Osteopathy is often mistaken for a method to only treat bones and the spine, whereas in fact, Osteopathy is a holistic approach to support the body in its self healing process and regain an equilibrium between structure and function. Blockades, which are areas of lesser mobility and range of movement in any kind of tissue, affect the function in the tissues and vice versa.
It is the Osteopaths goal to detect those functional disorders and optimise movement and function using exact and subtle manual techniques. Since all structures in the body are linked, lack of mobility in one area is very often compensated in a different area or tissue. Sometimes these compensatory patterns build up through a longer period of time and result in pain/symptoms.
Most people will therefore not be aware of the problems’ origin but only of the symptom when it occurs.
An Osteopath must be able to track down the origin of the problem and treat it with individual techniques that all together approach the structural (bones, muscles, fascia), visceral (inner organs, vessels) and craniosacral (liquor and all other fluidic movement) level.
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History
Osteopathy was founded by Andrew Taylor Still, who was a doctor in America at the end of the 19th Century. Unsatisfied with the medical possibilities and being at the mercy of the spreading illnesses at the time, he made it his life’s goal to explore and support the body’s self regulation and self healing abilities.
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In 1917 Dr. Martin Littlejohn, who was Still`s student and brought Osteopathy to Europe, founded the first European school for osteopathy in Great Britain.
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The later developed treatment methods like chirotherapy, cranio-sacral therapy and rolfing are based on osteopathy.
For more information on osteopathy click here.
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Life is motion.
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Structure and function are reciprocally inter-related.
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The body is a unit. (The interrelation between all parts of the body is essential. The Human not only consist of their physical body but also their thoughts, emotions and spiritual body, and therefore any dysfunction can affect the whole system.)
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The “law of the arteries“ (Life has to be nourished and therefore a good circulatory process is necessary)
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The body possesses self-regulatory mechanisms.
