Cranial Sacral Therapy

How it could benefit your health and wellness. By Susan Hoffman.

There are occasions in our lives when many of us require adjunct therapy to whatever ails us. Cranial sacral therapy, like so many alternative options for health and wellbeing, is often a therapy that can be combined with other medical interventions.

This treatment modality has been very effective in helping people who suffer from migraine headaches, chronic pain, chronic fatigue syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder, post- surgical recovery, TMJ, learning disabilities, stress-related issues, and even trauma.

Dr. John E. Upledger, an osteopathic physician and the founder of cranial sacral therapy,

developed this treatment at Michigan State University. While serving as a professor of biomechanics, he first discovered the rhythmic movement of the craniosacral system. Subsequently, after years of research and clinical testing, Dr. Upledger developed a treatment modality that has since been able to help millions of people.

Since then, almost 38,000 practitioners have been trained to administer craniosacral therapy. Typically this type of therapy is administered by osteopaths, medical doctors, chiropractors, physical therapists, and acupuncturists. Most commonly, cranial sacral therapy has become part and parcel of the work that massage therapists typically offer their clients.

Typically a craniosacral session can be a one to two hour session as the practitioner uses gentle finger pressure. As a patient you are fully clothed during the treatment, and the practitioner uses very light touch to selected points around the head, torso, knees and feet. The therapist monitors the rhythm of the craniosacral system to evaluate potential restrictions and imbalances.

During the session, there is no bone manipulation or forceful touch. The goal of cranial sacral therapy is to improve the functioning of the central nervous system while enhancing the client’s own natural healing mechanisms in order to to reduce negative effects of stress.

Still many people wonder how or why cranial sacral assists in healing. The general belief that is taught in medical school is that skull bones fuse during infancy and are firmly fixed by adulthood. However, craniosacral practitioners believe that the cranial sutures have movement and are not firmly fixed. Since the cerebrospinal fluid rhythmically pulses, skull bones need to be slightly moving continuously to accommodate the cerebrospinal fluid input and outflow.

Though the rhythmic impulses may be very subtle, they can be palpated by trained and sensitive hands. Those who perform this therapy are able to assess the wave-like motion in places where the craniosacral membrane attaches to bones. Areas like the tailbone, skull, and sacrum benefit from this therapy because blockages are removed with very light adjustments.

As with any treatments, whether mainstream or alternative, it is important to gather information to help educate you in making a choice and to obtain references for a particular practitioner. You can find more information from Craniosacral Therapy Association of North America, International Association of Healthcare Practitioners or the Upledger Institute and a couple of websites listed below.

Some people have said craniosacral therapy was a miracle for them because their pain was relieved, their mobility improved, or emotional disorders diminished. The goal most of us aspire to is for overall health, resistance to disease, and physical and mental well- being. How we achieve this is our option and our choice.

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