Osteopathy | From Its Origins to the Biodynamic Vision

In an increasingly fragmented world, osteopathy – a healthcare approach that works with the body’s natural capacity to heal – reminds us that our body is not a collection of separate parts, but a living, interconnected, and profoundly wise organism. This integrative vision, which began to take shape in the 19th century, is rooted in universal principles that have accompanied humanity since ancient times. These principles are unity, vital force, and the body’s innate capacity for self-regulation.

Andrew Taylor Still: The Founder of Osteopathy

Osteopathy was officially born in 1874, when the American physician Andrew Taylor Still (1828-1917) proclaimed a new way of understanding health. After the painful loss of several of his children to illnesses that conventional medicine of the time could not treat, Still began searching for a more coherent, respectful, and profound approach to caring for human beings. His vision did not focus on symptoms, but on causes. He observed that when the body is free from structural, functional, and energetic restrictions, it is capable of self-regulating, healing, and returning to health on its own. This was a significantly advanced perspective for his time – one that would forever change the way the body is understood and worked with.

The founding principles established by Still remain living pillars of osteopathic practice today:

• The unity of the body | We are not separate parts but an indivisible organism in which structure and function are interrelated. This means that pain or dysfunction in one area can influence the whole, and true healing requires looking at the person as a complete system.

• Self-healing | The body has innate intelligence capable of restoring balance when given the right conditions. This principle shifts the focus from “fighting disease” to supporting the body’s natural ability to heal itself.

• The structure-function relationship | Every physical or emotional tension impacts the body, and every structural adjustment influences overall well-being. This reveals how posture, injuries, or restrictions are not just local problems but can affect digestion, breathing, mood, and overall health.

• The supremacy of circulation | The free flow of blood, lymph, nerve impulses, and energy is essential for sustaining life and health. When circulation is free, tissues are nourished and waste is removed; when it is restricted, illness and dysfunction can take root.

Over the past 18 years working as a therapist, I have witnessed how the principle of wholeness manifests within the human body. After an osteopathic session, the body naturally finds a new balance through the homeostasis (inner balance) of all systems. Time and again, I have observed how treating the diaphragm (the breathing muscle under the lungs) can release deep tensions, alleviating anxiety and depression as well as improving digestive function.

What fascinates me most though is the body’s innate memory and wisdom to heal itself. Patients are often surprised when they come in with a specific complaint, yet the therapeutic plan involves addressing structures far from the site of pain or dysfunction. Gradually, they begin to understand the profound interconnection of the systems that sustain and organize health. For instance, migraines are often treated through the bone at the base of the spine (sacrum) due to its structural relationship with the back of the skull (occiput). These two structures are analogous and move in synchrony during Primary Respiration (explained further).

William Garner Sutherland: The Cranial Revolution

At the end of the 19th century, one of Still’s most brilliant students, William Garner Sutherland (1873–1954), profoundly transformed the osteopathic vision. While still a student at the school founded by Still, Sutherland noticed that the bones of the skull seemed designed to move, even though conventional anatomy considered them to be fixed structures in adults. This intuition led him into years of research and self-experimentation, until he concluded that within the craniosacral system – the subtle network formed by the skull (cranium), spine, the bone at the base of the spine that connects the spine to the pelvis (sacrum), membranes, and cerebrospinal fluid – there exists a subtle, involuntary movement, which he called the Primary Respiratory Motion (PRM). PRM is a deep rhythm that drives life force through the fluids of the central nervous system, the skull, and the sacrum. It is like a gentle inner tide similar to the ebb and flow of the ocean that continuously nourishes and organises the body from within. It is subtle, yet vital to life.

Sutherland's Key Contributions

Over the course of his life, Sutherland made several discoveries that profoundly expanded osteopathy. Among them, three stand out as the pillars of his legacy:

• Cranial Osteopathy | Sutherland demonstrated that the skull is not a rigid shell but has its own subtle mobility, closely connected to the central nervous system, the cerebrospinal fluid (the clear fluid that surrounds and cushions the brain and spinal cord), and the meningeal membranes (the protective layers covering them). What made this discovery so groundbreaking was that osteopaths could perceive this delicate movement directly with their hands. Through sensitive and trained touch, they could follow and support the rhythm, helping to restore balance, improve circulation, and stimulate the body’s deepest healing processes. This opened an entirely new field called the Cranial Osteopathy which later evolved into Biodynamic Osteopathy.

• Primary Respiration | Building on his discovery of PRM, Sutherland recognised this inner tide as far more than a physiological curiosity – it was a primary expression of life itself. He showed that this rhythm could be sensed with trained hands and used as a guide to the body’s state of health. By uncovering this dimension, he shifted osteopathy from being mainly a mechanical practice to becoming a living, energetic, and self-regulating process.

• The 'Breath of Life' | Beyond anatomy and physiology, Sutherland described what he called the Breath of Life: an intelligent force that animates and organises the body from within. For him, this was more than a metaphor; it was a living presence, at once biological and spiritual, that could be sensed through deep stillness and trained hands. The osteopath’s role was not to “fix” the body, but to listen and create the conditions in which this inherent intelligence could express itself freely.

Together, these discoveries transformed the field of osteopathy. Sutherland evolved from a mechanical perspective to a biodynamic vision where the body was no longer something to ‘fix’, but a field of expression of inherent intelligence. In developing this biodynamic vision, he expanded osteopathy into a living practice that embraced rhythm, vitality, and the intelligent force that organises life from within – laying the foundation for Biodynamic Osteopathy.

From Mechanics to Biodynamics: Becker and Jealous

Sutherland’s direct disciples expanded his legacy even further, carrying osteopathy beyond its origins into a biodynamic vision. Rollin Becker (1916–1996), one of Sutherland’s closest students, deepened the concept of dynamic stillness – a state in which the practitioner becomes profoundly quiet and attentive, allowing them to sense the body’s inner rhythms with presence and respect. He used no instruments: his only tools were his trained hands and his cultivated capacity to listen. This shift was significant because it showed that healing could arise not from force or correction, but from creating the conditions in which the body’s own intelligence reorganises itself.

James Jealous (1936–2014), an osteopathic physician, structured Biodynamic Cranial Osteopathy into a coherent path of learning, which he transmitted in progressive phases and spread worldwide. His approach was profoundly spiritual and humble: the osteopath does not impose change but instead witnesses, listens, and accompanies. In practice, this might look like the practitioner resting gentle hands on the head or sacrum, waiting in stillness as the body expresses its rhythms. From this quiet presence, tensions often release, balance returns, and many patients describe experiencing deep calm, renewal, and even life-changing shifts. From stillness, the body reorganizes; from silence, life expresses itself.

Biodynamic Osteopathy Today

The evolution from Still’s principles, through Sutherland’s discoveries and the teachings of Becker and Jealous, has unfolded into what is now known as Biodynamic Osteopathy. This approach rests on a simple yet profound premise: the human body carries its own innate wisdom, capable of self-regulation and regeneration when the right conditions are created. It is not an isolated mechanism, but a living system connected to the universe through an energetic field, and organised by a midline that structures the whole system.

At birth, a vital impulse (ignition) is activated in the third cranial ventricle (a cavity deep in the brain that produces and circulates cerebrospinal fluid), providing the energy for each organ to take shape and function. When this process does not fully occur – for example, due to caesarean section or physical trauma – a person may live with reduced vitality, as if functioning at half capacity. Biodynamic Osteopathy helps restore this ignition, bringing balance, energy, and clarity.

When to Seek Biodynamic Osteopathy

Biodynamic Osteopathy can be especially valuable when the body shows signs of an inactive or dysfunctional ignition. Common indicators include lack of energy and vitality, persistent fatigue (even after rest), the need for unusually prolonged sleep, a perception that life is a constant struggle and everything requires an effort, and immature bodily systems or their incomplete development. When ignition is restored, people often experience greater vitality, clarity, and profound changes in their life. It is as if the body remembers its original design and begins to unfold its full potential.

How Biodynamic Osteopathy Supports Healing and Vitality

The effects of Biodynamic Osteopathy can be wide-ranging, touching not only the body but also the mind and emotions. Some of the most common benefits include:

• Regulation of the nervous system | Reducing stress, anxiety, and insomnia while promoting deep relaxation and mental clarity.
  

• Physical relief | Decreasing pain and tension, improving posture and mobility, and supporting healthy digestion, breathing, and hormonal balance.
  

• Support for vital processes | Accompanying pregnancy, postpartum, and childhood development; integrating traumas from conception, gestation, and birth; and restoring ignition for renewed vitality. It also facilitates transgenerational integration.
  

• Emotional and psychosomatic balance | Helping release stored memories, bringing coherence, fostering calm and resilience, and offering support in times of trauma or grief.
  

• Prevention and global health | Strengthening the immune system, stimulating the body’s natural self-regulation and regeneration, and promoting overall vitality and balance.

Biodynamic Osteopathy is intended for people with acute or chronic symptoms, as well as for anyone seeking prevention, greater balance, or a deeper connection with themselves.

In my own practice, I have witnessed countless transformations from illness to balance. One particular case deeply impressed me: A 32-year-old woman came to my practice suffering from migraines, insomnia and back pain. During my assessment of her situation, I observed that she had not taken her first breath at birth and that the ignition of the third ventricle wasn't active. In the session, she relived the moment of her birth: she took her first breath, and the ignition of the midline was activated. When she returned a month later, she was a completely different person. Her back pain had disappeared, she was sleeping normally again, and her migraines had almost vanished. She had even changed jobs, renewed her personal style, and recovered a surprising sense of vitality. Seven years later, she continues to enjoy health, balance, and restful sleep.

Also, I have seen patients recover energy after chronic fatigue, and find relief from persistent back and neck pain. I have supported mothers through pregnancy and postpartum, and helped newborns overcome difficulties with feeding and settling. Others have experienced a release of long-held grief or anxiety, describing a new sense of calm and clarity – sometimes after only a handful of sessions. These experiences show how, when the body’s innate intelligence is given space, remarkable changes can unfold.

What to Take Away

Biodynamic Osteopathy invites us to see health in a new light. It is not only about easing pain or treating symptoms, but about awakening the body’s own intelligence – the force that organises, heals, and sustains life from within. When this force is given the right conditions, vitality can return, balance can be restored, and even hidden potentials may unfold.

For you, whether you are a patient or a curious seeker, this means that there is nothing to lose and much to gain. You may come with symptoms or simply a desire for deeper balance; in every case, this approach offers the possibility of discovering a part of yourself you may not yet know – a quiet strength, a clearer vitality, a fuller expression of life.

True health is the full expression of life within you – and Biodynamic Osteopathy is here to support you in unfolding it.