Why see an Osteopath?
People of all ages go to see the osteopath, usually because they are in pain and/or not able to do the kind of things they used to be able to do.
They might be an older person, feeling stiff or inflexible, have joint pains, headaches, digestive problems, have back pain or sciatica.
They might be a younger person who wants his/her body to perform at its very best to be able to enjoy sports and hobbies, feeling well balanced and aligned, working at its very optimum.
They might be a newborn brought in for treatment in to help them release tensions from a difficult birth, allowing them to sleep better, move their head freely, feed and digest better and overall becoming more settled.
They might have had a fall or car accident, recent operation and needing help with recovery or perhaps they have unexplained pains which have been investigated medically but without an obvious cause
Osteopaths have a unique way of accessing the health of the body through hands on manipulation of its structure, namely the spine, joints, muscles, tendons ligaments and connective tissue such as fascia. In this way the nervous system, lymphatic system and overall homeostasis can be influenced.
The body can then respond by releasing tension, realigning itself, becoming pain free, more flexible and overall better balanced. Less energy is taken up fighting pain or misalignment, therefore helping to make people feel better in themselves.
That all sounds great but what do Osteopaths actually do?
Osteopaths diagnose by assessing the movement of the body. At first visually assessing overall movement with a series of standing tests which show spinal and pelvic mobility and alignment. This also indicates areas of soft tissue tension, congestion and dysfunction.
This is followed by hands on palpation, identifying the exact tissues which are causing any pain or tension. The next question to answer is why? Why are these particular muscles, joints or ligaments causing pain? We need to understand the root cause.
What makes osteopaths stand apart from other manual therapies is the depth of training they undergo to be able to understand the body and what can go wrong with it to the deepest level.
Osteopaths initially train for 4 years full-time and then continue ongoing training as part of their statutory regulations of at least 30 hours per year, every year.
They develop an understanding of how the different systems of the body interact and how health can be affected by dysfunction in one area on another.
This is particularly helpful for people suffering from long term pain, complex chronic conditions as well as recent acute back pain and MSK injuries .
Osteopathic manipulation is generally very gentle but extremely effective and results usually become obvious in a short space of time.
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