What is Craniosacral Therapy?
Craniosacral Therapy is a modality that utilizes very light touch to tune into the body and nervous system. In session the practitioner utilizes highly developed palpation skills and light touch attunement with the client’s body to decipher tension patterns and areas of dysregulation within the body system as a whole. Through neutral presence and gentle supportive touch the body is able to open to new patterns of flow, connectivity and ease.
The central nervous system originates within the spinal cord, brain stem, mid brain and prefrontal cortex. These soft tissues are housed within the skeletal structures of the sacrum, spine and cranial bones. Techniques used in Craniosacral Therapy are designed to bring release along these structures, allowing the nervous system to regulate and the body to release tension patterns.
Clients may enter into a deep theta or dreamlike state while their body is supported in this way. This semiconscious state, in tandem with the attuned techniques indicated on the part of the practitioner encourages regulation within the nervous system and allows release and reorganization to occur within the whole-body system.
Craniosacral Therapy and Trauma
As we move through the experiences of life there are events that sometimes are not fully processed somatically through the body/nervous system. This usually happens when there is a high level of survival energy in the body often accompanied by an unpleasant emotional charge such as fear, anger, sadness or despair.
When there is a lack of presence and external safety or support in our experience, the body is unable move out of this intensity and back into safety and regulation. This often shows up in the form of dysregulation in the nervous system, such as depression, anxiety, tension patterns, systemic health problems or even long standing pain syndromes.
Developmental trauma, small stressors of life, big life changing events, physical trauma and emotional traumas can all cause tension and lack of connectivity within the whole-body system. Craniosacral Therapy works by giving the supportive touch and presence needed to assist the body in completion and integration of past experiences and fragmented aspects of self.
What can Craniosacral Therapy help with?
Prenatal and Birth Trauma
Physical Injury
Surgery Pre and Post
Concussion and Traumatic Brain Injury
Migraines and Headaches
Chronic Neck and Back Pain
Stress and Tension-Related Disorders
Motor-Coordination Impairments
Infant and Childhood Disorders
Brain and Spinal Cord Injuries
Chronic Fatigue
Fibromyalgia
TMJ Syndrome
Scoliosis
Central Nervous System Disorders
Learning Disabilities
ADD/ADHD
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Orthopedic Problems
And Many Other Conditions
Somatic Experiencing®
Somatic Experiencing® also known as S.E. is a methodology and practice that supports our nervous system in healing from trauma and unintegrated experiences of the past. Our nervous system is what connects us to our felt sense of aliveness and our bodily knowing of what feels and is good for us. It supports us in experientially living through our senses moment by moment, in presence. This body to mind connection is a powerful place of deep attunement to self, openness to others and belonging within the web of life.
How does S.E. work?
Utilizing the modality and methodology of Somatic Experiencing® we endeavor to reconnect to and slowly gain safety and trust in feeling, sensing, and attuning to our experiential awareness of ourselves in the present moment.
You will be guided and supported in tracking bodily sensations, exploring movement impulses, connecting to emotions, sensing into images, memories, words and vocal expressions that may arise. Things will be done slowly, at a pace that the body can integrate and regulate what you are experiencing. As you begin to gain greater capacity to connect to your bodily experience your nervous system will begin to regulate more effectively. A greater sense of ease, aliveness, wholeness and presence may emerge as your nervous system becomes more regulated.
In session we will establish the capacity for resourced states of bodily aliveness and safety in the present moment. When ready we may revisit states of fight, flight or freeze as they arise, allowing them to resolve through bodily awareness and expression. It is not always necessary to verbally process traumatic events although we may touch into this content in order to bring up unintegrated experiential states connected to these stories. Events and experiences from the past may come up organically to be moved through the body as clients gain the capacity to integrate and orient with more highly charged experiential states. If working in person Somatic Experiencing® Touch Therapy in tandem with Craniosacral Therapy may be introduced.
Who Can Benefit?
Somatic Experiencing® can assist clients in healing from myriad of symptoms and conditions including the following.
Attachment Disorder
Anxiety
Accidents
Auto-immune disease
Boundary ruptures
Car accidents
Chronic, difficult to treat pain related symptoms
Chronic Diseases
Depression
Domestic abuse
Endocrine system imbalances
Falls
Injuries
Insomnia
Pain management
Pre and post surgery
PTSD
Rape
Relationship issues
Sexual abuse
Shock trauma
Stress
Whiplash