Cranio-Sacral Therapy
Cranio-Sacral Therapy is rapidly gaining recognition as one of the most gentle and yet powerful forms of holistic healing. Of the multitude of healing modalities available, this single one is absolutely the most useful for any sort of physical issue. The after-effects of car accidents, sports injuries, fall injuries, or any other kind of physical impact respond incredibly quickly to this work. Other physical traumas such as surgery, dental work, repetitive stress injuries, and childbirth also respond well to this work. And many health conditions which do not respond well to other forms of treatment will often improve as a result of Cranio-Sacral treatments. Cranio-Sacral Therapy works with the nervous system and its intricate connections to all the muscles and organs, and can actually prevent traumas from settling into the soft tiissues of your body.
Cranio-Sacral Therapy is gentle enough to be done within moments or hours of an injury, depending on the severity. For recent, severe traumas, it may be helpful to first clear the trauma energy from the auric field and the nervous system with Somatic Trauma Resolution and energy work. After the adrenaline energy from the trauma has been released from the nervous system, Cranio-Sacral Unwinding can be used to address releasing the trauma on a more physical level. Muscle spasms which would not respond well to most forms of massage can be completely unwound by supporting the nervous system to reset the connections to those muscles, stopping spasms at the source. Whiplash injuries which might settle into the fascia also can be unwound at a cellular level. Even injuries to tendon, ligament, and bone tissues respond to Cranio-Sacral Unwinding. And bruised or inflamed areas also respond well to Cranio-Sacral Unwinding, because those are conditions of too much heat and fluids in the tissue, and Cranio-Sacral Unwinding cools and soothes the nervous system and smooths and disperses the fluids. 
If you have an older injury, Cranio-Sacral Unwinding is one of the best ways to release held trauma from the physical tissues, from the nervous system, and from the energy body. Tissue trauma is stored energetically in the fascia, the connective tissue that encases every nerve, muscle, vessel, tendon, ligament, bone and organ in your body, including the brain and spinal column. Cranio-Sacral Unwinding can release restrictions in the fascia at the cellular level, restore fluid motion, and allow the energy of the trauma, recent or old, to be released from your system.
And Cranio-Sacral work isn't limited to the physical dimension. This work can also address issues of the emotional, mental, and spiritual dimensions. All dimensions are simply denser or finer vibrations of Energy, and I hold the understanding that when you touch one dimension, you touch all dimensions. So when mental, emotional, and spiritual issues have been held so long that they are showing up on the physical level, the physical issue is often the doorway in to touching and transforming the finer dimensions.
I approach Cranio-Sacral work as an energetic modality which can be combined with physical touch or not, as needed. I generally do use physical touch, but it's not necessary, and immediately after an injury, it's sometimes not optimal. Some of the most powerful Cranial work can be done off the body, working through the auric field, and emotional and spiritual issues often respond best to this touch.
What is Cranio-Sacral Therapy?
Craniosacral Therapy works with the rhythmic wave-like motion of the cerebrospinal fluid, which can be felt anywhere on the body, and out to the edges of the auric field. The brain and spinal cord float in a sac containing the cerebrospinal fluid, which bathes the nervous system and allows for movement of neurotransmitters. The entire body is connected by nerves and fascia to the spinal cord, which gently moves up and down inside the vertebral column as much as half an inch with each wave of the cerebrospinal fluid.
The cerebrospinal fluid is the lightest, finest fluid in the human body, similar in chemical composition to amniotic fluid, which in turn is similar in composition to the ocean, source of all life on this planet. Beyond serving as a transport medium for neurotransmitters, this fluid carries the energetic imprint of Spirit from the third eye chakra throughout the rest of the physical body. Cerebrospinal fluid is generated in the ventricles (spaces) of the brain. There are neurotransmitters generated by the pineal and pituitary glands, which just happen to be situated in exactly the location of the third eye chakra, on the "saddle" of the sphenoid bone in the center of the skull. As divine energy is gathered in through the crown chakra, it is focused down into the third eye chakra, and as neurotransmitters are released into the cerebrospinal fluid, they are bathed in this divine light and infused with the energetic imprint of pure Spirit. I hold the understanding that I must approach each person with deep respect for the innate intelligence of the divine pattern held in their cerebrospinal fluid. I understand that I am not just touching a cranial rhythm, I am touching a Soul.
What are Restrictions?
Restrictions are areas of holding that limit full expression of your divine blueprint for balance, health, and wholeness. If left unattended, they will eventually manifest on the physical level as a loss of vitality and function in the area of the restriction, and often in other parts of the body as well. Restrictions can be caused in a variety of ways: physical, mental, emotional, chemical, hormonal, etc. What may start out as a restriction in energetic flow can eventually show up on the physical level as a sticky place in the fascia, the continuous sheet of connective tissue which encases every structure in the body. The cranial rhythm will have a different quality in an area where it is not fully expressed. The Cranio-Sacral practitioner tunes in to the client's innate cranial rhythm, and can then identify places where the innate rhythm could be more fully expressed, and assist the client in the process of moving into fuller expression of their Cranial rhythm and their Spirit, resulting in greater health and vitality on all levels.
Release Comes Naturally
Your body has an innate healing ability, and is always seeking to restore you to vitality and wholeness. Often, your body releases a restriction as soon as the practitioner brings awareness to the area. Simply holding the awareness of your body's innate cranial rhythm invites your body to more fully express that rhythm in every part of your being. After a session, release and integration may continue for a few hours or several days, and it's good to give yourself time to integrate the changes you've made.
Safe for Babies and Children
Although Cranio-Sacral techniques are profound enough to change the way your bones move, they are so gentle that they are safe to perform on newborns, and so subtle you may wonder if the practitioner is doing anything at all. The pressure needed to invite release in the cranium is less than the weight of a nickel, and positions are held for long meditative moments while allowing your system to reorganize itself.
Stillpoints are Delicious!
Even more than massage, Cranio-Sacral Therapy is supremely relaxing, and can be enjoyed by anyone purely as a wonderful, nurturing and rejuvenating treat. A stillpoint is a pause in your cranial rhythm which stills the chatter in your mind and allows your central nervous system to rest and reset itself. The sensation is similar to dreaming, deep relaxation, or deep meditation. Some people feel warm and heavy, others feel as though they are floating. Some people see dreamlike images, though they can still hear me and respond. Most feel as though they have traveled to a deep, quiet place inside themselves, and return feeling calm, centered and refreshed.
What Does It Look Like?
You wear loose, comfortable clothing, and lie face-up on a massage table, and are free to move and stretch during the session to adjust yourself for comfort in response to energetic shifts and physical adjustments. We will open a gentle dialogue, focusing on the physical sensations you are noticing as we move through the session, which focuses the transforming energy of our attention on any area that calls for it. You will generally drop into a state of deep relaxation, with slowed breathing and heart rate and lowered body temperature. I usually start at the feet, lightly touching various places on your body, including your cranium and sacrum (the bone above the tailbone). I will have to lift and roll you to get under your sacrum, and will ask you not to help, so as not to tighten any muscles. In following your cranial fluid into unwinding, I may also lift and move your arms, legs, or head, or roll you into deep, gentle stretches.
Conditions That Respond to Cranio-Sacral Therapy
This list is quoted from the Upledger institute. The conditions I have successfully worked with are in bold: Adhesions, Asthma, Arthritis, Anxiety, Autism, Back pain, Bells palsy, Behavioral disorders, Bronchitis, Cancer, Cerebral palsy, Colic, Birth trauma, Compression of the skull at birth, Dental and TMJ problems, Depression, Digestive problems, Drug withdrawal, Dyslexia, Ear infections, Epilepsy, Emotional blockages, Exhaustion, Fall injuries, Feeding and sleeping difficulties in babies, Frozen shoulder, Glue ear, Hyperactivity, Head injuries, Hormonal imbalances, Immune system disorders, Infertility, Insomnia, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Joint disorders, Lack of energy, Lazy eye, Learning difficulties, Lethargy, The after effects of Meningitis or any chronic illness or debilitating disease, Menstrual Pain, Migraine, ME, Neck pain, Obsessional behavior, Persistent pain anywhere in the body, Problems during and after pregnancy, Post accident recovery, Post operative recovery, Pyloric Stenosis, PMS, PMT, Persistent symptoms of obscure origin, Repetitive Stress Injury, Sinusitis, Sciatica, Spinal curvatures, Sports injuries, Squint, Stress related illnesses, Tantrums, Tension, Tinnitus and middle ear problems, Visual disturbances, Whiplash injuries.
Health Insurance Coverage
Cranio-Sacral Therapy has been recognized by the Western medical establishment as a legitimate treatment in the field of alternative and complementary medicine, and there is now a medical billing code assigned to this modality. This means that this treatment might be covered by your health insurance plan, so please check to confirm that. Generally, you need a doctor's prescription dated before the date of your sessiion. I could then give you a superbill receipt which you could submit to your insurance company for reimbursement.