Soft, delicate and deep body work
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Craniosacral therapy is a gentle, delicate, and deep bodywork that restores psychosomatic balance and enhances our body’s self-healing power.
It is not a massage technique, but rather a body and emotional treatment that, through the therapist’s hands, accesses the craniosacral system, which is closely related to the nervous, musculoskeletal, vascular, endocrine, and respiratory systems. This bodywork releases the healing power within us and affects our entire being: physically and psychologically.
Some of the most commonly applied conditions for this therapy are migraine or tension headaches; back and musculoskeletal pain and problems; muscle tension; pain relief; joint problems; hearing, vision, or mouth problems; digestive problems; sinusitis and facial neuralgia; stress, anxiety, chronic fatigue; childhood trauma, hyperactive children; the after-effects of accidents; and emotional problems. A basic part of the work is the “stillpoint” techniques, revitalizing manipulations of the cranial system. They have a meditative, relaxing effect and activate the body’s self-healing powers.
A little history
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The first to discover and directly study the craniosacral rhythm at the end of the last century was Dr. W. Sutherland, a disciple of the father of osteopathy, Dr. Taylor Still (1828-1917).
Dr. Still was one of the pioneers of holistic medicine. Throughout his life, he sought to reharmonize man with nature.
His approach to healing rejected surgery and drugs, which were used only as a last resort.
He relied primarily on a system of body manipulation, which he called osteopathy, physical exercises, and lifestyle advice. He founded the first school, the American School of Osteopathy, in Kirksville, in 1892.
Dr. Sutherland (1873-1954) discovered, in the early 1900s, that the bones of the head had a certain mobility,
based on the idea that the bones of the skull are not solidly fused but rather that there is a micromovement or flexibility through the bony sutures where the bones separate.
For the next 50 years, he dedicated his life and clinical work to demonstrating and exploring the implications of this mobility for the human body.
In the later years of his life, he began to expound his most advanced theories. He presented the concept of the “breath of life” as the vital force in the human system that expresses an inherent principle of order and healing.
It can be perceived as a subtle movement or tide throughout the body, forming what he called the “primary respiratory mechanism.” He developed a system of examination and treatment that achieved very successful results.
This technique has subsequently developed extensively, following Sutherland’s early theories, leading to the subsequent biodynamic approach, following the work of researchers such as Dr. Rollin Becker, Dr. Jim Jealous, and Dr. Robert Fullford, among others, in which the entire body and mind are worked. Also noteworthy is the work developed by therapists and osteopaths Dr. Harold Magoun, Dr. John Upledger, Hugh Milne, Viola Frymann, and Bhadrena Tschumi, among others.
What is the Craniosacral system?
We are all familiar with respiratory and cardiac rhythms, but not with the cranial rhythm. By placing their hands on different parts of the body, the Craniosacral therapist has learned to feel and interpret this rhythm, which is more subtle and at the core of the body. This rhythm, also called the primary respiratory mechanism (PRM), consists of wave-like pulsations (6 to 12 waves per minute) caused by the rhythmic production and reabsorption of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). This clear, colorless fluid is produced in the ventricles of the brain by filtration and secretion from the capillary networks (called choroid plexuses) and circulates through the dural membrane, which internally surrounds the bones of the head, descending through the spinal cord to the sacrum and returning again through the spinal cord to the brain, where it is gradually reabsorbed by the venous system.
This is why the bones of the head and sacrum experience a small amount of movement and acquire a degree of flexibility, allowing for a rhythm of expansion and contraction that affects all organs and tissues in the body.
The craniosacral therapist has learned to read and interpret the rhythm in different parts of the body, receiving information about possible imbalances and fulcrums of inertia in the system.
When certain regions or parts of the body do not move rhythmically in response to the flexion-extension rhythm of the system (the movement is extremely subtle), we can identify these areas as problematic areas of the body. These dysfunctions affect the rhythm, which is located at the center of our body and has a significant influence on various bodily functions.
Fascia, or soft connective tissue, which is attached to the bones that make up the craniosacral system and extends throughout the body, enveloping and protecting every structure, from cell to organ, plays an important role. When the fascia is distorted, it affects the system, and vice versa, the dysfunction of the system has a profound impact on the fascia. Sometimes we don’t know what the problem is, but we know where it is located in the body, and this is a very important principle for resolving it.
Craniosacral Therapy: Beyond Massage
As we have located the problem and the patient’s tissues begin to release to our touch, we can reach the core and, in a non-aggressive manner, unblock the pain through different types of manipulations. These, performed on the patient on a massage table, range from working on important physiological and energetic points in the body (sacrococcygeal complex, solar plexus, thoracic cavity, neck) to subtle manipulations with the bones of the head that unblock and restore movement.
Stretching and sustained pressure, positioning and untwisting techniques that help the body release, and some direct decompression techniques are also used. In reality, the therapist does not impose anything on the person’s body, but rather assists the body’s self-correcting power.
That is why, in the United States, craniosacral therapists are called facilitators. This is also the reason why this gentle yet effective therapy is safe and suitable for people of all ages. From adults to children and infants, as well as after surgery or in fragile conditions, it complements medical or psychological treatment. As a comprehensive therapy for the body, therapy can help in almost any situation. If there is no specific pathology, therapy helps us eliminate tension and blockages and live life more fully, increasing the body’s vitality.
Article published by Alberto Panizo in the magazine CuerpoMente