I am a person who recommends the physio for everything. Sore muscles? Off to the physio. Clicky joints? Off to the physio. Having trouble with the neighbor’s cat? Yup, physio. Ok yes, I’m exaggerating slightly. My point though is that I have mates who recommend the chiro with the same levels of loyalty. Then you throw in an osteo, and I realise I have absolutely no idea what they even do?
So who the hell do you go to?
Physiotherapist
The focus for a physio is movement and function by using massage, exercise, stretching and hands-on manipulation fo the sore area. So typically that means you’ll visit one to get yourself back to your normal after injury or surgery, or in aid of a physical disability.
You can also turn to a physio for muscle and joint stiffness or pain, neurological disorders, occupational safety issues in your workplace and just general support as your body ages.
Chiropractor
Rather than movement issues, a chiro focuses on skeletal and joint issues. Yes, that does include manual spine adjustment which is why you immediately through of bodies cracking when I said chiro.
Typically they’ll help with back and neck pain, headaches and arthritis, but it’s recommended to visit your GP before heading straight into the chiro office.
Osteopath
As it turns out, an osteo will look at the health of your entire body as a whole, rather thany just the injured/ affected area. That means skeleton, joints, muscles, nerves, circulatory system, connective tissue and internal organs.
Just like the other two, they’ll try and balance out all these system with their hands to help with things like back pain, headaches, sporting injuries or digestive issues – but their techniques are a lot gentler in comparison.
