What is Craniosacral Therapy?

Craniosacral* Therapy is a gentle, hands-on approach to the body which evaluates and enhances the function of the craniosacral system. Your craniosacral system is comprised of the fluid and membranes surrounding your brain and spinal cord. Since this is the immediate physical environment in which your central nervous system (CNS) lives,  any abnormal tension patterns or restrictions present here may have an effect on CNS function. Because the CNS influences every bodily activity, it is reasonable that a problem originating here could have an effect anywhere in the body.

The craniosacral system gets its name from the bones to which these membranes attach: the cranium (the bones of the skull, face and mouth) and the sacrum (the tailbone area). These bones are often used as “handles” in transmitting a very gentle traction (about the weight of a nickel) into the dural membrane. Because such light touch is not interpreted by the body as a threat, it does not initiate guarding behavior. As a result, tissues as deep as your very core can be accessed, evaluated,  and addressed. Since the force used is so light, the technique is essentially risk-free.

A CranioSacral Therapist is trained to locate and evaluate abnormal tension patterns and restrictions. They are also trained to then use the fluid mechanics of the system itself to assist your body in self-correcting the problem.

*kray’-nee-oh-SAY’-krull

How Can CST Help?

The beauty of Craniosacral Therapy is that it addresses the source of dysfunction and not merely the symptoms. Of course symptoms are taken seriously, but they are not always where treatment begins. As the primary causes of dysfunctions are corrected, symptoms are better able to resolve themselves naturally.

Since all areas of our body are thoroughly interconnected, tensions are often transmitted along unpredictable pathways and the relationship between source and symptom can often appear quite mysterious. The very positive side of this interconnectedness is that Craniosacral Therapy can have unexpected and  surprisingly wonderful results.

Even the release of “non-symptomatic”  restrictions can have a profound effect on how we feel. Our bodies hold layer upon layer of tensions and do a remarkable job of compensating around these, allowing us to carry on with our daily lives. Sometimes though, even one additional stressor may push us over the edge. With only a limited amount of compensatory “wiggle room”, we simply may be asking our bodies to compensate in too many areas at once. It is at this point that we often notice existing symptoms beginning to increase or new ones appear.

By  releasing tension or restriction even in a seemingly unrelated area, the body now has more room to compensate overall. As a benefit of this, we may now experience relief in the area we were concerned about in the first place.