What do you notice?
Swaying, pain, rapid fatigue, losing a point of focus or an unreliable movement describe different starting questions.
Find your way from everyday situations
Symptom compass Symptoms & questions
Symptoms do not always fit neatly into one area. Here are common situations people bring to me, together with the area of focus that best addresses each question.
You don't need a diagnosis or an assumed cause beforehand. The starting point is: what becomes difficult, and under which conditions does the response change?
Your concerns are the starting point
The specific situation matters more than the label
Dizziness may occur when standing up, moving your head or walking between full shelves. Head pressure may be associated with the neck, jaw or visual strain. That is why we begin with the pattern you actually experience in everyday life.
When does it change?
Distance, head position, exertion, speed, how you feel that day, the amount of sensory input or a specific movement may indicate which area to explore first.
Where can you explore further?
The compass offers a broad starting point. The linked focus page then explains which functions can be considered and assessed specifically.
Overlap is normal. If two areas fit your situation, you can start with the one that feels closest — the focus pages explain the connections between them.
Six possible directions
Where do you recognise your situation most clearly?
The examples deliberately use everyday language. Open the area closest to your specific question for professional context and possible pathways for functional assessment.
01
Orientation & stability
Dizziness & balance
“I often feel dizzy — or the ground doesn't feel reliable when I stand or walk.”
This area covers situations in which orientation, head movements, balance or moving surroundings trigger a sense of unsteadiness.
- Swaying sensations or light-headedness
- Unsteady walking and needing support
- Unsteadiness with head movements
- Dizziness in the supermarket
- Symptoms in crowds
- Unsteadiness on moving surfaces
02
Eye movement control & visual strain
Vision & visual processing
“My vision basically works — but reading, screens or moving surroundings are unusually tiring.”
Visual acuity is only one part of vision. Fixation, saccades, near-to-far focus changes, coordination between the eyes and optic flow can also be considered separately.
- Losing your place while reading
- Rapid visual fatigue
- Head pressure during screen work
- Difficulty changing focus from near to far
- Unstable or double vision
- Strain from scrolling, shelves or movement
03
Movement, tissue & protection
Pain & functional symptoms
“I have recurring pain or movement limitations that aren't easily explained.”
Pain is a complex protective and perceptual phenomenon. Skin, muscles, fascia, joints, nerves, blood vessels, movement, exertion and processing may each play different roles.
- Chronic back or neck pain
- Jaw problems and temporomandibular disorders
- Knee pain on stairs
- Shoulder pain when lifting an arm
- Tingling or a hand going numb at night
- Headaches or migraine symptoms
04
Capacity & autonomic response
Regulation & complex symptom patterns
“My body responds unusually strongly to exertion, stress or sensory input — and takes a long time to settle again.”
When several systems respond unpredictably at the same time, a structured look at circulation, sensory processing, capacity, sleep and autonomic functions can help.
- Exhaustion and exercise intolerance
- Brain fog and sensory overload
- Dizziness or circulatory symptoms on standing
- Unusually prolonged recovery
- Autonomic symptoms
- Changed capacity after infections
With Long Covid, POTS or ME/CFS, medical assessment, individual capacity and tolerance of sensory input take priority.
Explore dysregulation & complex symptoms
05
Training & performance development
Neuroathletic training for athletes & clubs
“I want to improve my sporting performance or understand why a movement isn't reliable.”
My sports-focused support has its own website, Neuroathletik Bayern. It offers programmes for your personal training as well as teams and clubs.
- A performance plateau despite good training
- Coordination and movement quality
- Reaction under physical demands
- Balance in sport
- Force production and mobility
- Return to play after injury
06
Learning, attention & development
Children, concentration & learning
“My child tries hard — but reading, writing or concentrating are still unusually difficult.”
Reading and learning depend on eye movement control, body stability, balance, coordination, attention and capacity working together.
- Losing their place while reading
- Rapid fatigue during schoolwork
- Concentration fading quickly
- Writing feels unnecessarily demanding
- Noticeable difficulty with eye movement control
- Unsteadiness with coordination or balance
Common local concerns
Look more closely at the back, neck and jaw
A location alone does not tell us which structure or function changes the symptoms at that moment. With chronic back pain, recurring neck pain or jaw problems in particular, a more differentiated testing question is therefore useful.
Back
When sitting, standing or bending repeatedly hurts
With back pain, we consider more than its location and intensity. Movement direction, joint position, tissue tension, breathing, duration of exertion, body awareness and possible nerve-related factors are also of interest.
Which individual condition changes mobility, stability or pain during the same initial movement?
Neck
When tension, movement and head pressure occur together
Neck pain or tension may change with screen work, head rotation, shoulder movement, breathing, eye movements or jaw activity. These influences can be tested separately and compared.
Does the original movement become easier when we specifically address the part that currently shows a difficulty?
Jaw & temporomandibular disorders
When the jaw, head and neck do not respond independently
Jaw clicking, tension when chewing, an altered mouth-opening pattern or temporomandibular symptoms may occur alongside head and neck symptoms. Jaw movement, cranial receptors, the cervical spine, eyes and breathing are considered separately from a functional perspective.
This complements dental, orthodontic or medical findings; it does not replace them.
When more than one card fits
One symptom can raise several functional questions
That is not a contradiction. The everyday situation suggests which area offers the most concrete starting points.
“I feel strange in the supermarket.”
Standing and walking may feel stable until shelves, people and movement enter your field of view. Orientation and balance, as well as optic flow and eye movement control, then become relevant.
“Screen work makes my head and neck feel tight.”
Saccades, fixation and near-to-far focus control may be as important here as the cervical spine, jaw, shoulder region or local tissue factors.
“After exertion, I'm completely exhausted physically and mentally.”
When circulation, sensory processing, brain fog and unusually prolonged recovery occur together, regulation offers a clearer starting point than an isolated performance question.
“My child understands the material — but putting it into practice takes enormous effort.”
Reading, writing and attention may be affected in different ways by eye movement control, balance, body stability, coordination and sensory processing.
Important for new or acute symptoms: Sudden severe dizziness, new neurological deficits, an unusually severe headache, sudden loss of vision, signs of paralysis or speech difficulties require immediate medical assessment.
Test rather than guess
From an everyday difficulty to a precise functional question
The compass avoids premature conclusions. It leads from an observable situation to the area where the functions involved can be assessed step by step.
Describe the situation
What happens specifically — and with which movement, distance, exertion or amount of sensory input?
Narrow down the area
The closest area of focus provides an initial professional map for your concerns.
Break down the function
The task is divided into sensory, motor and regulatory components that can be assessed.
Compare the response
Targeted inputs are tested, suitable solutions integrated and the same initial response reassessed.
Input→Processing→Output
Still unsure?
Not sure which area suits you?
Briefly describe your situation in a free first conversation. Together, we explore which area of focus and next step seem useful for your concerns.
Free first conversation