Osteopathic Treatment Centre - Pain free,naturally

Osteopathy and Sports

Whether you are a weekend warrior or an elite athlete, your osteopath can assist with the prevention of injury as well as treatment of many common sporting injuries: These include:

• neck and back strains

• shoulder, elbow and wrist injuries - e.g. tennis & golf elbow

• hip, knee, leg and ankle injuries - e.g. shin splints

Ankle and shoulder injuries are very common in amateur and professional sport. If poorly treated or not treated at all, these can lead to recurrence and early degenerative conditions.

Prevention

Your osteopath can teach you a number of stretching exercises and routines that will specifically help you avoid injury through muscle and joint strain.

In addition, depending on your sport and individual needs, your osteopath can provide advice on correct diet to assist you in both performance and recovery.

Osteopathic treatment involves manual techniques including soft-tissue stretching, mobilization and manipulation. This is like a tune-up for strained muscles, joints and spine.

It creates a positive influence on your circulatory and nervous systems. In turn, this can have a flow-on effect to the rest of the body by improving elasticity and mobility.

These hands-on methods are gentle, safe and effective.

Out of breath?

Whether or not you are aware that you suffer from a breathing disorder, it is important - particularly in sport - that you ensure your diaphragm is performing optimally and the rib cage mechanics are functioning correctly. This shows up when the body is under stress to perform and the rate of breathing increases.

Your osteopath can assess your structure and assist in maintaining good breathing function.

Osteopathic training

In some countries, osteopaths are government-registered practitioners in manual medicine.

In Australia, for instance, osteopaths volunteer their time and expertise to train paralympic athletes to perform at their best in the Paralympic Games.

If you suffer a sports injury...

In all cases, you should do your best to remain calm. Where the condition is not life-threatening, you should follow standard First Aid procedures:

REST - Reduce stress to the injury

ICE - apply ice to reduce inflammation. Where necessary, apply analgesic.

COMPRESSES - gently use bandages to reduce swelling

ELEVATE - raise yourself or the person to maintain good blood circulation.

WHAT IS OSTEOPATHY?

Osteopathy is a form of manipulation therapy, or manual therapy.

An osteopath works only with his / her hands, using a range of techniques, pressure, stretching, manipulation, etc. to correct imbalances in the body's musculoskeletal structure.

By restoring the body to balance, an osteopath is able to provide immediate and long term pain relief.

Osteopathy is widely recognized as an effective treatment for a wide range of aches and pain, including:

Headache & migraine

Stiff neck

Whiplash injuries

"Frozen" or stiff shoulders

Trapped nerve

Arm pain

Tennis elbow

Wrist and hand pain

Lower back pain

Back pain during pregnancy

Slipped disc

Hip, thigh and knee problems

Calf, shin, ankle, foot pain

Sciatica

Scoliosis or spinal curvature

Arthritis pain / stiffness

Sports injuries.

As body functions are related to the musculoskeletal structure, an osteopath is also able to correct functional disorders such as:

In the US, UK, Australia and many European countries, osteopaths are mainstream healthcare practitioners, Osteopathic healthcare qualifies for insurance reimbursement in most countries, including Singapore. Osteopathic treatment is gentle, painless and safe. Throughout the history of osteopathy, ever since it was founded by Dr Andrew Taylor Still in 1872, there has never been any known case of death or serious injury resulting from osteopathic treatment.

For acute conditions, one or two treatments will usually provide relief. For chronic conditions, you may need regular treatments over a period of time. Osteopathy and chiropractic share a common philosophy about the importance of the spine. Osteopaths use a wider range of manipulation techniques than chiropractors.