Osteopathy is a system of diagnosis and treatment that uses manual (hands on) techniques to both diagnose and treat musculoskeletal conditions.
We use a combination of soft tissue techniques, joint articulations, manipulations (and much more) to help treat your pain and stiffness.
You are more than a sum of your parts …..
Osteopaths consider the body as a whole and we don’t just treat symptoms. We will look at you and consider everything that may have lead to your current situation; your pain, posture, lifestyle etc. We strongly believe that restoring the body to a good state of structure is essential for health and wellbeing. Our bodies have the inherent ability to heal and by affecting joint mobility, circulation and nerve compression, we can positively affect all aspects of health and healing.
The History
Osteopathic medicine is a distinctive form of medical care founded on the philosophy that all body systems are interrelated and dependent upon one another for good health. This philosophy was developed in 1874 by Andrew Taylor Still, MD, who pioneered the concept of “wellness” and recognised the importance of treating illness within the context of the whole body. He devoted years of his life to studying the human body and finding better ways to treat disease. please also see; Conditions we can help with or What happens on my first visit? for more information.
Dr. Still was born in Virginia in 1828, the son of a Methodist minister and physician. At an early age he decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a physician. After studying medicine and serving an apprenticeship under his father, Still became a licensed MD in the state of Missouri. In the early 1860s, he completed additional coursework at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Kansas City, MO and went on to serve as a surgeon in the Union Army during the Civil War.
After the Civil War and following the death of three of his children from spinal meningitis in 1864, Dr. Still concluded that the orthodox medical practices of his day were frequently ineffective, and sometimes harmful.
His research and clinical observations led him to believe that the musculoskeletal system played a vital role in health and disease. He concluded that the body contained all of the elements needed to maintain health, if properly stimulated.
Dr. Still believed that by correcting problems in the body’s structure, through the use of manual techniques now known as Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine (OMM), the body’s ability to function and to heal itself could be greatly improved. He also promoted the idea of preventive medicine and endorsed the philosophy that physicians should focus on treating the whole patient, rather than just the disease.
