Osteopathic Philosophy - Dr Still

Lectures and Courses

Osteopaths Only

All these lectures and courses are grounded within osteopathic philosophy and history and should not be confused with the analytical-reductionist-empirical medical model that is dominating osteopathy today. I make no excuses for presenting an osteopathic approach that is referenced throughout.

Osteopathic Philosophy and History  |  Osteopathic Psychology
Osteopathic Paediatrics  |  Osteopathic Paediatrics Regional
The Cranial Vertebrae  |   Palpation Master Class  |  Athletic Health Care

OSTEOPATHIC PHILOSOPHY AND HISTORY

These lectures and courses last 2 hours, 4 hours, 6 hours, 8 hours, 1 day, 2 days and 3 days, depending on your needs. This will be a PowerPoint presentation with handouts and practical workshop. Topics may vary as new information is discovered.

Andrew Taylor Still called, “osteopathy a philosophy, not a treatment.” Here I will present the only lecture and course in the world on osteopathic philosophy. This presentation places osteopathy in the context of philosophy and the philosophy of nineteenth century science. No philosophy, no osteopathy.

Topics include:
Development of science Celestial dynamics and terrestrial mechanics Astronomy Cartesian science Development of American philosophy German-Americans Goethean science Naturwissenschaften The Transcendentalists The Metaphysical Club		The Twilight Club Pragmatism The American Civil War Astronomy in nineteenth century America A. T. Still the astronomer Celestial dynamics and terrestrial mechanics Polarity and reciprocity Magnetism and polarity Biogen: an interpretation Dynamic morphology and bone Osteopathic psychology

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OSTEOPATHIC PSYCHOLOGY

Osteopathy had its own psychology which was first officially taught at the American School of Osteopathy around 1896-7 by John Martin Littlejohn. These lectures were published in 1899. It is from these lectures that this course takes its core understanding. It also includes the work of William James a staunch supporter of osteopathy and Arthur Hildreth, DO and Andrew Salter the psychologist famous for his opening line in Conditioned Reflex Therapy, “It is high time that psychoanalysis, like the elephant of fable, dragged itself off to some distant jungle graveyard and died.”

These lectures and courses last 2 hours, 4 hours, 6 hours, 8 hours, 1 day, 2 days and 3 days, depending on your needs. This will be a PowerPoint presentation with handouts and practical workshop. Topics may vary as new information is discovered.

Topics include:
Plato’s two worlds Aristotle’s two-fold world Cartesian philosophy and science Roots of mind-body separation Foundations of Neuroscience in philosophy Origin of mind Psychosomatics The mind myth Goethean philosophy and science Origins of German experimental psychology Pavlovian conditioning Operant conditioning Osteopathic psycho-physiology Alcoholism Trauma Anger		The nervous system The reflex arch Neuro-hormonal system Stress and stress management Perception Intuition Language Pain Depression Anxiety Confidence Weight loss Stopping smoking Motivation Manipulative approach to emotional problems

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OSTEOPATHIC PAEDIATRICS

Osteopathic paediatrics requires an understanding based on constant change. The objective of osteopathic paediatrics is to remove all possible obstructions to the full physical, emotional and social development of the babies, child and young adults. Unfortunately it is presently dominated by a group of osteopaths who mistakenly believe that babies are composed around their craniums. This was not the case at the end of the nineteenth century where a sick child was treated as whole child.

These lectures and courses last 2 hours, 4 hours, 6 hours, 8 hours, 1 day, 2 days and 3 days, depending on your needs. This will be a PowerPoint presentation with handouts and practical workshop. Topics may vary as new information is discovered.

Topics include:
Philosophy Principles General introduction to osteopathic paediatrics Embryology Dynamic morphology Three-foldness principle Morphology Body and dental development Foetal positioning First three months Examination of the New Born Primitive reflexes Case history Immunisation Manipulative approach to health and illness		Anatomy and physiology Growth and development Psychology of toddler and Preschool years Accidents and Emergencies Dermatology Orthopaedics Neurology Otitis media (glue ear) Infantile colic Common illnesses Common acute illnesses Psychological development Listening and communication

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OSTEOPATHIC PAEDIATRICS REGIONAL

These lectures last 2 hours, 4 hours, depending on your needs. This will be a PowerPoint presentation with handouts and practical workshop. Topics may vary as new information is discovered and all presentations include regional and contextual anatomy, physiology, pathology, and palpation.

1. Eyes, Ears, Nose and Throat		2. Respiratory Tract
Clinical methods and examination Epicanthus Sty Conjunctivitis of the Newborn Strabismus Corneal Inflammation Orbital & periorbital cellulitis Glaucoma Hearing and deafness Otitis externa Secretory (serous) otitis media Perforated eardrum Mastoiditis Common cold Recurrent rhinitis Epitaxis Tonsillitis Acute cervical adenitis		Clinical methods and examination Airway obstruction Foreign body aspiration Croup syndrome Bronchitis Acute bronchiolitis Pneumonia Pleurisy Pneumothorax Pulmonary oedema Tuberculosis BCG vaccination
3. Gastrointestinal Tract		4. Bones and Joints
Clinical methods and examination Anorexia Abdominal pain Vomiting “Colic” Diarrhoea Constipation Ulcerative colitis Regional enteritis (Crohn’s disease) Liver Hepatomegaly Malabsorption syndromes Inguinal hernia Achalasia Chalasia Hiatal hernia Pyloric stenosis Meckel’s Diverticulum Intussuseption Congenital Megacolon (Hirschsprung’s Disease) Anorectal malformations Appendicitis		Clinical methods and examination Osteomyelitis Pyogenic arthritis Caffey-Smyth-Roske syndrome (infantile cortical hyperostosis) Hypervitaminosis A Congenital dysplasia of the hip Cox vara Osteochondrosis Transient synovitis of the hip The Combined Defects Flat foot Talipes Cavus foot Shoes
5. Neuromuscular Disorders		6. Heart
Clinical methods and examination Hydrocephalus Myelodysplasia (Spina Bifida) Craniosynostosis Degenerative disease Cerebral palsy Subarachnoid haemorrhage Subdural haematoma Extradural haematoma Poisoning Chorea Reye’s syndrome Febrile convulsions Epilepsy Mental retardation Muscular dystrophies Myasthenia Gravis Torticollis Palpation and treatment		Clinical methods and examination Congenital heart disease Cyanosis Rheumatic heart disease Subacute infective endocarditis Cardiac enlargement in newborn infants Myocarditis Myocardial failure Paroxysmal tachycardia Atrial fibrillation Hypertension Evaluation for sports
7. Emotion and Behaviour		8. Growth and Development
Clinical methods and examination ADHD Aggression Anger Anxiety Asperger’s Syndrome Autism Bipolar disorder Eating disorders Palpation and treatment		First month Assessment of gestational age of newborn One month to one year Normal development Understanding growth charts Motor and social Failure to thrive Abnormal development Screening Stature Causes of short stature One to five years Nutrition Neurodevelopmental evaluation Five to sixteen years old
9. Acute and Symptomatic		10. Anatomy and Physiology
Clinical methods and examination Fever Faints and fits Headaches Earache Sore throat Cough and wheeze Lethargy Rashes and itches Vomiting Constipation Diarrhoea Encopresis Abdominal pain Abdominal distension Jaundice Haematuria Dysuria Enuresis Myoskeletal First aid		Myoskeletal system Nervous system Cardiorespiratory systems Renal system Digestive system Reproductive system Immune system

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THE CRANIAL VERTEBRAE

“All is vertebrae” Goethe

It was Charlotte Weaver who was challenged by Dr. Still to extend osteopathic principles to the skull and its relationship to the rest of the body (JAOA/25 Spring 2001). This lecture and course covers the findings of Dr. Weaver and the holistic context under which her discovery was made. Weaver’s work made and still makes more sense than the non-organic reductionist-mechanical approach of Sutherland and Magoun.

These lectures and courses last 2 hours, 4 hours, 6 hours, 8 hours, 1 day, 2 days and 3 days, depending on your needs. This will be a PowerPoint presentation with handouts and practical workshop. Topics may vary as new information is discovered.

Topics will include:
Philosophy Principles The principle of three-foldness (Goethe) The three-fold embryo Morphology Human Embryology and Morphology (based on Sir Arthur Keith) Embryological development Three-fold anatomy Anatomy of head and relation to body as a whole The Basicranium		The Intracranium Lesionability of the Basicranium Obstetrical Lesioning of the Base Traumatisation of the Plastic Basicranium The cranial vertebrae The autonomic nervous system Upper cervical Lesions (Louisa Burns) Practice Modes of consciousness Palpation Lesions & treatment

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PALPATION MASTER CLASS

Undergraduate osteopathic palpation is taught and executed in a reductionist-empirical manner. The true heir to the original osteopathic palpation is a phenomenological approach based on lived experience. Being with an understanding of the Cartesian, Empiricist and Rationalist approach we move towards the Goethean, Phenomenological and participatory approach.

These lectures and courses last 2 hours, 4 hours, 6 hours, 8 hours, 1 day, 2 days and 3 days, depending on your needs. This will be a PowerPoint presentation with handouts and practical workshop. Topics may vary as new information is discovered.

Topics will include:
Cartesian science Objective-subjective Cartesian geometrisation and the body Psychosomatics The Empiricists: Locke, Berkeley and Hume Rationalist approach Sense datum Qualia Percept theory Perception John Dewey William James Pedagogy Phenomenology: Husserl, Gadamer, Merleau-Ponty, Bergson Intentionality Modes of consciousness		Problems of perception Illusion Myth of objective palpation Myth of objectivity The soma Goethean science Osteopathic philosophy Celestial dynamics and terrestrial mechanics Biogen: Rule of the artery supreme Pragmatism “Upstream” and “downstream” thinking Contextualism Palpation Participation Reaction of the body Palpator as environment

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ATHLETIC HEALTH CARE

The role of the osteopath in sports medicine has never been in so much demand. Unfortunately courses in athletic health care have not recognised the correct role for the osteopath.

These lectures and courses last 2 hours, 4 hours, 6 hours, 8 hours, 1 day, 2 days and 3 days, depending on your needs. This will be a PowerPoint presentation with handouts and practical workshop. Topics may vary as new information is discovered.

Topics will include:
Topics include: Cartesian science Objective-subjective Cartesian geometrisation and the body Biomechanics Goethean science The non-Cartesian athlete Psychology Motivation Imagination Arousal Nutrition and fluids Prevention Basic pharmacology Neuroendocrine response to trauma First aid and the acute athlete Wound care Environmental considerations		Manipulative sports medicine Heat and cold illness Athletic taping Ice and heat modalities Tissue dysfunction Fractures X-rays and tests Joint, Neural and Vascular dysfunction Health screening Young athlete evaluation Game day preparation and organisation Regional dysfunction: The head Shoulder and upper extremity Thorax and abdomen (urogenital) Spine (back) Pelvis and lower extremity

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