There are two types of people. People who have been to see an Osteopath and people who haven’t.

People who haven’t seen an Osteopath view us a quacks, bone doctors, holistic healers(? – as if we are some shamanic witch-doctor) or some derivative of chiropractors, podiatrists, chiropodists or coroners. (yes I’ve been asked about toenails and dead bodies)

 People who have been to see an Osteopath view us as miracle workers. And as flattering as that is, it makes me a bit frustrated. Here’s why;

The most rewarding aspect of the job is when, as you’re explaining a diagnosis to a patient, explain the predisposing and maintaining factors specific to their life and lifestyle, and you see a wry smile grow across their face. You see their shoulders relax and at times, you can physically see the weight being lifted, colour returning to their cheeks and a very literal spring return to their step.

It’s that eureka moment, you can actually hear the light switch on. I love that. It’s what I strive for with every patient I see – to offer an explanation, a reassurance, and then continue to explain my best efforts to rectify, fix, alleviate and manage that problem.

That reassurance that you see, that moment of pure relief. For me, there’s a cognitive dissonance – On one hand it’s wonderful to be able to help people like that, but on the other it’s frustrating that this isn’t more accessible information to the wider public. It makes me think that medicine, or at least musculo-skeletal healthcare is way too overcomplicated and made far too distant from the people that need to understand it most. The knowledge that I’m professing, in my view, is common sense. Yes, I spent 5 years studying to be able to qualify. But that just means I’m able to apply medicine without killing someone, and able to identify the specificities of a diagnosis. The concept of adaptive muscle shortening, posture, biomechanic harmony and pain processing in co-ordination with mental health and more, I feel, should be common knowledge. These concepts are easy to understand, and if you can understand them, you’ll be able to help yourself much more effectively.

There are far too many articles, videos, posts on the internet offering solutions. Which, quite frankly, is ridiculous. Solutions can only be given when you know what your dealing with. How can there be an absolute, objective approach to healthcare, when there are hundreds of variables about someone’s life that contribute to their diagnosis?

Which brings me to the introduction of this blog. I’d love for you to have that eureka moment on understanding common issues that I see daily in practise. Here’s my attempt at reaching out with accessible information to a wider public.

This is a portal of information that is real. The goal is to present accessible, down to earth information that will help you within everyday life, and offer probable explanations to aches and pains that I see commonly as a practitioner in 2020. As an expert in my field, it would be wrong for me to claim to fix all issues by writing about simplistic concepts and I don’t claim that reading these blogs will be a substitute for expert practise… But I do claim to give unbiased information in a way that is understandable to you, the reader, on matters regarding healthcare.

So, sit tight, and bear with me and my ramblings.