What is Osteopathy?

An Osteopath looks for restrictions and blockages, and releases them using manual techniques, to balance all the body systems, to improve circulation and correct altered biomechanics, without the use of drugs, to provide overall good health and wellbeing. Stimulating the self-regulating and self-healing capabilities.

An osteopath does not concentrate only on the symptoms (problem area), but searches for the root cause of the problem. The cause of the problem often lies somewhere else.

That is why during a treatment if the horse has a right front limb problem, I will not focus on that leg, but on the whole horse.

Osteopathic medicine is based on the idea that all the body’s functions and structures are interconnected. If one part is dysfunctional it will have an effect on the whole body, causing a cascade of functional problems throughout the body.

The body is made for movement, there is movement between all structures. Between bones, but also in and between organs, muscles, skin, connective tissue, blood vessels and nerve pathways.

When there is a decrease of mobility (tensions and compressions), the blood flow will decrease, causing a reduction of the supply of nutrients and oxygen to all cells of the body (brain, muscles, organs, etc.) which will, after weeks, months or even years, lead to illness, injuries, pain, etc.

With a good functioning body, the body has the ability to heal itself through internal processes, the body’s natural immunity. This allows the body to recover or prevent illness and to stay in a state of homeostasis (balance).

Consequences of a decreased natural immunity:

• Decrease of immunity (e.g. more prone to infections/ diseases, such as flu)

• All tissues become weaker (e.g. more prone to get a tendinitis)

• Decreases organ function (e.g. more prone to colic, diarrhea, kidney problems, etc)