About me

Erik Rech, Heilpraktiker and physiotherapist in Dillingen, Saarland

My name is Erik Rech. I am a state-qualified physiotherapist and a Heilpraktiker, and I run my practice in Dillingen/Saar, in the Pachten district.

I took my state examination in 1993 and received the licence to practise healing (Erlaubnis zur Ausübung der Heilkunde) in 2000. I have worked independently since 2001, in my own practice since 2005 – and since 2016 here in Dillingen. That is more than thirty years in the profession.

What “Heilpraktiker” means: it is a health profession particular to Germany. After an examination before the public health authority, the state grants permission to examine and treat independently without being a physician. There is no exact equivalent in Britain or Ireland. I am not a physician.

Why I also became a Heilpraktiker

Three reasons tipped the scales.

I wanted more time for my patients. I wanted more treatment options available to me than those open to a physiotherapist. And I wanted to be able to work as a whole rather than purely mechanically and structurally – to be allowed to look at the person, and not only at the spot that hurts.

So in 1998 I began the training as a Heilpraktiker alongside my work, and received the licence to practise in 2000.

Two professions under one roof

This combination is less common than one might think, and it has a practical advantage for you.

As a physiotherapist I treat on a doctor’s prescription – remedial exercise, manual therapy, back school.

As a Heilpraktiker I hold the licence to practise healing. I may examine and treat independently, without a prescription and without a referral.

In practice that means: I am not committed to one method. Whether your complaints call for physiotherapy, osteopathy, chiropractic or a combination is decided after the examination – not by what I happen to have on offer.

How I work

Everyone should be welcome here as they are. I do not judge and I do not sort anyone out in advance. A good therapist, I find, is also a good friend.

Every treatment begins with the overview. Through the case history and the examination I build up an overall picture – not only of the complaints you come with, but of what belongs to them. Only then do I proceed in a targeted way: I look for the cause behind the symptoms and start there, instead of treating only where it happens to hurt.

Professional background

Training

  • 1993 State examination as a physiotherapist, followed by the recognition year and civilian service at the St. Hedwig rehabilitation clinic in Illingen
  • 1998 Training as a Heilpraktiker alongside professional work
  • 2000 Licence to practise healing

As a physiotherapist

  • 1995-1997 Outpatient rehabilitation centre in Wadgassen
  • 1997-2016 Freelance associate at the Uwe Conrad physiotherapy practice in Püttlingen-Köllerbach
  • 2005-2007 In addition at the Jutta Palesch rehabilitation centre in Friedrichsthal
  • 2016-2017 Raffaele Tassone physiotherapy practice in Dillingen

Own practice

  • 2001 Start of independent work as a physiotherapist and Heilpraktiker
  • since 2005 own Heilpraktiker practice, at first in Püttlingen-Köllerbach
  • 2015-2016 Practice in Schwalbach-Elm
  • since 2016 Practice in Dillingen/Saar
  • 2017-2019 Second practice in Heusweiler-Obersalbach

Teaching

  • 2006 Seminar leader on treatment strategies for back pain, for the Heilpraktikerverband Saar e.V.

Further training

  • Craniosacral therapy and SomatoEmotional Release for adults, children and infants – Upledger Institute Germany
  • Osteopathy – Barral Institute, Osteopathie Gesellschaft Deutschland
  • Functional analysis of the musculoskeletal system according to Dr Brügger
  • Treatment on a neurophysiological basis according to Bobath
  • Chiropractic and manual therapy
  • Orthopaedic back school
  • Nutrition, sound therapy, self-healing

Member of these professional associations

  • Fachverband Deutscher Heilpraktiker e.V.
  • Verband Freier Osteopathen e.V. (VFO)
  • Chiropraktiker AG Saarland

Where to find me

Naturheilpraxis Erik Rech
Defrancestr. 9
66763 Dillingen/Saar, Germany

Appointments are made by telephone on +49 160 50 55 374, Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. There is a parking space for patients directly outside the door.

The methods I use are set out under Treatments. Answers on fees, length and reimbursement are under frequently asked questions.