Orthopedics

Above:  Fifth Century tablet of Aesculapius manipulating upper thoracic spine (K. Ligeros, M.D., Ph.D., How Ancient Healing Governs Modern Therapeutics, G.P. Putman's Sons, 1937)

Forms of manual therapy have been used for millennia in every part of the world to alleviate pain brought about by musculoskeletal imbalances. Even with conditions that have persisted for years, chronic pain may be quickly alleviated using one or a combination of manual techniques. Think about it:  if you have a pebble in your shoe causing distress, it doesn’t take years to fix that problem.  Just get rid of the pebble!

But why do we need manual therapy?  Why can’t the body correct a misalignment itself?

Because the body’s musculature is designed to function in a very specific set of directions and vectors.  So for example, if you get into a car accident and your rib gets shoved out of place, there is no (or limited) musculature that has the expressed function to move it back into place.  Consequently, some outside intervention is required.

Click on any of the items in the left column to learn more about each orthopedic system I use.