Back to Home Page Craniosacral Therapy relies on the practitioner using the gentlest of touch in order to assess the subtle motion inherent in all the bodies tissues. Every condition affecting a person influences these movements.
There is much debate as to what causes the rhythm and why it is there but it appears to be a movement of a very primitive or basic level of body function and reflects the health of the whole person.
This cyclical expansion and contraction of all the tissues of the body, which occurs 8-18 times a minute, is distinct from all other known body rhythms ( i.e. heartbeat, breathing rate) and can be felt in all parts of the body. At the core of the body the cerebrospinal fluid, which bathes and cushions the brain and spinal cord, expresses this motion in a tide-like ebb and flow: while bones, organs and other structures in the body each follow their own particular pattern of movement. The movement is of very small amplitude, therefore it takes practitioners with a very finely developed sense of touch to feel it .
In response to physical knocks or emotional stress, the body's tissues contract. Sometimes, particularly when the shock is severe or occurs within an emotional situation, the tissues stay contracted. Any stresses, strains, tensions or traumas which have been "stored" in the body in this way will restrict the body's functioning and may give rise to problems over the years. The effects may be both physical (such as backpain, migraine or digestive disorders) and emotional (such as anxiety or depression). Restrictions in the body's functioning show up in the way that craniosacral motion is expressed. The craniosacral therapist works with powerful physiological mechanisms both with tissues close to the point of contact and also deep within the central nervous system to release restrictions and restore mobility to the bodies tissue.
As well as releasing the body's tensions, this frees the energy which the body was previously using to hold itself in contraction. So one of the benefits of the therapy can be an increase in the level of energy available.
This extremely gentle therapy uses no manipulation. The therapist listens, via the hands, to what is going on in the body, and in this way both identifies and relieves pains or tensions held in the body. Craniosacral Therapy is client-led. The body will set the pace of work, so you will remain comfortable, in control and able to integrate the changes that occur.
Craniosacral therapy is most often carried out with the client lying down, fully clothed. Treatment is usually experienced as a profound relaxation which may pervade the whole person. It is generally soothing, comforting and pleasant, creating a sense of calm and well-being.
However, it is also useful in severe chronic conditions because it can address chronic patterns of physiological disturbance imprinted upon the tissues.
Craniosacral Therapy is so gentle that it is safe and suitable for people of all ages, from babies to the elderly, and also in fragile or acutely painful conditions. Indeed, it is often appropriate when other therapies may be unsafe, such as during pregnancy, after an operation, accident, fall or injury, and for young babies. As a whole body therapy, Craniosacral Therapy may aid people with almost any condition, by raising the vitality and enabling the body's own self-healing processes to be utilised.
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