Andrew Taylor Still
Andrew Taylor Still (1828-1917), the founder of osteopathy, was a medical doctor in America’s Midwest.
After witnessing many deaths while serving as a surgeon in the Civil War, then losing three of his children to spinal meningitis, Still became disillusioned with western medicine. Seeking to find a better way to help his patients he set about looking for the causes of disease, rather than trying to treat the symptoms with drugs.
Still firmly believed that the body was always trying to express perfect health and that given the right conditions it would heal itself. To do this he believed the body and its cells needed both good nutrient supply and waste removal.
Building on his thorough knowledge of anatomy and physiology he cultivated his sense of touch. Over years he developed techniques to ease soft tissue strain and realign the body mechanically. In doing so he discovered this allowed unimpeded blood supply, nerve supply and lymphatic drainage. When the body was in this balanced state, it had the resources available to it to fight disease and discomfort. Still had found a way to treat and prevent a multitude of conditions and his reputation as a healer soon grew.
In 1892 he founded the first school of osteopathy in Kirksville, Missouri. Over the next 25 years he trained over 6000 osteopaths. Today there are osteopathic schools in many different parts of the world including North America, Europe, Australasia and Russia.
Last updated: December 28, 2009