Is Osteopathy covered by insurance? Do I need a referral?
Yes, most insurance companies cover osteopathic manual therapy, and often do not require a referral. However, it is always wise to check with your insurance provider first.
Do Osteopathic Manual Practitioners direct bill?
No, Osteopathic manual practitioners do not direct bill insurance companies. We do however provide you with a receipt, that contains a billing number, which you can submit to your insurance company for reimbursement.
What can I expect from my first appointment?
Your initial appointment will begin with you filling out a health history form to outline what you would like to address. This summary of your overall health, will help to indicate any underlying health conditions, considerations, or potential contraindications to treatment.
Following the review of your health history a general assessment will take place. The assessment will be of your overall posture, tissue quality, and movement capacity, to observe any areas of muscular, fascial, or articular restrictions impeding optimal movement and function of the body. Often these areas of restriction are a contributing factor to the issue that brought you in, to seek treatment.
Next a more in-depth assessment of your range of motion will be performed that is more specific, and based on your symptoms, your global postural, and range of motion findings. In addition, some more specific orthopedic tests may be performed to rule out any contraindications, or to help the practitioner decide weather further medical investigation may be required.
At this point, treatment will progress, and is often a flow back and forth between reassessing tissue, and treating findings, in a fluid matter. In a treatment you can expect a mix of stretching, passive range of motion, soft tissue techniques, and gentle joint mobilizations. Treatment is often seen as very relaxing as it flows back and forth between addressing the different layers of tissue.
Osteopathy uses many approaches in treating muscle, bone, and fascia. Due to the interrelated nature of the body, treating these tissues will also have outreaching effects on the viscera, as well as the vascular, and nervous system. By applying an in-depth understanding of anatomy the Manual Osteopathic Practitioner holds a very clear, yet ever growing, understanding of how these elements of the body connect and effect one another.
After your initial assessment and treatment you practitioner will discuss a plan with you for future treatments and self-care.
Do you still have questions?
I’d be more than happy to answer any question you have about how Manual Osteopathy can help you via a complementary 15 minute phone consult.