Interest in health is expanding, particularly regarding safe, drugless treatments that improve our experience of our lives and ourselves. Massage is an ancient form of healing, and was probably one of the earliest used in humanity’s quest for wellness. When it comes to Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork, the 21st century offers such a wide range of modalities that it can be exciting and also a challenge finding out what works for each of us.

Craniosacral Therapy is a type of bodywork. The craniosacral rhythm is a wavelike movement of body fluids which regulate body functions. The cerebral spinal fluid bathes the brain and spinal column and, through the nervous system, affects the entire body. When movement is full and robust without restrictions, the body can function at its highest ability. The efficient functioning of the body’s regulatory systems plays a major role in overall health.

Craniaosacral Therapy research, theory, and practice emerged in the late 1800s. Dr. William Sutherland, a student of Dr. Andrew Still, founder of Osteopathy, devoted years to studying the craniosacral mechanism. In the 1970s, another osteopath, John Upledger, led an interdisciplinary team at the University of Michigan that verified cranial motion. Presently there are doctors, chiropractors, and massage therapists who use this approach to enhance the natural healing abilities of the body.

Craniosacral treatments are done with the client fully clothed (unless combined with therapeutic massage. Gentle holds are often done at the lower back (sacrum) and head (cranium) and at areas of discomfort. Finding and then following subtle motions, the practitioner can access the client’s innate ability to align and heal. Rather than apply an outside force to establish resolution to presenting problems, the therapist tunes into the client’s body’s wisdom, using minimal pressure and movement, thus allowing motion to re-establish itself. In Craniosacral Therapy, the client is the teacher and the therapist is the student.

Accessing the craniosacral system can help relax physical tensions in the body and patterns of chronic stress that can develop through accidents, physical or emotional difficulties, or even surgery or medical procedures. The body’s innate ability to correct itself after injuries can be enhanced, and recovery from chronic pain patterns can occur. When the natural healing abilities of the body are energized with a therapy such as Craniosacral Therapy, the process of self-healing is enhanced.

References:
An Introduction to Craniosacral Therapy by Don Cohen, North Atlantic Books, Berkeley, CA
The Cranial Connection by Carolyn Inabinet, practical Publications, Phoenix, AZ

Click here to learn more about Diane A. Carton, RN, CMT

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