The Autumn is here and many clients ask me if a Bristol Osteopath can treat football, rugby and hockey players. The answer is yes and I see many more injuries related to these sporting activities from September to December.
As an Osteopath in Bristol I’m well-placed to diagnose and treat sporting injuries, including those sustained from playing football, rugby and hockey.
An osteopathic approach means treating the whole patient.
This benefits those with sporting injuries because the diagnosis, treatment and ongoing management of any injury will look at the injured area and the whole body in a more holistic way.
There are often distant parts of the body that are affected by or causative in injuries gained while playing football, rugby and hockey. They are very physical activities.
When I qualified as an osteopath 26 years ago my first position was looking after professional sports men and women.
Mainly rugby players, but the sports injury clinic I practised in also treated footballers, hockey players and other athletes too.
So, I'm lucky now as a Bristol Osteopath to have a solid grounding and extensive experience in treating and managing sports men and women of all levels from elite athlete to novice.
Different sporting disciplines require different osteopathic approaches.
Rugby: I see the most impact injuries from rugby players, and I treat and manage injuries from both men and women rugby players in Bristol.
Rugby players can also experience non-impact based injuries to muscles, joints and ligaments. For example muscular tears and sprained ankles.
Football: There are less impact-based injuries with footballers, but I see and treat many hip, knee and ankle injuries at my Bristol osteopathic clinic.
There is also treatment for upper body and neck injuries from awkward falls.
Hockey: Due to the nature of hockey players' body position, I see and treat many low back issues and injuries.
I often treat players with knee and ankle injuries gained by playing on all-weather hockey surfaces.
My osteopathic approach for these sports will focus on the following:
Accurately diagnosing the injured area
Reviewing all body areas to ascertain other body areas affected or causative
Develop a management plan to treat the injured athlete
Treat the local area and all other parts of the body where relevant
Work with the patient to discuss recovery timescale, rehab exercises and preventative measures to minimise the same injuries happening again
Prevention is always better than cure, and is a core message I try to pass on to all athletes I treat, irrespective of whether they play football, rugby or hockey.
This article on how to prevent sporting injuries is also useful.
Check out these top tips for Bristol sport persons and athletes.
My Henleaze osteopath clinic is fully open so if you’re looking for osteopathic treatments this season for sporting injuries sustained while playing football, rugby or hockey, please read this news post to find out about the measures in place at my Henleaze osteopathy clinic for all patients.
To find out more about the full range of osteopathic treatments that I provide in Bristol, please visit here for details.