Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy
THE BREATH OF LIFE
“Think of yourself as an electric battery.
Electricity seems to have the power to explode or distribute oxygen, from which we receive the vitalizing benefits.
When it plays freely all through your system, you feel well.
Shut if off in one place and congestion results.”
Dr. A.T. Still
What is Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy?
A brief history
The term “Craniosacral” derives out of 2 words: cranium and sacrum. Cranium refers to the skull and sacrum is the triangular shaped bone at the bottom of the spine.
Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy (BCST) is a hands-on bodywork approach, that encourages the body’s natural healing abilities. It uses a soft diagnostic and therapeutic touch, as it orients to the deeper forces of health and intrinsic wisdom in the body, which constantly maintain and repair the body through all its life.
Because BCST regulates the nervous system and releases tension deep inside the body, it can be utilized to treat a wide range of physical and mental problems. It’s also known for helping people integrate underlying root causes and unsolved concerns in a deeply relaxing and profound way.
Dr. G. Sutherland, an osteopath, clinical researcher, and Professor of Biomechanics, observed in the early 1900s, involuntary rhythmic movements of the cranial bones, brain, meninges, spinal cord and cerebrospinal fluid and sacrum as a unified system.
He discovered that all cells in the body expressed a “rhythmic breathing,” of contraction and expansion. As a subtle movement, this breath can be palpated throughout the body. Dr. G. Sutherland called this movement the “Breath of Life”.
As an osteopath, he started out with mechanical techniques, using mild manipulations to correct physical imbalances. Over time he left the mechanical approach behind, and moved towards a method that encourages the body`s ability to self-correct.
The Breath of Life
The Breath of Life is a “potency,” a force carried by cerebrospinal and cellular fluids throughout the body. It arranges the body to maintain all of the body’s systems working together.
The fluids, which are organized by the Breath of Life, provide a tide-like motion that can be felt through diagnostic touch anywhere on the body. If this motion becomes congested or restricted, the body`s primary orienting principle is obstructed and health is compromised.
This potency has an innate “knowledge,” or blueprint, which helps the body to maintain health and balance.
In a session the therapist supports the Craniosacral rhythm and releases tension and adhesions in the muscles and connective tissue (fascia), which improves the circulation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and body fluids, enhancing the balance and function of the entire nervous system and body.
