Natural Pain Relief for Back Pain with Osteopathy: Manipulative Therapy to Restore Mobility and Function

Osteopathic and Chiropractic manipulative therapies are for people who have back, neck or joint pain and in search of natural pain relief and a means to restore mobility and function to joints without surgery or drugs. Chiropractic adjustments are often referred to as 'cracking' the joints of the spine. This method of vertebral realignment aims to restore mobility and function to the joints and nervous system. Osteopathy is related to chiropractic philosophy but is a more gentle manipulation of muscles and ligaments. Natural pain relief can be achieved without aggressive manipulation or drugs for problems including headache, back and neck pain, joint pain, osteoarthritis, sporting injuries and accident trauma.

Conventional Medicine
To those who have never experienced this type of manipulative therapy the process can naturally seem quite daunting due to years of brainwashing under the control of conventional medicine. It's interesting that we can connect the cracking of bones and physical discomfort to risk and danger, yet many will willingly swallow handfuls of chemicals to mask their pain without a single thought to what these drugs are doing to their bodies in other ways. Drugs however often simply only mask pain instead of correcting the underlying problem. Natural pain relief is less risky in the long term.

Osteopathic Practitioners
The founder of osteopathic philosophy was American medical physician Dr Andrew Taylor Still in the 1870s. Some osteopathic practitioners, such as those in the USA, are also medical practitioners and use a combination of manipulative therapy and medication. Further information can be obtained from the American Osteopathic Association. Whereas in many other parts of the world such as the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the EU including France osteopathy is a unique specialty in its own right and is not linked to conventional medicine, although the practitioners are qualified and registered care providers. Outside the USA osteopathic treatment may be confined to manipulative therapy, although some osteopaths may also be qualified medical practitioners.

Combined Osteopathic and Chiropractic Practitioners
In France, for example, it is now difficult to find practitioners who specialise solely in chiropractic services since most chiropractors have moved on to osteopathy. They believe the less aggressive approach is better for long term management. However chiropractic manipulation is still the initial treatment of choice for acute cases like sporting injuries and other accident trauma. Osteopathic adjustments are then used for ongoing care.

A Personal Experience
In my opinion this combination of osteopathic and chiropractic techniques in the one practitioner is ideal. Following a sports whiplash type injury in Australia more than 10 years ago I began with regular chiropractic adjustments which were necessary to restore normal realignment of the vertebrae. This treatment worked well to reduce back and neck pain and increase mobility and function. There was however some muscular pain and stiffness associated with the spinal manipulation that lasted for a few days. For 8 years I needed regular adjustments that ranged from daily in the first instance and then dropped to monthly, three monthly and then 6 monthly visits. I had accepted that I would require ongoing regular treatment for life. Then I moved to France and everything changed for the better.

When my vertebra came out of alignment after a few months, as I knew it would, I immediately looked for a chiropractor and became stressed when I couldn't find one. Then someone suggested that I try a local osteopath well known for treating sports injuries. I was suffering back and neck pain and ready to try anything.

The treatment was very different to that which I had received previously under chiropractic care. After taking my history and viewing my past radiographs I simply sat on a bench while he pushed and prodded areas on my back as I made certain slow movements. After 5 minutes it was over and I was initially disappointed because he hadn't done anything, but at least it didn't hurt. He explained to me that he is also a chiropractor but now practises mainly osteopathy except in cases of acute trauma. Then he told me I would be in a lot of pain for 4 days after which my back would be perfect. I was sceptical but next morning could not get out of bed without 20 minutes of massage because all the muscles in my back had seized up. The pain continued for 4 days exactly. Then, as he had predicted so correctly, my back returned to normal function and I was free of back and neck pain. That was 4 years ago. I haven't needed any treatment since that day. Needless to say, I remain extremely impressed with osteopathy.

Osteopathic and chiropractic manipulative therapy has restored mobility and function to my back and neck. I prefer this form of natural pain relief over the corticosteroids and opiates based pain relief offered by conventional medicine. These drugs do not correct the problem and even contribute to further degeneration of the joints. As a form of self management I am restoring the physical damage to my vertebrae and knee joints by natural remedies including glucosamine and fish oil supplements with success.