Derived from ancient Greek 'osteo' meaning 'bone' and 'path' meaning 'disease of'
In reality most Osteopaths treat musculoskeletal issues including; back pain, neck pain, and joint problems. Osteopaths are healthcare professionals that utilise manual and physical therapy to help with painful complaints or to help improve the function of your body. The training to become an Osteopath takes a minimum of 4 years at University, and all Osteopaths in the UK must be registered with the General Osteopathic Council to legally practice. This assures that our patients are in very safe and skillful hands.
What is Osteopathy?
The General Osteopathic Council, our regulating body, describe Osteopathy as “a system of diagnosis and treatment for a wide range of medical conditions. It works with the structure and function of the body, and is based on the principle that the well-being of an individual depends on the skeleton, muscles, ligaments and connective tissues functioning smoothly together".
Simply put, this means that your body is capable of self-healing (in many cases) and that optimal healing takes place in the optimal environment. As Osteopaths we look at how you adapt to your complaint or how it arose in the first place and work with you and your body to facilitate optimal healing and get you on the road to a swift recovery. This principle is adopted in many therapies including modern medicine - a fracture is set in a cast to provide you with the stability needed to allow bone repair and antibiotics are prescribed to fight off bacterial infection so that you can recover. As Osteopaths we help facilitate healing by improving motion and allowing your body to compensate during recovery.
What can Osteopathy help with?
Osteopaths work to facilitate the body’s own ability to heal, working with the body's structure and function to provide your body with the optimal healing environment. With this principle in mind we could potentially treat many conditions. However, the efficacy of this may be questionable, and it’s important to know our limitations in practice. We do this by reviewing scientific research relevant to our practice and base our treatments on best research and practice. This is referred to as evidence based or evidence informed medicine, and is relevant to all fields of medicine.
There is supporting evidence that Osteopaths can provide effective treatment for:
generalised aches and pains
joint pains including hip and knee pain from osteoarthritis as an adjunct to core osteoarthritis treatments and exercise
arthritic pain
general, acute & chronic backache, back pain (not arising from injury or accident)
uncomplicated mechanical neck pain (as opposed to neck pain following injury i.e. whiplash)
headache arising from the neck (cervicogenic) / migraine prevention
frozen shoulder/ shoulder and elbow pain/ tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis) arising from associated musculoskeletal conditions of the back and neck, but not isolated occurrences
circulatory problems
cramp
digestion problems
joint pains
sciatica
muscle spasms
neuralgia
fibromyalgia
inability to relax
rheumatic pain
minor sports injuries and tensions
For more information on osteopathy or to book an appointment, get in touch with us by calling 03303 334 123 or use our contact form and we will get back to you.
