Osteopathy and Pain Relief

Osteopaths have a great deal of experience controlling pain caused by a wide variety of conditions. The role of the osteopath is to relieve pain, improve mobility and to make their patients’ lives more comfortable. This can be applied to all ages from children to the elderly.

What is Pain?
Pain is a warning signal that something is wrong. It is one of the body’s natural defenses to alert you to a problem. It also stops you from continuing harmful activities to prevent further damage. Osteopaths diagnose the causes of pain and can help to reduce the level of discomfort or suffering.

What causes pain?
In many cases pain is the result of localized swelling in injured tissues which creates pressure on the nerves, thus stimulating painful sensations. Osteopathic techniques can allow a quick return to normal activity. If someone has been suffering with pain for a long time and other treatments have not helped, osteopathy may be beneficial – although it may require time and patience.

How can osteopathy help?
Osteopaths help to reduce tissue inflammation in a variety of ways, ranging from massage of the muscles and connective tissues to manipulation and stretching the joints.
This helps to decrease muscle spasm and improve movement creating a healthier state in which the body can heal itself. Long term or recurrent pain is often caused by degenerative changes to the body’s framework. Gentle Osteopathic treatment to the joints, muscles and ligaments can ease pain and swelling and increase range of movement to the joints. This can provide patients with an improved quality of life.

Pain control is an important part of osteopathy. Exercise and simple advice to be followed at home are integrated into treatments. This results in faster recovery than weekly visits alone. Osteopathic treatment can be used to treat acute pain (strong pain, just after injury), chronic pain (longstanding discomfort or disability) and also to prevent pain from reoccurring and to maintain health.

For further information about any aspect of osteopathy:
Contact Anna L Richardson BSc Ost Med (Hons) DO ND
At Hughes Medical Centre, Lower South Hill, Anguilla Tel # 264 497 3053
E-mail; richardson_osteopath@yahoo.com