What is Osteopathy anyways? Doesn’t osteo mean bones?

Yes, osteo is related to bones (osteoporosis, osteoarthritis) but in osteopathy the osteo refers to anything structural related, which includes bones, but also connective tissue, muscles, ligaments, etc.

Dr. Andrew Taylor Still was a medical doctor in the late 1800s. At that time healing options were blood letting (leeches, etc), toxic chemicals (mercury, arsenic), surgery (cutting people open to see what they could find, often with no anesthetics), or addictive substances to dull pain (opium, whiskey).

A.T. Still was a keen observer of nature and mechanically inquisitive. He had already created a number of inventions that helped him farm easier and better. He turned his attention to the anatomy of the body in search of a better way towards health.