There are three parts to a typical Osteopathic consultation:

Part 1:

A case history is taken where the patient is questioned in detail about their problem.

Part 2:

A physical examination is conducted. In this examination the Osteopath will look over and assess the patients posture. The Osteopath will then check the range of joint movement to see if they are reduced or painful. Then the Osteopath will feel the muscles for any excessive tension, inflammation or signs of injury.

Part 3:

The part of the treatment involves manual (hands on) techniques that are aimed at stretching-relaxing muscles and mobilising joints.  These are applied to the area of the body where the excessive tension is causing muscle overuse, inflammation and pain or is overloading joints and inflaming their cartilage surfaces causing pain.

Please note:

The intensity of the treatment varies depending on the vitality on the patient. The treatment techniques on a several week old infant or a frail or injured person are very gentle, whereas those used on an athlete with very tense muscles may be more vigorous.

At the end of the physical examination the Osteopath will explain in everyday terms what they have found the diagnoses to be and how they will go about treating the problem. They will also explain the techniques as they do each one and make sure they are OK with the patient.