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Therapy in the Cranial Field
by Randolph E. Clayton, DDiv, CMT, RM/T
Editor's Note: April is International
CranioSacral Therapy Awareness Month.
Cranial Therapy of one type or another
has existed for many years. In a modern form it can be traced
back to a system of medicine known as Osteopathy. Osteopathy
was developed in the 19th Century by Andrew T.
Still, MD, a licensed Allopathic physician, who had become
disillusioned with the Allopathic Medicine of the time after
the death of his family. His own experience curing his headaches
by stimulating pressure against the back of his neck and head
as a boy strengthened his interest in the ability of boney
manipulation to treat dysfunction.
In the early 20th Century,
William Garner Sutherland, DO, an Osteopathic physician, began
to promote ideas of the body as a unified whole in which a
single dysfunction or impairment could effect the entire body,
and the body's own natural power to heal itself. He developed
a system for correcting dysfunction in the cranium through
releasing sutural restrictions at the osseous level. His system
became known as Cranial Osteopathy, and it continues to exist
today.
Rebirth of Cranial Therapy
While assisting in a surgery in 1970,
John E. Upledger, DO, FAAO, an Osteopathic physician and surgeon,
observed a rhythmic movement of the dura mater, the membrane
which encompasses the brain and spinal cord. Neither his professional
colleagues, nor medical texts could provide any explanation
for what he had observed. In search for an explanation he
found the work of Dr. Sutherland with Cranial Osteopathy,
which led him to attend Post Graduate studies in Cranial Osteopathy.
However, his curiosity lead him to do further studies on his
own. From 1975 to 1983, he served as a Clinical Researcher
and Professor of Biomechanics at Michigan State University.
It was the findings of the research team he supervised that
first established the scientific basis for the craniosacral
system.
Dr. Upledger's continued work led to
his development of CranioSacral Therapy as we know it today.
He founded The Upledger Institute to train therapists in this
unique system and has, to date, trained more than 38,000.
Though there are many different schools of Cranial Therapy
including Cranial Osteopathy, Cranial Sacral Therapy, Cranial
Structural Integration, and Cranial Therapy for the Energetic
Body, it continues to be Dr. Upledger's work which stays on
the forefront of medical and therapeutic science.
How Does Cranial Therapy Work?
Dr. Upledger says that "our bodies
are in a state of organized dysfunction," and that our
goal as a therapist should be to "disorganize the body,
and ask it to organize in a more healthy and supportive way."
It is this organized dysfunction which causes overall body
dysfunction - weakened immunity - which often leads to disease.
By disorganizing the body, we "reboot" the body's
natural computer, which then works to naturally correct its
own problems and restore balance and health.
Many people with structural and myoskeletal
dysfunction are used to deep massage and bodywork techniques
where the therapist works against the barrier of the dysfunction,
pushing through the barrier, and then hopefully resetting
the system. This works - but not for everyone. This is where
Cranial Therapy comes in. A Cranial Therapist will move with
the body, into a position where it is most comfortable, and
will hold it there until it resets itself naturally, often
using 5 grams of pressure (the weight of a nickel) or less.
Cranial Therapists usually don't work
with just the head - though releasing restrictions in the
head is considered very important. Therapists may also release
restrictions in the neck, shoulders, along the fascial diaphragms
which grant the body stability, and in the sacrum and hips.
These are major treatment points, but many of the techniques
- especially Dr. Upledger's techniques for Still Point Induction
- and energy direction can be used almost anywhere on the
body.
Cranial Therapy is constantly evolving.
Dr. Upledger has created a large training program covering
body, mind, and energy in a unique and connected way, and
his work is now practiced by Osteopaths, Medical Doctors,
Dentists, Doctors of Oriental Medicine, Naturopathic Physicians,
Traditional Naturopaths, Physical Therapists, Occupational
Therapists, Acupuncturists, Psychologists, Social Workers,
Nurses, Polarity Therapists, Massage Therapists, and other
professional bodyworkers.
Randolph E. Clayton, DDiv, CMT, RM/T
is currently the Senior Director for Port City Healing Arts,
a Holistic Healing Center in Wilmington, North Carolina. He
can be contacted at 910-792-5958, or by email at rclayton@pchealingarts.com.
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