Testimonials
Daisy Clinic Makes Osteopathy Accessible For All
Having a child with special needs can be extremely challenging in many ways and parents are often seeking different ways to calm their children and to help relieve any pain or discomfort.
Osteopath Ian Wright from Clonmel Osteopaths in South Tipperary recognised the need to open up the treatment of osteopathy to more people and he did this through The Daisy Clinic. The Daisy Clinic is a registered charity and was specifically set up to treat children with special needs at heavily subsidised rates or complementary, depending on their own circumstances. The Daisy Clinic is run on dedicated days throughout the year and children with various complaints and difficulties are treated.
Parents from the clinic reported their children feeling calmer, more at ease and in less pain than when they arrived and many said that coming to the clinic is now a regular part of their healthcare routine for their child.
As an osteopath who specialises in paediatric treatment, Ian also uses the clinic days as a unique opportunity to run a training programme for other osteopaths from all over Ireland.We spoke to Shivaun Riley, who participated in such a training programme about the training and her experiences with Ian. Shivaun has her own clinic Riley Osteopathy in Marino, Dublin. She also works in BodyMed in Clontarf. She described osteopathy as one of the most effective forms of healthcare which she has experienced. “I’ve been doing it for six years and I love it. I had issues after the birth of my first child with sciatica and lower back pain – I couldn’t sit, lie or get comfortable. For six months, I tried everything and I couldn’t take strong medications because I was breastfeeding. I tried physiotherapy, a chiropractor and then I got a recommendation for osteopathy. After one treatment, I suddenly felt like I had grown wings – I could walk, I could move,” Shivaun said.
Shivaun said that after three sessions, she was fine and felt amazing. She also went for treatments before her next baby and had a lovely birth and everything was straightforward. “This was why I became an osteopath. I had such a great experience with it. I trained for five years, then packed my babies off to England and trained at the British School of Osteopathy and then did a Masters in Osteopathy. I worked in England and then moved home three or four years ago. I worked in different practices around Ireland and then joined the Clontarf clinic. I started Riley Osteopathy two years ago.”Shivaun started going to Ian Wright’s training days in Clonmel Osteopathy for a number of reasons. She wanted to work more with children and babies – which Ian specialises in – and it was also a way to meet and connect with other practitioners, as most osteopaths work alone in their own clinics.
Speaking about the benefits of the treatment, she said: “I believe everyone deserves osteopathy. We are constantly looking for health and the health is there, it is just about allowing the body and system to find that health.”
During the training days, Shivaun has met osteopaths from all walks of life and from all over the country and she has also benefitted from Ian’s expertise and vast knowledge in the area.“I started in 2014. It has been unbelievably fantastic, unreal. Ian is lovely. He is gifted, intelligent, warm and I have been treated by him and it was amazing. I believe that you don’t actually know what healthy feels like until you have experienced osteopathy. Ian keeps us on our toes. He is very accomplished in his field. It is a very nourishing experience as a practitioner,” Shivaun concluded.
