Gentle, precise chiropractic for Lismore and Northern Rivers families, with a focus on nervous system function.
I'm Dr Stephen Foster, and I’ve returned home to the Northern Rivers after more than 20 years practicing in Sydney, where I’ve cared for children, adults and whole generations of families. I continue to run Newtown Community Chiropractic in Sydney, and my new office, Spinal Somatics Lismore, upstairs at 89 Molesworth St, is its Northern Rivers sister practice.
I have developed Spinal Somatics over those two decades. Spinal Somatics is a gentle, precise approach to chiropractic that uses quite light, brief contacts to work with the tension your nervous system is holding.
Gentle doesn't mean less: each contact is specific, and the work follows how your body responds during every session. In my experience, when your nervous system does the work of generating change, that change tends to last and builds from visit to visit.
[More on Spinal Somatics] [Read about Gentle Chiropractic]
Why the nervous system?
How you move, feel and hold tension is influenced by much more than an area that causes pain or discomfort. Stress, sleep, injury and the demands of daily life all affect how well your body copes and how well it settles afterwards.
Our experience is that when your nervous system is under increased load, especially for extended periods, one of many changes is that your muscles and body stay chronically tight. Tissues become overworked, injuries are more likely and recovery is slower. So alongside any area that hurts, we look at how you hold tension, how you move and how you breathe.
Because the aim of each session is to guide your nervous system to help your body unwind, our contacts are quite light and brief: about the pressure you'd use to test whether an avocado is ripe.
What lasting change looks like
Success looks like moving more easily, hurting less, coping better with stress, being able to enjoy the things you love to do, and needing us less often. How often you need to come initially depends on the severity of your problem and how long it's been there. In some cases, we need to see you more often when you begin care to generate the change you're after, but visits reduce as the function of your spine and body improve.
Honest advice
Our role is to give you the best possible advice and work with you to get results, with the highest level of care. We explain what we're finding, what we recommend and why, including when you'd be better seeing someone else, including GPs, physios, therapists and other health professionals.
Part of an established practice
I have developed Spinal Somatics over the past two decades of practice at Newtown Community Chiropractic. Spinal Somatics Lismore brings the same approach and the same standard of care to the Northern Rivers, so you don't need to travel to the city to get it.
What I help with
I see people for back pain and sciatica, neck pain, headaches or migraines, ongoing muscle tension, posture and movement concerns, and jaw problems (temporomandibular disorders, or TMD).
I also help people manage the effects of everyday and long-term stress. Whether you're on the tools, on the land, at a desk or on the road for hours, your body keeps score.
Care for the whole family
We're a family-focused practice, and I see everyone from newborns to grandparents, including mums during pregnancy and postpartum. Parents and children can book alongside each other, and we offer family rates to help when parents and kids are under care.
Learn more about care for [babies, children and teens] and [pregnancy and birth].
Meet Dr Stephen Foster
B Chiro Sc M Chiro (Macquarie Uni)
I’ve been practicing in Sydney for more than 20 years, and it’s nice to be home again.
I am a member of the Australian Chiropractors Association and the International Chiropractic Paediatric Association.
I’m experienced caring for newborns and children right through to grandparents and elderly adults, and anyone who has been under care in my office knows I love what I do. I take a special interest in helping people better regulate how their body copes with stress, and in doing so helping them have a better experience of life physically and emotionally. I find this approach especially helpful for kids with a variety of challenges, as well as people who have experienced trauma or been through other challenging life experiences, and whose bodies continue to hold those experiences.
[more on Stephen here…]
If you have an ongoing or recurring problem, or you'd like a thorough assessment and honest advice for you or your family, we'd love to help.