Osteopathy

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What is Osteopathy?

Osteopathy was founded in 1874 by an American physician called Andrew Taylor Still. He was the first to identify the human immune system, and recognised its ability in the course of disease. He was discontent with the use of medications at that time, and believed that instead of treating and curing disease, they were only masking the symptoms. Through experimentation and clinical observation, he developed a range of techniques applied to the musculoskeletal system, which would in turn affect the other systems in the body. He strongly believed that to have disease in one part of the body, other parts must be affected. This began the medicine of Osteopathy.

In short, Osteopathy is a gentle, holistic manual medicine that strengthens and treats the joints, muscles and ligaments in the musculoskeletal system, allowing the nervous, circulatory, and lymphatic systems to function optimally. Since the 19th century, Osteopathy has become widely accepted, and now there are over 40,000 Osteopaths worldwide.

What is an Osteopath?

In Australia, there are 3 universities that offer undergraduate and master’s programs in Osteopathy – RMIT, Victoria University, and University of Western Sydney. Graduates go on to be executers of A.T. Still’s principles of Osteopathy, and are registered primary health care providers in Australia, which means that a doctor’s referral is not required.

Osteopaths have an extremely finely tuned sense of touch and are able to feel very subtle changes in a tissue or joint. They are trained not only in Osteopathic diagnosis, but to look for orthopaedic, neurologic and medical conditions as well.

Once the underlying cause of your symptoms has been diagnosed, Osteopaths have a wide variety of techniques to choose from to incorporate into their treatment. These include soft tissue and muscle stretching, massage, rhythmic passive joint movement, gentle release techniques for fascia and ligaments, and joint manipulation.

Osteopathy in the Cranial Field (or Craniosacral Therapy)

This is the area of Osteopathy that addresses the bones and joints of the skull, allowing the release of the membranes and better circulation of the fluid around the brain and spinal cord. This treatment can affect the neurological, digestive, circulatory, respiratory, and endocrine systems. Patients that require this type of treatment commonly present with headaches, migraines, jaw pain, dizziness, fatigue, altered sleep patterns, mood disorders, stress, digestive complaints including Irritable Bowel Syndrome, and central nervous system disorders.

OCF is an excellent option for babies and children as it is very gentle, soothing and relaxing. Please refer to ‘Osteopathy and Children’ for more information.

osteopathy and children | women's health | back and neck pain | postural problems | headaches and migraines | sports injuries | jaw pain | arthritis | asthma | sinusitis, cold and flu