Osteopathy Explained
Osteopathy is a safe and effective system of diagnosis, treatment and prevention for a wide range of medical conditions. It works with the structure and function of the body, and is based on the principle that the well-being of an individual depends on the skeleton, muscles, ligaments and connective tissues functioning smoothly together.
Osteopaths are highly trained healthcare professionals who are experts in the musculoskeletal system and its relationship to other systems of the body. They work to restore your body to a state of balance, where possible without the use of drugs or surgery.
Osteopaths use touch and a variety of gentle, manual techniques such as physical manipulation, stretching, massage, muscle energy techniques and joint articulation. Osteopaths can also use HVT or High Velocity Thrust techniques/joint manipulations where the joints are ‘clicked’ or ‘popped’ to release built up gases in the restricted joints. These techniques can be very effective in the treatment of certain injuries. Collectively these techniques are aimed at increasing joint mobility, relieving muscle tension, enhancing blood and nerve supply to tissues, and helping the body’s own healing mechanisms.
Your osteopath may also offer lifestyle advice concerning posture, diet, exercise or sporting technique to aid recovery, promote health and prevent the risks of symptoms reoccurring.
Osteopaths see people of all ages, from babies to the elderly and everyone in between, including pregnant women and elite athletes.
When I went to see Chantal she straight away knew what I was suffering with and said ‘I can fix this’. Those words made my heart sing as the constant pain was getting unbearable
When I was expecting my second child, I was thinking about how my pregnancy and birth would go this time round, I was expecting it to be the same as the first. However, this pregnancy was totally different with feeling sicker to then getting horrible, crippling girdle pain during my second and third trimester. I had been seeing Chantal for my lower back pain before I got pregnant with my daughter in 2017 and she helped me stay strong and healthy throughout that pregnancy. This pain got so bad that I had to message Chantal during the Covid lockdown as I was barely able to walk, let alone play with my then 2-year-old daughter. I was struggling to put my trousers on as well as not sleeping due to not being able to get comfortable. When I went to see Chantal she straight away knew what I was suffering with and said ‘I can fix this’. Those words made my heart sing as the constant pain was getting unbearable. Even before the treatment started all Covid restrictions/ precautions had been taken and I felt very safe within her clinic. The treatment started and although it was painful the relief I felt straight away was amazing. She was able to make the pain reduce from 100% to 30% in 1 treatment. If I knew more about the signs to spot SPD then I would have got treated earlier as it was so easy for her to fix or potentially stop all together. After that first treatment, I was seeing Chantal every month to keep the SPD at bay before I gave birth. I had a home birth in the water, the most amazing experience and due to Chantal’s help, I recovered very quickly with not having any SPD pain after the birth of my son.
After my son was born, we both went to see Chantal who treated my son as he was suffering with not able to turn his head properly to the left. After she had seen this, she was able to diagnose that he was predominately head down in my left hip which caused the SPD for me and caused him to struggle to turn his head. She also diagnosed that his cranium bone was slightly moved due to being in my hip. She was so gentle with my son, treating the issues with his neck while I breastfed. I cannot recommend Chantal highly enough through pregnancy and afterwards. She is kind, knowledgeable and also always confident of her diagnosis, which defiantly put my mind at ease when it came to my new-born son.
Emma Richardson