Consultation & Assessment
Your first appointment runs up to an hour. A full case history, then an examination of how your whole body moves and compensates, ending in a working diagnosis explained in plain terms before any treatment begins.
Concern
Tennis Elbow Treatment in Soho, London
Tennis elbow: pain on the outer elbow from overloaded forearm tendons, rarely comes from tennis. It is most common in desk workers and anyone doing repetitive gripping. It responds well to graded loading and hands-on treatment, but settles slowly if the aggravating load is not managed. Yousif Barr treats it properly at the Soho clinic.
Overview
Understanding tennis elbow
Tennis elbow (lateral epicondylalgia) is a tendinopathy of the forearm extensor tendons where they attach at the outer elbow. Despite the name, it rarely comes from tennis: the overload comes from repetitive gripping and wrist use, and most cases are seen in office workers, manual workers, and gym-goers. The pain is at the elbow, but the problem is a tendon asked to do more than it is currently conditioned for.
The load that tips it over usually comes from:
- Repetitive gripping at a desk: mouse and keyboard hours are a frequent contributor in a desk-based population.
- A sudden training or task spike: a gym, DIY, or racket-sport load the tendon was not ready for.
- Incomplete recovery: returning to heavy gripping too soon, leaving the residual weakness that invites the next bout.
Left alone, tennis elbow is often self-limiting but slow, dragging on for many months. Recovery is far smoother with the right care: progressive loading of the affected tendon is the best-evidenced treatment, and Yousif's hands-on osteopathic treatment supports it by easing forearm tension and settling the pain, while he helps you manage the gripping and desk loads that keep aggravating it. Where the elbow pain is desk-driven, the neck, shoulder, and forearm all play a part, so the Full Body MOT can screen the whole upper-limb chain and aim the rehab and workstation advice at every contributor.
Excellent
From 5 five-star Google reviews
Source: Google
Yousif is an outstanding osteopath and a wonderful person. I came to him with tingling and burning in my fingers due to long stretches at my computer and he was able to provide relief within the first session. I’ve had a handful of sessions since and my symptoms have improved drastically. He’s also advised me on prevention and his advice has hugely helpful. He is a very calming presence and has a kind demeanour. I cannot recommend his services enough - he is excellent at his craft.
Yousif has been incredible in helping me with sciatica pain. He explained the issues I had been experiencing in a clear manner and provided me with relief in a short amount of time. I had struggled to find an osteopath for years who could pay attention to my specific concerns. Would highly recommend!
Yousif has treated me for lower back pain following a herniated disc. He is professional, respectful and has helped me significantly through treatment. I would highly recommend his practise.
I visited YB Osteopathy for neck and shoulder pain and the results have been extremely good. Dr Yousif Barr treatment significantly improved my pain and mobility in just a few sessions. I highly recommend it.
Excellent osteopath, helped massively with my neck pain and headache. An absolute life saver, can’t recommend him enough
Osteopathy for tennis elbow can help to:
Settle the outer-elbow pain
Hands-on treatment eases tension through the forearm and settles the pain at the outer elbow, making gripping, typing, and lifting more comfortable while the tendon work does the deeper repair. Early relief also makes the loading programme easier to start and far easier to stay with.
Load the tendon back to strength
Progressive loading is the best-evidenced treatment for tennis elbow: controlled, gradually increasing exercise that rebuilds the capacity of the forearm tendons. Yousif sets the starting level to match your symptoms, then progresses it steadily, because a tendon strengthens on consistency rather than intensity.
Manage the gripping loads that aggravate it
Mouse work, keyboard hours, manual tasks, and gym gripping all load the same tendon attachment. Yousif identifies which of your daily loads are keeping the elbow irritated, then helps you modify them for a while, so the tendon finally gets the conditions it needs to settle.
Avoid the complete-rest trap
Total rest tends to leave the tendon weaker, and the pain simply returns when you pick things up again. The better route is knowing what to load, what to modify, and what to pause briefly. Yousif guides those calls week by week as the tendon adapts.
Screen the neck, shoulder, and forearm together
Where elbow pain is desk-driven, the neck, shoulder, and forearm loading all play a part. Screening the whole upper limb shows whether anything upstream is adding to the problem, so the rehab and the workstation advice are aimed at every contributor rather than one sore attachment.
Finish the recovery properly
Tennis elbow settles slowly, often over a few months, and an incomplete recovery leaves the residual weakness that invites the next bout. The plan runs through to full grip strength for your work and training, which is what reliably reduces the chance of it returning.
Why it happens
What causes tennis elbow?
-
Repetitive gripping and wrist loading: keyboard, mouse, and manual tasks
-
A sudden increase in gym, DIY, or racket-sport load the tendon was not ready for
-
Sustained desk and forearm postures without variation
-
Returning to a heavy gripping task after time off
-
Forearm and grip-strength deficits relative to the demand
-
Incomplete recovery from a previous bout, leaving residual weakness
At your first appointment Yousif listens before he treats: your health, your work, and how your whole body moves.
Allow up to an hour. Yousif takes a full history covering your health, medications, injuries, work, and lifestyle, then examines how your whole body moves and where it compensates.
He explains the working diagnosis in plain terms before any hands-on work begins, and treatment starts in the same visit. You leave with a plan you understand.
A pain-free life, treated as a whole. Yousif looks past the site of the pain to how the whole body moves and compensates, then treats the cause so the relief holds.
- One dedicated clinic inside UNTIL at 111 Charing Cross Road, on the edge of Soho and Covent Garden.
- Rated 5.0 on Google across 14 patient reviews.
- Every patient is seen by Yousif himself, with in-house referral to the medical and wellbeing professionals at UNTIL when needed.
Fees kept simple and transparent
YB Osteopathy is a private, self-funding practice, and no GP referral is needed to book. Enquire by email or phone and Yousif will arrange your first appointment.
- Initial consultation and treatment: £125, running up to 60 minutes
- Follow-up appointments: 30 minutes, reassessing your progress against the baseline
- The Full Body MOT: £175 for the signature 90-minute head-to-toe assessment
- On request, a paid invoice you may be able to submit to your own private medical insurer
Your journey
with YB Osteopathy
The arc is simple: relieve, realign, rebuild. Yousif finds what is driving the pain, treats it by hand, and gives you a plan and the habits that stop it returning.
Hands-On Treatment
Gentle, tailored osteopathic treatment: soft-tissue work, joint articulation and mobilisation, and postural correction chosen for your presentation. Your comfort is the priority throughout, because the more at ease you are, the better you respond.
Your Plan
You leave with a clear plan covering your diagnosis, your prognosis, and exercises to use between visits. Follow-up appointments are 30 minutes and reassess your progress against the baseline.
Staying Pain-Free
The movement, habits, and desk-side changes that keep the problem from rebuilding. Where something falls outside osteopathic care, Yousif refers quickly through the in-house network at UNTIL: the right help at the right time.
We specialise in:
- Whole-body osteopathic assessment and diagnosis
- Soft-tissue work, joint articulation and mobilisation
- Postural assessment and realignment for desk-bound professionals
- The Full Body MOT: a 90-minute head-to-toe assessment
- Desk-related neck, back, and shoulder strain
- Tension-type and neck-related headaches
- Sports injuries and progressive return to training
- Onward referral through the in-house network at UNTIL
Treatment approach
How do we treat tennis elbow?
Osteopathy Consultation & Treatment
£125 initial consultationA progressive loading programme for the forearm extensor tendons is the best-evidenced treatment for tennis elbow, supported by hands-on therapy to ease tension and advice on managing the gripping and desk loads that aggravate it.
See treatment detail →The Full Body MOT
£175Where elbow pain is desk-driven, the neck, shoulder, and forearm loading all play a part. The Full Body MOT screens the whole upper-limb chain so the rehab and workstation advice target the real contributors.
See treatment detail →FAQ
Frequently asked
questions
Do I have to have played tennis to get tennis elbow?
No: most people with tennis elbow have never played. The name is misleading: it is a tendon overload at the outer elbow from repetitive gripping and wrist use. Desk workers, manual workers, and gym-goers make up the majority of cases, with mouse and keyboard use a common contributor.
Should I rest it completely?
Complete rest usually is not the answer: it tends to leave the tendon weaker and pain returns when you resume activity. The best-evidenced approach is progressive loading: controlled, gradually increasing exercise for the tendon, alongside managing the aggravating tasks. Yousif will guide what to load, what to modify, and what to ease off briefly.
How long does tennis elbow take to settle?
It is often a slow tendon to recover, frequently needing a few months of consistent loading rather than weeks. The good news is that a structured programme reliably improves it and reduces the chance of recurrence. The aim is not just less pain but a forearm strong enough to handle your work and training again.
Will changing my desk setup help my elbow?
It can make a real difference. Mouse position, how you grip, and how long you hold the forearm in one position all load the tendon. Yousif combines a loading programme with practical advice on your workstation and habits, so the tendon has the chance to settle rather than being re-aggravated every working day.
Related Concerns
Get Started
Ready to begin?
Book today.
YB Osteopathy • UNTIL, 111 Charing Cross Road, London WC2H 0DT
BookAppointments typically available within 1–2 weeks