Doctor A.T. Stills
Dr. A.T. Still was the founder of Osteopathy.
During America’s Civil War, Doctor Still was a commissioned physician and surgeon. While treating his patients, he became disillusioned by the standard medical protocols. He concluded that medical outcomes were dismal. The use of Mercury, Leeches, and modern surgical techniques, provided little to no comfort to patients at large.
He decided that there had to be better modes of treatment, and he began to search for them.
Eventually, he developed the Osteopathic Principals that modern Osteopaths study and implement in their practices today.
Dr. Still believed that one could optimally not treat the body’s function, if its structure was deformed. He began to study the benefits of alignment. Here, when the body’s configuration is returned to a more natural position, the flow of immune cells, oxygen, and lymph fluids promote healing. When muscles are spasmed, and out of aligned joints cause pressure on the body’s systems for healing, and therefore healing is retarded.
