What is Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy (BCST)
Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy (BCST) is a powerful healing modality that uses gentle touch to resolve pain, trauma, and stress-related symptoms of disease.
Craniosacral therapists recognise the person as a whole and orientate towards the health within the body, which is always available.
The body has an intrinsic mechanism that constantly functions to maintain balance, restore, and regenerate. It keeps the body in optimal health by regulating autonomic biological functions controlled by the nervous system to maintain inner balance (homeostasis).
This mechanism depends a lot on the resilience of the central nervous system. In recognising a danger or a stressful experience, the nervous system should efficiently respond and promptly return to a state of relaxation.
When our nervous system is overwhelmed by stress, it can get stuck in "fight or flight" mode, making it difficult to return to the calm state needed for overall well- being.
The accumulation of daily stress, emotional overwhelm, unresolved traumas, injuries, and toxicity in our nervous system over time leads to the formation of areas of density, inertia, and tension throughout the body.
Our nervous system keeps a record of our entire life experience. Unless we keep it well-regulated over time, the body gradually loses its ability to connect with inner health, which is always available.
Through BCST, we allow the body to be heard in a nurturing and safe space of stillness, soothing the nervous system and encouraging the release of long-held patterns of trauma, disease, or stress.
As a result, we may experience increased energy levels, improved physical and emotional symptoms, a profound sense of relaxation, mental clarity, and a feeling of wholeness.
Furthermore, in the long term, we can increase our inner strength and self- awareness, and improve the quality of our lives and relationships.
About BCST
Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy, originating from osteopathy, was established in the early 1900s by Dr. William Sutherland (1873-1954).
While examining the edges of a cranial bone, Dr. William Sutherland had an epiphany that led him to demonstrate the articulation of the cranial bones, showing that they move together.
He also observed the presence of a natural mechanism in the body that causes each part of it to expand and contract continuously, similar to the lungs’ breathing. He called this phenomenon Primary Respiration.
Dr. William Sutherland used a gentle technique to feel subtle rhythmic motions from the structures around the central nervous system.
These involuntary, subtle rhythmic motions are now measurable and include:
The pulse of the CNS, the fluctuations of the CSF in the spinal canal, the reciprocal tension of the membranes surrounding the nervous system, the motility of the cranial bones, and the motion of the sacrum between the ilia.
Dr. Sutherland associated the unrestricted function of this mechanism with optimum states of health, increased vitality, and improved function of the body-mind system.
Through his practice, he observed that Primary Respiration’s limitations result from trauma in the body. These restrictions include the experiences of stress, mental overstimulation, and emotional overwhelm that we accumulate every day. They are stored in the body as trapped forces within the structures of the central nervous system and the web-like matrix of fascia, waiting to be safely released.
How It Works
Within the safe and trusting space of a Craniosacral session, the body can reconnect with the Primary Respiration and release the trapped forces of trauma.
Similarly to talk therapy, the Craniosacral therapist "listens" to the body's deep, subtle rhythmic motions through gentle touch and invites the intrinsic forces of health to the surface.
The inherent biodynamic forces contain the blueprint of our health. These forces shape the embryo in the womb and are guided by the intelligence that sustains us, governing our functioning.
In Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy, the therapist follows the body’s wisdom and employs therapeutic touch and various non-invasive skills to encourage the body to release deeply-held tensions.
The act of "listening," along with a skilled practitioner's calm and grounded presence, encourages the body to release whatever is blocking it and reconnect to its natural ability to heal and function better.
* Craniosacral therapy complements your primary healthcare services, providing additional support for your overall well-being.
