Osteopathy

Osteopathy is a manual medicine which aims to improve health by improving movement and blood supply. Osteopathy can work on all structures within the body including joints, muscles, ligaments, membranes, organs, and nerves.

Osteopathy works with the patient’s body to restore function and health through techniques designed to diagnose and treat lack of motion and impaired quality of the tissues.

The Osteopath only uses their hands and their increased sense of touch in order to diagnose and treat. Treatment is generally non-invasive, gentle and relaxing. Occasionally discomfort will be felt during or after the treatment but this is short lived.

Techniques used will vary from practitioner to practitioner and can involve stretching and gentle rhythmic movements of the joints, soft tissue massage, or very gentle cranial techniques.

Claire Piper and France Amman

On an Initial Consultation the Osteopath will take a full case history including a medical screening. For adults and children it may be necessary to remove some items of clothing to allow a full examination to take place. An average number of treatments required is six and your Osteopath will be able to advise you on whether they feel your condition will take longer or shorter to improve. Conditions such as arthritis often benefit from maintenance treatment every few months.

Babies often require minimal treatment and 2 sessions can be enough. They will need more if their symptoms are more complex and children with chronic developmental and behavioural conditions often benefit from treatment over a number of years, much the same as with physiotherapy or speech therapy. Treatment can help a wide range of conditions from spinal and joint pain through to headaches and migraine, sinusitis, colic in babies, asthma, digestive problems and glue ear. We also treat women before, during and after pregnancy to help with any low back or pelvic pains, heartburn, and nausea and as a check up after the birth for mum and baby.

Cranial Treatment

This treatment technique has many misunderstandings associated with it. For instance it is not solely done on the head and is not a massage of the head. It is a whole body treatment and is another technique available to Osteopaths should they choose to use it. It is the treatment of choice for babies as it is so gentle and then can be used on any age group including adults who either do not like the more physical osteopathic treatments or who have specific conditions which respond well to the cranial approach such as migraine and sinus problems. We do not call ourselves cranial osteopaths as we practice a wide range of techniques within our practice whereas some Osteopaths practice this technique exclusively.

The technique picks up on and utilizes a very small movement which continues inside the body independent of heart beat or breathing. This can be used to assess all areas of the body and then treat these areas to release tensions or improve tissue quality.

Patients generally find it very relaxing and often will feel quite light headed for a few minutes after a treatment but this is short lived.

In Touch With Health Osteopathic Practice is based at Hamblys Natural Health Centre on Mondays/Tuesdays and Fridays, and at The Brook Health Centre, Crowborough Hill, Jarvis Brook, East Sussex on Wednesdays/Thursdays and Saturdays.

All our osteopaths are members of the General Osteopathic Council

In Touch with Health: www.intouchhealth.co.uk
email: info@intouchhealth.co.uk

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