Physiotherapy
for back pain.
Most back pain has a clear pattern.
We start by finding yours.
Physiotherapy for back pain uses hands-on treatment and movement to help you ease pain and get back to what matters. At Optimum Health Solutions, our Physiotherapists work with you across 12 clinics in NSW and Tasmania, with heated hydrotherapy pools at four sites for when land work is too painful to start.
Whatever shape your back pain takes, we have seen it.
Disc bulges, sciatica, the back that locks up when you bend, the chronic ache that has been hanging around for months. 20+ years of figuring out what to look at first.
NDIS, Medicare, DVA, Workers Comp, Private Health Insurance. We see everyone and can help you with the paperwork.
Patients & Families
For referrers and Support Coordinators
The 2018 Lancet Low Back Pain Series, the largest review of back pain evidence ever published, concluded that exercise, education, and hands-on therapy are the first-line treatment for most back pain. Scans and medication usually come later, if at all. That is exactly how we work here at Optimum Health Solutions, our Physiotherapists cover all three.
We run heated hydrotherapy pools at four clinics: Blacktown, Croydon Park, Campbelltown, and Mornington TAS. For days when floor work is too sore, the pool is where you start.
Funding Your Back Pain Physiotherapy
- Medicare CDM Plans: up to 5 allied health sessions per calendar year with a GP referral
- NDIS: Physiotherapy under Improved Daily Living or Capacity Building, we handle service agreements and reporting
- DVA Gold & White Card: covered with a GP referral, no out-of-pocket cost
- Private Health Insurance: claim on the spot via HICAPS, no paperwork to take home
- Workers Comp & CTP: accepted at all 12 clinics, no out-of-pocket while the claim is active
Not Sure What Fits Your Plan?
1800 678 647
Don't want to call? Click here to
Fill in an enquiry form.
Types of Back Pain We Treat
Six common presentations our Physiotherapy team sees every week. Treatment is built around your specific pattern, not a one-size protocol.
01
Desk-Related Low Back Pain
Eight hours in a chair. Rounded shoulders. A monitor too low. Desk-related back pain creeps in slowly, then one day you cannot straighten up after lunch. Your Physiotherapist assesses your sitting posture, identifies which muscles have switched off, and builds a graded strengthening program you can do at your desk or at home. We also review your workstation setup, because no amount of exercise fixes a chair that puts your spine in the wrong position for 40 hours a week.
02
Disc Bulge & Disc Herniation
A disc bulge presses on nearby nerves and can send pain, tingling, or numbness down your leg. It sounds frightening, but the research is reassuring. Most disc injuries improve without surgery. Your Physiotherapist uses a combination of directional preference exercises, nerve glides, and graded loading to reduce pressure on the disc
03
Sciatica & Nerve Pain
Sharp pain from your lower back down into your buttock, thigh, or calf. Sometimes your foot goes numb. Sciatica is a symptom, not a diagnosis. Your Physiotherapist finds where the nerve is being irritated at, the spine, the piriformis muscle, or further down, and treats the source. Nerve mobilisation, specific stretches, and progressive loading help settle the pain and restore normal movement patterns.
04
Postural Strain &
Thoracic Stiffness
Pain between the shoulder blades. A dull ache across the mid-back after standing or sitting too long. Thoracic stiffness often comes from prolonged positions and weak postural muscles. Your Physiotherapist uses manual therapy to release stiff thoracic joints and prescribes targeted exercises for the muscles that hold you upright. Most people notice a difference within 2 to 3 sessions.
05
Acute Low Back Spasm
You bent to pick up a shoe. Now you cannot stand straight. Acute back spasm locks the muscles around your spine into a protective clench. It is painful and alarming, but it is not dangerous. Your Physiotherapist uses gentle hands-on treatment to ease the spasm, gives you safe positions and movements for the first few days, and starts a graded activity program as soon as the acute phase settles. The Lancet guidelines are clear: early return to normal movement beats bed rest every time.
06
Chronic Low Back Pain
Pain that has hung around for more than 3 months. It may have started with an injury, or it may have crept in without a clear cause. Chronic back pain involves the nervous system as much as the muscles and joints. Your body has learned to guard itself, and that guarding becomes its own problem. Your Physiotherapist combines graded activity, pain education, and hands-on therapy to help your body trust movement again. The goal is not to be pain-free before you start living. It is to start living while the pain catches up.
What Back Pain Physiotherapy Actually Looks Like
Your first appointment runs about 45 to 60 minutes. Your physiotherapist will ask when the pain started, what makes it worse, what makes it better, and how it is affecting your day. Then they will watch you move, test your range, check your nerve function, and feel how your spine is sitting. No surprises. No rush.
From there, your treatment plan might include hands-on mobilisation to free up stiff spinal segments, a graded exercise program that starts where you are and builds from there, workstation advice if desk work is a factor, hydrotherapy sessions in the heated pool if you are near one of our four pool clinics, and pain education so you understand what is happening and why movement helps.
Follow-up sessions are around 30 minutes. Frequency depends on your presentation. Acute flare-ups might need twice a week for the first fortnight. Chronic pain often works best at weekly sessions with a strong home program between visits.
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Full assessment
Story, movement, range, nerve function, hands-on examination of your spine. 45-60 minutes.
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Settle the pain
Hands-on mobilisation, safe positions, gentle graded movement. Calm the nervous system.
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Build the strength
Targeted strengthening for your specific pattern. Home program, workstation review, hydrotherapy if helpful.
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Return to load
Progressive loading toward the activities that matter to you. Lifting, sitting, sport, sleep, work.
Hydrotherapy
Four of our clinics have heated hydrotherapy pools on-site. The water is kept around 34°C, and the buoyancy takes load off your spine so you can move through ranges that feel impossible on land. For acute flare-ups, post-surgical recovery, or chronic pain where land-based exercise is too painful to start, hydrotherapy is often the entry point. Your physiotherapist supervises the session in the water, prescribes specific exercises, and gradually transitions you back to land-based work as your symptoms settle.
Two of the most common funding routes
Medicare: Back Pain Physiotherapy
A Chronic Disease Management Plan from your GP gives you up to 5 allied health sessions per calendar year. Workers compensation and CTP claims are also accepted at all clinics with no out-of-pocket cost while the claim is active. DVA Gold and White Card holders are covered with a GP referral. Private health insurance with extras cover lets you claim on the spot via HICAPS.
NDIS: Back Pain Physiotherapy
If back pain is limiting your independence, your NDIS plan may fund Physiotherapy under Improved Daily Living. Your physiotherapist writes functional goals around the specific tasks you are struggling with, such as getting in and out of your wheelchair without pain, standing long enough to cook dinner, or walking to the bus stop and back. Progress is tracked against those goals, and reports are ready before your plan review. Hydrotherapy through the NDIS is available at our four pool locations. Self-managed, plan-managed, or NDIA-managed, we sort the admin.
12 clinics across NSW & Tasmania
Email us
hello@opt.net.au
Speak to a us
1800 678 647
Get in Touch.
Tell us a little about your back pain and what you’re hoping to get back to. Our intake team will respond within one business day with next steps and an honest estimate of timing.
Locations
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Physiotherapy good for back pain?
Yes. The 2018 Lancet Low Back Pain Series, the largest review of back pain research ever published, concluded that exercise and manual therapy should be the first-line treatment for most back pain. Physiotherapy combines both. Your physiotherapist designs a program around your specific type of back pain, your current fitness, and your daily demands. It is one of the most effective and lowest-risk approaches available.
Should I get a scan before starting Physiotherapy?
In most cases, no. Clinical guidelines recommend against routine imaging for back pain because scans often show changes that look alarming but are not causing your symptoms. Disc bulges, for example, appear on MRI in people with no pain at all. Your physiotherapist can assess whether imaging is needed based on your symptoms and history. If a scan is warranted, they will refer you for one.
Can Physiotherapy help with sciatica?
Yes. Sciatica responds well to targeted Physiotherapy including nerve mobilisation, directional exercises, and progressive loading. Your physiotherapist identifies where the nerve is being irritated and treats that source. Many people with sciatica improve significantly within 6 to 12 weeks of consistent Physiotherapy without needing surgery.
Do I need a referral for back pain Physiotherapy?
No referral is needed if you are paying privately or using NDIS funding. If you want to claim through Medicare, you will need a Chronic Disease Management Plan from your GP, which gives you up to 5 allied health sessions per year. DVA patients need a GP referral. Workers compensation and CTP claims require insurer approval. Not sure which pathway fits? Call us and we will help you work it out before you book.
How many sessions will I need?
It depends on your condition. An acute flare-up might settle in 3 to 6 sessions over a few weeks. Chronic back pain often benefits from 8 to 12 sessions spread over 2 to 3 months, with a home exercise program running alongside. Your physiotherapist will give you a clear timeframe at your first appointment and adjust it as you progress. We do not lock you into long treatment plans.
Kieran Doyle
APA Titled Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist APAM MACP
MMuscPhysio, GradCertMuscPhysio, MPhty, BAppSc(Ex&SpSc)
OPTIMUM HEALTH SOLUTIONS
With over 18 years of experience across Australia and the United Kingdom, Kieran is an APA Titled Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist, a qualification held by fewer than 1 in 10 physios, with a background spanning private practice, sports medicine, and complex neurological rehabilitation. He reviews all musculoskeletal content for clinical accuracy.
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