Neuromuscular medicine

Osteopathic Healing

Osteopathic medicine is a specialty of healing the body and eliminating pain, a mastery of human physics. Our goal is to ensure every tissue of the body has fluid motion and functions in harmony with the whole, so that nutrients and energy flow easily to all of your tissues and cellular waste and toxins are easily removed.

We also support healing by optimizing nutrition and the use of healing peptides and platelet rich plasma injections (PRP) when needed. One could consider an experienced osteopathic doctor to be a specialist of general medicine, chiropractics, massage, energy healing, and non surgical orthopedics.

Who Benefits from Osteopathic Healing?

Neck & Back Pain

An Osteopathic examination is the most comprehensive evaluation available to guide your approach to recovery. We will be able to determine whether you can be healed with osteopathic manipulation, require specialty injections, or if surgery is indicated. Let us help you navigate thru the difficulty decisions of whether surgery is absolutely needed. If it is not, we can resolve your pain issues naturally.

The most common cause of back and neck pain is musculoskeletal strain, ligamentous injury, and misalignment of the spine and pelvis. Fascial strains from the lower extremities also contribute. Unfortunately many patients do not receive a detailed musculoskeletal, neurologic exam to evaluate their pain. Many times radiologic evaluation does not include MRI when indicated or the findings on MRI do not correspond to the area of pain one is experiencing. When severe neurologic injury is not present, patients should be evaluated by a physician who specializes in osteopathic medicine. Often pain can be reduced or eliminated with osteopathic manipulation and precise musculoskeletal injections. Findings on osteopathic evaluation will also help you decide if you need surgical intervention or if a less invasive approach to correct the underlying problem is indicated. If a neurosurgeon has told you that there is no indication for surgical intervention, they are usually correct. However, that does not mean you need to live in pain or accept the diagnosis of chronic pain syndrome and fibromyalgia.

In extreme situations, there may be a vertebral fracture, a vertebral tumor, or a disc herniation impinging on the large nerves exiting the spinal cord causing pain. Surgery is indicated for acute neurologic injury and should be pursued in that situation, particularly if motor, weakness, loss of skin sensation, perineal numbness, or bladder/ bowel incontinence is associated.

Patients that undergo surgery for herniated intervertebral discs causing compression on nerves often achieve resolution of the neurologic pain. However, the previous strain pattern and surgery itself can cause ligamentous spasm, scar tissue, muscle spasm that leaves the patient with a different type of chronic back pain. Spinal fusion will stabilize the vertebral segments that have been fused, however, the vertebral segments above and below the fusion can become unstable and painful.

Osteopathic manipulation is an excellent adjunct to those who continue to have pain and stiffness following surgery. We will collaborate with your neurosurgeon, review pre and post surgical imaging, and will safely address the remaining musculoskeletal issues with osteopathic manipulation and specific musculoskeletal injections to spastic ligaments, muscles, and scar tissue causing your pain.

Chronic Headaches & Migraines

Headaches and Migraines create significant impairment of daily activities for many people. Often they are caused by musculoskeletal strain in the cervical, occipital, and upper thoracic regions. Other times they are due to triggers such as inflammatory agents in ones diet, stress, insomnia, menstruation , hormone imbalance. Let us help resolve your migraines naturally so you no longer depend upon mediations to get thru your day.

Many have migraines from strains and restrictions around the eyes, ears, and facial regions, particularly if there are anatomic abnormalities, recent trauma or dental surgery. Often osteopathic manipulation of the thoracic, cervical, and cranial regions can provide significant reduction in the frequency, intensity, and duration of headaches and migraines. Craniosacral osteopathy will balance the bones and tissue strain of your head. In some circumstances, occipital nerve blocks can help as well. For cyclic migraines related to menstruation, often there is hormonal imbalance that can be fixed to prevent your migraines.

Post Surgical Pain

If you are experiencing unrelenting pain or issues with incontinence more than 6 weeks after surgery. Please call us for a consultation. We will discuss your case with your surgeon and make sure we treat your symptoms safely and collaboratively.

Many people suffer from post surgical pain and complications. Unfortunately, many of the diagnostic testing and specialists are unable to help because the problem lies deep in the musculoskeletal system supporting the spine, throat, diaphragm, as well as abdominal and pelvic organs.

Many women experience pain and incontinence of urine and stool following gynecologic surgery or vaginal birth. This is because the pelvic ligaments, sacral plexus, pudendal nerve, and pelvic diaphragm become strained or injured

Many people with pain after abdominal surgery suffer from adhesions and scar tissues restricting the movement of the colon, small intestine, liver, etc.

Those who have pain after Neurosurgery or Orthopedic surgery often have the initial problem fixed but the trauma of the original injury and the trauma of the surgery permits unrelenting musculoskeletal pain from strained ligaments, muscles, and newly formed scar tissue.

Acute Injuries

Acute injuries often involve damage to tendons and ligaments in the shoulder, knee, elbow, ankle and wrist areas. Unfortunately, these injuries take a long time to heal because tendons and ligaments have a very poor blood supply and it is difficult for the immune system to get the the area to heal the tissues.

Let us accelerate the healing process with osteopathic healing and regenerative medicine.

It is extremely important to balance all of the tissues around the injury so that there is less strain on the damaged tissues while they are healing.

We are able to use specific peptides and PRP to accelerate the healing of damaged tissues as they promote increased blood flow while signaling the immune system to sprint to the area of injury.

Autoimmune/ Rheumatologic Disease

Autoimmune diseases are fueled by inflammation in the body, which often comes from disruption in the gut biome, inflammatory foods, lack of sleep and stress. We can help optimize your gut health, sleep, and stress levels. We can also use peptides to help optimize your immune system and promote healing while reducing unnecessary inflammation.

Many patients with inflammatory autoimmune disorders suffer from joint pain, fascial strain and depression from their illness. Patients benefit from osteopathic techniques that improve lymphatic drainage of these inflammatory agents and also from improved blood flow and oxygenation to tissues.

Many who suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, psoriatic arthritis and mixed connective tissue disorders develop musculoskeletal strains and injuries, just as the rest of us do. Unfortunately, this pain is often attributed to their underlying rheumatologic disorder and the patient is treated with increased doses of prednisone and other disease modifying agents. An osteopathic examination can identify whether the inflammation and pain you are experiencing is due to a musculoskeletal strain or from your underlying inflammatory disease. We can optimize your body’s condition and promote lymphatic drainage to release inflammatory agents. Often we can reduce the amount of medications required to treat your illness.

Pregnancy and Postpartum Mothers

During pregnancy there are many changes that occur in the body due to hormonal changes and the growing womb. Often women develop nausea, low back pain, upper back pain, abdominal/pelvic pain, difficulty breathing, emotional stress, and insomnia. Treat yourself and your baby kindly. Let us relieve your pregnancy pain and stress and get your mind and pelvis ready for your big day.

Following childbirth ( as well as hysterectomy surgery) there is often trauma that causes strain throughout the pelvic ligaments, pelvic floor muscles and low back. Symptoms after child birth range from pain and discomfort to incontinence of urine or stool. Osteopathic manipulation can help all of these issues above and is safe for you and your baby.

Newborns & Infants

Newborns and Infants often have issues with skull deformity, torticollis, shoulder dystocia, constipation, gastric reflux and problems suckling due to neck strain and occipital compression during their departure from the birth canal. All babies are born having been compressed in the same position for several months then experience the trauma of childbirth. Osteopathy can help correct the body strains experienced during this time before they become chronic and predispose your child to developmental delays, scoliosis, GI disturbances, and musculoskeletal injuries.

Techniques we use at our facility

Biodynamic Osteopathy & Cranial Osteopathy

Biodynamic Osteopathy promotes the vitality and energy of the body to reach areas in need of healing. It also rebalances the autonomic nervous system.

Cranial Osteopathy is helpful for correcting intra-cranial strains and misalignment that may arise from birth, physical trauma, dental surgery, etc. It is very helpful for stress, headaches, restoration, sinus and ear congestion, TMJ, skull deformities.

HVLA Articulatory
Technique

This technique is used to mobilize joints that are held in an incorrect position due to injury or repetitive strain.

This technique is very specific and often liberates ligamentous tension and nerve compression arising from the spine, pelvis, or extremities. Often the mobilization of potential energy within the restricted area is released providing a “pop” or “crack.”

Musculoskeletal
Injection

Injections of nerve blocking agents, homeopathic agents, or corticosteroids may provide appreciable pain relief

and stop the vicious cycle of pain, spasm, inflammation.

Often injections are used as an adjunct for stubborn areas of severe strain, joint pain, or serious acute ligamentous injuries.

Counterstrain

An indirect technique of relaxing spastic muscles and ligaments by reseting the neurologic connection with the brain and the spindle fiber of the tissue

Muscle Energy

Tissues are moved toward the restrictive barrier and then a specific isometric contraction against resistance is utilized to increase range of motion and stretch congested tense muscles

Myofascial Release

Gentle massage used with compression or traction to encourage relaxation of muscles and fascia

Balanced Ligamentous Tension & Facilitated Positional Release

Balances the tension of ligaments and fascia surrounding each joint for optimal motion and support.

What to expect at your appointment

Scheduling:

All visits are by appointment only. Please call to schedule an appointment for osteopathic consultation, medical consultation, or both. One can schedule osteopathic consultation with treatment for their initial visit, both can be accommodated unless Imaging is needed prior to treatment.

Preparing for your visit:

It is incredibly important that patients with complex medical history prepare ahead of time for their visit. Patients are asked to create a timeline of events including all relevant injuries, surgeries, hospitalizations, specialist consultations. Please bring reports of important radiologic imaging and copies of recent laboratory data. One could easily spend 2 hours in conversation trying to get this information and we would like to use that time to sort out the fine details of your history and developing a treatment plan that will bring you to a place of health and healing.

Clothing:

Please wear comfortable flexible clothing (Ie yoga, workout clothing). Avoid restrictive clothing such as jeans, belts, dress shirts.

Visitors:

Family and friends are always encouraged to be a part of your consultation. This often provides comfort and reference. Please inform us if you anticipate bringing more than two acquaintances into the office with you. Please make sure that any office visitor is free of any symptoms mentioned above or any other contagious illness. If you have questions regarding exposure safety.… just call and discuss before the appointment.