Osteopathy 101 – get to know Gary Choi of MO+ and why this style of therapy could just be the thing to get your body into gear!
Around Sydney’s eastern suburbs, MO+ co-founder and resident osteopath, Gary Choi needs no introduction. A practitioner of manual therapies for more than 20 years, Gary first started in the field of therapeutic massage, before shifting his focus toward osteopathy - it was here that he discovered his true passion. Gary has been a practising osteopath for more than 15 years and, as the practice gains more and more mainstream momentum - with many benefiting from this style of treatment - Gary has fast become the ‘go-to’ therapist for many in and around the Bondi area.
A father and self-confessed fitness enthusiast, Gary knows firsthand how valuable osteopathic treatments are for both sports and occupational related injuries. Having worked with many athletes, either to improve performance or overcome injury setbacks, Gary sees the power of osteopathy in returning his clients back to strong physical health within a matter of treatments. Co-founding MO+ with sister, Barbara Choy, Gary has been pivotal to the clinics overall success and growth over the past 12 years. Known for his genuine care and investment in the health and well-being of his patients, we got the ‘Osteopathy 101’ from the man himself:
Tell us a little bit about yourself away from the world of MO+?
I’m a dad and a husband, first and foremost. My life is centred around my kids. I spend a lot of time with my family when I’m not in the clinic. I do a lot of sports and over the last 10 years I have been doing dragon-boating and for the last couple of years I have been club president. Essentially, however, I am a dad – when I leave here [the clinic], I am a dad.
You have been practising osteopathy for 17 years – for those that aren’t as familiar with the practice, how would you describe osteopathy and what you do?
It’s a tool that restores and decreases pain through the treatment of structure and function. Basically, if someone comes in with pain, we use a number of techniques that assist the body to work better. Pain is one thing that people understand – people just want pain to go away. I will speak to them about the things they do – outside in their social life or in their work environment – and that’s where a lot of those issues tend to arise, whether it be from repetitive jobs or even an injury they have developed at the gym. Osteopathy is about assessing these and from there, restoring movement back into the body.
Where did your interest in the practice arise?
About 22 years ago I came across osteo almost by pure accident. My brother in law was an osteo and I wasn’t working at the time. I began assisting him in his clinic and over the two years, I came to really enjoy what I was doing. He then suggested I go and do the course to become an osteo. Six and a half years later, when I graduated, I worked with him for a couple of years, before opening a practice in Surry Hills. During that time, Barbara started speaking to me about the idea of finding a space – which is now MO+ - and from there the business began to grow into what it is today.
What do you find your clients come to you for the most?
It’s very broad, but also very seasonal. If we are to split the seasons up into two – summer and winter – that’s when you start to see issues. Summer issues tend to be more acute because people are active again, getting back into the gym or playing sports with their kids. In Winter, arthritic issues tend to arise more. Things like osteoarthritis & rheumatoid arthritis tend to flare up in the cold. The lack of mobility during the winter, for many people, really exacerbates these issues. Another key thing I am seeing driving more and more complications is how much time we spend on our devices. I am starting to treat a lot of people for headaches, upper back-pain and neck pain. I also frequently see pregnant women – they will come and see me right up until their due date. Through the first couple of trimesters, I will generally see pregnant women for hormonal related issues – mostly headaches. Through the second trimester, as the baby grows, many women start to suffer from small biomechanical issues – particularly around the lower back and the hips. The third trimester is when my patients become a lot bigger and then I am just treating symptomatically – things like hip problems because feet are starting to turn out and the pelvis is starting to open up. Also, during this period, breasts can get a lot larger so many women experience mid-back pain, particularly around when the bra strap sits and headaches may reoccur through this period, more from posture being thrown out.
For a first-time patient, what can they expect from that initial consultation?
In a first treatment, we will go through a history - I will ask questions about the pain they are experiencing and where it’s located, when it arose, what type of pain is it, what does it feel like for them. I will then look at their history of injuries and will also attempt to understand their social and environmental background - what might they do on weekends, do they play sport, is their work primarily at a desk in front of a computer? Once I have a good understanding of each of these elements, I will do a total scan of the body before moving into a treatment. While I can generally look at someone and see what is happening, having that clear picture of their history really aids in giving them the best possible treatment and outcome.
How do you overcome stigma and fears that people have around having their bodies manipulated and “cracked”?
Quite simply, some people just don’t like having their bodies cracked and that’s ok. I would never try and force someone to have it if they felt really uncomfortable about it. The best way to decrease someone’s fear is to not do it, and then to introduce it slowly by possibly cracking areas of the body that are not so intrusive. If a patient, with a little fear, does want to start, we start small - the lower back is actually a great place to begin. People are quite fearful because they have seen something negative in the media, or they may have even had a bad experience themselves. Depending on their experience, some people are a flat out no, others are happy to slowly be re-introduced to it and we just start small, that’s all it is.
Do you see osteopathy as having impacts, outside of physical, to the clients emotional and mental health?
Every case has an emotional attachment to it, in one form or another. Take chronic pain as an example. Chronic pain has a huge effect on the development of depression. Those suffering from chronic pain often don’t know how to resolve, or ease, their pain and have been suffering for years and years and years - dealing with it every day. This does create stress and, ultimately, can result in some level of depression. In clinic, the people I see who are dealing with chronic pain will often also experience some psychological aspect as a by-product of their physical pain. In some instances, it’s hard to know what comes first – the emotional or the physical. I spend a lot of time with my patients and in some cases, when I look at their bodies, I can’t see any physical issues. They may just need someone to talk to. They come in and they are happy to just talk and have their body worked on a little bit, and they leave feeling a lot better. I would say that almost everyone has that physical and emotional element playing into why they come to see me.