Craniosacral Therapy
A light-touch manual approach that enhances the body’s own natural ability to heal. It essentially helps the body release restrictions which it has been unable to overcome on its own and which in turn can impact our vital force often referred to as the immune system.
Migraines • Chronic Neck and Back Pain • Central Nervous System Disorders • Traumatic Brain and Spinal Cord injuries • Scoliosis • Emotional Difficulties • Stress and Tension-Related Problems • Fibromyalgia and other Connective Tissue Disorders • Temporomandibular Joint Syndrome (TMJ) • Neurovascular or Immune Disorders • Post-traumatic Stress Disorder • Post-Surgical Dysfunction
The origins...
Andrew Taylor Still was the founder of osteopathy and osteopathic medicine and he explored the ease of movement of bones and other structures in the body. He did not include the cranium as the cranial bones were thought to be immobile though he realised how important the cerebrospinal fluid is with regards to homeostasis. Still stated:
“A thought strikes him that the cerebrospinal fluid is one of the highest known elements that are contained in the body, and unless the brain furnishes the fluid in abundance, a disabled condition of the body will remain. He who is able to reason will see that this great river of life must be tapped and the withering field irrigated at once, or the harvest of health be forever lost”
William Garner Sutherland was a student of Still and was the first person to claim to feel a rhythmic shape change in the bones of the cranium. He then went on to apply this concept to all body tissues and named this motion as the body’s ‘Primary Respiration’ or the Breath of Life. It is this force of nature permeating our bodies that creates our vitality.
In Craniosacral therapy the practitioner can feel the subtle rhythmic fluctuations of fluid within the body and Sutherland perceived that the cerebrospinal fluid in the brain picks up the potency or life energy which is essential to health. This potency is always present in ‘our system’ and whilst our system has done its best to manage traumatic forces it can contain them in various patterns in our body-mind.
Sutherland taught his students to ‘be still and know’ and to appreciate the inherent intelligence of the client’s system in healing and to support the natural unfolding of the healing process within the system.
Treatment
Treatments take place on a massage table fully clothed in a quiet and peaceful environment encouraging relaxation. It involves a gentle touch of the practitioner’s hands taken up on the cranium (head) and sacrum (tail-bone), the feet, the trunk or any other part as required.
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A treatment will last between 45mins and 1 hour with a consultation beforehand and is generally experienced as a profound relaxation and integration of the whole person, physically, mentally and emotionally. You may be aware of releases or sensations within the body or subtle movements throughout including temperature fluctuations.
The healing process of a Craniosacral treatment will continue to evolve over a few days so it is good to be aware of any subtle changes throughout that time.
Visit www.craniosacral.co.uk for more information or www.ccst.co.uk for details of my training and further details of CST.