What is Osteopathy?

Osteopathy was fouunded in the early 1800s by Dr Andrew Taylor Still. It is an alternative medicine deriving from the ancient greek term "osteo" meaning bone and pathy meaning pain or suffering.

Osteopathy is more than the study of the bone however.

I consider it to be the study and science of the body, where one of the core principles of Osteopathy is to treat the body as a unit. Meaning everything in the body is related and is the reason why Osteopathy is unique. Osteopathic Practitioner's look deeper than the symptoms but truly try to understand the cause. Why is there a tilted pelvis, is it due to scoliosis or a leg length discrepancy. Why is the diaphragm's function being compromised? Could it possible due to nerve compression at C3, C4, C5?

Osteopaths, like myself, believe that with disease or dysfunction the blood flow and lymphatic flow become obstructed and understand by restoring freedom in the tissues and allowing the blood and lymph to flow freely, healing can occur.

Osteopathy doesn't claim to miraculously heal disease or dysfunction, as another core principle and a fundamental belief of the Osteopath is that the body has the capacity to heal itself. 

I tell every patient I see this belief. 

The role of the Osteopath is to simply create an environment in the body where that self healing can occur. Osteopathy is more about correction than elimination. 

Simply by improving the function of tissues and structures we are able to improve the body's mechanics and optimal function. This is another core principle "Structure and function are reciprocally interrelated"

Osteopathy can be categorized into structural osteopathy, visceral osteopathy and cranial osteopathy.  All 3 are linked in some way and a good Osteopath will blend all 3 treatment techniques to receive the best therapeutic effect.

Structural Osteopathy focuses on mobilising the joints and releasing tissue tension in the muscles, ligaments and fascia. Whereas, Cranial Osteopathy focuses on the cranial bones and their related microscopic movements during inhalation and exhalation. Cranial Osteopathy is important and has a direct relation to structural and visceral osteopathy due to the dura attachments on the sacrum (S2,S3) which we refer to as cranial-sacral therapy. The aim with cranial is by impriving the circulation of CSF and body fluids, patterns of strain can be removed from the body and the nervous system can be relaxed.

Visceral focuses on organ mobility and motility and provides gentle treatment for the organs and the surrounding fascia, to restore proper motion and function.

Osteopathy may be an alternative medicine but nowadays, many individuals will seek an Osteopath as the first point of contact with any pain or discomfort they are experiencing.

The reason, is partly due to all the benefits related to Manual Osteopathic Treatment for any individual going through different walks of life; from the baby who can't turn the head to the left, to the teenager with painful knees, to the adult with poor posture, to the athlete with repetitive ankle strains or the elderly woman with multiple arthritic changes. Osteopathy is beneficial to everyone.

With Osteopathic treatment, posture can be adjusted and improved as the spine and muscles surrounding the spine become more flexible. Respiratory and circulatory systems are enhanced  to promote muscle recovery, growth, release of toxins within the body, hence speeding up the natural healing process. 

Osteopathy does not simply focus on the body, but is also psychosomatic. Psychosomatic refers to the body and mind relation. Osteopathic treatment has been known to help those who suffer from stress, anxiety, headaches by balancing the parasympathetic nervous system. and relieving tension, muscle spasm and relaxing the body as a whole.

Osteopathy is becoming more and more popular within sport and athletes, as we provide injury management and prevention and vital treatments to enhance performance and aid in recovery.

Last but certainly not least, Osteopathy is unique as it deals with Chronic Pain that many other fields of medicine have not been able to assist with. 

Did I choose Osteopathy? Or did Osteopathy choose me?

 Why did I choose Osteopathy as a profession?

From early, I knew I wanted to be in the medical field.

I just didn't know exactly what I wanted to do.

At the time, I knew I wanted to really spend time with a patient to help them, so being a GP back then was automatically crossed off my list.  GP's spent on average 3 minutes with each patient in the UK only dealing with one complaint at a time. Imagine, a patient had multiple issues but could only make an appointment for one and was not allowed to discuss more than one. Instead, they had to make a follow up appointment. I believed this to be absolutely pointless. 

My mother always suffered with a stiff shoulder and neck and I would always offer to give her a massage after work. She would always be so grateful and tell me my hands were a gift sent from God and they were "healing hands".

I never thought much of it at the time.....

After GCSE's I frequently kept being asked "what do you want to do?"

I still had no clue but knew that it would have something to do with science.

And so...the research began.

What could I do? 

✅That didn't take me over 10 years to study.
✅That allowed me to dedicate an adequate amount of time to each patient I saw and
✅To really make a difference to their pain and quality of life.

I had no idea....

Then, my mum got in a very minor car accident and suffered a whiplash injury, The GP referred her for physiotherapy under the NHS. I accompanied her to all her appointments. After 5 sessions with the physiotherapist, her pain had somewhat been relieved but she was still in agony.

I started to research what other things that may help her.

I came across Chiropractic and Osteopathy.

I was fascinated by what I saw. I couldn't really understand the difference between the two professions.

I quickly passed on the information to my mum and she booked an appointment with a Chiropractor.

The appointment was 20 minutes and 10 of those minutes was spent talking about her medical history, when and how her neck pain started and putting her through different types of movement tests. 

The other 10 minutes was spent on hands on therapy, they cracked her neck and upper back. They applied some dry needling and told her to come back the next day.

It was a pleasant experience and she did have somewhat relief but the appointment felt rushed, with little regard of her busy schedule or even financial situation, to just assume she could take consecutive appointments.

I went and did more research regarding Chiropractic Medicine, and I went on google reviews to see what others had thought of the treatments provided in this particular clinic. The general consensus was the same. Rushed treatment, expensive, not much time for hands on manual therapy.

Upon doing more research, it seemed that we were just unlucky, as there were many Chiropractors in the UK that had raving reviews and really made their patient feel valued and cared for, as well as providing gold standard treatments for effective pain relief and resolution. 

Nevertheless, my mum wasn't willing to see another Chiropractor. Her pain was slightly better but it would still prevent her from sleeping as she tossed and turned until she could get comfortable. This made her grumpy in the morning and made my life slightly more challenging :)

Back to the drawing board I went.

I had never heard of Osteopathy but I decided my mum should give it a try after a bit more research. What could she really lose?

From the start I noticed this appointment was not rushed. Infact the consultation and treatment was booked in for 45 minutes in total, which was more than double of the duration of the chiropractic appointment.

The medical history and assessment took around 15 minutes, He took a very careful approach with her. Then the treatment he provided was nothing I had ever seen before. He took the time to carefully explain everything he was doing and what he was trying to achieve.

I was in awe. The care, the detail, the treatment. the aftercare advice regarding posture and exercises. I was inspired.

We left the treatment feeling hopeful that mum would be free of pain. That she would be able to sleep without any interuptions.

That night, I got home and hopped on to the computer to find out all I could about Osteopathy.

Needless to say that is when my relationship with Osteoopathy started. 17 years ago after I researched and shadowed a few Osteopaths in my local area, I decided I wanted to be an Osteopath and have not looked back or regretted the decision ever since.

Now I am one of the few female Osteopathic Practitioner's in Dubai. I've participated in Olympics and I am currently treating famous athletes all over the globe.

 

I like to think that I never chose Osteopathy, but Osteopathy chose me - and it was one of the best choices of my life. It was fate.