What is Cranial Sacral Therapy?

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 Few structures have as much influence over the body's ability to function properly as the brain and spinal cord that make up the central nervous system. And, the central nervous system is heavily influenced by the craniosacral system - the membranes and fluid that surround, protect and nourish the brain and spinal cord.

Every day your body endures stresses and strains that it must work to compensate for. Unfortunately, these changes often cause body tissues to tighten and distort the craniosacral system. These distortions can then cause tension to form around the brain and spinal cord resulting in restrictions. This can create a barrier to the healthy performance of the central nervous system, and potentially every other system it interacts with.

Fortunately, such restrictions can be detected and corrected using simple methods of touch. With a light touch, the CST practitioner uses his or her hands to evaluate the craniosacral system by gently feeling various locations of the body to test for the ease of motion and rhythm of the cerebrospinal fluid pulsing around the brain and spinal cord. Soft-touch techniques are then used to release restrictions in any tissues influencing the craniosacral system.

By normalizing the environment around the brain and spinal cord and enhancing the body's ability to self-correct, CranioSacral Therapy is able to alleviate a wide variety of dysfunctions, from chronic pain and sports injuries to stroke and neurological impairment.

There are certain situations where application of CST would not be recommended. These include conditions where a variation and/or slight increase in intracranial pressure would cause instability. Acute aneurysm, cerebral hemorrhage or other preexisting severe bleeding disorders are examples of conditions that could be affected by small intracranial pressure changes. 

Response to CST varies from individual to individual and condition to condition. Your response is uniquely your own and can't be compared to anyone else's - even those cases that may appear to be similar to your own. The number of sessions needed varies widely - from just one up to three or more a week over the course of several weeks. 

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.

 SomatoEmotional Release™ (SER) is a therapeutic process that uses and expands on the principles of CST to help a person rid their body of the residual effects of past injuries and negative experiences. SER is based on university research conducted by osteopathic physician John E. Upledger and biophysicist Zvi Karni. Physical forces enter a person's body at the time of an accident or injury. The injured body may immediately begin dissipating these forces and the natural healing process will follow, or the physical forces imposed upon the person's body may be retained rather than dissipated. Drs. Upledger and Karni came to realize that very often the body retained the emotional energy along with the physical force, and called this localized and concentrated area that formed, an "energy cyst." Initially the body accommodates to the presence of the energy cyst, but over time the body weakens or tires of this accommodation, and can develop symptoms of pain, dysfunction, or emotional stress.

SER facilitates a gentle process for releasing tissue memory, thereby helping the person to decrease the adverse effects of past traumas. There is vast research to show that a change in physical health is accompanied by a change in mental health, and it is equally documented that the reverse is apparent. SER is a holistic mind-body somatic approach that may also assist a person in gaining insight as to how that held trauma is influencing their physical and emotional health. SER can support the person transition from dysfunction and unresolved issues towards wellness and optimal function.