What is osteopathy?

What Is Osteopathy?

This is one of the most common questions I get in clinic and I am ashamed to say I usually mumble my way through a poorly thought out answer.

The problem is: the answer requires more than 30 seconds. To get a better understanding of what osteopathy is I need to explain the history, the principles at the core, the curriculum that is studied and our place in the health care system.

It took until the second year of my studies before I could even pronounce the title of my discipline. Osteopathy (OS-TEE-UH-PAR-THEE) is practiced by osteopaths (OS-TEE-UH-PATH). Osteo comes from the latin term for bone and pathy means disorder of some kind.

And so we find ourselves in one of the worst titled professions, where people can understandably consider us some sort of bone doctor.

Osteopathy is a hands-on therapy which considers a range of systems in the body. We will assess the tension in muscles, the mobility of joints and the overall posture of the patient. The musculoskeletal system is often focused on but other important systems such as the respiratory, cardiovascular, nervous and lymphatic (think the body’s waste system) are also considered.

Most of the time, there are ways that we can improve the function of our bodies ourselves. An osteopath will often prescribe stretch, strengthen and self-mobilisation exercises so that you can ease your own pain and decrease the chance of an injury recurring.

Osteopathy was invented in the late 1800’s by an American doctor-surgeon named Andrew Taylor Still. Still was disillusioned with the treatment of the time after experiencing the brutality of civil war medicine and losing his children and wife to illness.

Over many years he used his knowledge of anatomy and physiology to develop fundamental ideas which would evolve into the four core principles used in Osteopathy today.

The body is a unit

In order to achieve health you need to tend to not just the body but also the mind and spirit. It also implies that different systems in the body (respiratory, cardiovascular, nervous systems etc.) are interconnected.

This principle also implies that the body works with each separate area being just one cog in the machine. As osteopaths we take a holistic approach with treating injuries and sometimes this means treating through a different part of the body to where the pain is. Lower back pain may be caused by restrictions through a hip or headaches may be stemming from an old, untreated shoulder injury.

The body has self-healing mechanisms

The body has certain checks in place that are always striving to bring it back to the point of health. If you cut your finger the body releases specific proteins so that the blood will clot and the bleeding will stop. Neat! Other mechanisms will help us recover from injuries, however sometimes the body just needs a push in the right direction so that it heals efficiently.

Structure and function are interrelated

This is what makes treating the human body so great (and challenging). If the structure of a part of the body is altered then the function is also changed. If your shoulder rolls in it then you are more likely to suffer a shoulder injury and experience pain.

Treatment should be consistent with the previous three principles

I’ve always felt as though this is a bit of a cop out but you can’t argue with the logic.

These principles are at the heart of how osteopaths treat. They learn the ins and outs of the principles at university.

In Australia an osteopathy course is full time study for five years. There are just three universities in Australia which offer osteopathy -RMIT and Victoria University in Victoria and Southern Cross University in NSW.

The course runs through units of anatomy (in detail), physiology, pathology, radiology, biochemistry, biomechanics, rehabilitation and psychology to name a few. This allows osteopaths to develop a thorough understanding of how the body can function (and dysfunction).

Student clinics operate throughout the five years with students beginning as observers and then becoming student practitioners themselves (supervised by qualified and experienced clinicians).

Osteopathy is allied health care. We fit under the same umbrella as physiotherapy, chiropractic, massage, exercise physiology and dietetics. We are registered and regulated by the Allied Health Professionals Registry of Australia (AHPRA).

You do not need a referral from your doctor to see an osteopath; however we do not treat you for the flu or salmonella. We assist with conditions such as back pain, neck pain, headaches, work and sporting injuries.

The human body is a wondrous thing and we have only etched the surface in our understanding of it. Generally it will do an amazing job of looking after itself, no matter what challenges we throw at it. Every now and then it will let us know that maybe we need to pay a little more attention to ourselves, and that can be a great opportunity to meet your local osteopath.