Here at physiologic we offer several treatment modalities that you will not find in mainstream physiotherapy clinics. One of these modalities is Cranio-Sacral therapy (CST). CST is a very gentle technique that uses the body’s inherent ability to heal and correct itself.
The body is made up of many different types of tissue all of which have a specific function. The muscles contract to hold us up or move us around; the digestive tract extracts nutrients from our food and gets rid of waste products; the skin protects us from the outside environment. Each organ also has a specific function to which it is ideally suited. All together these tissues and organs make up the human body. Throughout this entire, amazing and intricately complicated system there runs a vast web of connective tissue. This is called fascia. In some places it is very obvious as ligaments and tendons, in other places it is not so obvious but is, none the less, present throughout every organ and area of the body. It has a very important role in our daily lives; it provides support for everything else. It connects every single part of you with every single other part of you. Further to this function researchers have found that the fascia also plays an integral role in the healing process.
The Body Electric by Robert O Becker, and The Endless Web by R Luis Schulz.
The picture that this link leads to is a perfect example of the way the fascia provides support for the entire body. The bones are really just there as spacers (although they do have many other equally important functions). Now imagine a sudden force being applied to this system. It would change shape with impact, in the case of a rubber band sculpture a rapid return to its original shape would quickly follow. Unfortunately we are a little better at hanging on to things than that and we tend to adapt around changes in our bodies. If something hurts when we move we tend to either change the way we move or avoid certain positions and movements altogether. Over time we incorporate these new movement patterns into our lives and go on as normal. Fascia responds to these changes by strengthening in certain directions and perhaps loosening in others. This is one reason why your shoulder will be so stiff after anytime spent in a sling.
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Unfortunately we are being constantly bombarded with small, seemingly innocuous, traumas. The dog may run into your leg, you may overstretch to reach something on the back seat of the car, you may even ‘sleep in a funny position’ and wake up with a stiff neck. All of these minor niggles are compensated for and incorporated into our overall movement patterns. Over time we just simply run out of capacity for further adaptation. Or rather the adaptations we make actually cause pain either at the site of the latest trauma, or more likely somewhere else. It is at this point that many of us find ourselves sat in front of the GP looking for some kind of relief from the pain.
It is in this type of scenario that CST comes into its own. Because, as therapists, we start with no preconceived ideas as to how your body should move or how your posture should be (i.e. we do not try to fit you into a ‘perfect model’ shape) we can use our techniques to unwind and let go of the adaptations you have made over the months and years. The central principle of CST is to ‘allow’ things to happen, not to make things happen. This is the difference between what we do here at Physiologic and what you might expect to happen at ‘The Physiotherapy clinic’. By seeking out areas and lines of particular tension in the fascial system then reducing that tension with gentle pressure the fascial system is allowed to ‘unwind’ everything that was hanging on to that particular area. As things start to ease off and find a new place to be, or comfort zone, so the overall tension through the whole body is affected. In this way the body can return to a more normal way of functioning.
Quite often you will hear us talk about tension around your heart or liver or perhaps your lungs. We are not referring directly to the function of these organs but more towards the fascial components that are holding them in place. Undoubtedly removal of excess tension around an organ will help it to function more efficiently but that is not the focus or aim of our intervention. All we are doing is allowing the body to find its way back to a healthier state by removing obstacles to healing.
There is a wealth of information about CST to be found at the Upledger Institute website.
In the UK they are at www.Upledger.co.uk
The Institute in the US has many more links to useful information and can be found at www.upledger.com
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