an ‘off button’ and seemed to be so different to other children her age.
As she grew older things only seemed to get worse. In fact, her behaviour became so challenging that she was refused entry into another Montessori nursery that I thought might be able to help tame her.
It was at that point that I began to seek help from professionals. We saw a psychotherapist who tested her for ADHD – they even thought she might be slightly autistic. As time went on I saw my daughter get knocked back so much that she became withdrawn and miserable.
The challenge of finding the right school for her became of paramount importance. Eventually, I found a small private school that specialised in helping children with development issues. It was at that school that we discovered that Alice was severely dyslexic - in fact they told me she had the worse case they had ever seen. They estimated that she would not be able to read until she was at least 12 years old.
I was already seeing Stefan about my own back when he told me about some of the work he was doing with young children with various issues. As any mother will tell you, when your child has problems you will try anything in the hope that something will help. So we decided to take Alice to see him straight away.
What happened next seemed like nothing short of a minor miracle. The special needs teachers at school suddenly noticed a huge difference in Alice’s behaviour. From a girl that didn’t even have the independence to go to the loo on her own she was now singing solo pieces in front of the whole school. She was improving academically and she was really able to focus and concentrate. The teachers were quite literally amazed. In fact, they invited Stefan into to see them to hear all about his methods.
Alice will never be completely cured of dyslexia but I remained convinced that she will reach her full potential with continued treatment from Stefan. Many of the methods used to cope with dyslexia are very frustrating to use. They only seem to deal with the symptoms rather than the cause. Stefan deals with the cause (problems with the way the brain is wired) and that can only be the right way to approach things. Seeing him has given us renewed hope that our daughter will have a much brighter and happier future and we are completely delighted with the results.”
Anne
“I have a dreadful migraine” my mother said to me on several occasions. “It’s only a headache” I thought, two paracetemol and no fuss.
Some thirty years on, and a sufferer of migraine myself, I feel bad about my thoughts about my Mum. Migraine isn’t “just a headache” believe me.
It was indeed some thirty year’s ago when I had my first migraine. Perhaps four or six a year, then 10 or twelve a year and so as I have got older, the frequency has increased – sometimes one every day over a period of ten days! I’ve gone through, several times, my diet in order to eliminate possible triggers – but whatever; I have failed to experience any betterness.
Symptoms seem to vary – but one thing is certain - the throbbing pain and feeling of complete debilitation experienced during an attack.
For me, the warning sign is tightness over my right eye, which, if I don’t catch, becomes a ‘three day event’ leaving me feeling pretty ropey for at least another couple of days. Losing days to migraine frustrates and annoys me.
Some month’s ago my husband was recommended to Stefan for a back problem. Rob mentioned to Stefan my migraine dilemma - an increasing amount of headaches along with an increasing amount of medication –, which didn’t seem to be working.
I visited Stefan some four week’s ago. I listened very carefully to his opinion and explanation and of course, his suggested way forward. What did I have to lose? Increased medication wasn’t doing anything for me and losing days with headaches at my time of life is totally unacceptable. We embarked on his recommended treatment and in four weeks, I have had three headaches.
What a breakthrough! Days without a migraine – a quality of life I lost year’s ago. Thanks to Stefan, his amazing knowledge and understanding, my life has changed, dramatically – I shall be forever grateful.
Liberty – aged 22 months
My third child, Liberty was born by C-section and visited Stefan as soon as I was out of hospital 5 days later. He fully checked her out. After a couple of weeks, I noticed that she had a propensity to look and hold her head to the left. I took her to see Stefan who agreed and made a series of adjustments, which sorted the issue. A paediatrician also checked her out fully at the age of 10 weeks to confirm her spinal growth was correct - as I had had an an-encephalic (severe spina bifida) baby prior to my first child. All was fine with Liberty at this point.
At her 8 month check the health visitor took one look at Liberty who was holding her head to the left and diagnosed torticollis. Late onset torticollis can be caused by a malformation of the spine or a tumour on the spinal cord. Within half an hour, we were at the hospital having an emergency X-ray with an MRI under anaesthetic needed and being booked.
The MRI scan was going to take 10 days to organise, as a paediatric anaesthetist was needed. So in the meantime, I took Liberty to see Stefan. At the end of that examination, Stefan told me that he thought she had some inflammation of the left middle ear but otherwise he could find nothing that might have caused the problem. In my heart of hearts, I did not think that there was anything majorly wrong with Liberty. Stefan had reassured me that my instinct was right.
We had the MRI and got the results later that day – the NHS were amazingly supportive through the whole process. The results confirmed that Liberty did not have any tumours although interestingly (and the specialists believed un-related) she did have inflammation of the left middle ear. We then saw a bevy of specialists who could not explain her torticollis – physio was the only solution. We took Liberty to the Dingley Clinic in Reading and they were great. They were slightly baffled by the fact that she had full range of muscular movement and yet could not hold her head up straight. We agreed on some exercises (which were all easy for her) and agreed on a meeting in a months time. In the meantime Liberty was seeing Stefan. He treated her in his surgery and gave me some fun exercises to do at home. One that she particularly enjoyed was spinning her to the right to clear the congestion in her ear and change the fluid dynamics in her head – she still does that one to this day on her own!
A month later, we saw the physios and they could not believe the change in her. In my opinion, this was all down to the work we had done with Stefan. I do not believe that it was ever late onset torticollis, merely that Stefan had cleared the issue when she was a baby and she needed a different set of treatments once she was sitting up – the weight distribution being very different then. Stefan does not have a set application of treatment, but adjusts to the individual child and condition at the time, which is what he did with Liberty to get her standing and sitting correctly.
I would recommend any parent that has a problem with their child to visit Stefan. Whether it is behavioural, developmental or medical, he can help. All of my family see Stefan and I am sure we are a lot healthier and more relaxed as a result.
John
For years I had suffered with a stiff and achy back. I would wake up with it and any activity would immediately make it worse. I thought to myself that I would have to live with it and there was nothing that could be done. I had seen physiotherapists and tried exercise on my GP’s recommendation but nothing had really helped me alleviating the ache I was feeling.
One morning I woke up and I realised that my regular backache had gotten a lot worse. When I got up out of bed I felt a pain in my left leg and numbness in my foot. I knew I had “trapped a nerve” and I panicked. I had heard about slipped disc, sciatica and back operations and I really didn’t want one. My GP did not even get out of his chair before he immediately wrote to the Hospital for me to see a specialist. I was pleased about this but he told me it could take some time for the appointment to come through. Over the following two months my condition worsened and at this point I could hardly walk and my job was now at risk.
A friend told me about The House of Good Health and suggested that I would give them a call. I got an appointment within a week and I was hoping that something could be done since I really didn’t want an operation. Dr. Stefan spent a long time examining me and I also had some x-rays done. The following visit we looked at the films and Stefan told me that I was suffering from a disc bulge in my lower back. He suggested a treatment plan consisting of some “adjustments” and exercises. To be honest, at this point I would have done anything to get better but the care I received was surprisingly gentle. I immediately felt I was in the right place. Stefan explained everything beforehand and the whole practice just “oozed” confidence.
Three weeks later I was already feeling better. My leg was not aching so much and I was now confident that I could carry on working and no operation was needed.
The appointment finally came through for me to visit the surgeon but by now I hardly had any discomfort. Stefan suggested I should go just in case the surgeon wanted to MRI scan my back although he reassured me that no operation was needed at this point.
To my surprise the surgeon had heard of Stefan and the clinic and he was quite happy for me to carry on with my treatment. He told me that he really didn’t want to get involved unless absolutely necessary. I was delighted!
At the moment I am visiting the clinic on a monthly basis for what Stefan calls “maintenance care”. These short visits really make a huge difference to how I feel. I can now do everything I couldn’t do before the sciatica started. If I only had heard about the clinic and chiropractic before it got so bad…
My wife also sees Stefan now and I would recommend his services to anybody with a back condition. His enthusiasm and thoroughness is so reassuring when you need it the most. I am looking forward to my next visit and I can’t picture my life without chiropractic!
Luke – Aged 4
Luke was always a late developer. Slow to crawl, slow to walk and slow to talk. I was told this was because he was a boy. “Don’t worry” other parents used to tell me “He will catch up!” I wasn’t so sure. About nine months ago my health visitor agreed we should get him referred to a paediatrician. After an initial assessment, Luke was referred to an occupational therapist. She then asked me “Have you heard of dyspraxia- Luke is displaying many praxic tendencies.”
Researching dyspraxia on the internet made pretty depressing reading. Many of the symptoms were familiar but many just were not Luke. I was left feeling pretty desperate about what to do for the best. Luke started school in about four months and I knew he was going to find it tough. I wanted to do something that would help give him the best possible start.
That’s when I heard about the work that Stefan was doing for children with a range of different issues - dyslexia, dyspraxia, autism, Touretts, Aspergers syndrome just to name a few. I was hearing his work was having a positive effect from friends and family in the area. So if they felt he was getting results I felt it was definitely worth a try.
Stefan seemed to ‘get’ Luke in no time at all and that’s how long it took to start seeing results. After just two treatments and religiously following Stefan’s daily exercise routines, things started to improve. His nursery school teachers were so excited. All of a sudden things that he had refused to do like tracing letters and colouring between lines became easier for him. After a few more weeks better pencil control evolved to stronger running, more confidence in the playground and general confidence around other children his own age.
Previously Luke had gravitated towards either younger or older children and I am convinced this is because he felt more in tune with the younger ones and the older ones were just more accommodating. Three months on and we are still delighted with the progress Luke has made. He starts school in a week and we are not nearly as concerned about this as we were a few months ago. Starting school is a big change for any child but now we feel that it will be less of a struggle for Luke than it would have been without Stefan’s help. The other day I asked Luke what he thought of Stefan. He said “He is Good!” and I am inclined to agree.
Peter
I was on holiday when on the last day I suddenly felt the room spinning. It was a frightening feeling when I couldn’t stand never mind walk. As you do, I saw my GP when I got back. She diagnosed a virus and told me it should go away within the next few weeks. She also gave me tablets that would help my nerves. Over the next few months I kept going back since it kept coming back. One minute I would be fine but the next I would get these sensations. It made me not wanting to drive and I was beginning to feel this was my life from now on.
I eventually got referred to a balance clinic where I was shown some exercises. However, the same pattern repeated itself. Whenever I was tired or stressed it would come back. At this point I was recommended to see Stefan at The House of Good Health. I was sceptical at first, I thought chiropractors were curing backaches but I soon realised there was a lot more happening at this particular clinic.
I had the most detailed exam I had ever had in my life. I had to put on some special goggles that recorded my eye movements as well as having my balance analyzed by this special computer platform. Since I had had a car accident recently Stefan also recommended an x-ray of my neck just to be sure before we carried out any treatment.
When I returned for my next consultation Stefan explained that the initial virus had now grown to become a bigger problem. The part of my brain that was responsible for my balance was not functioning very well and he laid out a treatment plan to help me overcome this debilitating situation.
I noticed an improvement within a few weeks and now three months later I hardly ever feel my world “move”. It has not been easy but I am sure that these sessions have enabled me to improve to the degree I have. I had come to a plateau where I wasn’t getting any better. I finally feel that I am in control of my health now rather than the tablets. I do know that this is a very common problem and I have had the opportunity to recommend Stefan’s services to several of my friends.
Oscar - aged 3
By the time he was nine months old, I realised that all was not well with Oscar. He was not developing as I thought he should and I became extremely worried. I could not get any eye contact with him nor did he crawl. In fact he couldn’t even bear his own weight on his legs. There were issues with a misshapen head and while he was being treated for that, the Health Service flagged concerns about his delayed development.
At 16 months, Oscar had a number of assessments with a variety of different health specialists. He was seen by a paediatrician, a neurologist, and an occupational therapist. Their common belief was that Oscar was autistic but as he was so young, they couldn’t be 100% certain.
Clearly I was, anxious to do as much as I could for Oscar. I took him to a special needs playgroup, he had speech therapy and special needs home visits. I even turned to homeopathy as I have heard so much about the merits of alternative therapies.
A friend then mentioned that she had heard about the good work that Stefan was doing for children at the House of Good Health in Henley. This encouraged me to seek Stefan’s help with Oscar.
One year on and so much has changed. I have seen a massive improvement in Oscar’s interaction. His eye contact has improved; he is more sociable, and far more flexible about going out. I am also suffering less screaming protests. Life is getting just a little easier.
Oscar has a way to go and we still see a number of different ‘experts’ – particularly on the speech therapy front. As well as doing so much himself, I also really believe that Stefan has helped to ‘unlock’ something in Oscar that has made him more receptive to these other treatments. Oscar is now talking, albeit only a few words strung together at this stage. He can stand unaided and can even walk for a few metres holding hands. These are all huge achievements for a child with Oscar’s issues. The speed of his progress has greatly impressed the other health professionals that he sees.
I am now far more hopeful that he will have an independent life. His growing confidence and reduced frustrations already mean that he is able to join in more with family life. There is still much work to be done but I am far more positive about what will now be achievable with Stefan’s help.
Tiffany
When I was 18 I was involved in a car accident. I immediately had severe pain in my neck and back that just wouldn’t go. My whole life changed. I couldn’t go out with my friends, I couldn’t exercise and I found it increasingly hard to cope with work. I lived my life according to my tablets. I felt I had no control over my health and I was getting desperate to find a cure for my pain.
A friend of mine had been to The House of Good Health and she convinced me to go. I can actually not remember the first visit when I went to see Stefan because I was on so many painkillers. I do remember the relief I felt when I started to attend my visits at the clinic though, finally I felt there was some hope!
I had been receiving physiotherapy for months with no result at all, but now I really felt like something was being done about my whiplash injury. I was slowly coming off the tablets and that “blurriness” I had been feeling from taking them was fading as well.
I am now 23 and I am living a normal life. I have a career, a social life, but most of all my health. Both my boyfriend and I receive regular adjustments and I even help out as a receptionist at the clinic the odd weekend.
The positive energy and all the happy faces I see whenever I visit the clinic just tells me how lucky I was to “discover” chiropractic and The House of Good Health. It is truly a very special place.
Emma – aged 11
Emma was about seven years old when I became seriously concerned about her health. She had developed frequent stomach pains and often vomited. This was happening at least three times per week. Her appetite was very poor, she was very lethargic and appeared to have stopped growing.
Naturally, we ensured that she got referred to a paediatrician for examination. He explained that Emma was showing the symptoms of childhood migraines and these would most likely develop into full-blown migraines as she got older. It was a relief to have a diagnosis at last but I felt uneasy about the treatment prescribed, which was for my daughter to be put onto Beta-blockers, this apparently being a standard procedure for dealing with migraines.
In that regard, the treatment did work and most of her symptoms disappeared quite quickly but the feelings of tiredness remained. So, although they were never a complete answer to Emma’s problems, we persevered with the Beta-blockers for another two years. She still failed to thrive.
But when Emma was about nine, I decided to withdraw the drugs. It was at the beginning of the summer holidays. I knew there would be no school stress and that she would be relaxed and rested. It seemed like the perfect time to try going drug-free. Unfortunately, the stomach pain and vomiting symptoms came back with a vengeance. It got to the point where Emma was having such attacks almost daily. I was desperate to help her but really did not want to resort to the drugs again.
It was at that time I met the nutritionist who works at the House of Good Health. She recommended that I should arrange for Emma to see Stefan. I must admit that I was dubious, to say the least. I really could not see how a chiropractor could sort out Emma’s issues. But I was proved wrong.
After a few weeks of treatment by Stefan, I noticed that Emma’s symptoms were becoming far less frequent. Within six months I would say they were totally cured. That was not the only good thing that happened to her. During treatment, she had a big growth spurt, her hair thickened and her appetite increased hugely. We could not believe the change in her. She was a completely different girl.
She now just sees Stefan occasionally just to monitor her progress. I am delighted and also relieved not to have had to put her back on the Beta Blockers and to have a healthy growing daughter
If you think that you or a loved one is a good candidate for chiropractic care, contact The House Of Good Health to arrange a thorough examination in our practice.