Harbour Clinic Taking care of your body because it's the only one you've got  

Cranio Sacral Therapy - Somato Emotional Release

Stephen Fallon MIAPT   

Restrictions are caused by physical or emotional traumas. For instance, neck injuries from a car accident are locked into the body. So are sports injuries, accidental falls or birth complications such as forceps deliveries. Emotional  traumas are also stored. The events are essentially "frozen" into our bodies until they are released. Somato Emotional Release is a therapeutic process that uses and expands on the principles of Cranio Sacral Therapy to help rid the mind and body of the residual effects of trauma.

The brain produces a fluid, which circulates within the head and up and down the spine. This is called cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). There is a rhythm, or pulse created by the pumping of this fluid which is much like the pulse from our  circulatory system, but much fainter. The bones throughout our bodies are in continual motion as the CSF is pumped. The cranial sacral rhythm is detected through the palpation of the bones. Each bone has its own natural movement. When a particular bone has a non-normal movement, it indicates that there is a restriction in the flow of CSF.

All the nerves in our body originate somewhere along this path from the brain down the spinal cord. If there is impedance to the flow of the CSF, then it can be felt as pain anywhere in the body. The practitioner is trained to detect tiny variations in movement as well as to perform techniques, which will free up the flow.

Outwardly, the treatment can seem very passive and uneventful. Many of the movements are imperceptible to the recipient on a conscious level. People vary in their sensitivity to their body and its sensations. Some people experience emotions, memories, physical sensations, and insights into patterns or problems in their lives. Other people feel like they've gone to sleep. It is not uncommon for people to feel exhausted a few hours after a treatment.

There are no contraindications, essentially rendering the technique useful for a wide range of conditions from acute pain to chronic conditions. CST is a gentle, hands-on method of evaluating and enhancing the functioning of a physiological body system called the craniosacral system - comprised of the membranes and cerebrospinal fluid that surround and protect the brain and spinal cord.

Using a soft touch generally no greater than 5 grams, or about the weight of a 5 cent piece, practitioners release restrictions in the craniosacral system to improve the functioning of the central nervous system and beyond, of all other body systems.


When was CranioSacral Therapy developed?  (taken from www.upledger.com)
It was in 1970, during a neck surgery in which he was assisting, that osteopathic physician John E. Upledger first observed the rhythmic movement of what would soon be identified as the craniosacral system. None of his colleagues nor any of the medical texts at the time could explain this discovery, however.

His curiosity piqued, Dr. Upledger began searching for the answer. He started with the research of Dr. William Sutherland, the father of cranial osteopathy. For some 20 years beginning in the early 1900s, Sutherland had explored the concept that the bones of the skull were structured to allow for movement. For decades after, this theory remained at odds with the beliefs of the scientific and medical communities. Dr. Upledger believed, however, that if Sutherland’s theory of cranial movement was in fact true, this would help explain, and make feasible, the existence of the rhythm he had encountered in surgery.

It was at this point that Dr. Upledger set out to scientifically confirm the existence of cranial bone motion. From 1975 to 1983 he served as clinical researcher and Professor of Biomechanics at Michigan State University, where he supervised a team of anatomists, physiologists, biophysicists and bioengineers in research and testing. The results not only confirmed Sutherland’s theory, but led to clarification of the mechanisms behind this motion — the craniosacral system. Dr. Upledger’s continued work in the field ultimately resulted in his development of CranioSacral Therapy.