Hi, I’m Bryhnn, a Manual Osteopathic Practitioner here at Savannah Massage Therapy & Wellness Clinic! If you’ve ever wondered what osteopathic manual therapy is, how it works, or whether it might be right for you, you’re in the right place! I’m here to answer some of the most common questions so you can better understand what we do and how it might help you!
1. What is Osteopathy?
Osteopathy is a hands-on therapy that focuses on how your body’s structure affects its function. As manual osteopathic practitioners, our goal is to remove restrictions in the body—whether it’s tight muscles, restricted joints, or poor alignment—so that everything moves the way it’s supposed to. By improving movement, we help restore proper circulation, nerve function, and overall balance. This allows your body to heal, adapt, and function at its best. Instead of just treating symptoms, we look at how different areas of the body are connected to find and address the root cause of dysfunction.
2. What can Osteopathy help with?
Osteopathy doesn’t focus on treating symptoms—we look at how the whole body is working together. When something isn’t moving well, it can throw everything off, leading to issues like joint pain, muscle tension, poor circulation, or even headaches and digestive discomfort. A lot of people come in with things like back or neck pain, tight shoulders, knee or hip issues, or swelling in their legs. Others might have trouble with vertigo, breathing restrictions, or recovering from injuries. These problems don’t happen in isolation—they’re often connected to how the body is moving and supporting itself. By improving mobility, circulation, and alignment, osteopathy helps bring the body back into balance so it can function and feel its best.
3. What happens during an appointment with a Manual Osteopathic Practitioner?
Every appointment is tailored to you. We start with a conversation about your health, daily movement habits, and past injuries to get the full picture of what’s going on. Next, I do a hands-on assessment to see how your body is moving and where there might be restrictions. Treatment is gentle and focused on what your body needs that day—working with your muscles, joints, and fascia to release tension and restore balance. Throughout the session, I explain what I’m finding and how movement habits might be contributing to discomfort. I’ll often suggest small adjustments to help you feel better long-term. Osteopathy works best as a partnership—when we work together, treatment is more effective and lasting.
4. What’s the difference between a Chiropractor, a Physiotherapist, and a Manual Osteopathic Practitioner?
All three professions help people move and feel better, but they focus on different things: Chiropractors work mostly with the spine and nervous system. Their strength is in quick, targeted adjustments—often to the spine—to improve alignment and take pressure off nerves. Physiotherapists focus on rehab and strength-building. They use exercises, hands-on techniques, and tools like shockwave therapy to help you recover from injuries and move better. Manual osteopathic practitioners take a whole-body approach. We don’t just look at the spine like a chiropractor or just muscles and joints like a physio—we look at everything. That includes fascia, joints, muscles, arteries, veins, and nerves to see how they all connect. A restriction anywhere in the body—whether in a joint, soft tissue, or circulation—can affect not just movement, but also organ function, the nervous system, immune health, and even hormones. Instead of just treating where the pain or dysfunction is, osteopathy looks at why it’s happening and how the body is adapting. That’s why it works well on its own or alongside chiropractic and physio—depending on what your body needs!
5. What are some signs I should see an Osteopath?
You don’t have to be in pain to see an osteopath! A lot of people come in just feeling off—stiff, sluggish, or not moving as well as they used to. Maybe they’re slow to recover from injuries or always feeling tense. If that sounds familiar, osteopathy might be a good fit.
You might notice:
– Recurring headaches, muscle tension, or stiffness that won’t go away
– Aches from sitting too long or feeling like your body isn’t moving right
– Waking up sore, low energy, or trouble sleeping
– Digestive issues, circulation problems, or hormonal imbalances
– Slow recovery from injury or illness.Because the osteopathic approach looks at the whole body, we can sometimes find underlying issues that haven’t been addressed yet. If any of this sounds like you—If you’ve tried other treatments but still don’t feel quite right—osteopathy might be a great option.
Book an appointment with me or one of the other amazing Osteos here at Savannah Massage Therapy, and let’s work together to help your body function at its best!
