This is a common question when you are in pain or not functioning as well as you would like. Its probably the first question patients ask us. Although the repair times for damaged body tissues (eg. muscle,tendon, bone, nerves etc) is reasonably uniform, in that we have benchmarks for how long tissues take to repair. Once tissues are repaired this doesn't always mean you are pain free. Pain is complex and often can persist after tissues are repaired and can be present without (and often is) any body damage. This is why we practice using a model known as the biopyschosocial model. We wrote about the biopyschosocial model of treatment in a previous newsletter click here to read about it. So we consider all aspects of your life that may be impacting your problem. So your treatment really starts from when you leave the clinic after your consultation. Our aim is to do some manual therapy to temporarily reduce your pain and get you moving but more importantly give you the skills and knowledge to build on what we have discussed in your consultation. This comes in the form of a bit of education so you have a better idea of why your in pain or not moving well, its well known if people understand their problem better they recover quicker and have less anxiety (another driver of pain). You'll also be recommended some sort of activity or exercises to reduce pain, build strength and improve your overall function. Any exercises your are given will be achievable and hopefully enjoyable for you and can be modified at anytime.
So back to the original question, how long will it take? As we said, not easy to answer but most simple and acute cases should be sorted out in anywhere from 1 to 6 weeks. Chronic pain can be more difficult. That doesn't necessarily mean "lots" of treatment, but significant guidance from your Osteopath and just as importantly significant input from you the patient.