Osteopathic therapy supports and complements a medical treatment. The assumption of this therapy is normalisation of tissue tension forming the human body, which brings an improved quality of its functioning.
From an osteopathic point of view, what is visible to us, i.e. how the hand moves, or how the knee joint works, is not everything. The quality of the movements we see is determined by the structures that make up our body. Their flexibility, and at the same time the space in which they can move, determine the final effect which is the movement we see. Due to the fact that movement is a natural stimulus for the nervous system, all its varieties have an impact on the full and harmonious development of each organism (posture defects). In connection with all the above, at every stage of human development (fetal period, newborn, child, adolescents, adults) and at every stage of our functioning, it is extremely important to have adequate space for movement – both visible and invisible.
As an osteopath, I have the ability to affect the freedom of the movement of a human body. I can improve the visible movement by influencing the movement of the structures that cannot be seen. This applies, above all, to the connective tissue that each of us has, and which, among others, is responsible for the spatial location of internal organs. Thanks to its characteristic flexibility it provides them with adequate space for movement. This translates directly into the quality of our functioning.
If we are dealing with insufficient amount of movement, both visible and the one that’s unseen, then at the level of the nervous system there is a “discrepancy” between the information about “what is going on” and „what should be going on”. Then there is a change of information flowing from the body to the nervous system, which can be described as “a great coordinator of body’s functioning”. Based on this changed information, the nervous system returns with the instructions to the body’s organs, regarding the quality of their functioning. And that has a direct impact on the appearance of symptoms or their absence. Due to the fact that psyche and soma are one (that is, we function according to the mood), this mechanism, in a huge simplification, explains the possibility of osteopathic impact on the emotional side of our functioning.
During osteopathic therapy, there is simultaneously obtained an improvement of the movement of fluids in the human body. This directly translates into better cells/tissue supply with blood that carries oxygen and nutrients necessary for life support. Effect? The body works better. It should be emphasized here that blood contains substances produced by the endocrine glands, i.e. hormones. They enable “issuing of commands” to peripheral organs through the central nervous system. They relate to the quality of the functioning of these organs. This mechanism explains the possibility of influencing (with the osteopathic procedures) the functioning of the body at the biochemical level by mechanically affecting the tissues of a living organism.
For example: let’s make a move involving certain connective tissue structures that are not prepared for it, either because of their lack of flexibility, or because they are usually not used at all. At a time like this, the nervous system, on the principle of „it’s better to be safe than sorry”, will limit the possibility of making such a movement freely. If this type of situation will keep on repeating, there will appear pain whose task will be to protect these structures. We are dealing then with a situation that patients most often report to the osteopathic office: “I can’t move freely because it hurts …” or “Pain does not allow me to…”
In these types of situations, osteopathic management is effective by eliminating factors that have suddenly (during injury) or over some time led to the appearance of pain.
All issues discussed do not contain a full explanation of the problem and if in doubt, please contact the osteopath by phone.
