What is an osteopath? Osteopaths primarily work on the musculo-skeletal system, mostly on muscles and joints, using holistic and patient-centred approaches. We have a whole body approach to health that uses gentle ‘hands on’ techniques to find the cause of, and then to correct, structural problems within the body.

Osteopathy was founded by a physician named Dr Andrew Taylor Still in the 19th century. Dr Andrew Taylor Still looked at the way things were being done in medicine and established a new system promised to support health and healing in the art of osteopathy. He wrote the core osteopathic principles, and this led to the teachings and understanding of osteopathy over the years.  The core principles provide a framework to enable each individual osteopath a chance to interpret their approach and look more in depth at the patient rather than just treating the symptoms.

A fundamental principle of osteopathy is that the body has a self healing and self regulating mechanism to establish its optimum level of health. Osteopathy encourages and maintains these mechanisms through working on joints, muscles, ligaments and fluid systems. The main aim of the osteopath is to rebalance and relieve any dysfunction encouraging the body to heal and repair itself so that it can function at its best. The different osteopathic approaches aim to have an impact on the biomechanical, anatomical and physiological aspects of the individual.