Osteopathic Manual Therapy Part 2
I’m sure you’ve heard me say that Osteopathy is a way of thinking as opposed to a way of doing.
Put three, or more, Osteopathic Manual Practitioners (DOMP) in the same room with the same client and we’ll all treat them differently. Why is that?
It’s because we all apply the principles of Osteopathy differently, even if we all went to the same school and learned the same techniques.
Osteopathy is based on the following four principles:
1. Each structure in the body supports the body’s function. If a structure is damaged, out of place, or otherwise not working properly, the body will not function at its best.
2. The natural flow of the body’s fluids-lymphatic, neurological, vascular-most be preserved and maintained.
3. The human body is a sum of it’s parts. Its physical, emotional, social, spiritual and cognitive systems don’t work independently-they work in harmony.
4. When the body has no restrictions, it has the inherent ability to heal itself.
http://www.novascotiaosteopaths.ca/wp/
As DOMP’s we use our hands to palpate or feel the Primary Respiratory Mechanism (PRM) which we use as both diagnostic and treatment. The PRM is a movement that is generated through the entire body approximately 8-14 times per minute depending on the person. It’s felt as a flexion/extension in the midline structures, an internal/external rotation in paired structures and also has an element of expansion/retraction.
Imagine a brook with rocks in it that the water has to go around. If you take the rocks out, the water is then allowed to flow freely without restriction.
My job is to remove restrictions (the rocks), so that your health and vitality can better express itself….that’s really it in a nutshell!
Photo credit: http://terrywmurphy.wixsite.com/twmurphyphotography