About Darren Tilley DO

Darren has a unique perspective in physical therapy, in that he has an ability to deal skilfully with both joint and often more importantly, muscle dysfunction. This has allowed him to build a thriving practise and made him popular with sports men and women of international standard, dancers at the top of their profession as well as men, women and children from all walks of life.

Darren trained to be an osteopath with the College of Osteopaths based at the time in Regents Park, London, and finally based at the University of Middlesex. With no academic background, but a keen desire to learn, he graduated in his first year with a distinction in all areas of bio-science.

By the time he had fully qualified as an osteopath 5 years later, Darren was already lecturing in anatomy, physiology, massage and sports massage therapy at Swindon College. In addition, he had also built up a busy practice working from home and Swindon's Health Hydro, the first council sponsored alternative therapy centre in Britain.

The practical experience he gained whilst working as a massage therapist led him to question some of the principles he was being taught regarding the role of joints in painful conditions and to develop a deep respect for the role of 'soft tissue' in pain and dysfunction of the human structure. It is this area that still holds the most fascination for him, and his understanding the nature of muscles, muscle balance and soft tissue release, contributes to some of the most dramatic changes in his patients' conditions.

Darren's 16 years of practicing and teaching martial arts, often at an international level gave him a thorough understanding of the body in sports, and one of the reasons he is so popular with athletes and dancers, is his knowledge of sports injuries from both sides, i.e., as a therapist and an injured athlete. His understanding of the physiology and psychology of training at intense levels has also enabled him to relate well to those training at peak performance.

Interestingly a sudden drop in energy levels at the age of 17 led to a study of nutrition which continues to this day. Darren has a voracious appetite for knowledge and had now studied around 40 books on nutrition and attended many seminars on the subject, the varied and diverse opinions expounded in the world of nutrition have encouraged him to develop an open mind, extracting the commonalties of many theories and amassing the knowledge to develop his own. Ultimately, he now feels that the 'secrets' of nutrition are much simpler than the 'experts' would have you believe...

Darren feels that his strengths as a therapist are twofold:- One, he believes in each individuals natural body wisdom or innate intelligence, this requires him to listen carefully to each patients thoughts, ideas, beliefs and theories about what is wrong with them, rather then imposing his own belief system. Secondly, he feels it is important to have a thorough understanding of why he is using a particular technique, and the physiology of what is occurring in the patient's body as he uses it. Some of Darren's most innovative techniques have come from paying careful attention to patient feedback during treatment, indeed he feels the best results come from working as a team with the person he is treating rather than imposing his 'knowledge' as a therapist upon the patient.

Darren's great love over the years has been to teach, he unreservedly shares his knowledge, with the philosophy that 'one candle loses nothing when lighting another', and takes great delight in his understanding benefiting others. This journey started with him as an introverted 24 year old teaching martial arts in what became a his own very successful school, then onto a lecturing post at college, even an assistant dance teacher, and now regularly delivering seminars based on his continued learning as a therapist.

Darren lives in Swindon with his two children and Pyrenean mountain dog. He enjoys reading, Ceroc dancing, skiing and fencing, has 'dabbled' in sailing, paragliding, and golf, and has fun with DIY and woodwork.