If it sounds too good to be true.....(Osteopathic manipulative treatment)

[Pamela H in Texas]

it probably is?

 

I think I've always believe that. But is it true?

 

I called that doctor's office the lady in my congregation suggested (btw, she's also from Texas and has only been here a few months more than us). Anyway, so I asked about self-pay prices ($200 initial visit; $100 per visit otherwise. You can pay $100 the first visit and $50 per month til paid off) and when she has visits available.

 

Also, I asked about typical treatment, how often, how long. I never expect a good answer to these things, but just something like "2-3 visits per week for a month then we'll re-evaluate" ya know? But that isn't what she said! She said that most people do 4 or 5 visits TOTAL. She said that people are BETTER after that. I was incredulous. Seriously. I was in complete disbelief and yet a part of me wanted to believe SO badly. She mentioned one woman who drove 8 hours but only had to do it thrice. She mentioned really tough cases might take 7 times.

 

Okay, so this treatment is the OMT mentioned in the subject. Has anyone had it? The woman from the congregation said he does something that only 5 doctors in the U.S. are _____ (licensed? certified?) to do. I know THAT isn't the OMT but maybe something related? And she did have good results, feeling better than ever.

 

I have been in pain since I was 17yrs old. I have lots of other issues; but if I could get rid of this pain, it'd be....wow! WoW! WOW! Well, and if he does things differently and is this successful with this aspect of things, maybe he knows JUST the right people to refer people to for other aspects?

 

But in 1-2 months (you must have at least 7 days between visits), to not have these pains anymore? to gain mobility?

 

So is it too good to be true? or really possible?

[tangomoon]

I haven't had much experience, but we have an osteopathic medical school nearby. One of the new doctors shadowing my doctor did a single treatment when I was having awful head and neck aches a couple years back. In the course of a few minutes, my previously uneven shoulders were straightened out and the head/neck aches have been much better since.

 

My situation is much different than yours, but just wanted to let you know that in my case the treatment definitely helped.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I would say it is possible. But If they tell you that it works for every single person I would be skeptical and probably walk because I've never heard of anything that works for every single person. As someone with chronic pain issues myself, I would want to know how soon they would know if this type of treatment will work for you. I mean even if you have to have multiple treatments, will you at least have some improvement after one or two times? If you don't have improvement do they re-evaluate and tell you and possibly explore other forms of treatment?

[jld]

Are you talking about cranial-sacral? I have done that a few times and everything has cleared up in one session. I have only done it in France, though, and don't know rates here. For a one hour session, I paid about $80-$100. One time I had twisted my knee, and she untwisted it just like that. Another time I had hurt my ulnar nerve, and once again, one session and it was much better. This last time (August) I had hardly been able to lift my arm (it just froze on me all of a sudden), and after that session, I could. It's amazing.

 

The lady I see is an M.D. who also trained in osteopathy and homeopathy. Before her, back in India, in August, I had seen an orthopedist who wanted me to do exercises for the arm, but couldn't offer me much else. I am sure a lot of doctors laugh at the cranial-sacral method, but hey, if it works, who cares?

[Denisemomof4]

I had such severe pain from a sprained ankle that I could barely walk on it. MariannNova, here, recommended an osteopath and I was highly skeptical. After ONE treatment I was feeling drastically better. I went for a second and I'm done. I'm still having too many issues (the sprain happened over the summer) and I'm still in quite a lot of pain but the osteopath took away the severe pain that kept me from being mobile. I still get discoloration and swelling. I've been to a doctor, the ER, an orthopedic, and an osteopath. I'm about to try acupuncture. If the osteopath doesn't help, I'd recommend acupuncture. I was reading up on it today and it supposedly does wonders for pain.

 

Personally, I was shocked at how much better I was after ONE visit.

[idnib]

Cranio-sacral is different from osteopathy.

 

Osteopathy is amazing. I've gone to osteopaths since I was born in an osteopathic hospital. They have helped me after car accidents and they've done amazing work on the rest of my family. My DS's autistic traits even reduced after treatment. One time my dad's back got stuck and he was in a lot of pain. One treatment corrected the problem.

 

I am also wary of any doctor who says you have to come regularly for a long time. That tells me they're not really fixing the problem if someone else can get it done in 1-2 sessions. :)

[Pamela H in Texas]

Thanks y'all.

 

I don't think she was guaranteeing 100% success or anything. That would be silly because even highly effective things aren't perfectly (or even kinda) effective for every single person.

 

I guess I'm afraid to get my hopes up. And yet, if I did 7 appts after the initial, that is $900! So I have to be careful because even with their payment plan, it's a bit of money! And is it really going to work for someone like me? My body has been going downhill for almost 20 years though my worst issues that this doc would help with do seem related to the stroke which was only 4.5 years ago.

 

And maybe this doc can help me find other docs who can help with some of the other issues? Docs who would do differently than traditional docs I've seen? Even differently than some of the natural stuff I've tried?

 

I definitely get the idea of being wary of a doc saying you must come back over and over. And pretty much, that is all docs. And I don't *want* that. And yet I guess I'm a bit wary of the idea of such pains taking such a short time to fix also when medication, physical therapy, chiropractic care, docs, etc haven't been able to keep the pain and such from getting worse.

 

But honestly, if this worked...It would change my life despite the other issues. Being mobile and not living in such constant severe pain.....wow...

[NanceXToo]

Well, I have no idea, but it's a good sign that someone gave you FIRSTHAND information in her favor, right? I would say it's definitely worth a shot!

[MariannNOVA]

I PM-d you.:)

[asta]

Pamela, I'm probably confusing you with someone else, but don't you have MS?

 

 

a

[Pamela H in Texas]

Asta, I don't have an umbrella diagnosis. Not counting female issues, I have, currently, 17 diagnoses. No doctor so far has been able to figure out what THE diagnosis is that is causing all this (though my last two doctors, in Texas, did agree that there was SOMETHING).

 

I think I'm going to try. Just losing a good portion of the pain and mobility issues would be a HUGE difference. I'll set my appointment for next Monday.

[RegGuheert]

Osteopathic doctors (DOs) have the same training as allopathic doctors (MDs). As such, they have all the same privileges afforded to MDs. In addition, they have about 200 hours of training in Osteopathic Medical Manipulation (OMM).

 

DD17 is considering becoming a doctor. When she looked into the available options, she was originally turned off of medicine by what she heard from the allopathic medical schools, but she later became very interested in osteopathic medicine. As a result, we have looked very carefully at this option. The main thesis behind allopathic medicine is to threat the whole body rather than the symptoms, and the musculoskeletal system is considered a critical system to be look into for ANY illness. For instance, one of the DOs which presented at the open house we visited showed some of the slides from their educational program. One slide that particularly struck me was very interesting: It showed the spinal cord including the nervous system that it contains showing which organs are served by which nerves. If you tell a DO who is armed with this knowledge that you are suffering from kidney problems, one of the things they are likely to investigate is whether the portion of the spinal cord which surrounds the exit of the nerves leading to the kidney is properly aligned or if it possibly is pinching these nerves. Makes sense to me!

 

In any case, good luck with your visits to the DO! Since we have started investigating osteopathic medicine for our daughter we have heard numerous success stories from patients who have high praise for OMM.

[Peela]

I would say you would know within 2 or 3 sessions whether it is worth continuing. You should feel some sort of relief (except in cases of a healing crisis) during/after each session. It may seem to go 2 steps forward, one backwards...thats fine...but it should generally, overall, seem to go forward.

 

I had an inflamed nerve in my upper back and neck last year and had to go to the chiro as an emergency patient. The relief of that first session was immediate, but no where near complete- it took several more sessions but then it was complete. But I wouldnt have gone back if that first session hadn't dont something.

[Pamela H in Texas]

I think part of my problem with this is that it *seems* so close to chiropractic care. I realize there are differences. I've been watching videos to help me out here. Additionally, the woman from the congregation also mentioned discussing that specifically before she'd even go. So, I'm trying to get that out of my head.

 

I think chiropractic care CAN be good. At one time, I was having an extreme number of dizzy spells, some tiny, some leaving me out of it a few minutes. I went to my chiropractor. The first day, it worked for a day. The second time, it worked for a couple days. Each time, the time between treatment and it starting back up was longer. In fact, I've considered seeing one again because of dizziness but this dizziness feels different and most chiros I've spoken to won't work on my neck since the stroke. However, I also went to the chiro a LOT for other issues and just kept going, a couple times per week...And obviously I got something from it, but wasn't FIXED.

 

The doctor's website said you should have lasting effects from the very first treatment. 4-5 is normal. Some do 3 and can stop. Some do 7 or 8. I'll be singing praises for a long long time if this works! I wouldn't even be upset if I did it 7 times then had to do once every month or two after that. I am more worried about something like before (a couple times per week long term) or it not working.

[MariannNOVA]

I think part of my problem with this is that it *seems* so close to chiropractic care. I realize there are differences. I've been watching videos to help me out here. Additionally, the woman from the congregation also mentioned discussing that specifically before she'd even go. So, I'm trying to get that out of my head.

 

I think chiropractic care CAN be good. At one time, I was having an extreme number of dizzy spells, some tiny, some leaving me out of it a few minutes. I went to my chiropractor. The first day, it worked for a day. The second time, it worked for a couple days. Each time, the time between treatment and it starting back up was longer. In fact, I've considered seeing one again because of dizziness but this dizziness feels different and most chiros I've spoken to won't work on my neck since the stroke. However, I also went to the chiro a LOT for other issues and just kept going, a couple times per week...And obviously I got something from it, but wasn't FIXED.

 

The doctor's website said you should have lasting effects from the very first treatment. 4-5 is normal. Some do 3 and can stop. Some do 7 or 8. I'll be singing praises for a long long time if this works! I wouldn't even be upset if I did it 7 times then had to do once every month or two after that. I am more worried about something like before (a couple times per week long term) or it not working.

 

Please read Reg's post -- my daughter is on leave of absence (due to health issues ) from an Osteopathic College of Medicine. I know that there is alot of prejudice against D.O.s but the more I learn, the more I see that it is just THAT - prejudice. My sister is an M.D. and she has hired D.O.s (ob-gyns) for her very large practice -- it would be nice if the consciousness of some could be raised and the training and education that an individual in an Osteopathic school receives would come to light.

 

One more thing -- my dd also was not interested in an allopathic medical school - so for those who make blanket statements along the lines of: 'Guess they couldn't get into a real med school' THAT is not necessarily true.:) As far as her MCAT scores, my dd could have gone to ANY medical school she wanted.:)

[RegGuheert]

I think part of my problem with this is that it *seems* so close to chiropractic care.

I suspect that *every* DO will tell you that this is the most common misconception about osteopathy. To the point where it is somewhat of a joke around schools of osteopathy.

 

One of the doctors who spoke at the orientation we attended pointed out that he has been able to *fix* problems in a couple of sessions that patients have not been able to get relief from after years of chiropractic care.

[Pamela H in Texas]

The appointment is set for Friday at 10am. Next visit isn't til the 2nd though due to their vacation. After reading another experience, that sounds like it may be better anyway. We'll see.

[MariannNOVA]

The appointment is set for Friday at 10am. Next visit isn't til the 2nd though due to their vacation. After reading another experience, that sounds like it may be better anyway. We'll see.

 

Yes - you will need time to repair from your visits - and you will need to rest.rest.rest! With a capital "R". Be kind to yourself! Rest and drink water. I'm going away now......:leaving:

[idnib]

There's definitely a difference in chiropractic care vs. osteopathic care. They seem similar when you're being treated, but for the practitioner there's a lot of difference.

 

Tip: You may not think the DO is doing much as the movements can be very gentle and subtle. A lot of people fall asleep during treatments because they can be very relaxing.

 

I have a friend who's a world-class osteopath and he always has his clients do 2 things after treatment:

 

1) Drink a glass of water

2) Walk for 15 minutes. The treatment will be less effective if you just go plop in your car for the drive home. Walking around helps the body acclimate to the changes.

[MyThreeSons]

Twice I have been in such severe pain in my lower back that I could hardly breathe, let alone walk. Both times he was able to determine that my hips were out of alignment, did a quick adjustment, and I walked out of the office in very little pain. I was a little sore for a few days, then fine. The two episodes were several years apart.

 

The visits were very inexpensive -- just a minimal office visit charge. We LOVE our family doctor!

[jld]

2) Walk for 15 minutes. The treatment will be less effective if you just go plop in your car for the drive home. Walking around helps the body acclimate to the changes.

 

 

That's interesting. I always walk home from the doctor that I see for this, but I didn't realize it was helpful to the treatment.

[mo2]

Please give us an update as to how you feel after your appointment. I won't remember it on Friday, so I'm asking you now! ;)

[Pamela H in Texas]

We'll be in a town we know nothing about. Maybe if it's like a main street with businesses, we could see about exploring a little. I can usually walk 15 minutes or so, maybe a little slow, but I can do it. I just hope I don't undo it by my compensations. Of course, maybe I won't have to compensate so much :)

[idnib]

We'll be in a town we know nothing about. Maybe if it's like a main street with businesses, we could see about exploring a little. I can usually walk 15 minutes or so, maybe a little slow, but I can do it. I just hope I don't undo it by my compensations. Of course, maybe I won't have to compensate so much :)

 

Just do what you can. Even 5 minutes would help, or even standing for a bit if you don't want to walk. Good luck!

[Jennifer in MI]

I just want to encourage you. I was on a reunion with my college roommates/families this summer. My dd4 got violently ill - throwing up every 5 minutes. One of my classmates was a DO. She was AMAZING!!!! She treated my dd in such a gentle manner. My dd was throwing up and my roommate tested and treated her diaphragm. My dd finally fell asleep! This is my dd who was terrified of doctors. She let my friend touch her and treat her. It worked!!! She stopped throwing up and was okay about 12 hours later, when she woke up.

 

But, the best part was that my friend also treated me. I was SCARED!! My dd was sick and I wasn't with my dh. She did something with my back - very gentle and relaxing and it was awesome!!!

 

I can't wait to see what you think. Our regular doctor is a DO and we love him!!!

[FaithManor]

Twenty-two and half years ago I severly damaged the tendons and ligaments in my left ankle and dislocated bones in my foot. Though I saw a great osteopath and he did marvelous things for me, I have always had problems.

 

I started riding dressage as part of training our green horse. The dressage trainer noticed that I was unable to hold my ankle at the appropriate angle because of the pain and the taut/tense condition of the ligaments. I've had a lot of physical therapy by licenses practitioners and never got any relief of any kind. She began doing massage that she learned for helping horses overcome injuries to their legs and then working her way up to release body tension that has accumulated over the years due to the initial injury and how it changed the way I walk and hold myself. Three dressage lessons later, ankle virtually heeled. It's rare for me to have pain or swelling with it now and on the rare occasion that I do, I just call the trainer and say "I need another lesson!"

 

So, some things are stranger than fiction and yet bizarrely true! I just needed a good horse, dressage trainer instead of a medical professional.

 

Faith

[MariannNOVA]

There's definitely a difference in chiropractic care vs. osteopathic care. They seem similar when you're being treated, but for the practitioner there's a lot of difference.

 

Tip: You may not think the DO is doing much as the movements can be very gentle and subtle. A lot of people fall asleep during treatments because they can be very relaxing.

 

I have a friend who's a world-class osteopath and he always has his clients do 2 things after treatment:

 

1) Drink a glass of water

2) Walk for 15 minutes. The treatment will be less effective if you just go plop in your car for the drive home. Walking around helps the body acclimate to the changes.

 

Fascinating -- our D.O. always reminds us to drink water as soon as we leave the treatment room. My dd30 always walks for about 15-20 minutes b4 we get in the car and drive home - which can be an hour ride if it is traffic -- and it is probably b/c she has been told to do this. ds9 has been reminded by our doctor that he should not be climbing trees, doing handstands, jumping on the trampoline etc - and he does take it easy after visits. Osteopaths who are skilled at OMT are truly, imho, gifted. There are MANY osteopaths who don't do OMT -- dd tells me that in med school, there were students who just blew it off and couldn't have cared less about it.....but there were many who were commited to learning OMT and becoming skilled at it.

[Pamela H in Texas]

Y'all are really making me feel good about this. This man has built his practice around this, getting out of family doctoring altogether. And it's not too far off; my daughter can drive me.

 

I'm really looking forward to it.

[Carpe Diem]

I will be checking back to see how your visit went.

:grouphug:

[SBMama]

I hope this doctor is able to help you! I used to take my DD2 to a craniosacral therapist, and it helped her so much! I know it is not the same, but I understand the uncertainty that you are feeling. I apologize for not knowing all of the "lingo", but here is our experience...

 

DD2 was born with torticollis. Her head was tilted due to a shortened muscle probably from being cramped in the womb. The pediatrician kept telling us that it would go away with time and he showed us some exercises that were supposed to help. At 3 months she was no better, and she was getting a flat spot on her head due to the head tilt. In addition, she had severe reflux, and she cried all. of. the. time. Then she would start inconsolably crying at 6pm until about 9-10pm when she finally passed out from exhaustion. Nothing we could do to make her stop crying. She was also on reflux meds, and I was on a very limited diet in case she had allergies to my breastmilk.

 

Anyhow, my MIL talked me into taking Bear to a craniosacral therapist when she was 3 months old. After the first session, she slept for 5 hours. She was finally comfortable, and *I* was crying in relief. Like others have said, the effects wore off after a couple of days. The therapist didn't work on her neck issue the first time we took her, because apparently Bear was directing her to other issues that were bothering her more. She did work on her neck at the second appointment, and afterward Bear was able to hold her head up straight for the first time ever! I cried some more, lol, we took pictures and called our families. We were so relieved and amazed! Each week that we took her, she was feeling better and her head was staying straighter for longer and longer periods of time. I kept taking her for many months, because I was afraid of stopping. It just helped her so much.

 

I took her again for just one appointment at about 13 months. Bear was walking by then, but slightly dragging one of her legs. I did not mention it to the therapist (nor did she see her walk), but she found a problem in her hip and unwound it. Bear had not had any problems walking since!

 

One other thing that I found interesting is that at the beginning of each visit, the therapist would feel Bear's spinal rhythm by placing her hands on Bear's back. Bear would look her straight into the therapists eyes every time. Even at 3 months old, it was like she knew what the therapist was doing and was okay with it. DH's uncle is also a craniosacral therapist. He tried working on Bear once when she was about 5 months old. When he placed his hands on her back, she looked him right in the eye and started screaming! No way was she going to let him work on her, but she always let our therapist do it.

 

Wow, that was long! All to say that I was so skeptical of this type of thing in the past, but I am a believer now! I hope you are able to find relief!

[MariannNOVA]

DD2 was born with torticollis...........All to say that I was so skeptical of this type of thing in the past, but I am a believer now! I hope you are able to find relief!

 

I am intrigued by your post -- our ds (who will be 10 on sunday) was also born with torticolis (twin pregnancy) and he had reflux - awful reflux - as well. The only relief he has experienced has been from OMT from the osteopath.

 

My older daughter was a student in an osteopathic medical school AND still I was not a believer till I saw the positive change and the relief that ds experienced at his first visit - we could see an actual physical difference in the way his face looked.

 

Your story is excellent -- there are so many folks here pulling for relief for Pam.:)

[idnib]

When my brother was born he had terrible colic. After a few days of figuring out the problem my parents took him to a DO who manipulated him and he was perfectly fine after that. It just disappeared.

 

That same DO told my parents that my brother's appendix was abnormally high, a fact that came in handy when he later had an emergency appendectomy.

 

As a teen I once woke up with my head stuck at an angle. My dad took me to a DO and she started working on my feet. The next thing I knew, my neck was completely fine. :D