Craniosacral and Visceral Manipulation

Craniosacral

What is craniosacral work? This question is hard to answer yet essential to ask. We work directly with the nervous system and it’s surrounding tissues via a subtle yet palpable movement that nourishes and cleans the nervous system and the whole body ultimately. On a physical level cranial work helps the body to move cerebrospinal fluid, the cranial bones, the meninges (covering on the brain and spinal cord) and the central nervous system itself. As a general rule craniosacral manipulation is more gentle than other forms of body work but extremely powerful at a very deep level. At times more force can be used to good effect as well.

Why do this work?

Foundational Principals

• At the core of every living thing there is health.  It is the role of the practitioner to listen to and access this inherent health in the system.
• It is important, as practitioners, to be able to listen and relate to both the health and the disturbances in the system.  From there we can facilitate the inherent movement and assist our clients in their healing.
• One of the essential skills is the ability to listen to the body and put aside the ego as practitioner.  The body creates the healing, the practitioner facilitates.  It is important for the practitioner to not have an agenda.  Presence is tremendously important for this process.
• As you listen to the body it is important to remember that it is an integrated whole and you can hold the whole in your mind.
• The body knows best what it needs and a skilled practitioner can listen and facilitate exactly what is optimal.

Visceral Manipulation

Jean-Pierre Barral, D. O.
“The purpose of Visceral Manipulation is to recreate, harmonize and increase proprioceptive communication in the body and to enhance its internal mechanism for better health.”

Visceral manipulation focuses on the all too often ignored organs and how their position, movement, and function affects our general health.

Reasons to do this work

Structural – Much of the structural asymmetry in the core can be linked to the fascial web that runs through the thoracic and abdominal cavities. The position of the spine, rib cage and limbs can all be affected by restrictions in the core. Many musculoskeletal problems can be linked to pressures and pulls from the viscera and their fascial wrappings.
Functional – Optimal function depends on the viscera for so many reasons; blood, air, food and toxin management are among the top on the list of necessary functions. We can facilitate the health of the circulatory system and the tissues of the organs by ensuring their mobility and motility.
Energetic – We tend to store past traumas and pains in our organs as anywhere else and we could use to have the best flow of energy through our organs and energy available to us for our daily lives.