Human osteopathy was founded by Andrew Taylor Still in 1874 in Kirksville, MO. The first State to recognize osteopathy was Vermont in 1896, recognized by 38 States by 1924, but not by all 50 States until 1973. A.T. Still worked tirelessly throughout his lifetime to bring osteopathy to the forefront of healing and to establish it on the same footing as traditional medicine.

Find it, fix it, and leave it alone. Let nature do the rest.
- A.T. Still

In 1892, A.T. Still defined osteopathy as “the scientific knowledge of anatomy and physiology, applied through the trained and experienced hands of the therapist to help the suffering patient after strain, overstrain, shock, mechanical disorders, and wounds.” However, in his search to define it (which he felt was incredibly hard to quantify osteopathy) he changed it to: “Osteopathy is a system of engineering of the whole human body, that keeps the communication with the brain open, and prevents all possible blood and liquid stasis”. By many it has been called an “art form”, a “philosophy”, and a “science”.

A.T. Still was quite a profound man and thinker. He brought God into all of his osteopathic thinking, asking at one time: “Is God an Architect? If so, why not be governed by the plan, specification, building and engineering of that Architect in our work as healers? When we conform to and work by the laws and specifications of this Architect, we get the results required. This is the foundation stone on which Osteopathy stands.”

A.T. Still was the son of a Methodist minister and had strong relationships with many Shawnee Indians. Both these things influenced his thinking and he interchanged God and Nature often. He was well known for his profound quotes. Here are a few:

“I quote no authors but God and experience.”
“I am simply trying to teach you what you are; to get you to realize your right to health, and when you see the cures wrought here, after all other means have failed, you can but know that the foundation of my work is laid on nature’s rock.”
“Osteopathy is to me a very sacred science. It is sacred because it is a healing power through all nature.”
“Health is Nature.”
“Osteopaths are the champions of natural law...”
“Health holds dominion over the body by laws as immutable as the laws of gravity.”

The Four Principles of Osteopathy

The unity of the whole body: in health as well as in illness. If illness is present, it will endure the result of it throughout the entire body.
The reciprocal relation between structure and function: structure = anatomy and function = physiology. Disturbed structure leads to disturbed function and disturbed function leads to disturbed structure.
The principle of auto-correction: the body has the natural ability to self-heal and will if given the right chance for optimal health.
The rule of the artery: a disturbed artery marks the beginning when disease sows the seeds of destruction in the body.

These principles were established by A.T. Still and all osteopathy should be based on these principles or pillars. Present day osteopathy in the USA is unfortunately not based on these principles and osteopathic medicine is substantially similar to traditional medicine. Equine osteopathy is striving to not follow that same path.

History of Osteopathy