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​- Pre and Post Natal
  Mother and Infant Care
- Adult and Pediatric Osteopathy​​

 

 

- Adult  Osteopathy​​ 

-Athlete Osteopathy

-Visceral and Structural Osteopathy

 

 

Osteopathy Treatments for Neck and Shoulder Pain

Neck pain and shoulder pain can often come hand in hand for many reasons. Injury, overuse and poor posture are just a few examples to explain why these locations can get chronically aggravated.

Both the neck and shoulders play active and important parts in everyday life from getting ready for work to recreational activities such as sports. All too often, the stresses of life and the resulting tension it puts on the neck and shoulder muscles can become quite painful and sometimes lead to muscle spasms. Bad neck spasms can actually reverse the normal curve of your neck and/or injure soft tissue, causing further injury.

The neck has a very important role and that is to hold up the head. Muscles within the neck brace it as well as enable it to turn to look at things without having to move the entire body and it is usually fairly obvious to spot someone who has a painful and stiff neck by the abnormal way that they move around.

The shoulders are a common site of pain because they are extremely mobile. The “ball and socket” of the joint is not deep, allowing for a wide range of motion. This makes the shoulders more susceptible than average to abnormal wear and tear, displacement and injury.

Many people cope with acute or chronic neck and shoulder pain by taking pain killers, however, this is not a constructive solution to the actual problem and it has the risk of dangerous side effects. In osteopathy, the goal is to investigate the patient’s signs and symptoms to discover the actual source of the pain. By addressing the root of the problem, treatment can be targeted to improve the chances of success.

Sometimes, depending on the cause, persistent neck and shoulder pain that has been occurring for years can be resolved with just a few osteopathic medicine appointments. Elissa Gustafson, DOMP and Carolyn Smith, DOMP work as manual osteopaths at the Ottawa Holistic Health Centre and have years of experience treating patients with both mild and severe pain in the neck and shoulders. Sometimes, patients can further benefit from complimenting their osteopathy with massage therapy, chiropractic, athletic therapy or physiotherapy.
Osteopathy for Neck and Shoulder Pain

© 2012 - Ottawa Holistic Health Centre | Elissa Gustafson, DOMP | Manual Osteopathic Practitioner

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