I am trained in many different bodywork modalities, all of which I may use in your session to help you meet your wellness goals. Feel free to explore this page, as it will give you detailed information about the work I do. If you have any questions about how this work may be helpful in treating your condition, please feel free to contact me. Your questions are always welcome.
Namaste
Some of the health challenges I treat:
- Traumatic head and spinal cord injuries
- Migraines
- Repetitive strain injuries
- Fertility issues
- Pregnancy/Postpartum care
- Whiplash, TMJ
- Pre and post surgical care (including dental work)
- PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder)
- Anxiety and depression
- Digestive Issues (Irritable Bowel , Acid Reflux, etc)
- Chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia
- Asthma, allergies and chronic sinusitis
- Supportive Care through transition and crisis
- Chronic Pain and Musculoskeletal Issues
CranioSacral Therapy (CST)
CranioSacral Therapy is a highly effective yet gentle form of bodywork that helps to identify and unwind tension patterns that are often at the core of illness(dis-ease) chronic pain or unresolved injury. The craniosacral system is composed of the bones, membranes and fluid that surround, protect and nourish the brain and spinal cord. The central nervous system, which encompasses the brain and spinal cord, controls and directs all of our body processes. Inside the vertebral column, the brain and spinal cord are surrounded by membranes of connective tissue. These membranes contain the cerebrospinal fluid, which bathes, protects and nourishes the tissues of the central nervous system, just as blood nourishes the other cells and tissues of our bodies. In addition, these membranes also form a sleeve around each spinal nerve as it leaves the protection of the vertebral column. Like all connective tissue, these membranes are highly pliable and flexible until force is applied to them. Part of their job is to protect this vulnerable area from impact. Trauma from an outside force can cause contraction within these tissues, setting into motion restrictions within the tissues of the body, as well as the craniosacral system itself. This is our bodies way of trying to protect us from further harm. Because of this, CranioSacral Therapy utilizes a very small force, usually less than an ounce, to avoid engaging further resistance of the tissue. By working with the body rather than against it, CranioSacral Therapy is capable of affecting profound changes without pain or discomfort.
All parts of the craniosacral system move in a rhythmic, pulsing motion due to the ebb and flow of the cerebrospinal fluid within the membranes. This motion is called the Craniosacral Rhythm, and it can be felt anywhere on the body. Problems within the CranioSacral System can be detected by monitoring the qualities of this rhythm and determining the locations of restricted motion. Locations can range from within the system itself or can be found anywhere within the connective tissue network of the body. CranioSacral Therapy treats restrictions by gently manipulating and freeing the connective tissue that surrounds the brain, spinal cord, organs, muscles and bone structure of the body.
As membrane restrictions are released and the body begins to return to optimal functioning, many possible sensations may occur. The release may be felt as heat, pulsing, relaxation, or in many other ways. Because memories of trauma and injury are often stored in the connective tissue of the body, sometimes the release is accompanied by emotion or old memories related to the original cause of the restriction. When this happens, the client and therapist work together to allow the expression of these patterns of tissue memory, often dramatically reducing the level of pain or dysfunction in the area involved.
Because of the central role the CranioSacral System plays in the functioning of the entire body, any restriction of it’s normal motion can have far-reaching and varied effects. Possible symptoms can include:
- Migraines and Headaches
- Neck or back pain
- Chronic pain anywhere in the body
- Dizziness
- Seizure Disorders
- Low energy
- Poor immune system functioning
- Ringing in the ears
- Vision problems
- Learning disabilities
- Sleep disorders
- Numbness
- Temporal mandibular joint pain [TMJ]
- Depression
- General nervous tension
- Poor digestion or elimination
- …and many others
Visceral Manipulation (VM)
“Viscera” relates to the internal organs of the body, such as the liver, kidneys and lungs. Visceral Manipulation is a gentle manual therapy that aids your body’s ability to release restrictions and unhealthy compensations that cause pain and dysfunction.
Your body is made up of layers and layers of interrelated components such as bones, muscles, nerves, fascia and internal organs (viscera). All of these layers must move in coordination with one another to achieve ease of movement. When you breathe, walk or stretch, not only do your muscles engage to move your bones, your organs must move within this structure as well. Take for example the simple involuntary act of breathing. Your kidneys move to accommodate pressure change and the expansion of your diaphragm, your lungs fill and are submitted to forces that pull in opposite directions, your ribs that provide protection to these delicate organs, move in response to your lungs filling with oxygen. The movement of organs is transmitted through fascia to other structures of the body, and when you are healthy, all the structures move with an interconnected fluidity.
Imagine now scar tissue around the lungs. Because of the pull of the adhesion, with every breath, the movement patterns of the nearby structures would be altered. This could shift rib motion creating pulls on the spine. These restrictions might then show up as mid-back and neck pain, as well as limited motion in the shoulder. This scenario highlights just one of hundreds of possible ramifications of a small dysfunction – magnified by thousands of repetitions each day. This also explains how pain can often be far removed from the actual cause. There are many reasons for an organ to lose its mobility: physical traumas, surgeries, sedentary lifestyle, infections, pollution, bad diet, poor posture and pregnancy/delivery. When an organ is no longer freely mobile but is fixed to another structure, the body is forced to compensate. This disharmony creates fixed, abnormal points of tension and the chronic irritation gives way to functional and structural problems throughout the body – musculoskeletal, vascular, nervous, urinary, respiratory and digestive, to name a few.
For this reason Visceral Manipulation does not focus solely on the site of pain or dysfunction, but evaluates the entire body to find the source of the problem. Then specific techniques are use to help your body resolve restrictive patterns and re-establish proper movement.
“Harmony and health exist when motion is free…not labored, overexcited depressed or conflicting with neighboring structures and their mobility.”
Ortho-Bionomy
Ortho-Bionomy is a gentle, effective approach to somatic re-education that uses comfortable positioning and relaxing movements to unlock tension, relieve pain, promote structural balance, reduce stress and increase personal awareness and well being.
During an Ortho-Bionomy session the body is moved in the direction of comfort. Our ability to find comfort and balance is inherent in us from birth, but traumatic life experience can sometimes cause us to forget how to notice this place. Ortho-Bionomy teaches us how to notice comfort again. It gives us a way to access choice and create change that is natural, non-intrusive and self-generated.
The key to the effectiveness of Ortho-Bionomy lies in the proprioceptive nervous system. This system generally works below normal waking consciousness, shaping posture and movement patterns by registering and adapting the body’s subtlest responses to a lifetime of experience. In Ortho-Bionomy, the slow movements, gentle positioning and slight compression stimulate the proprioceptors at a pace that allows us the opportunity to be consciously present and attuned to the stored experience within these movement patterns. Proprioceptively, we are offered alternative and more functional patterns. This respectful non-force approach affirms the natural wisdom of the body, offering us possibilities for lasting change.
Low Force Myofascial Release
The term myofascia is derived from the Latin words “myo” meaning muscle and “fascia” meaning band. Fascia is the fibrous connective tissue that surrounds, covers and connects every part of our body, creating a seamless web connecting muscle, organ, nerve and bone. Just like our nervous system which conveys information from muscle to brain, the fascial system has its own information to convey in the form of tension and compression. In simple pulls and pushes along the grain of fascia, tension is communicated from fiber to fiber, cell to cell, muscle to bone and so forth. An example of this would be a snag in sweater. This “snag”, or tug originates in one spot, but we can see the effects of that tug above or below, and possibly across the entire length of the sweater. In our body, this tug within the fascial web happens below our level of awareness for the most part, but through it we create a shape for ourselves, registered in the connective tissue as a recognizable pattern of posture. These tension filled patterns tend to inform who we are and how we move through the world.
Myofascial Release is a technique specifically aimed at unwinding these “snags” within our fascial web. Injuries, stress, trauma, surgical procedures and poor posture can cause restriction to fascia, setting up imbalance, compensation, pain and limited range of motion. Low Force Myofascial Release uses light touch in order to feel through the different layers of the body and determine where the restriction(s) are. Specific techniques are then used to unlock restrictions along the fascial web, restoring balance, function and ease.