Craniosacral therapy (CST) is a gentle, hands-on treatment for improving total health that was developed more than 40 years ago by Dr. John Upledger, an osteopath. CST focuses on the central nervous system and the tissues that surround it, based on the premise that the brain affects all aspects ofbody functioning. Because this holistic therapy addresses both physical and energetic components, it can treat a wide variety of conditions and aid those who are seeking relief and unable to find it elsewhere.

CST takes its name from the craniosacral rhythm, which is felt throughout the body and vital to good health. The rhythm reflects the movement of cerebrospinal fluid, which surrounds the brain and spinal cord andmoves up and down the spine by regular pumping action between the skull, or cranium, and the sacrum. During a CST session, the therapist uses a pressure equal to the weight of a nickel to adjust the skull, spine and sacrum to move freely. Because the soft tissues around these structures are linked by connective tissue, a muscle spasm in the leg, for example, can pull on the sacrum and also affect the skull. CST must therefore treat the whole person, looking for energy blockages and physical restrictions throughout the body.

CST is ideal for pain that originates in the head, such as migraines, headaches, and jaw pain, and also helps with vision difficulties. Because CST directly affects the brain, it’s effective for such issues as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury, central nervous system disorders and motor-coordination impairments. This gentle therapy is also perfectly suited to chronic neck and back pain and fibromyalgia, because it does not trigger the body to tighten up in response to the increased pain that some other therapies can cause.

A CST therapist can also help clients to release the effects of physical, sexual and emotional abuse. The process works to clear energetic blockages that result when the body “walls off” a physical or psychological blow or the memory of an unpleasant event. Such traumas can create “energy cysts” that pull on the tissue around them until they are released. CST clients who experience the release of an energy cyst may suddenly remember events as far back as a childhood trauma or traumatic birth. War veterans, car accident victims and rape survivors are now being successfully treated with CST, typically receiving relief from PTSD in just a few sessions.

Mimi Rhys, LMT, is the owner of Phoenix Healing Arts in Brighton. To learn more or schedule an appointment, call 617-413-7174 or visit PhoenixHealingArts.net.