Open Source Cranio

Tag: Burnout

  • Cranio Sacral Therapist and Student Newsletter 42

    October 8 – 2009

    Questions and comments for this issue:

    + Follow on comments about ‘How you came to Cranio sacral?’
    + Can I get qualified from Open Source Cranio?
    + How to market a cranio sacral therapy practice?
    + Can you make a living as a cranio sacral therapist?

    Hello,

    Let me tell you about David Tomilson who is doing
    great things over at his New England Center for
    CranioSacral Therapy website which he has
    dedicated to ‘Stories from the people and places
    of CranioSacral Therapy.’
    http://cstmedia.wordpress.com/

    He has made some cute little videos with his
    son about cranio sacral and he has started
    to interview different cranio sacral therapists.

    His first interview is with Sharon Desjarlais
    and it fits in well with the main theme of this
    newsletter as it is about marketing your cranio
    sacral therapy practice.

    It is a great interview and Sharon has some
    great tips.  You can listen to the interview here.

    Sharon runs a marketing program especially for
    cranio sacral therapists called  CranioSacral Success
    you can visit Sharon’s site here.

    Rightio, let’s get on with the mailbag.

    ***FOLLOW ON COMMENT FROM ROSEMARIE IN THE UK ABOUT HOW SHE CAME TO CRANIO SACRAL THERAPY***

    Firstly, I would like to say how wonderful and
    refreshing that you have created an on-line
    cranial support network and for free too!
    It is so supportive for me to know that there is
    someone else ‘out there’ who understands the
    inner struggles involved in this kind of work and
    to bring people together via the ‘web’ ……..so we
    can ‘resonant’ with one another rather than feeling
    like being all alone on a ship on a stormy sea
    (sometimes how I have felt!).

    How I came to craniosacral therapy……….the long
    or the short version?!……….maybe a mix of the two.
    Have been exploring natural medicine since the
    age of 18 (last 20 years)  in ‘spurts’.

    Was guided towards Cranial Osteopathy by two
    very special friends and after a cranial treatment
    (with an osteopath) was so inspired I began my
    journey in 1992 doing an Access into Science
    course.  Finally, funds allowing I arrived at the
    European School of Osteopathy in 1996 (specialists
    in cranial work).   Did two years of grueling (truly)
    academic years (plus practical, of course) and
    finally ‘burnt out’.  Ended up with a serious Thyroid
    problem from stress and sleep deprivation and
    had to leave in 1998.  Very upset with this decision
    but physical and mental health at stake.

    Spent 2 years recovering………things then improved
    for me……..relationship and had a beautiful baby…..
    …..cranial work for him on day 7!

    Anyway……..when he was a few months old, was at
    a mother and baby group in Crouch End, North
    London where the organiser was handing out flyers
    for a drop-in family craniosacral session nearby.
    I thought  about it………I had heard of craniosacral
    therapy and phoned the guy, happened to be
    Richard Kramer (registrar of the Craniosacral
    therapy association! and head tutor for the student
    clinic of a craniosacral school too!).  Anyway, I was
    so inspired………got all the prospectuses of the
    colleges and decided on CTET in London.  It has
    been an amazingly long journey to get here………..
    basically from 1992 (thought was doing my
    exploration before into healing) to when I
    qualified in 2006………so a 14 year journey!

    I wish I could say that I feel so………confident now
    with my background in Osteopathy and the other
    areas I have explored but I don’t……….at least not
    yet!  I am amazed still if anyone improves……….
    but I guess it can take a long time to build up
    confidence and working knowledge…….experience,
    intuition………quietness, stillness…..clarity or
    whatever it takes to be a remarkable practitioner
    who manages to assist people in such a positive
    way that their practice naturally grows through
    word of mouth!

    I am still waiting for such a ‘state’ to occur for me…..
    …….but in the meantime I recognise that I need to
    get the message out there about CST and how
    powerful it can be……….marketing guidance would
    be a great thing to have included in your forum………..

    Anyway……..thanks again

    Love Rosemarie (hanging in there!)
    UK

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Rosemarie,
    Thanks for sharing your journey. I am going to talk
    about marketing below so I  will keep my answer
    till then.

    ***QUESTION – CAN I GET QUALIFIED FROM OPEN SOURCE CRANIO?***

    Hi John

    I have recently discovered your newsletter/web site.
    This all looks wonderful.  Do I understand correctly
    that I can take the courses offered on Open Source
    and work with a mentor and become qualified to do
    this work.  I am excited about cranio sacral work
    and am currently reading one of John Upledger’s
    books.  I am anxious to learn.

    Thank you,

    Kathy
    USA

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Kathy,
    In typical cranio fashion the answer to your
    question is yes and no. The information on Open
    Source Cranio is far from complete at the moment.
    It is mostly in outline form with some notes.

    When it is complete you will be able to go step by
    step through the learning process.  Each new
    technique or piece of information will have a lesson
    that will usually include a video that you can return
    to again and again.

    At the end of each lesson there will be a list of
    assessment criteria for that lesson.  This will give
    you detailed information about what you need to
    know and be able to do to be competent in the
    technique or information covered in the lesson.
    This is something that you can use yourself and
    your mentor can also use as a guide to work from.

    At the moment I am not independently wealthy
    which means I can only work on Open Source
    Cranio when I am not treating or mentoring
    people.  The other projects like my book and
    the Masterclass video series are to generate
    alternative streams of income so I can get on
    with Open Source Cranio but they are as yet
    not enough.

    So as it stands unless someone makes a
    substantial donation (see ‘Donate’ button in
    the right hand column) and I can devote more time
    to making the training videos etcetera it will take
    years to complete Open Source Cranio.

    You don’t sound like you can wait years.

    The other thing to consider is what kind of therapist
    you want to become and what kind of person you
    want to treat. When you get clear on that you need
    to ask yourself what kind of qualification would make
    it easier for that ideal patient to come to you.

    For example there are certain groups of people and
    certain countries in the world where an official
    qualification may not be that important.  They will
    only be interested in how effective you are.

    Then there are other countries where the type
    of qualification you have is very important.  For
    example if you want to treat people in California
    you need to get a qualification from a school that
    is recognised by that state and then you need to
    get a license to treat people which has a number
    of prerequisites including insurances.

    If you decide getting a particular qualification will
    make it easier for your ideal patient to come to you,
    then the next thing to do is find out what the
    recognition of prior learning requirements are for
    the qualification.

    Recognition of prior learning is where your
    previous experience is taken into account in the
    awarding of a qualification.

    Different schools will have different criteria
    for this. Some will laugh in your face when you bring
    it up and tell you that the only way you are going
    to get a qualification from them is by doing their
    courses.

    Others will tell you that they don’t insist you
    sit through their courses but they will charge you
    a fee for recognition of prior learning in the
    individual modules of their training and another fee
    for the actual qualification itself.

    Don’t be surprised to find that when you add up
    the cost of having your prior learning recognised
    for all the modules of their course that it comes
    to almost the same cost as if you had paid the
    money to do the courses in the first place.

    The bottom line is you can use the information
    on Open Source Cranio regardless of what
    qualification you want to get, or not, or what school
    you get involved with, or not.

    ***QUESTION – TIPS FOR STARTING A PRACTICE?***

    Dear John,
    I am really impressed with your passion and commitment.
    I am due to graduate from my CST course next week in
    England.  What was the first thing, or the most effective
    thing, you did on graduating to ensure a steady supply
    of clients? Did you advertise, give talks? I have some
    ideas but it’s always good to get some advice from those,
    like yourself, who are successful.
    Best wishes
    Simon.
    UK

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Simon,
    Thank you for your kind words.. Your question is very
    like the next letter so I will answer it there.

    ***QUESTION – TIPS FOR STARTING A PRACTICE?***

    Hi John,
    I am a qualified Reflexologist and in September 2005 I did a
    4 day course in Cranio-Sacral Reflexology in Mullingar Co.
    Westmeath with Martine Faure-Alderson. I was so impressed
    by the Cranio-Sacral element of the course the I wanted to
    learn more and more about it all as it seemed so fascinating.
    I researched courses in Cranio-Sacral therapy on completing
    this course in Cranio-Sacral Reflexology. I was directed to the
    College of Cranio-Sacral Therapy in London. I began the one
    year course there in September 2006 and completed the course
    in July 2007. Since then I have been busy with my two young
    children. I want to start up my own practice in the very near
    future and keep up learning Cranio-Sacral therapy.

    Have you any tips for starting up as a therapist?

    Regards,
    Catriona
    Ireland

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Catriona,
    The main thing that will help you grow a strong
    practice may sound obvious – be very good.
    Get remarkable results consistently.

    If people have a positive experience with you
    they will tell 5 other people.  If they have a
    negative experience with you they will tell 20
    other people.
    So nurture your word of mouth carefully.

    One of the most unacknowledged ingredients
    in building a successful practice is time.  There
    are many things you can do to kick start the
    process and I will go into them below but it is
    my experience that it takes about 2 years to
    build a strong practice from scratch.

    Now on to the marketing stuff.

    FINDING YOUR IDEAL PATIENT
    Before you launch yourself into any marketing
    activities the first thing you need to  do is think
    about what sort of people you want to treat.
    What kind of a practice you want to have.
    Getting that clear in your head will make a big
    difference to your marketing efforts.

    Write down what your ideal patient would be like.
    Include in as much detail as possible.  Once you
    get really clear about the sort of person you want
    to treat then you can start to ask yourself the
    following questions about them.

    – Where do they shop?
    – How do they get their information about things?
    – How do they learn about new services?
    – What do they do in their recreation time?
    – What sort of clubs they are attached to
    (Tennis, hiking, bike riding?)
    – What sort of clubs do they go to?
    – Where do they live?

    As an aside, the answer to that last question
    should determine where your practice is located.
    There is no point locating your practice on the
    other side of town from the people you want to
    be treating no matter how convenient it is for you
    or what a great deal you are getting on the
    treatment room.

    You have to be pretty ruthless with yourself about
    this point.  I have seen many a therapist move into
    a room they really liked that had ‘great energy’ and
    was a real bargain only to find that no one would
    make the journey to it.  That is also why treating
    people from your home will only work if your home is
    in the area where your ideal patients live.

    GET WRITING.
    So once you get clear about who you want to
    treat and where you want to be located then the
    next thing is to start writing.   Don’t write for any
    particular thing like a website or brochure or talk
    just write for clarity.

    If the thoughts of writing are too much you can hire
    someone to do it for you.  You can do it through
    elance.com.  I will explain more about elance below.
    The important thing is that what is written expresses
    your perspective on your work.

    A common mistake I see in cranio sacral websites
    and literature is trying explain what cranio sacral
    therapy is and how it works.  If you ever watch
    someone reading these kinds of explanations
    you will see their eyes start to glaze over before
    they get to the end of the second paragraph and
    the fourth reference to the craniosacral rhythm.

    Keep your ideal patient in mind and write for them.
    Don’t worry about everyone else.  Try and get into
    the head of your ideal patient and what THEIR
    head would be like when they are looking for a
    solution to THEIR problem.  Try and speak to
    them there.

    The first thing you should write is a description
    of where THEY are at.  Outline their problem in detail.

    Here is an example from my website of the sort
    of thing I am talking about.

    “Is your faith in the medical system shattered?
    Has your wallet been emptied by over confident
    therapists? Have you been on the emotional roller
    coaster, rising with hope that each new approach
    is going to work, then crushed when it doesn’t?
    Have you tried everything and still not got the
    results you wanted?”

    You get the idea – use your own words.

    Next write about yourself and how you are
    qualified to talk about helping them.

    Next write about how what you do can help
    solve their problem.  Keep it simple with not too
    much jargon.

    Next write what the benefits of coming to you for
    treatment are from THEIR perspective are.

    Here is an example from my website of the sort
    of thing I am talking about.

    Visit the last resort first . . .and save money.
    It became a joke among my students and
    graduates that we were actually in the resort
    business because for most of the people who
    came to see us, we were the last resort.
    It doesn’t need to be like that. Most people are
    floored when they add up how much they’ve spent
    so far trying to get better.
    Don’t waste any more of your money.

    Benefit from no returns.
    When you understand that cranio sacral therapy
    helps trauma release from your body, then it makes
    sense that once restrictions are released in this way,
    they are gone for good.
    So when you’re done, you’re done.
    It’s as simple as getting a big piece of cellophane
    and scrunching it into a ball and then assisting it
    to unravel itself.
    Once it has unraveled itself, there’s no need to
    ‘maintain’ its state of unraveled-ness.
    So you don’t need any ‘maintenance’ treatments
    to keep your health. What you spend having
    treatment is finite and has a very definite end.

    Gentle on you.
    Cranio sacral therapy is a very gentle approach.
    There is no pushing, adjusting or manipulating your
    body into a set or ‘correct’ position. There is no
    intrusive probing into your past. The contact is very
    gentle and people often fall asleep during treatment.
    Because of this gentleness it is good for children
    and people in a lot of pain.
    You will feel the benefits within 4 weeks.
    Most people feel the benefits immediately. If it
    takes longer you will generally see enough
    improvement after 4 weeks to know that it’s going
    to work.

    Gets to the root of the problem.
    There are many approaches that will give you
    complete reduction of your symptoms. The trouble
    is the reduction only lasts for a short period of time
    and then you have to return from more treatment.
    Eventually this kind of approach makes your body
    dependent on the treatment.
    Cranio sacral therapy works with the root cause
    of the problems. This has the effect of causing
    lasting relief of symptoms.
    In 15 years I have never had anyone return for
    treatment for the original problem they came to
    me with.
    Not one.

    These are all great benefits from the patients
    perspective.

    Next write about what you charge and why it is
    good value.  You may find this hard but if you
    can’t explain why it is good value you may be
    charging too much.
    This is a time for taking the bull by the horns.
    If you feel what you charge is good value and
    you can explain why then your ideal patient will
    be grateful.  It’s your job to explain it to them not
    their job to try and intuit the reasons why it is good
    value.

    Once you are happy with what you have written
    try it out on some family or friends who are the type
    of people you would like to treat.

    Ask them to read it and give you feedback about
    it.  You don’t have to take the feedback but you will
    find it illuminating.

    What you have written forms the backbone for
    your marketing.  You can adapt and edit it for the
    different types of marketing activities you might
    engage in. What type of activities you engage
    in will be determined by the sorts of people you
    want to reach.  Reread everything you have
    written every six months or so.  You will be
    surprised at what you want to change and edit.

    TESTIMONIALS
    It is important to get testimonials from people you
    have treated.  Most people will come to see you
    because of a word of mouth referral. If they can’t
    get a referral then all they have to go on is what you
    have written.  People who don’t know you will
    generally be suspicious of what you say about
    yourself.  It’s not personal, we are all jaundiced
    by sales claims.

    Having testimonials go a long way towards
    easing that suspicion.

    The good news is that getting testimonials is
    relatively easy.  When a patient is finished their
    treatment program you can explain to them that
    there are other people who have the same
    condition who would be helped if the patient
    wrote something about their experience of
    treatment.

    Give your patient the option of remaining
    anonymous in the testimonial. Obviously the full
    name and location with a photograph is ideal.

    Here are some of the ways you can use your
    written material, including your testimonials.

    WEBSITE
    I can’t over emphasize the importance of getting
    yourself on the internet.
    If you don’t know anything about computers and
    the thoughts of organising a website for yourself
    seem overwhelming, fear not.
    There are plenty of ways around it.

    With websites there are a few simple things you
    need to know and the complicated stuff you can
    get someone else to do for you.  I will explain
    where you can find those people in a minute.

    One of the most important, and often overlooked,
    things with websites is the domain name.
    The domain name is what comes after the www
    For example with my Irish website the domain
    name is www.cranio.ie

    I will come back to the name part in a minute
    because I want to talk about the other really
    important part which is the suffix. That’s what
    comes at the end of the domain name,
    the .com end.

    It is important to get a domain name for the
    country you are working in.  So for Ireland that
    would be .ie for the United Kingdom that would
    be .co.uk for South Africa it would be .co.za
    for Poland it would be .pl and so on.

    Each country has their own suffix.  Having the
    right suffix for the country you live in will make
    it easier for google to find you when people in
    your country look for you.
    (Technically speaking the suffix for America is
    .us but it is rarely used so if I lived in America
    I would get a .com suffix.)

    If you are not sure what the suffix is for your
    country you can look here

    Double check it by looking at local businesses
    and see what suffix most business are using.

    One last thing on suffix’s, .net  .org and so on
    don’t generally work as people will forget the
    subtle difference and look for .com or the suffix
    of your country.

    For example if I couldn’t get
    www.johndalton.ie
    but I saw that
    www.johndalton.net
    was available it would be tempting to get it.

    Let’s check this against what I like to call the
    Party Rule.  The party pule states that your
    domain name has to have a more than 50%
    chance of being remembered by a mildly
    inebriated person you tell it to at a party.

    So if I told this person my domain name was
    www.johndalton.net
    there is a good chance that the next morning
    they would look for
    www.johndalton.com
    then
    www.johndalton.ie
    and when that didn’t work they would give up.
    So no .org .nets etc. please.

    Now back to the name bit. The bit between the
    www. and the .com

    You could try for craniosacraltherapy but
    it will probably be already taken.  There are
    some countries where it hasn’t been taken but
    it will be gone in most.

    What I suggest you use is your name.
    So in my case the domain name would be
    www.johndalton.ie
    Short, simple, memorable and relevant
    – and it passes the Party Rule.

    If your name is unavailable I suggest you
    use your name plus cranio so in my case it
    would be
    www.johndaltoncranio.ie
    I don’t suggest you use craniosacral or
    craniosacral therapy as most people won’t
    remember it.  I have found that cranio is the
    only part of cranio sacral therapy that people
    remember on first hearing the name.

    It is important to buy your domain name yourself
    and it is relatively easy to do.  Just type ‘domain
    registration’ into google and you will find  lots of
    companies offering to sell you domain names.

    Lastly, bear in mind that domain names are a
    commodity like anything else and different companies
    will have different prices. Shop around for the best
    price.

    Next find yourself a hosting company. A hosting
    company is the company where your website lives.
    If your website was a horse, the hosting company
    would be the stables where you keep it. Don’t be
    tempted by free hosting. There is usually a catch.
    The most common one being the inclusion of the
    hosting companies name in your domain name.

    So for example if I opted for free hosting with a
    company called Bluebird Hosting there is a good
    chance my domain name would end up being
    www.bluebird.johndalton.ie

    Shop around.  I have found this company
    very good. powweb.com

    Next thing to do is find yourself someone to set
    your website up for you.
    I suggest you go to elance.com and register.

    Then place the following ad.
    _______________________________________________________

    Job Title – WordPress Instalation and Setup.

    Category – Web & Programming

    Job Description – Set up wordpress site.
    Install and activate the following plugins –
    – All in One SEO Pack
    – Akismetincluding
    – cforms ( Including configuration of basic contact form)
    – Google XML Sitemaps

    Suggest WordPress theme for natural therapies website
    – minimum of 3 suggestions – plus minor modification
    of theme to suit site.

    Inclusion of staff training in wordpress usage.

    Hosting company and domain name already in place.

    Desired Skills – WordPress

    Job Type – Fixed price
    – Approximate Budget – Between $50 and $500
    _______________________________________________________

    Then sit back and wait.
    Before long you will have bids from all around the
    world from experienced professionals offering to
    set up your website.
    They can all see each others bids so they will try
    to get your work for the lowest price.

    Have a read through elance’s guidelines before
    you start so can set miles stones and generally
    make sure that you pay on results.
    You can explore elance here.

    Once the site is set up you should be able to
    update the site yourself, adding all text you have
    written. You will know how to do this because the
    professional will have given your staff, you,
    training.

    Give your web site about 6 weeks to begin to
    show up for in google searches.  Adding to your
    website on a regular basis helps keep it up in the
    rankings.

    PRINTED MEDIA
    Over the years I have tried it all, flyers of all
    shapes and sizes, brochures, adds in magazines and
    newspapers.
    Nowadays I mainly just use business cards and postcards.
    Both of which are geared toward sending people
    to my web site where they can get all the information
    they need to make an informed decision about
    whether they want to come and see me.
    I use Vistaprint for these.

    I suggest you get good quality card for your
    business cards.  This is not a place to skimp.

    BROCHURES
    Whether or not you do a brochure will depend on
    who your ideal patient is.  They may like to have
    something to hold and review.
    For me, the disadvantages of brochures far out
    way their usefulness plus I don’t need them for my
    ideal patients.

    The main disadvantage of brochures is that to
    produce one that looks professional costs a lot of
    money.
    It is also very hard to get everything that you
    want to say into a brochure no matter how small
    you make the print.

    Letter box drops, tiny advertisements in the local
    paper, flyers up at the your local health food shop
    and notices stuck on community boards are probably
    NOT going to get your practice where you want it to be.
    Here is a little scenario to explain why I say that.

    Mum and Dad are walking past the local health
    food shop with their 4 year old Autistic child.
    They see a photocopied flyer for Cranio Sacral
    Therapy on the notice board, behind the Dream
    catcher making workshop and beside the ‘Learn
    to Channel’ weekend.  It is highly unlikely that
    Dad will turn to Mum and say ‘Hey, Betty this
    cranio thing just might be worth trying for
    Timmy.’

    A word of caution: When you first start marketing
    yourself you can invest a lot of energy doing things
    that are comfortable for you to do.  They even allow
    you to feel like you are really doing something to
    build your practice, letter box drops are particularly
    good for this, but they may not be very effective
    and can leave you feeling somewhat of a failure
    when no one responds.

    Always come back to your ideal patient and ask
    yourself if they would respond to what you are doing.

    WORKING WITH LOCAL BUSINESS
    One way to create word of mouth referrals in your
    local area is to work with suitable local businesses
    so that they will refer to you.

    Firstly you need to discern which businesses are
    suitable by their product / service to helping you.
    Look at the local businesses and see which ones
    spend time talking to their customers.  What do their
    customers talk to them about?  Is it feasible that in
    the course of conducting their own business that
    these people may have reason to mention you?

    For example, hairdressers, podiatrists, beauty
    therapists and barbers spend a lot of time talking
    to their customers.  Their customers talk to them
    about a whole range of things from work to holidays
    to their children and partners, including their health.

    It is feasible that a hairdresser, if they knew
    about cranio sacral therapy, would mention it during
    a conversation about their client’s skiing accident
    or chronic back pain etc.  This business represents
    a good opportunity for you to receive word of mouth
    referrals.

    Be mindful of the appropriateness of the business
    you approach.  Is their product or service in alignment
    with the work you do.  Bartenders spend a lot of time
    talking to their customers but probably wouldn’t be a
    suitable business for you to work with. Again it comes
    back to who your ideal patient is.

    When you have identified 3-4 suitable businesses
    in your locality you will need to introduce the owners
    and/or staff to what you do.  In order for them to be
    able to reasonably refer someone to you they need
    to know a bit about what you do.  What is it good for?
    Is it gentle?  Who does it help? etc.  This can be done
    on an individual basis or as a group.

    When talking about cranio sacral tell stories about
    patients you have treated to highlight how cranio works
    rather than dry and boring explanations.

    If you are working with 3 or 4 businesses you may
    find it easier to talk to them all as a group.  A good
    start is to write an introductory letter to each of them.
    Outline what you have in mind and invite them to
    your clinic to hear a bit more about cranio sacral
    therapy.

    I suggest you make this meeting a generous affair.

    Most business people are always looking for new
    ways to boost their profile.  Provide tea and biscuits
    or wine and nibbles etc.  Try to create an arena for
    discussion and interest.  They will be coming to hear
    about cranio sacral therapy but also to take advantage
    of having other business peoples experience and ideas.

    Provide each business with a gift package of say,
    10 Cranio Sacral assessments as a limited special.

    There are some important things to consider when
    offering this:

    • Make sure the business is conducive to offering such a gift
    • Be sure that you make up your own vouchers to be offered
    • Do not present it as a “FREE” treatment but as a
      Cranio Sacral assessment “VALUED AT $XX.00”

    This last point is very important, if you don’t put
    the value of the free gift then the people who come
    for the free assessment will find it hard to reconcile
    the value of your treatment when they come to you as
    a patient.

    Encourage the businesses to give these free
    gifts to customers that they feel might benefit
    from your treatment.

    As you can see there is quite a bit to marketing and
    there are new ways to market coming up all the time.

    ***QUESTION – CAN YOU MAKE A LIVING FROM CRANIO SACRAL THERAPY?***

    Hey John

    I have a question about Cranio and I suppose
    you’re the right one to answer it:

    Can one actually make a living out of just doing
    Cranio?

    I asked this in our group and all the (elderly) ladies
    said: no way. The have maximum 3 clients a day,
    and in maximum 3 days a week. They all say the
    feel very exhausted after Cranio and couldn’t
    cope with more clients anyway.

    Now I have the feeling there’s something wrong.
    Because when I use Cranio, I feel relaxed,
    nourished and in stillness. So actually, it gives me
    a lot. And I have the impression, Cranio is so
    powerful that one should be able to have a full
    practice every day, if wanted.

    What do you think?

    Thanks for your thoughts

    David
    Switzerland

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello David,
    Can you make a living from just doing cranio
    sacral therapy? Hell Yes!

    That is just what I have been doing for the last
    15 years – and that includes moving country twice
    and starting from scratch both times.

    With regard to burn out there are different levels
    to it.  The first thing to master is the energy transfer
    that can occur during a session.
    I talk about that here and here.

    The next level of burn out to avoid is treating
    too many people in one week.  Any more than
    18 people (2 children = 1 adult) a week will start
    to burn you out within a couple of months.

    If you take care of these first two levels you
    can still become drained if you don’t take a
    break at least once a year preferably in nature.
    Minimum 3 days, 7 days if possible, ideally
    14 – 21 days.

    Once you take care of yourself in the ways I
    have listed you can go on for years doing very
    satisfying work, earning a reasonable income,
    with lots of free time.

    That’s it for this issue.

    Till the next time.

    Your Mate,

    John D.

  • Cranio Sacral Therapist and Student Newsletter 35

    August 2 -2008

    Questions and comments for this issue:

    + Report on feasibility study on the effectiveness of cranio sacral therapy on migraine.
    + Open letter from Cranio Suisse®, the Swiss cranio sacral association.
    + Comment from Al Pelowski in response to Joyaa Antares and maxillae.
    + Comment from Cathryn Nitschke in Australia about her Osteopathy training and how it compares to cranio.
    + Question about therapist burnout.
    + Question about talking about emotional issues.

    Hello,

    Well it’s a positively groaning newsletter this
    Time it is so full.  Lots happening in the world
    of cranio sacral with a report on migraine and an
    interesting initiative from the Swiss cranio
    sacral association but more on that later.

    I have spent quite a bit of time reworking the
    training part of the Open Source Cranio website,
    making it a better learning tool.  I have begun to
    add my training notes and to lay out a learning
    schedule.

    One of the new features is a search function
    which should make it easier to search the site for
    specific topics.

    Another new function is the comments feature.
    This allows you to leave comments directly on the
    site, under specific articles.  You have to click
    the comments tab.  So you can comment on the
    article and letters in this newsletter directly on
    the site if you want.
    I encourage you to leave comments or send me an
    email letting me know what you think.  The more
    feedback I get the better I can make it.

    I also encourage you to send me articles that
    you think might help someone in a developing
    country who is using the material to begin their
    cranio sacral learning and I will post them.

    I have fixed the problem with the newsletter
    subscription block so if you tried to resubscribe
    before and it didn’t work it’s working now.

    Speaking of learning let me direct you to a
    website I came across and intend to use a lot in
    teaching.  It is called the Visible body and is an
    online 3D anatomy viewer.  You can view the demo
    for it here.
    http://www.open-source-cranio.com/sacral-training/3d-anatomy/
    If you like the look of it you need to go to
    their site and register and then you can use the
    models yourself.  If you’re a Mac user forget PC
    only.  Discrimination rears its ugly head again,
    sigh, pout.

    Rightio, let’s get on with the mailbag.

    ***REPORT***

    Below is an extract from a press release I
    received about a proposed test for the
    effectiveness of cranio sacral therapy on
    migraine.  They propose to use low-strength static
    magnets as the control group.

    Double blind studies are not my field of
    expertise and is it just me or what, but I think
    people would know the difference between a
    therapist and a magnet.

    Ah well, they’re trying.

    ————————————————–
    Craniosacral therapy for migraine: protocol
    development for an exploratory controlled clinical
    trial.

    Migraine affects approximately 20% of the
    population.  Conventional care for migraine is
    suboptimal; overuse of medications for the
    treatment of episodic migraines is a risk factor
    for developing chronic daily headache.

    The study of non-pharmaceutical approaches for
    prevention of migraine headaches is therefore
    warranted. Craniosacral therapy (CST) is a popular
    non-pharmacological approach to the treatment or
    prevention of migraine headaches for which there
    is limited evidence of safety and efficacy.

    In this paper, we describe an ongoing feasibility
    study to assess the safety and efficacy of CST in
    the treatment of migraine, using a rigorous and
    innovative randomized controlled study design
    involving low-strength static magnets (LSSM) as an
    attention control intervention.

    Methods: The trial is designed to test the
    hypothesis that, compared to those receiving usual
    care plus a treatment with low-strength static
    magnets (attention-control complementary therapy),
    subjects receiving usual medical care plus CST
    will demonstrate significant improvement in:
    quality-of-life as measured by the Headache Impact
    Test (HIT-6); reduced frequency of migraine; and a
    perception of clinical benefit. Criteria for
    inclusion are either gender, age >11, English or
    Spanish speaking, meeting the International
    Classification of Headache Disorders (ICHD)
    criteria for migraine with or without aura, a
    headache frequency of 5 to 15 per month over at
    least two years.

    After an 8 week baseline phase, eligible subjects
    are randomized to either CST or an attention
    control intervention, low strength static magnets
    (LSSM). To evaluate possible therapist bias,
    videotaped encounters are analyzed to assess for
    any systematic group differences in interactions
    with subjects.

    Results: 169 individuals have been screened for
    eligibility of which 109 were eligible for the
    study. Five did not qualify during the baseline
    phase because of inadequate headache frequency.

    Nineteen have withdrawn from the study after
    giving consent.

    Conclusion: This report endorses the feasibility
    of undertaking a rigorous randomized clinical
    trial of CST for migraine using a standardized CST
    protocol and an innovative control protocol
    developed for the study.

    Subjects are able and willing to complete detailed
    headache diaries during an 8-week baseline period,
    with few dropouts during the study period,
    indicating the acceptability of both
    interventions.

    Author: John D Mann, Keturah R Faurot, Laurel
    Wilkinson, Peter Curtis, Remy R Coeytaux,
    Chirayath Suchindran and Susan A Gaylord

    Credits/Source: BMC Complementary and Alternative
    Medicine 2008, 8:28

    Published on: 2008-06-10

    You can read the full report here.
    http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6882/8/28

    ***OPEN LETTER FROM CRANIO SUISSE®.***

    I was forwarded this open letter from Cranio
    Suisse® who have launched an initiative to
    encourage communication between different schools
    and therapists which, as you know, I am all for.

    Their website is not in English so that limits
    the initiative immediately but other than that I
    think it’s great.

    If you want to read their site in English you
    can run it through Google translate.
    http://translate.google.com

    You need to scroll to the bottom of the page and
    enter their web address.
    http://www.craniosuisse.ch/

    ————————————————

    *International Networking for the Advancement of
    Craniosacral Therapy*

    Dear collegues,

    All the schools and therapists for Craniosacral
    Therapy in Switzerland have organized themselves
    in a new association – Cranio Suisse®. We are now
    number two among the associations for
    complementary therapies. The goal of this
    organization is to bring together all the
    different approaches of Craniosacral Therapy
    within Switzerland and to guarantee a good quality
    of schools and therapists. Cranio Suisse® is the
    official representative of Craniosacral Therapy
    towards governmental institutions and health
    insurance companies. In short, Cranio Suisse® is
    supporting and promoting Craniosacral Therapy
    within in the Swiss Health System.

    Furthermore the association acts as connecting
    link between patients and therapists. You will
    find more details under http://www.craniosuisse.ch/

    This year Cranio Suisse® established a new *study
    group for international contacts and research*. My
    task within this group is to establish contacts
    with associations/schools all over the world, thus
    building the basis for an efficient networking
    beneficial to all of us.

    I should therefore be very grateful if you could
    let me know whether you are interested in such an
    exchange of thoughts and knowledge.

    We would suggest the following procedure:

    *Step 1*: We put together a list of all
    associations/schools interested in putting up a
    Craniosacral “Knowledge Network”.

    *Step 2*: Evaluation of the importance and
    positioning of Craniosacral Therapy within the
    health system of each country (questionnaire). The
    final goal will be to exchange research reports
    and study designs or even realize common research
    projects to get more and broader evidence based
    facts about Craniosacral Therapy.

    Are you interested in such a project and if yes,
    do you agree with the proposed procedure or do you
    have different suggestions?

    We are convinced that an exchange of knowledge
    like this would create positive synergies for all
    of us, whether it be with regard to the handling
    of public health aspects for complementary
    therapies in general or strengthening the position
    of Craniosacral Therapy specifically.

    We are looking forward to your feedback. If you
    feel that there is some other institution, school
    or person who could be interested in the above
    project, please let us know.

    Thank you for giving our ideas a friendly,
    constructive thought.

    With best regards

    Barbara Liniger

    praxis@barbaraliniger.ch

    Member of the study group for international
    contacts and research of Cranio Suisse®

    http://www.craniosuisse.ch/

    PS: Between July 8 and August 24 I will not be
    able to answer any emails. I will get back to you
    in September as soon as possible. Thank you.

    Contactaddress:

    Barbara Liniger

    Praxis für klassische Homöopathie und
    craniosacrale Osteopathie

    Alpenstrasse 14
    6300 Zug

    Tel 041 720 03 20

    praxis@barbaraliniger.ch
    www.barbaraliniger.ch

    Barbara Liniger

    Praxis für klassische Homöopathie und
    craniosacrale Osteopathie

    Alpenstrasse 14
    6300 Zug

    ***COMMENT FROM AL PELOWSKI IN RESPONSE TO JOYAA ANTARES AND MAXILLAE***

    Joyaa query, comments:

    Maxillary hypoplasia, where the maxillae have not
    grown properly, as distinguished from impaction,
    is a feature of some craniosynostotic syndromes.

    We see quite a few babies with that here in
    Africa.  I had a query on that yesterday in fact.

    In these cases you find hydrocephalus, premature
    closure and ridging of the sutures, bulging vault
    bones, protruding fontanels, webbing between
    fingers and toes, and distorted distal phalanges,
    all in varying degrees.  The maxillae can be
    unable to hold in the eyes.

    I had one case a few years ago where I had to push
    an eyeball back in..!  Most of these kids end up
    with craniofacial surgery and shunts.  Some of
    them can respond to cranio!  But by no means all.
    Many die young gagging with oropharynx
    restrictions.

    As to possible causes and complications I could
    speculate at length, but it wouldn’t amount to
    much (estrogenic pollution, dioxins, severe
    malnourishment in mother during 1st trimester,
    etc..).

    I would be interested if any of your readers have
    come across this and worked with it.
    Al in Joburg

    ***COMMENT FROM CATHRYN IN AUSTRALIA***

    Dear John
    Thanks for the link. I have just had a quick wizz
    through the site and I think what you are doing is
    brilliant, worthy and highly commendable. Good on
    you.

    I first met you maybe around 2002 or 3 when you
    were still in Brisbane. I did one of your
    introductory CST courses and really enjoyed it. I
    believe that the school wound down shortly
    thereafter (my memory is not the greatest so
    perhaps this is not quite the case). Anyway, I was
    keen to look more deeply into CST which led me to
    doing Patricia Farnsworth myofascial release/cst
    course and then Roger Gilchrist came to Australia
    for 4 years to teach biodynamic CST.

    I have also studied with Mike Boxhall in England,
    who I think is wonderful and have made contact
    with Charles Ridley whose writings really inspire
    me. Since then I enrolled in osteopathy at RMIT in
    Melbourne, thinking this would take me more deeply
    into the world of CST. I have just finished my
    first semester there and it has been somewhat of a
    let down. I really hear you when you talk about
    problems with CST training or training of any
    hands on healing modality. I find that the push
    towards health degrees and measurable outcomes is
    taking away from the power of the apprenticeship,
    “hands on” model and I lament this.

    I had studied at university before, but this was
    in the arts faculty in the early 90’s.  The
    science faculty as I find it in the late noughties
    is a very different world. The lecturers are
    generally not very competent or inspiring teachers
    and they seem to find students a nuisance rather
    than an opportunity. One of them told me I was
    only allowed to ask one question per semester and
    seeing as I had already used up my quota in the
    first week, that was it.

    I thought he was joking, but he wasn’t! This was
    disappointing because he is a very knowledgeable
    anatomist and I wanted to pick his brains, but
    obviously this is not meant to be. Some of the
    osteo lecturers find my questions challenging and
    potentially threatening, especially the ones
    firmly entrenched in the biomechanical model.

    On the first day of practical osteo classes, we
    practiced range of motion on the lower lumbars.
    The technique left me with an instant sore back
    and I had to self-treat with cranio work for the
    next two days to relieve it! I thought, do I
    really want to learn and be subjected to this? I
    enjoy the philosophy and principles of osteopathy,
    however, the prac classes seem pretty basic and
    archaic compared to CST. I feel like it is a
    backwards step for me. However, I have enjoyed
    delving more deeply into the anatomy and
    physiology, so my intention is to continue with
    the medical sciences part of the course and drop
    the osteopathic parts. Did you know that
    osteopathy in the cranial field is only briefly
    touched upon in 5th year?  All the rest of the
    time is spent on HVLA, MET, counterstrain,
    myofascial release, etc.

    Many of my CST colleagues lament that they never
    studied osteopathy and they seem to hold it up as
    the holy grail of osteopathy.  This is not my
    experience I can now say and I am glad that I
    checked it out. I noticed that osteopaths in
    Australia all have a pretty similar and extensive
    training but in my experience there are some
    pretty ordinary osteos around.

    I am obviously not a fan of the “rub and crack”
    school. And I have found a few gems whom I highly
    admire and have as mentors. So this makes me
    ponder what makes the difference b/w the
    practitioners I adore versus the ones whose
    treatments either leave me feeling worse or at
    best, like I didn’t even have a treatment. I put
    this down to the more subtle realms that CST takes
    the time to unpack and explore. Consciousness,
    presence, empathy, openness, etc. Such vital
    qualities in a health practitioner of any
    persuasion in my opinion.

    So really what I want to say to you is good on
    you. I admire the time and energy you put into
    your newsletter and website to expose more people
    to CST and encourage a discussion around all
    things CST. I think this is vital work to bring
    together a sense of community and to share ideas.

    I notice the osteos have a very close knit
    community and I think there is strength in that. I
    love the opportunity to exchange ideas,
    information, experiences with other health
    practitioners with a biodynamic bent (gentle and
    holistic). Also, I think that osteopathy is held
    up as something quite exclusive and prestigious in
    comparison to CST. They go to great lengths to
    align themselves as primary practitioners with a
    solid medical training. It seems that in turn, the
    medical world rejects them and they are not really
    embraced by the ‘natural therapies’ brigade
    either. They are positioned in a potential no-
    man’s land or on the flip side a potential
    powerful middle way.

    My greatest wish is to study this ‘stuff’ with a
    mentor, one on one. I think anyone can teach
    themselves certain things like anatomy and
    physiology out of a book, but the influence of
    someone who has walked the path before is
    invaluable to point out some of the pitfalls, the
    shortcuts and which bits of the scenery are worth
    lingering on.

    I have a chiropractic friend who I have great
    discussions with, and he maintains that he could
    teach me the ‘guts’ of the chiro 5 year training
    in an afternoon and I believe him. This work isn’t
    hard, as such, but the universities certainly turn
    it into a cerebrally challenging exercise filling
    the students heads with reams of facts at the
    expense of understanding.

    A phrase that speaks so much to me is “lose the
    techniques” as I heard from Gangaji. After all the
    study, to let it all go, and see what arises, to
    follow the heart and the gut and the fingers and
    the senses and feelings and to give the mind a
    rest.  This is what I love and see as the power of
    biodynamic CST.

    So in conclusion, I think any monkey can be taught
    the techniques, the vital part is how they are put
    together in the final package, the quality of the
    touch and the presence and care of the
    practitioner.

    I wish you all the best with this project.
    kind regards

    Cathryn Nitschke
    somewhere between Brisbane, Melbourne and
    Adelaide.

    MY COMMENTS:

    Thank you for all your kind words Cathryn.
    What a great letter.  I cannot agree with you more
    about the mentors, they are vital.

    I think I was lucky because that whole,
    ‘osteopaths are a more exalted form of cranio
    sacral therapist’ thing was nipped in the bud for
    me early in my training.

    Liz Kalinowska (http://www.craniosacralstudies.co.uk/about/frames.html)
    was one of my tutors.  She told me that she
    had become an osteopath first because she thought
    it would prepare her to become a cranio sacral
    therapist.  She spent 7 years becoming an
    osteopath.  She told me she felt she had wasted
    her time.  If anything she had to unlearn some of
    what she was taught.

    I have found over the years that it is very
    hard to resist the temptation to ‘pop’ something
    back into place if you know how.  I am lucky
    because I never learned how to do any thrusting or
    strong techniques so I don’t know how to ‘pop’
    things back into place.   I am forced to sit and
    wait and that is one of the reasons why I, and the
    people I have trained, get such great results.

    ***QUESTION***

    Hi John

    Thank you for the very valuable information shared
    by you and other CS therapists.  I’ve been a
    little out of circuit lately – life’s little
    challenges – so even though you may have not had a
    response from me, I’m still keen to remain
    connected.

    My preference would be more frequent shorter news
    rather than the other.
    Kindly advise what the donations will be used for.

    Any suggestions for therapist burn out? A long
    awaited holiday is needed, I know ,and am busy
    working toward one.  My forearms are taking strain
    and was told that Kinesiology NOT treatment can
    help.  I’m pretty good at caring for myself but
    what with juggling teaching yoga, CST, VM and my
    latest baby, doing readings it has all suddenly
    caught up with me.  I keep the yoga, therapy and
    readings for separate days giving me enough time
    to replenish.  Please throw some light (energy) on
    this subject.

    Kindly yours

    Peni in Cape Town

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Peni,
    There are lots of different energetic
    considerations when considering burnout but the
    one that stands out to me, from what you have
    written, is that you are doing A LOT!

    It may be nothing to do with any of the
    therapies that you are doing individually.  It may
    be that you are doing so many plus your new baby.
    I’m getting tired just thinking about it.

    It sounds like you know what I am going to say
    next but I’ll say anyway.  It’s important to find
    a way, that works for you, of removing any
    residual energy after you treat someone.

    For some people this means a full shower for
    others it is simply letting water run over their
    hands.

    Avoid seeing too many people in a week.  I have
    found that somewhere between 12 and 18 adults is
    about as much as most people can treat with cranio
    sacral therapy without burning out very quickly.

    Even if you find a way of removing excess
    energy after each person and you don’t see too
    many people you will still need to take a break
    every 3 months for at least 7 days.

    On top of all that you need to take a long
    break, around 6 months, every 10 years.

    It took me 12 years to figure that one out.

    What will the donations be used for?

    Well mainly to keep me in cigars and wine, oh
    yes and also to help me run open source cranio.
    It takes a lot of time and I do have to pay for
    things like web hosting etc.  I also plan to put
    teaching videos on the site and these all cost
    money to make.

    Primarily the ‘donate’ button is an opportunity
    for people to give back.  This is good for me, not
    just because of the cigars and wine, but also
    because it’s important to be able to receive, me
    included.  I have found that if you can’t receive
    comfortably then you can’t really give.

    ***QUESTION***

    Dear John,
    Thank you for your wonderful newsletters they are
    so helpful.  I find your wellness detective agency
    idea novel and very useful.

    I have a particular patient with chronic fatigue
    and Fibromyalgia for 6 years.  She is in a lot of
    pain.  The cranio sacral treatment itself is going
    reasonably well but I feel she has emotional
    issues that make her condition worse.

    I have broached exploring the emotional causes of
    her condition with her but she becomes very
    defensive and then frustrated and then despairing.

    Do you have any suggestions on how to approach
    these issues with her.

    Thanks again.

    PM
    Perth.

    MY COMMENTS:

    The secret weapon of cranio sacral therapy is
    silence.

    Personally, I can talk a lot about the other
    stuff.  Why the person might be sick and so on.
    I can talk about that stuff so much I wrote a book
    about it for crying out loud.

    But for some people talking can only make
    things worse.  They will usually have been sick
    for some time, like your patient, and will usually
    have seen quite a few other therapists.  They will
    have a number of theories crashing around in their
    heads as to why they are ill.  Ironically each new
    ‘helpful’ perspective you might offer can push
    them deeper into confusion rather than helping to
    clarify.

    That’s when silence really works. Just let them
    get on the table and begin your work.  You can
    chat with them but don’t initiate it or keep it
    going.  Eventually silence descends and in that
    silence and the depths of your work, changes will
    percolate to the surface from the depths of them.

    Over time deep changes will occur and no one
    will talk about it.  Sometimes if you are lucky
    they will tell you an insight they may have had
    and when they do it will usually have a deep ring
    of truth to it.

    So that’s it for this issue.

    Cheerio for now.

    Your Mate,

    John D.

  • ‘Why are people so dumb?’

    + Emotional issues – Why are people so dumb? – September 05

    Ok Maestro. Read your blurb on your website.

    You don’t seem like your standard “Be still
    and know that I KNOW,’ sort of cranio person.
    Is there a factory somewhere I don’t know about
    that churns these folk out?

    Anyways, I’ve got a question for ye.
    I’ve been seeing people for 4 years now, using
    a combination of acupuncture and cranio.

    As time goes on I’m seeing the cause of many
    physical problems are emotional.

    They tell you their life stories when they come
    in and you can see how they keep repeating
    the same self destructive patterns over and OVER again!
    You point it out to them and they just keep doing it?

    What gives?
    Why don’t they get it?
    Believe me I’ve tried everything!

    So let’s hear your answer on that one Kemosabe.

    K. Orlando. Fl.

    >>>MY COMMENTS:

    Why DON’T people get it?
    Is it because they are dumb?

    Well let’s explore that. If the reason people don’t
    get stuff is because they are dumb then that would
    include you and me.

    Wouldn’t it?

    Or do you think we are special?

    That you and I get stuff quicker than other people?
    Maybe it’s just you and the rest of us are dumb?
    Okay, so maybe there is something else going on.

    It’s called subjectivity.

    Let me explain.

    This situation happens to about once every couple of
    weeks in my practie. I will be talking with a patient
    about their condition. I will be in the middle of
    saying something that I hadn’t verbalised before and
    what I am saying is COOL!

    Part of me will be listening and thinking ‘This is
    really good, profound, insightful stuff I’m saying.’

    Within a few minutes the patient will be looking
    at me in an awed sort of way. I can see them
    rummaging around internally for the makings of
    a nice pedestal to put me on. That’s when my
    ALARM BELLS GO OFF.

    For me and for them.

    While I acknowledge that every now and again
    I do say something original, I know it’s not
    good for me to get too self admiring about it.

    I also, know that the patient is about to disempower
    themselves if I don’t do something fast.

    At this stage they will usually be in the middle
    of telling me how they feel like a screw up of
    one kind or another.

    The inference being that there are people in the
    world who are normal, they are in the majority
    and the patient is an anomaly.

    I stop them and explain the objective/subjective dynamic.
    I make a point of explaining that I can have insight
    about their lives because I AM NOT IN THEIR BODY.
    I’M NOT LIVING IN THEIR LIFE.

    I further the point by telling them that if we
    swapped seats and I started telling them about
    my life, they could have some very useful insights
    about my life. Particularly the things I am not seeing.

    Bottom line Tonto, is you have been sitting in the
    therapist’s chair too long. You have forgotten what
    it is like to be a patient. You have started to
    believe your own press and feel like you should
    be up there on that pedestal your patients have
    been eager to put you on.

    WARNING! WARNING! YOU ARE IN DANGER OF
    FALLING INTO THE THERAPIST TRAP.

    I know because I fell in it a few times myself
    in different ways. It is one of those things
    you need to be very proactive in not allowing to happen.

    You have to nip it in the bud with yourself first
    and then with your patients.

    No pedestal building allowed.
    No special powers implied.
    No act together imagined.

    So be of good cheer, K of Orlando, it’s not hopeless
    but you will need to do something NOW.

    I suggest going to a therapist, a cranio sacral
    therapist even. Put yourself in the other chair
    for a bit.

    Take a class. Learn something new.

    Do whatever you can to break up the cocoon of
    smug superiority you have woven around yourself.

    Try and energetically stand beside the patient
    as you look at their problem, rather on opposite
    sides of it.

    Be with them, two people doing the best they can,
    sometimes with ignorance and fear
    sometimes with grace and beauty.

    Dude, somebody hug me.

  • Burnout

    + Question about therapist burnout. – July 08

    Hi John

    Thank you for the very valuable information shared
    by you and other CS therapists.  I’ve been a
    little out of circuit lately – life’s little
    challenges – so even though you may have not had a
    response from me, I’m still keen to remain
    connected.

    My preference would be more frequent shorter news
    rather than the other.
    Kindly advise what the donations will be used for.

    Any suggestions for therapist burn out ? A long
    awaited holiday is needed, I know ,and am busy
    working toward one.  My forearms are taking strain
    and was told that Kinesiology NOT treatment can
    help.  I’m pretty good at caring for myself but
    what with juggling teaching yoga, CST, VM and my
    latest baby, doing readings it has all suddenly
    caught up with me.  I keep the yoga, therapy and
    readings for separate days giving me enough time
    to replenish.  Please throw some light (energy) on
    this subject.

    Kindly yours

    Peni in Cape Town

    >>>MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Peni,
    There are lots of different energetic
    considerations when considering burnout but the
    one that stands out to me, from what you have
    written, is that you are doing A LOT!

    It may be nothing to do with any of the
    therapies that you are doing individually.  It may
    be that you are doing so many plus your new baby.
    I’m getting tired just thinking about it.

    It sounds like you know what I am going to say
    next but I’ll say anyway.  It’s important to find
    a way, that works for you, of removing any
    residual energy after you treat someone.

    For some people this means a full shower for
    others it is simply letting water run over their
    hands.

    Avoid seeing too many people in a week.  I have
    found that somewhere between 12 and 18 adults is
    about as much as most people can treat with cranio
    sacral therapy without burning out very quickly.

    Even if you find a way of removing excess
    energy after each person and you don’t see too
    many people you will still need to take a break
    every 3 months for at least 7 days.

    On top of all that you need to take a long
    break, around 6 months, every 10 years.

    It took me 12 years to figure that one out.

    What will the donations be used for?

    Well mainly to keep me in cigars and wine, oh
    yes and also to help me run open source cranio.
    It takes a lot of time and I do have to pay for
    things like web hosting etc.  I also plan to put
    teaching videos on the site and these all cost
    money to make.

    Primarily the ‘donate’ button is an opportunity
    for people to give back.  This is good for me, not
    just because of the cigars and wine, but also
    because it’s important to be able to receive, me
    included.  I have found that if you can’t receive
    comfortably then you can’t really give.