Can I get treatment if I’m not in pain?
In short - yes you can.
Although most people visit their osteopath because they’re in pain, some people book an appointment because they feel tight, or “wonky”, or just in need of a treatment through their whole body.
For some people, a treatment every 6 or 8 weeks is enough to stay feeling great, and to spot problems before they become pains. At the beginning of every treatment, even if I’ve seen you several times before, I fully assess you standing up, including your spinal mobility, the levels of your shoulders, pelvic alignment, breathing mechanics, positions of your hips, knees and ankles, and how weight is transferring from the top of your head to your heels. Through this assessment I can identify muscles, joints and ligaments that are overworking, underworking or compensating, and balance everything back out to a pattern that works best for your body.
Children often come in every 3 to 6 months, because their parents want to keep an eye on their growth patterns, to monitor for scoliosis, or to get them grounded in their body after a long term at school and lots of screen time (especially in 2020!) Sometimes when a child hs a growth spurt or developmental leap, old patterns of tightness can reappear that haven’t been a problem for a while, and just need to be addressed again, maybe in a slightly different way from before, as their body changes so dramatically in such a short space of time as they grow.
If you originally came for a painful neck, you can continue coming in for treatment because you feel it helps calm your nervous system, or because you want to reduce the pattern in your body that led to the pain in the first place. If that pattern has been around for years, it can take a little time to sort through it all, even once the pain itself is gone.
Perhaps you’ve had chronic sinus issues, and although you’re not in pain, that’s certainly not something that you want to continue forever. We can work out a plan to open up your facial drainage and relieve you of your blocked nose or heavy sinuses.
Often the more chronic issues take a little time to heal fully, and six or seven treatments might be needed to help undo years of patterns in your body, even when the pain itself has gone after the first couple of visits.
One of the things I love most about Osteopathy is that every treatment is so different, not just from person to person, but different treatments for the same person too. Each patient may require a totally unique approach each time, as your body changes and adapts to the healing process and to your environment. There’s no absolute rule about how many treatments will “fix” certain problems, but generally speaking, you should see some changes right from the first time I see you, though it can sometimes take two or three appointments before those changes become obvious. Sometimes your pain goes away well before the patterns that caused the pain have resolved, and sometimes the pain lasts for a little longer after the treatment process has done its work, as your tissues heal up.
As you feel better, get stronger and more mobile, you shouldn’t need to visit the Osteopath too frequently, as the whole purpose and design of my treatments is to allow your body to heal itself and function appropriately. You may still want to come in for a top-up treatment every few months, and that’s completely fine, as I’ll usually find something that needs a little work, and can work to maintain what we’ve achieved through the previous appointments. Even adult bodies can change quite drastically over time, so it’s never boring!
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