OMT or osteopathic manipulative therapy is a specialized way of osteopathic medicine. In OMT, the pressure is administered or exerted to specific bones, tissues, and joints to promote healthy healing, encourage blood flow, and release tension.
If injuries to the muscles or joints have influenced your range of flexion and extension, rousing those tissues around can undoubtedly aid in easing discomfort and other issues. Although it does entail or cover applying pressure to sensitive areas, OMT should not hurt.
There are still several debates about the effectiveness of this therapy. However, the right amount of research and anecdotal evidence can prove its positive results. For a little help, here's a list of the benefits of Osteopathic Manipulation, particularly in Los Angeles. Read on!
How Does It work?
The idea or notion that restriction and tightness in your muscles and nerves can be caused by or lead to other problems is one of the pivots of osteopathic medicine. Therefore, doctors of osteopathic medicine are educated to use their hands to mildly move your tissues and joints to correct any tightness in your range of flexion and extension.
Osteopathic manipulative therapy is the way that DOs do that. This treatment takes a complete-body, holistic approach to healthcare. If you're looking for an osteopathic physician around Los Angeles, consider visiting websites online such as https://www.christopherbrowndo.com.
How Does It Feel?
If you get osteopathic manipulative therapy, you must envisage the physician to use their hand to put light stretching, resistance, and pressure. It shouldn't hurt. The treatment covers forty different techniques, which includes:
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Osteopathic cranial manipulative medicine: The DO will apply soft, mild pressure to your skull to promote healing.
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Myofascial release: The DO will use firm yet gentle pressure to let out the tension in the fascia. The fascia is the layer of connective tissues surrounding the organs, muscles, and bones.
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Muscle energy: Think, push-pull. You move or put your muscles in motion in a particular direction while the DO resists that movement.
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Soft tissue: You will feel pressure and stretching on your muscles.
What Can It Cure?
Doctors of osteopathic medicine use osteopathic manipulative therapy to relieve pain. Study shows that people who suffer from lower back pain who received OMT required fewer days off and painkillers than to those people who haven't got the treatment.
OMT could also alleviate migraines. In fact, according to one research, people who received this treatment felt less pain, had fewer migraine attacks and needed less medicine compared to those who took pills but did not get OMT.
Moreover, osteopathic manipulative treatment can treat conditions like knee problems, neck pain, headaches, and shoulder problems. Relying upon your case, your doctor of osteopathic medicine might find that you need other treatments like surgery or medication.
Who Can Get It?
People of every age, from infants to the elderly, and just any medical condition, can get osteopathic manipulative treatment. Your DO might adjust or fine-tune it to suit your needs. Say, for example, a person with a joint or bone condition, like arthritis or osteoporosis, might need a milder form of OMT.
Benefits
There are plenty of leading benefits of OMT. It includes its capability to help in recovering from alcohol and drug addiction, relieving migraines and headaches, and heal injuries, among many others. The following are some of the potential benefits of OMT.
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Improves motor coordination and control
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Relieves painful premenstrual syndrome (PMS)
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Lessens migraines and headaches
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Wards off pneumonia
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Lowers neck pain and back pain
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Heals sinus disorders
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Relieves degenerative joint diseases or arthritis
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Cuts down the effects of hypertension
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Wards off kidney disease
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Fights alcohol and drug addiction
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Provides relief from cardiovascular problems
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Alleviates digestive problems
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Heals carpal tunnel syndrome
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Normalizes respiratory function and breathing
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Treats injuries
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Eliminates insomnia and improves sleep quality.
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Reduces muscle pain and chronic knee pain
DOs can detect or perceive conditions that aren't curable through OMT, to refer patients to other medical specialists.
Side Effects
Before you get this kind of treatment, you should be entirely honest with the doctor of osteopathic medicine about current and past medical conditions. Keep in mind that these things can influence which osteopathic manipulative therapy approach they take.
Moreover, take note that there can be several physical side effects of OMT. It includes fatigue, migraines, soreness in the affected area, and headaches.
Takeaway
If you opt to visit an osteopath, you must make sure that their DO is authorized by the AOA (American Osteopathic Association) and licensed to practice. For this reason, ask to see these documentations if they're not put on display.
Depending on the clinic, the state they reside in, and the patient's insurance plan, the cost will vary. Lastly, although there are plenty of benefits that one can get from OMT, it can also involve some risks just like any treatments.
