Your first visit

Your first appointment is an assessment, not a treatment session. Here is exactly how it goes, so nothing about it is a surprise.

Before you come

• You register online

  A few details, and a short set of questions about why you are coming and what you are hoping for. It takes about five minutes.

• A few quick safety questions

  There are some situations where cold therapy is not appropriate at all, and it is better for both of us to find that out before you have travelled. The online questions are deliberately brief — the proper conversation happens in the clinic, with the practitioner, where it belongs.

• We send you a link, not a password

  Cryo Recovery Suite does not use passwords. When you need to get into your account, you give us your email address and we send you a single-use link. One less thing to forget, and it means we are never storing a password of yours.

• Book a time that suits you

  You will see the practitioner’s real availability and pick from it.

• What to bring

  A list of any medication you take, including anything you buy over the counter. If you have a diagnosis from a GP, consultant or physiotherapist, bring the letter — or just know the name of it.

• What to wear

  Something you can move in, and something that lets us get to the area that is bothering you. Nothing special.

On the day: Assess

Allow 45 minutes. Most of the first visit is conversation.

We talk first, and for most of it. Mark will want to understand the history properly: how long, how bad, what makes it worse, what you have already tried, what you have already been told — and the important one, what you actually want to be able to do again. What the condition is doing to your daily life matters more here than what it is called.

We go through the health questions properly. Some conditions and some medicines mean cold therapy is not appropriate, or needs care, and a few rule it out entirely. This is where that is worked through in full, against a written safety standard rather than from memory. It is a conversation with a registered clinician, not a form. The list is published in advance on our Is it suitable for me? page — please read it before you come, and tell us if anything on it applies to you.

You can look at the equipment and ask anything about it.

Target

If cold therapy is a sensible thing for you to try, you and Mark agree a plan together: which area, which programme, how often, and what you are aiming at. Shared decision-making is the point — you are not handed a course to sign up to.

You will hear which of the three programmes — Relieve, Restore or Renew — is being recommended and why.

Treat

You may or may not have cold applied on the first visit. Sometimes the practitioner will want to try a short application to see how you find it. Sometimes he will not. Either is normal, and it is a clinical decision rather than a sales one.

If cold is applied, the area is inspected and cleaned first, a protective product goes onto the skin, and the applicator is kept moving throughout. Mark stays with you for the whole of it.

Review

You get a plan in writing. How often Mark suggests you come, and for how long before you review it together.

You book your own appointments. Within the frequency your practitioner has set, you are in control — book, move or cancel from your account.

We check in between visits. Every so often you will get a link to a short progress questionnaire — a couple of minutes, no login needed. It exists so that three months from now there is a record of how you were doing rather than a guess. If nothing is changing, that is important information and we would rather have it than not.

Your £39 comes back to you. The assessment fee is credited in full against your first programme.

The honest bit

Some people leave the assessment without booking anything, because the practitioner has said cold therapy is unlikely to be the right thing for them, or because something they described needs a GP rather than us.

We would much rather that happened at the £39 assessment than after you had paid for a programme. If Mark thinks you should see someone else first, he will say so, and he will tell you why.

Common questions

Does it hurt?
It is cold, and cold is a strong sensation. Most people describe it as intense at first and then manageable. Tell your practitioner at any point and he will stop.

How long is the cold actually applied for?
Usually a few minutes to about a quarter of an hour, depending on the area. The rest of the appointment is conversation, checks and the record.

How many sessions will I need?
Between one and ten is typical, at no more than three a week. Mark will suggest a shape at your assessment and review it with you rather than selling you a fixed course up front.

Can I drive afterwards?
Yes.

Do I need a referral?
No. But if you are under a consultant or physiotherapist for the same problem, tell us — and tell them.

Do I have to keep coming?
No. There is no contract and no minimum programme length.

Can I bring someone with me?
Yes, to the assessment and to sessions.

Is there parking?
Yes, free parking. Please note the clinic room is up a flight of stairs — see About before you travel if that is a problem for you, and call us and we will talk it through.

How do I get my records?
Ask, and we will send them. Under UK data protection law you have the right to a copy of everything we hold about you, and you do not have to give a reason.

Book your £39 assessment