Types of Bodywork:
CranioSacral Therapy
Does your horse, dog, cat or other animal have back, neck, jaw, mouth or ear pain? Gait problems? Arthritis? Difficulty in focusing while training? Neurological difficulties? These health challenges and many others can be addressed by CranioSacral therapy, a gentle and non-invasive modality that utilizes the CranioSacral system to address a wide range of conditions.CranioSacral Therapy is a gentle and non-invasive modality. The CranioSacral system extends from the occiput (back of head/poll), down the spine to the coccyx (tailbone) and is comprised of three layers of membranes. The outermost layer is the dura mater which is a tough, waterproof membrane that houses the brain and spinal cord. The next layer is the arachnoid layer, and the inner layer is the pia mater which adheres snugly to the inside of the spinal cord. These membranes are constantly bathed in fluid. This fluid is known as the cerebrospinal fluid. It pulses throughout the life of the animal and influences the movement of the skull bones and the connective tissue (fascia).
Fascia is the layer of connective tissue directly under the skin. When you cut into a chicken, recall the stretchy, translucent layer? That’s fascia. It is similar to a body-stocking just underneath the skin—-encompassing all the muscles. It extends from the brain to the toes/hooves and everywhere in between. If animals didn’t have fascia, they’d be nothing but a bag of water. Fascia gives us our shape. It also contributes to the health of an animal by increasing transport between the cells, moving nutrients into the cell and toxins out.
In addition to its location just under the skin, the fascia extends 3-dimensionally throughout the body, encompassing muscles, organs, bones—in short, all structures inside the body.
Whenever the fascia has been disturbed in the body, it will be felt other places as well, because of the fascia is so interconnected. It is impossible to influence one area without also influencing others.
In 1920 an Italian anatomist discovered that skull bones are continually moving due to the rhymthic pulsations of the cerebrospinal fluid. Over the years many other researchers contributed to the development of this area.
In 1970, Dr. John Upledger, an Osteopathic physician and surgeon was assisting in a surgical procedure when he was privileged to witness the rhythmic movement of one of the membranes inside the spinal cord, which resulted from the pulsations of the cerebrospinal fluid. He used this information to develop the field of CranioSacral Therapy and was quite successful in addressing a wide range of health conditions in his patients.