Osteopathy is the first complementary
therapy to be regulated by law (Osteopathy Act 1993) and
this puts it on the same legal footing as dentistry and
other mainstream health professionals.
Osteopathy is a system of whole
body healing which dates back to the 19th century. An American
doctor called Andrew Taylor Still devised it in 1874.
Osteopathy is a manipulative
therapy, which works on the body's structure (the skeleton,
muscles, ligaments, and connective tissue) to relieve pain,
improve mobility and so restore all-round health.
Osteopaths believe that we function
as a complete working system and that our body structure,
organs, systems, mind and emotions are all inter-related.
Therefore, problems that affect
the structural body also upset the balance of the body generally.
Similarly, internal problems can reveal themselves in the
body's structure as it adapts to accommodate any pain, discomfort
or disease e.g. one may suffer with low back pain due to
kidney or gynaecological problems, or a slipped disc may
affect bladder control. By manipulating the body structure
the osteopath's aim is to restore health in the whole person.
