Treatment

• Osteopathy was founded on the philosophy that all of the body's systems are interconnected and dependent on one another. 
  
• If all body systems are  functionally & structurally true, your body has a natural ability to heal and regulate itself. 
  
• Osteopathy is a holistic approach & treatment. The individual is viewed as a whole. Mind, body & spirit.
  
• The understanding of Anatomy & function paired with the skills to correct dysfunction or lesions helps facilitate the body's natural ability to heal, repair & be well.

"A knowledge of anatomy is only a dead weight if we do not know how to apply that knowledge with successful skill"

-Andrew Taylor Still, Founder of Osteopathy

When used together to evaluate & treat,  all of these techniques work to help facilitate your body's own natural healing mechanisms. The problem with only cranial or only myofascial is that by only focusing on one system of the body, you can not truly address and treat the complete individual which is needed to promote optimum wellness. 

-Developed by Dr. Sutherland, Cranial treats the cranial system which is comprised of the skull, sacrum & the dura that connects the two. Within this system flows cerebral spinal fluid. This system has its own rhythm & motion. This system is also in large part responsible for your body's natural healing mechanisms. Though the Cranial system consists of the 3 parts listed above, the rhythm can be felt throughout the entire body. With cranial restrictions, in addition to the hindrance of your natural healing and repair abilities, intracranial pressure can lead to dysfunction of the cranial nerves resulting in many maladies. Gentle techniques are used to restore proper motion & flow of the cranial system & cerebral spinal fluid.

-Myofascia translates to muscle fascia. Fascia is an incredible important and an incredibly strong tissue system. Fascia is throughout our entire bodies like a giant spider web, it wraps all muscles, muscle fibers, organs and provides a direct connection to all other systems and parts of the body. Fascia has an incredible strong tensile strength. It can be responsible for many forms of restriction, pain & overall dysfunction.

-Just as your circulatory system, your lymphatic system is spread throughout your entire body. It is this system the helps fight those viruses or bacteria. This system needs to move lymphatic fluid through the system as well as through cell walls. Unlike your circulatory system however, your lymphatic system is not pumped by your heart or the muscular tunica. Your Lymphatic system is primarily pumped by respiration & muscle movements. Because it is a much lower pressure system sometimes things can get bogged down and can require some help to get your system pumping to better move lymphatic & interstitial fluids. 

-Strain-counterstrain is a technique utilizing tender-points and to reset the neurological input and dysfunction of muscles & ligamentous tissues . By monitoring tender points and using passive techniques we can correct the neurological input to a facilitated or inhibited muscle or tissue. 

-Visceral techniques are use to evaluate and treat dysfunction between the viscera (organ) systems and the musculoskeletal system . Viscera motility & mobility is evaluated and treated. This includes the supporting and structural attachments and tissues such as ligaments, fascia & membranes. These tissues have direct and indirect connections from the viscera to the musculoskeletal system that can result in restriction of motion as well as organ dysfunction or disease. 

-Developed by Fred Mitchell, MET is patient active. This technique involves the use of controlled and restricted muscle contractions and relaxation in order to normalize muscle tone, balance tissues, mobilize joints and to overall increase range of motion, reduce pain and restore normal function.