When taking the full medical history at the first consultation, as is done every time no matter what the presenting problem is, sometimes people are curious as to why I need to know such things as recurrent illnesses in childhood when they have a pain in their neck. Firstly, I usually explain that sometimes they will be telling me about things that are seemingly unrelated to what they came in with but actually are connected, given an osteopathic perspective. Secondly they may be letting me know about ongoing struggles with their health genuinely not much to do with the neck pain tat can nonetheless have a straightforward solution if osteopathic principles are applied. Many chronic infections fall into this category.
Osteopathy holds that if mechanical relationships are sound, health will inevitably ensue. This sounds like an oversimplification, but not if you take it to the level of subtlety involved in working with the cranial mechanism. Every structure in the body from a gland to a bone to the brain needs to be held in a harmonious relationship with those adjacent. This implies an even suspension on its moorings with no blockages, compressions, distortions or unhealthy tissue quality changes within or around it. Thus fluid exchange (blood, lymph, CSF and so on) will be optimized and healthy metabolic processes supported.
Much of the body’s workings support this harmony. The up and down movement of the diaphragm gently massages the organs in the abdomen as we breathe for example. However, compromises can occur from such things as injuries, postural tensions held and episodes of illness. Cranial techniques can usually detect, treat and often successfully release these. Chest infections (bronchitis, pneumonia, pleurisy) kidney infections, cystitis, tonsillitis, sinusitis, ear infections all fall within this category.
It is well known in our literature that osteopathic treatment was used in hospitals before the advent of antibiotics to treat pneumonia. Patients would recover in half the normal time. I find this area of work most practical as a preventative measure. If for example someone regularly goes down with a bad chest infection in October then I advise treatment at the end of the summer. This usually seems to be effective in heading things off.
