Can osteopathy help to heal the gut?
Updated: Sep 2, 2020
Original article on the IMI website
Neck, back and shoulder pain. Sports injuries. Muscle and ligament pain. Repetitive strain injury. These are a handful of reasons why you might seek the healing hands of an osteopath.
So, when our experienced naturopaths deem it necessary to recommend osteopathy to help alleviate gut issues, you’ll be forgiven for raising an eyebrow.
Take Julie, for example. Having suffered with constipation for years, Julie consulted an IMI naturopath who, after analysing her condition, prescribed nourishing supplements. But Julie’s slower-than-expected response to these highly effective supplements prompted a need for further investigation. The naturopath recommended an osteopathic assessment.
IMI osteopath Victor Bourdeau reviewed Julie’s detailed medical history, asked a series of questions, and palpated her abdomen to identify a reaction to pain or density in her organs. This allowed him to get closer to the culprit.
And that’s when the source of Julie’s angst revealed itself.
“Years earlier, she’d been in a car accident that had affected her cervical spine. I released her neck and vagus nerve, which controls her digestive organs, and within one month of osteopathic and naturopathic care Julie’s constipation challenges disappeared,” Victor recounts.
Through careful analysis and a series of manipulations and mobilisations, there are a myriad gut issues IMI’s team of osteopath can help to overcome. These include (but are not limited to):
Constipation, diarrhoea, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, bloating and abdominal distension.
Chronic inflammation in the joints and muscles, hormonal imbalance, autoimmune disease, and leaky gut – caused by dysbiosis, an overgrowth of harmful bacteria in the gut.
Nagging pain that has nothing to do with exercise and everything to do with your gut and liver. “Some musculo-skeletal aches and pains can be partly referred from specific organs, and after releasing them, your pain can dissipate,” Victor explains.
Related digestive organ dysfunctions, such as in the stomach and gallbladder.
And, control of the digestive organs through the sympathetic and parasympathetic pathways. “Stress. Screens. Sleep-deprivation. Our sympathetic ‘fight or flight’ system is working overtime. We breathe less, which increases acidity, easing the growth of harmful bacteria in the gut. This triggers inflammation, which can manifest in different parts of the body. An osteopath can help activate the parasympathetic ‘relaxation’ system,” Victor explains.
The go-to natural and integrated medicine clinic for gut issues, you can rely on our naturopaths and osteopaths to get to the bottom of your gut-health challenges and create a customised plan to help you thrive.
What to do next?To book an appointment with Victor, simply call 25237121 or connect with us here. If you would like to approach your gut-health through diagnostic lab testing, we suggest you start with one of our naturopaths. Enquiries & bookings
(Our client requested an alias to protect her privacy.)
