Help for the elderly

Do you suffer aches and pains, particularly of the low back, hips and knees? Have you ever been told this, "It's just because of your age"? Or even when someone has asked you about your aches you have said to them "Well its my age, its to be expected". These are common phrases I hear in my osteopathic clinic yet the people saying this are continuously getting pain relief from osteopathic treatment and are so grateful for it. Unfortunately we have been programmed to expect the pains from problems such as arthritis and "wear and tear" and to some degree this is true but I really don't think they should be accepted in full. Osteopathy has much to offer arthritis sufferers, after all the musculo-skeletal system is the domain we are most familiar and successful with. Let's take a knee arthritis for example. It is true that if there is wear and tear to the internal joint surfaces then repair of these is probably not possible but there are so many structures related to the knee that can be helped. For instance all the outer ligaments that get inflamed can easily be reach and improved, all the tight associated muscles can be relaxed, including those of the low back. The joint can also be gently mobilised to increase its range of movement and improve the blood supply. All these treatments can give great pain relief and I often have patients who are then better able to move around the house, walk to the shops regularly or perhaps enjoy gardening and golf again. So I would thoroughly recommend that you at least give osteopathic treatment a chance to prove wrong that annoying phrase "It's just your age"!