What Osteopathy Can Treat & How

The holistic treatment of Osteopathy is a system of assessing, diagnosing, treating and preventing a wide range of health problems. Osteopaths are commonly known for treating back pain and postural problems including changes due to pregnancy, caused by driving or work strain, the pain of arthritis and minor sports injuries. However, that list is not limited to what Osteopathy can treat.

In this blog post, we are going to break down a few examples of what health conditions Osteopathy can help treat and how.

Back Pain

Back pain affects up to 80% of us at some point in our lives, and unfortunately, knows no age. Your spine is made of solid, bony blocks reinforced by strong ligaments and muscles. It is surprisingly difficult to damage the spine itself, but if strained, the surrounding muscles and ligaments can cause discomfort and pain.

Manual Osteopathic Practitioners will often use gentle hands-on techniques to help resolve back pain. Combined together with exercise and advice designed to promote and maintain the best environment for a healthy back, Osteopathy is a great treatment for both acute and chronic back pain. Research evidence shows that these Osteopathic treatments can have beneficial effects, especially for back pain.

Sporting Injuries and Discomfort

Taking part in a sport is a great way to stay active and promote a healthy lifestyle. However, it also comes with possible injuries and strains on your body. Sports are very strenuous, and Osteopathy is a great way to prevent both those minor injuries from impacting how you play and working to fix old injuries.

It is common to feel some minor discomfort after training, as the body takes a little time to recover and adapt to the demands of activities. Soreness often quickly resolves itself but occasionally, may persist for more than a few days or make it difficult for you to continue your normal activities. In these instances, you may want to seek advice from a Manual Osteopathic Practitioner who will use a wide range of gentle hands-on techniques, focusing on releasing tension, stretching muscles and mobilizing joints.

These are often used with exercise and helpful advice, together with strapping or taping, all of which are designed to relieve pain and help to return you back to the playing field!

Mobility in Infants

Every parent’s priority is to provide the best environment to support their child’s health as they develop and grow. Osteopathic practice is safe and effective, and has the hearts of many parents! Parents visit Manual Osteopathic Practitioners for a range of reasons to support their child’s health. Children, like adults, can be affected by general joint and muscle issues, which is one of the reasons many people turn to Osteopathy for their children.

I say mobility, but truly, Osteopathy is great for infants who may not need treatment for mobility!

Manual Osteopathic Practitioners generally use a wide range of gentle hands-on techniques that focus on releasing tension, improving mobility and optimizing function. This is often used together with exercise and helpful advice for parents. Some Manual Osteopathic Practitioners, much like Geneviève Zizzo, are trained and specialize in pre and post natal services.

Headaches

A pesky headache can certainly throw off your whole day, especially if they are regular and consistent. No person should ever live their life in pain, and Osteopathy is a great wellness choice to getting to the root of your headache problem. Recurring headaches can be caused by tension or strain in the muscles and joints of the neck and upper back.

Manual Osteopathic Practitioners use a gentle massage technique to the tight muscles and use of manipulation to loosen the joints of the neck, thorax and back. Thus, relieving the build-up of muscular tension that may lead to headaches. They can also advise on exercise and lifestyle changes and offer guidance on simple changes to your posture when at work or driving which may help.

Muscle and Joint Problems

Osteopathy is a way of detecting, treating and preventing health problems by moving, stretching and massaging a person’s muscles and joints. Listed below are a few health conditions that Osteopathy is great for treating:

• Neck Pain
• Shoulder Pain
• Hand and Elbow Pain
• Hip Pain
• Knee Pain
• Foot and Ankle Pain

The modality for each health condition is different, but Manual Osteopathic Practitioners typically use an array of techniques to increase mobility in joints and the flexibility of the muscles in the specific area. Often, muscles and joints in different areas are key for Manual Osteopathic Practitioners to help heal the area that is causing pain.

Depending on the area, a different modality will be used by the Manual Osteopathic Practitioner that follows joint movement and muscle flexibility.

Next Steps

If you have a specific health condition not listed above, or would like to learn more about how Osteopathy can help you, click the link down below where you will be connected directly to our website for further information.

Classical Osteopathy