Three Therapists Attended Training

This August, three massage therapists at Back To Bliss attended a weekend certification course in Craniosacral Therapy.

Sarah, Jodi, and Rachelle getting their CEU’s.

What Is Craniosacral Therapy (CST)?

CST is a gentle, hands-on method of evaluating and enhancing the functioning of a physiological body system called the craniosacral system – comprised of the membranes and cerebrospinal fluid that surround and protect the brain and spinal cord.

Simply put, there is a deeper and more subtle pumping system in our body than the heart and cardiovascular system. That more subtle system surrounds the central nervous system and brain. Just like muscles all over the body tighten in response to stress, so too do the fascial linings of this deeper pumping system. When the pumping system that cleanses, nourishes and detoxifies our central nervous system starts getting wear and tear due to the accumulation of stress, all sorts of negative symptoms can spring up.  In many ways the fluid of this pumping system can be likened to the oil in our car. If it doesn’t get processed via a healthy pumping action it will stark to get gunky and then our entire central nervous system will run sluggishly. Since this system nourishes our nervous system directly the list of symptoms a good craniosacral treatment can help benefit is quite wide and profound.

What does it help?

According to Dr. John Upledger, a pioneer and leading american trainer, craniosacral therapy is ideally suited for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, headaches, chronic middle ear infection, pain, and general health maintenance.

It is recommended for autism, fibromyalgia, heart disease, osteoarthritis, pneumonia, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic sinus infections, and gastroenteritis (inflammation of the lining of the stomach or small intestine). It is also used with other therapies to treat chronic fatigue syndrome, back pain, and menstrual irregularity. In addition, other craniosacral practitioners have reported benefits for eye dysfunction, dyslexia, depression, motor coordination difficulties, temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJ), hyperactivity, colic, asthma in babies, floppy baby syndrome, whiplash, cerebral palsy, certain birth defects, and other central nervous system disorders. 

How does it differ from other massages?

As with most specialty massage techniques, the way that you are touched and what body parts the we focus on depends on the result we are looking for. With craniosacral therapy, there are several key notes that make it stand out.

• The touch is feather light. This massage taps into a very subtle rhythm and facial system.  A very light touch is often best because it is enough to create a strong result, but also not so strong that we distort your natural rhythms through our work.
• The service is most often done fully clothed. As a predominantly fascial massage we want our hands to be slightly tacky and to hold on the skin instead of to slide along it as we do with an oil massage.
  • We can access all of the body parts we need through the clothing. Without the concern of oil ruining your clothing, we can do everything we need without the need to remove clothing.
  • You certainly can remove belts, shoes, jeans and other obstructive clothes for comfort, but disrobing is not a necessary part of the service.
• The service is aimed at opening the cerebrospinal fluid system. Most of the massage will be focused on the head, face, and spine because this is where we can most easily affect that system.
• Part of the science of this modality is for us to use your body’s rhythms and pulses to help find obstructions in the cerebrospinal system. This means that we may move your limbs in repeating rhythms, circles, or other patterns to feel for asymmetry and other disturbances in your cerebrospinal rhythm. Very often we will work in repeating patterns of movement as well as long holds to bring awareness and healing to your cerebrospinal system.
• These services can often be very long. A 90 minute session is very common. At Back To Bliss, our services only extend to 2 hours, but at many other facilities a 3 hour craniosacral therapy session is normal. We recommend testing this modality out for a 60 minute service first. If you like it, then you can extend the times to the recommended 90 minute session as desired.
• The teatment is very blissful. The quiet, gentle and rhythmic nature of this massage combined with the genuinely amazing experience of feeling myofascial releases in your body is entrancing. Very often clients will become so absorbed in the internal experience that they will completely lose track of time.
  • As a side note, I have had many clients get mad because they think their massage was cut short when in fact it was extra long. This happens often due to the deep trance like focus experienced during this massage.
  • I have personally had this experience. My session felt like it was only ten minutes long when the therapist took her hands away and said thank you. Basically, the first ten minutes that I remember was how long it took to pull my mind in. The service kept my mind engaged fully until the very last touch and I completely lost connection with the passage of time. It was amazing.
• As with most specialty massage types, these will have compounding effects when received in a series.

How to Get One?

At Back To Bliss we currently have five massage therapists that are now trained in this service.

1. Josiah
2. Carrie
3. Jodi
4. Rachelle

Please call our front desk line at 715.316.0040 or go to our online booking system to schedule today.