Manual Osteopathy, developed by Dr. Andrew Still in 1874, is both a holistic philosophy and gentle hands-on practice that facilitates and promotes the body’s natural healing processes by removing somatic dysfunction and assisting to restore structural and functional integrity, bringing the body back into a state of total body health and resiliency. Through gentle manipulation of the body, Manual Osteopaths help to restore natural function and structural balance to all the body’s systems, including the musculoskeletal, nervous, circulatory and digestive systems.

 
The 4 Principles of Manual Osteopathy:
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1. The Body is an Integrated Unit: The body is divinely and perfectly designed with each anatomical, physiological, chemical and neurological element of the body perfectly contributing to the structure and function of the whole body. Every system, every structure and every cell are interconnected by an intelligence that unifies the entire body to maintain homeostasis and work in harmony.
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2. Structure and Function are Reciprocally Interrelated: The integrity of a structure invariably affects the structures’ ability to function. Our musculoskeletal system can both reflect and produce changes in other body systems. Dr. Andrew Still believed that structure and function are indivisible and by understanding the anatomy and physiology of the body and the relationship between them, one could calculate how a deviation in structure would impact the body’s function.
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3. The Body is Self-Regulating & Self-Healing: Our body has an inherent, autonomic capacity to organize, coordinate, control and self-regulate the complex interplay of cellular function within the body to maintain a state of homeostasis and ultimately heal itself. “All the remedies necessary to health exist in the human body” and the role of the Osteopath is to assist the body to heal itself. 
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4. The Body has the Capability to Protect, Repair and Regenerate itself to Preserve its Function: The human body is constantly exposed to “threats”, whether bacteria, viral infection, physical trauma, psychological stress, etc. In order to preserve function and life itself, the body has the innate ability to protect itself from internal and external threats by enacting physiological and psychological processes to defend and repair itself.
 
Manual Osteopathy uses 4 main modalities to treat the body: Osteoarticulation Corrections, Craniosacral Therapy, Visceral Manipulation & Myofascial Remodeling.