Last year I expressed my gratitude for
the millions of doctors and other medical professionals who save
lives around the clock through their knowledge, skill, compassion,
and technology. This year I give thanks for CranioSacral Therapy and
Visceral Manipulation, two powerful osteopathic-derived therapies
which also save lives, prevent illness and optimize health in ways
medicine can't.
CranioSacral Therapy is a gentle modality for improving all body
systems and functions, in part by optimizing the Central Nervous
System. For example, many people are stuck in the ‘fight or flight’
response and don't realize it. They often suffer from chronic
digestive problems, but do not connect that with any past trauma.
Typically, they do not respond to medicine, naturopathy, or
counseling. However, a single session of CranioSacral Therapy can
reset the neurological alert-level and this usually eliminates any
related digestive, immune, cognitive, or musculoskeletal challenges.
CranioSacral Therapy also provides direct access to the immune
system, making it possible to eliminate allergies and autoimmune
challenges, often in a single session. Once optimized, the immune
system is able to dispatch specialized cells capable of eliminating
adhesions, scar tissue, toxic emotions, toxins, and plaque and,
using stem cells, repairing or replacing damaged or missing tissues.
CranioSacral Therapy and Visceral Manipulation also take much of the
mystery out of whiplash and mechanical trauma. Whiplash results any
time our body undergoes a sudden acceleration followed by a sudden
deceleration. Typically, some of the trauma lodges in the arteries
serving the brain, leaving the brain with an inadequate blood
supply. This will effect every system in our body. Common symptoms
include chronic neck and shoulder tension and headaches, spinal
challenges, high blood pressure, hormonal imbalances, etc.
Aging exacerbates these symptoms. On average, arterial supply to the
brain drops by 50% between the ages of 40 and 60. If your brain was
not getting enough blood to begin with, you can see how aging might
lead to, or accelerate, degenerative conditions such as Parkinsons,
Alzheimers, and dementia. Arterial insufficiency to the brain and
restrictions within the brain from trauma, toxins, or
pharmaceuticals may cause many of the cases currently attributed to
age.
When I first encountered this issue of arterial insufficiency in
2007, I thought I'd stumbled on an unrecognized epidemic. From what
I've seen since, I'd say the more appropriate term might be
pandemic. Fortunately, CranioSacral combined with its French cousin,
Visceral Manipulation, can restore arterial supply to the brain,
often in minutes. This alone will eliminate many endocrine and
vision problems, no matter how chronic. And if not, we've improved
things in general and are that much closer to finding and addressing
the cause. I wish the arterial aspects of whiplash were known in
1987, when I was rear-ended at 55 mph!
Visceral Manipulation frees restrictions on all internal organs, not
just those in the abdomen. This exceedingly gentle and specific
modality makes it possible to treat restrictions almost down to the
cellular level. Without this degree of specificity, many
degenerative conditions are unavoidable and irreversible. With it,
things like joint replacement, spinal surgery, chronic fatigue,
ulcers, gastric reflux, and sometimes even appendicitis are often
easily avoidable.
One of the greatest advantages of bodywork is that it provides
simultaneous access to body, mind, and spirit. Even down to the
cellular level, movement is health, and restrictions are
pathological — always. Many restrictions have an emotional or
spiritual component. When so, finding and releasing the issue
typically ends in minutes the most intractable problems — and
usually without much drama.
Almost every day, a client tells me, "But, I thought I dealt with
that issue years ago!" Often they had, but largely in their heads.
However, while the story abides in the mind, the issue or emotion is
buried in the tissues, where it causes chaos. If we have worked
through the story mentally, freeing the content from the tissue will
usually be a breeze. More importantly, the work restores our
tissue's ability to compensate for future trauma. Talk about cutting
ourselves some slack and turning back the odometer!
Many people are afraid to look inside, which is ironic given that
they usually know what's there. As Arnold Mindell wrote in Working
with the Dreambody, "Our most troubling symptom may be our greatest
dream waiting to come true." Sure, life may change — but isn't that
what we really want? I'm extremely grateful for the Cranial and
Visceral training which has allowed me to help others overcome
illness, attain health, and often discover their own true — and
fundamentally perfect — natures. This is a deeply sacred privilege.
Nonetheless, my body is talking, too. Various symptoms remind me
that helping others on their spiritual paths does not excuse me from
doing my own work. They remind me that the adage, "Physician, heal
thyself!" applies to all of us, including me. It is not a
suggestion, but a command; an imperative, not an option. Heal, or
die. It's that simple.
When I began studying alternative therapies 21 years ago, I had no
idea that someday I would be able to help people suffering from so
many different conditions. There's a simple reason that manual
therapies like CranioSacral and Visceral Manipulation are so often
effective where medicine isn't. Namely, freeing the body's myriad
structures, including those of the brain, so that they have the
space, fluid exchange, movement, and energy to move and function as
designed, allows health to return, naturally.
I am deeply grateful for my teachers, colleagues, and especially my
patients who, these past 20 years, have been patiently showing me
the way. Life is an advent calendar. At the outset, we've no idea
what will unfold. As each day opens a new window, scenes of great
wonder gradually emerge. May we all count our blessings, regardless
of the forms they take.
A CranioSacral Therapist in
Anchorage, Mike Macy specializes in freeing up the heart,
blood vessels, immune system, and structures of the brain. (907)
258-7261 mmacy@acsalaska.net
