What is Craniosacral Therapy?

Craniosacral therapy is a gentle, non-invasive method for accessing the deeper healing resources of the body. At a fundamental level of our being, all of our tissues and bones subtly “breathe.” These “breaths” produce rhythmic motions that can be felt by the sensitive hands of the practitioner. Through stress or trauma, the rhythms may change their motions pathologically, which results in symptoms.The body has amazing methods for self-regulation and healing, and the goal of treatments is to help the body heal itself.

The Craniosacral rhythms of the body follow the anatomy of the body, mirroring the motions of the body on an energetic level. Much of Craniosacral therapy is devoted to the patterns associated with the fundamental internal movement of the body, which runs between the Cranium and the sacrum.

More visible examples of cranial motions can be understood by looking at the large joints of the body. Each joint has an anatomically proper movement, which is mirrored energetically. An elbow is a simple example. It only has two motions, flexion (arm bent) and extension (arm straight). In a healthy individual, the rhythms of the elbow should only flow through those two motions.

When a joint is injured, the energetics change to reflect the trauma. Either the energetics can shut down, in which case the energy ceases to flow through the joint, or the rhythm changes to a dysfunctional pattern. Both of these changes will result in pain. A common elbow injury is for the energetics to be moving sideways. This can be difficult to imagine, as the rest of the arm has a lot of lateral mobility. But if you stabilize the upper arm and try to move your elbow side to side, you will see how uncomfortable that is.

Normally, the body is able to reset the pattern itself. But in some cases the body is unable to restore normal energetic function. The pathological patterns can remain embedded in the tissues for months or years. These patterns play out in several ways. The most common is chronic pain. These are the injuries that never seem to heal, or keep getting injured again. If the pattern remains in place, the joint is more susceptible to repeated injury.

The other common path is for the pattern to remain in place without causing pain. The body learns to adjust energy flow away from the area and maintains the low-level dysfunctional pattern. A good example of this is a friend of mine who was a carpenter twenty years ago, but only recently began to develop pain in his left hand at the spot where he used to hit it when he missed the nails.

Another common pathway to establishing dysfunctional patterns is repetitive motion. For my friend the carpenter, these injuries occur when he improperly swings the hammer and puts stress on his joints. Once the energetic pattern sets itself, it is as if his arms are swinging the hammer 24 hours a day, which prevents the body from healing itself.

For an office worker, the problem is inactivity. The lack of motion in the shoulders, wrists, and neck when working at the computer gradually shut down the rhythms, which prevents the body’s energy from nourishing and healing the joints. In both cases, injury results because the body’s self-healing mechanisms become inhibited.

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