Osteopathy is a holistic approach to healthcare, which focuses not only on the physical complaints that you may present with but also focuses on the social aspects of your complaint as well. This means that our Osteopaths will work with you toward a goal that you would like to achieve, whether this be getting back to playing with the grandkids or something as simple as being able to put the washing on the line without feeling unsteady or having high levels of pain.
To help achieve your individual goals this may also mean that we work collaboratively with other healthcare professionals like your local General Practitioner, our Exercise Physiologists, Podiatrist or Occupational Therapist. Through working collaboratively on your health, research has shown that multidisciplinary care has greater improvements on physical health, overall wellbeing and quality of life.
Our Osteopaths see a wide array of conditions present to the clinic, however as we age there seems to be some presenting complaints that are more common than others. These include:
Neck pain and Back pain
Sciatic pain
Osteoarthritis related pain
Headaches
Maintenace of postural stability
Rehabilitation post-surgical procedures
So, what can my Osteopath do to help me?
Muscle relaxation and joint mobilisation: Your treating practitioner will use a combination of hands-on treatment techniques combined with exercises and stretches to help improve the tension in your muscles and the stiffness that could be in your joints. Treatment will focus on improving your range of motion, promoting blood flow into the area which plays an important role in helping you build strength.
Provide potential solutions to balance complaints: Osteopathy can often be a helpful tool in helping to improve balance complaints in an individual. As we get older, we often lose some of the strength that we had earlier on in life. Research has shown that a combination of osteopathic treatment and exercises can lead to a reduction in falls and balance complaints. This is due to improved postural stability and their overall gait.
Pain Management: Often, we present to an allied health professional to help manage our pain as we get older as we can have an increase in aches, stiffness and general discomfort. What you might not know is that research now suggests that there is an increased risk of falls as you get older if you suffer from chronic pain. Osteopaths may be able to help reduce your pain levels through a combination of manual therapy which can include; soft tissue massage, mobilisation of joints, dry needling or cupping. These techniques will in most instances be accompanied by exercises to help with mobility and strength to help overall reduce your pain levels.
So, if you are a someone that feels like they might need a little bit of extra help or care as they get older or think you know someone that may benefit from osteopathy, please do not hesitate to give the clinic a call to chat to one of our friendly practitioners.
References
Ellis, G., & Sevdalis, N. (2019). Understanding and improving multidisciplinary team working in geriatric medicine. Age and ageing, 48(4), 498–505. https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afz021
Lopez, D., King, H. H., Knebl, J. A., Kosmopoulos, V., Collins, D., & Patterson, R. M. (2011). Effects of comprehensive osteopathic manipulative treatment on balance in elderly patients: a pilot study. The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, 111(6), 382–388. https://doi.org/10.7556/jaoa.2011.111.6.382
Papa, L., Mandara, A., Bottali, M., Gulisano, V., & Orfei, S. (2012). A randomized control trial on the effectiveness of osteopathic manipulative treatment in reducing pain and improving the quality of life in elderly patients affected by osteoporosis. Clinical cases in mineral and bone metabolism : the official journal of the Italian Society of Osteoporosis, Mineral Metabolism, and Skeletal Diseases, 9(3), 179–183.
Maddie Clark
Osteopath
