Open Source Cranio

Tag: Contract

  • Cranio Sacral Therapist and Student Newsletter 41

    August 4 – 2009

    Questions and comments for this issue:

    + Follow on comment about Hypnosis, should you
    stop working with people? and session management.
    + Follow on comments about ‘How you came to Cranio sacral?’
    + How do you settle a person’s system at the end of a session?
    + Question about Polyarteritis Nodosa and working with the immune system.
    + Is a Mothers loving touch as good as a cranial treatment?

    Hello,
    The tributes for Al Pelowski were many and beautiful.
    They continue to come in and you can read them here.

    There was an international Memorial held for Al on
    Friday the 25th. All around the world people who knew
    Al gathered to remember him and his life.  At the
    appointed time I sat in meditation remembering Al
    and I felt . . . well, not much really.
    Certainly no sense of closure.

    It wasn’t until hours later when I was  in my back
    garden cutting the grass that out of no where Al
    came into my head. In particular how he felt like he
    had found his place in the cosmos.

    I looked at the sky and smiled.  The heavy sense
    of loss that had been with me since I heard of Al’s
    death was gone and in its place I felt peace.

    Typical Al – when I was cutting the grass.

    Life goes on.

    I have been updating the newsletter archive.  I am
    about halfway through the newsletters from 2007
    so if you weren’t getting these newsletters back
    then you can review them here.

    If you have been in contact about my Masterclass
    series and are chomping at the bit to get stuck into
    them, there is good news and not so good news, which
    in Ireland we like to call, ‘de bad news’.

    De bad news is that it is taking me forever to
    finish editing them all and get them ready in the
    format they need to be for DVD.

    The good news is that I am going to make them
    available online as they are ready.  The rough idea
    is that you will be able to watch each video online
    for less than the price of a cinema ticket.
    (Popcorn optional but not included.)

    The first one is almost ready. I just have to
    connect up a few more elastic bands at the back of
    the computer, collect a few more lollipop sticks
    and some pipe cleaners and I should be good to go.

    So while I’m doing that let’s get
    on with the mailbag.

    ***FOLLOW ON COMMENT FROM HELENA IN SLOVENIA ABOUT HYPNOSIS AND HOW DO YOU FOCUS?***

    Hello John!

    While reading your reflection about comparing the
    hypnothic state and state after CST, I remember one
    therapy when I got one patient in regression. Before
    that the whole treatmant was like cleaning her bad
    energy loaded in her psychical system. I had my hand
    on the table without touching her body and there came
    so strong unwinding and macro-motions, like Franklyn
    Sills would name it, that I could hardly stand it. Her body
    was moving in a really intensive wave motion. I know that
    my patient exactly knew what was happening and that was
    her way how to release her psychical system. I didn’t
    continue to work with her, because my opinion was
    that this way she didn’t solve her life problems,
    she just sustain her system in status quo.

    Anyway here comes my problem. With clients I realy
    quickly come to their stress responses, unresolved
    traumas, traumatic experiences and psychic
    disturbances. And that realy takes time. So, if
    I want to work on the knee injury I can’t, becasue
    I could be one hour and a half in vault hold position,
    doing on traumas. Maybe is this my profesional
    handicap while before doing CST I was counseler
    in the Center for social work. This started this
    year, after one year of studying and doing CST.
    I think that there must be just one switch that
    starts to release client’s system and I don’t
    know how to disconnect it.

    Have a nice day.

    Helena

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Helena,
    In the first part of your letter you mention
    that you didn’t continue working with the particular
    woman in question.  For myself, I never discontinue
    working with someone.  If they shows up and want help
    I will treat them regardless of what I think about
    their process.

    So even if I think someone is messing about and not
    really engaging in their process or ‘just sustaining
    their system in status quo’ I will continue treating
    them.

    The reason I do that is that I know their system
    will come into harmony, eventually.  It’s unavoidable.
    It’s just a question of time and in an odd way knowing
    this speeds up the process.

    Here’s the thing, when I am treating someone, the
    place I go to in myself is, in a way, timeless and
    sitting in that place I can wait forever.

    This timeless quality is communicated from my system
    to the other person’s and it helps them release sooner
    rather than later.  Resistance dissolves in the face
    of the timeless.  Eventually they begin to change.

    From experience I know that if a person keeps coming
    for treatment eventually they will get what they want.

    In answer to your question in the second part of your
    letter about finding the ‘off switch’.  It is probably
    better to think of it in terms of managing the overall
    treatment program and then managing each session within
    that program.

    It comes down to not being afraid to negotiate with
    the person’s system.

    When someone first comes to see me for treatment I
    ask them what they would like me to help them with.
    Whatever they answer forms the contract between us
    and the focus for our work together.
    I talked at length about contracts here.

    So using your example if the person said they
    wanted me to help them with their knee injury, then
    that would be the contract between us and the focus
    for our work.

    In my initial assessment I would look to see what
    the root cause of the knee injury was.  If the root
    cause was emotional then I would convey that to the
    person and include it in our work together.

    But. . .
    If the root cause was simply physical then I would
    just focus on that.  If any emotional issues came up
    for releasing during the session I would do some non
    verbal negotiation with the person’s system to desist
    from releasing the emotional issues as they were not
    part of the contract between us.

    This approach may seem at odds with the whole
    ‘going with the body’ and ‘treating what you find’
    approach but it’s not.  Going with the body and
    treating what you find are cornerstones of our work
    but they operate within the confines of the contract.

    It is important to stick to what you are asked
    to help with – the contract – because it leaves the
    door open for the person to renegotiate the contract
    down the track.  Going beyond the contract is in
    essence disrespectful to the person’s process and
    generally ends up messy.

    ***FOLLOW ON COMMENT FROM JUDAH IN AMERICA ABOUT HOW HE CAME TO CRANIO SACRAL THERAPY***

    Thanks John for your newsletter. I began my career
    at the Rolf Institute in Boulder, Colorado in the
    late 80’s. Many of my teachers practiced cranial
    along side the Rolfing approach. A couple of them
    also practiced visceral manipulation.  I asked why
    it wasn’t taught at the Institute, and they told me
    to just Rolf for 5 years. Develop a Rolfer’s mindset
    and hands. I made it 4.5 and took my first cranial
    class in the mechanical model, with one of my former
    anatomy teachers at the Rolf Institute who was also
    one of Upledger’s instructors. I took more classes
    of that style, then after practicing CST for about
    8-9 years I went to the UK every two months to do
    the biodynamic approach with Franklyn Sills in Devon.
    Franklyn is a wonderful teacher and that training
    lasted two years.  So in my practice, I do both the
    Rolfing and the Craniosacral therapy.  I have been
    teaching both methodologies, although my own path
    after 20 years of practice, has shifted to an
    apprenticeship with a shaman.
    There you have it mate!

    Go well,

    Judah Lyons

    MY COMMENTS:

    Thanks for that Judah. A very interesting journey
    and I’m sure you could contribute a lot to the
    Open Source Cranio project.   I didn’t realise
    Rolf Harris was that big in America. Or that he
    taught a healing modality.  Come to think of it
    I always did find the music of the wobble board
    soothingly therapeutic.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lofgud4wLLo&feature=related

    ***FOLLOW ON COMMENT FROM NICA IN THE BERLIN ABOUT HOW SHE CAME TO CRANIO SACRAL THERAPY***

    dear friend john,

    greetings out of vienna where i teach right now contemporary
    dance (and silence….:-)) at the university!

    silence:
    a very important state of being…..in cranio and daily life.

    to find this/ a secure place to be and observe out of this spot .

    it feels like a fulcrum…like sitting in the center of
    a hurricane: very protected,strong,silent.

    how I came to cranio?:
    through a long process….dancing, dancing, dancing, and
    one day feeling the wish of stopping moving but feeling the
    “moves” inside of me.
    so I took a cranio session.

    it felt like coming home.

    somehow I had to “move” so many years to find this inner quality.
    to be able to accept the beauty inside of me .
    i just wannted to share.
    thats how i became,since 2004 cranio scral therapiste……………

    a short storry.right?……………………..

    all my friendship! aswell to your lovely wife,
    nica from berlin

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Nica,
    Thanks for that.  Being an astonishingly good dancer myself. . .

    What?

    . . . I totally ‘get’ the link between cranio sacral work
    and dance. It often feels like I am part of an elaborate
    dance when I am working with someone.

    ***QUESTION – HOW DO YOU ‘SETTLE’ PEOPLE?***

    Hey John,
    really enjoying your website – besides all the practical
    information I enjoy that it gives me a sense of being
    connected with other craniosacral therapists, especially
    through your newsletters.
    I was wondering if you could say something about
    the integragtion process? How to integrate a session
    for the client particularly if they have done some
    emotional work – I get a bit lost here – I do the work,
    and its beautiful, maybe we have about 10 mins left,
    and I don’t want to start another process but rather
    spend some time with the body allowing the information
    to settle.
    In terms of cranio are there ‘settling techniques’
    which help the body absorb the session? Stillpoints
    of course – but what else can you recommend that won’t
    start another process?
    Had a dream last night about the integrating I did
    with a client last night, and was told I did fine –
    but the doubter in me always feels there’s some more
    I could have done.
    Look forward to hearing from you,
    Deirdre

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Deirdre,
    I’m glad you are finding the website useful.
    Here is one way to think of settling.  Think of a
    glass of water that you have been stirring with a
    spoon.  When you stop stirring the water settles.

    It is kind of the same with settling a person’s
    system. Contacting a person’s system with the
    intention of assisting it to find harmony can have
    a very tomultous effect, particularly if the system
    is very restricted and is very ready to release.

    So even though your intention is not ‘doing’
    anything the person’s system can take advantage of
    the support to do LOTS.

    Settling is a bit like the opposite of entrainment.
    At the start of a session as you entrain with the
    person’s system you form a connection.  Among other
    things your respective cranio sacral rhythms synchronize.
    The person’s system opens up
    to you.

    Releases come in waves so towards the end of the
    treatment session when you feel the latest wave of
    release is finished you change your intention to
    settling.

    You take your spoon out of the glass of water.

    If you just took your hands away without settling
    the person’s system it would remain open leaving the
    person with a kind of gaping hole that would snap
    shut at the first sign of threat.

    You begin to settle the persons system with your
    intention.  You change your intention from following
    and holding and following through to presence without
    involvement. You are still with the person’s system
    but you are not involved with it.

    As you make this change you will notice that the
    person’s system begins to settle.  In a way, it puts
    itself back together in readiness to face the world
    again. As it does this you begin to withdraw you
    intention from their system and then from you hands.

    It is only when you have fully withdrawn your
    intention from your hands that you begin to physically
    withdraw your hands from their body.

    ***QUESTION – POLYARTERITIS NODOSA?***

    Hello John

    Have you had any experience in treating someone with
    Polyarteritis Nodosa ?
    I’m told that a suppressed immune system is needed to
    keep it under control.
    Since CST supports and boosts the immune system,
    would it be safe to treat this client?
    Presently the patient is on corTisone and chemo tablets.
    He is very weak (age 53)
    My feeling is to go in there with the intention NOT to
    boost the immune system but to give him some form of
    overall relief.
    Your comments would greatly be appreciated

    Thespeni in Cape Town

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Thespeni,
    I haven’t treated anyone with Polyarteritis
    Nodosa so I can’t give you any first hand experience.
    Problems with the immune system whether it is simple
    allergies or more serious conditions like this nearly
    always come back to boundary issues.

    Your immune system has to do with defense.
    In order to defend you it needs to be able to
    effectively tell the difference between what is
    ‘you’ and what is ‘not you’.  That difference
    forms boundary which your immune system patrols.

    When there are problems with your immune system
    and that boundary is set too far outside your system
    invading bacteria and viruses are not detected and
    attacked.

    When the boundary is too close to your system
    parts of ‘you’ are identified as ‘not you’ and your
    immune system starts attacking you. Which is kind
    of the case with the man you are going to treat.

    When you work with the immune system with this
    in mind the focus of your work is about helping
    it find the right boundary again.

    ***QUESTION – IS A MOTHERS LOVING TOUCH AS GOOD AS CRANIAL TREATMENT?***

    Hello from Mauritius
    Dear John, I must say your website is a bank of
    resources that i have yet to tap from! Am training
    in CST with Al’s group in Mauritius and just completed
    module 4 with Jacob a couple of weeks ago. I am looking
    forward to more ‘feeling’ and tuning in the tide.

    Just wanted to comment on what you and Al noted re
    having non-cst practitioners/mums ‘do’ CST on their
    offsprings(Sharecare), especially after an incident 2 days
    ago.

    My friend’s semi-tamed dog rushed on and around my son
    and scared the hell out of him. She was only trying to play
    but may be ‘biting’ in a playful manner. Luca of course
    was catatonic. My reflex as a mum and cst trainee was hold
    the chest and help him ‘resolve the trauma’ right there and
    then. If other mums could do same and with the knowledge
    where to hold, that would go in line with A’s concerns.

    On the other hand as a CST proponent, i am inclined to say
    mums can only have a very loving touch. Yet again that touch
    can determine if that trauma stays a trauma and makes the
    body develop conditions /compensations etc..
    I am a bit lost here.
    I hope you are getting me. So sorry if my english is not so
    great and that my comment has been so long.
    Salam (bye bye in Kreol)

    Jenny
    Mauritius

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Jenny,
    I think the best way to answer your question
    is to bring it back to basics.  People were
    recovering from trauma long before cranio sacral
    therapy was a gleam in John Upledger’s eye
    and before William Sutherland had gleams anywhere
    and before Andrew Still had eyes . . .

    The point is that we wouldn’t have survived
    as a species if we weren’t able to repair ourselves.

    Our skill as cranio sacral therapists is in
    helping that process.  In a way that skill is
    separate to our motivation.

    Let me explain – I had many very motivated
    people began training with me as cranio sacral
    therapists but many of them eventually dropped
    out because they couldn’t come to grips with the
    skill required.  As you know, it’s not easy.

    I think it is important not to confuse a
    Mother’s love with that skill.

    It is also important not to underestimate
    the power of love.

    When a Mother places her hands on her
    traumatised child the child’s system may
    take advantage of the loving energy emanating
    from the mother to fix itself.

    So that’s it for this issue.

    Till the next time.

    Your Mate,

    John D.

  • Cranio Sacral Therapist and Student Newsletter 31

    January 27 – 2008

    Questions and comments for this issue:

    + Follow on from Jean in Ireland.
    + Blueprint follow on from Gayle in Cape Town.
    + Shingles follow on from Donovan in Durban.
    + Can you treat people with active Cancer?
    + CST and people recovering from Stroke?
    + Shingles follow on from Eva in Australia.
    + Treatment for Focal Dystonia.

    Hello,

    Another brand spanking New Year fresh from its
    wrapping is off and running.  You know in olden
    days Kings were very careful about what they did
    on the first 12 days of each New Year.  They
    believed each day represented its equivalent month
    in the year.

    So if they wanted January to be peaceful they
    would spend the first day of the New Year in
    contemplation.  If they wanted August to be joyous
    they would have a party on the eight day of the
    New Year and so on.   They were careful to not
    have anything happen in those first 12 days that
    would affect them negatively in the coming year.

    Considering it is now the 27th I suppose I am a
    little late in telling you all this.  Depending on
    how wild and crazy your New Years Eve celebrations
    were, January may be finding you with a continually
    sore head and a feeling of remorse.

    I’ll type softly.

    For myself, the coming year will bring the
    expansion of my Open Source Cranio project.   This
    is about making cranio sacral training information
    available to people in developing countries
    through my websites.  For me this is a no brainer
    as cranio sacral therapy doesn’t require any
    technology to practice. Just a pair of hands.  But
    then you knew that already.

    The idea is that if someone in a remote village
    has internet access, which is not as unlikely as
    it sounds, they can begin to learn the basics and
    start practicing.

    Would you like to help? Register
    yourself as a mentor or contribute an article or
    suggestions or perspective that you think might
    help that person.  If you can’t think of anything
    else just let me know you want to help.

    Anyhu John, on with this, bursting at
    the seams, mailbag.

    ***FOLLOW ON FROM JEAN MCDONALD***

    Hi John,
    good on you for your description of
    cerebral palsy – can’t really add to that!

    Thanks for the listing. The practice is general
    and of course working with the children is
    particularly interesting.

    In the Novara Centre some multidisciplinary work
    is happening and this is working well. A boy of
    four at present is being cared for from an acute
    episode when starting big school- my colleague is
    a Kinesiology’s suggested we work together.
    Progress is apparent – from a craniofacial
    viewpoint second trimester showed as problematic
    and the child had suffered some bullying at
    playschool.

    Stillpoints are amazing for this child, he becomes
    so insightful of his own place in the
    difficulties. He has returned to his birth and re-
    entered many times over, a much calmer child!

    Little Jodie (the case study I sent you a while
    ago) is doing well. The treatment involves
    palpating the parietals and now that she is older
    some more on her cranial base which has
    dysfunction with the left side.  Drawing the
    sacrum to lengthen the dural tube is always
    necessary and the respiratory diaphragm with a
    tonic liver for the last number of months has been
    less so on the last visit.

    Jodie is receiving remedies for her vaccines and
    at present the polio one is being addressed. She
    is much more affectionate to Mum and to her little
    sister and initiates hugs and kisses with both,
    this is separate form the craniosacral treatments
    which would frequently end with a move to Mum’s
    knee.
    She has overcome her great difficulty with Music
    class – she tolerates it now if it is not in the
    big hall and can articulate that they don’t give
    her the guitar or whistle.
    Best wishes,
    Jean

    MY COMMENTS:

    Thanks for that Jean.  From the feedback I get
    from other therapists and students who subscribe
    to this newsletter, getting a glimpse into someone
    else’s practice is very helpful.

    ***BLUEPRINT FOLLOW ON FROM GAYLE IN CAPE TOWN***

    Hi John

    I don’t know if they were in your part of the
    world, but a few years back there were these 3D
    pictures around. They basically look like a whole
    lot of messy dots, and then when you relax your
    eyes, you suddenly see the picture.

    And you can always see that picture every time you
    look at it. The more of these 3D images you look
    at, the better you get at seeing the image.

    Ok so I know that was using an image- like
    description, but it might make sense to some
    people. The blueprint – to me at least- is as
    solid and as apparent as the image that you would
    see.

    If I had to compare “seeing the blueprint” with
    any other of the more common 5 senses, I would say
    that it is like your sense of smell. Perhaps the
    ‘whispy and mist-like’ can be described as an
    aroma. It is tangible, it is stronger from the
    direction of the source. It has an associated
    memory or emotion. It also has a “rabbit-hole”
    effect. The more you try to analyse the smell, the
    more you can describe the components that make up
    that scent.

    Hope I made some sort of sense? 🙂

    Gayle (Cape Town, SA)

    MY COMMENTS:

    Thanks for that Gayle.  It is always good to
    get another perspective on how different people
    relate to different structures.  I’m not a
    ‘smeller’ myself but I really like it when someone
    can involve their sense of smell in their
    palpation, it must add a whole other dimension.

    Try as I might, I could never do those ‘magic
    eye’ things.  In the end I decided that there was
    no image there really and it was all an elaborate
    conspiracy to make me look stupid.

    What?

    It might be . .

    ***SHINGLES FOLLOW ON FROM DONOVAN IN DURBAN VIA
    HIS WIFE – HE HAS HIS HANDS FULL AT THE BARBEQUE –
    GIVE HIM A BREAK***

    Dear John

    Thanks so much for your lovely newsletters (this
    is Dee, Donovan’s wife and mother of his adored
    2.5 year old daughter Naomi!!!!).

    I have to confess that I read your newsletters
    with great enjoyment, especially as I am handling
    the advertising and promotion of cranio here in SA
    and I eagerly absorb all information about the
    various conditions and problems it can treat, and
    as you are a guru in this therapy, I hope you
    don’t mind me sneaking a peak at the info you send
    to Donovan.

    Yes, Donovan has treated a woman who had shingles.
    She was brought to him by a student practitioner
    who was feeling overwhelmed and asked for his
    support.  The whole top half of her body was
    covered in the sores and she also had HIV AIDS.
    She believed she was cursed by the local
    witchdoctor and she was going to die if the
    shingles spread and joined at the midline of her
    body (she was told this by an “Inyanga”/aka
    Traditional Healer).

    Yes, we live in a very interesting culturally
    diverse country with many of our inhabitants being
    governed by very strong cultural beliefs.  He has
    asked me to tell you this on his behalf (he is
    braaining [barbequing] our meal and his hands are
    filthy) that during the 4 sessions he had with
    her, he worked on boosting her immune system and
    holding into, and working with these deep seated
    fears.  When this began shifting, her healing
    accelerated dramatically.  Unfortunately, she was
    very unreliable in keeping her appointments and
    only came for the 4 sessions – even though she was
    being sponsored to come.

    I trust that you were suitably rewarded by Santa
    for being a good boy this year, and I look forward
    to more of your newsletters in 2008.

    Warmest regards from Sunny South Africa and
    wishing you a fabulous 2008.

    Dee, Donovan, Naomi, Hamish and Angus (our 2
    scottish terriers)

    MY COMMENTS:

    Thanks for that Dee and Donovan.  It conjured
    up a very cute mental image of Donovan up to his
    armpits in barbeque sauce, roaring cranio sacral
    descriptions to Dee.

    ‘I said holding into her deep seated fears,
    not folding into her cheap pleated smears.  What
    does that mean anyway??’

    It sounds like you helped the woman in question
    a lot Donovan.  It was also another glimpse into
    the different sorts of issues that practitioners
    in different parts of the world are dealing with.

    ***QUESTION***

    Hi John,

    I look forward to putting my details on your site
    when I finish my course and get some more
    practical hours up!

    I am interested in your theories on treating
    cancer patients?  My Cranio teacher says it is a
    contraindication if any cancer active is in the
    body?

    I have tried looking it up in Cranio books but
    have not found any information, if you do treat
    cancer patients what are you treating them for,
    the cancer, the pain, the side effects?  I read
    somewhere (it may even have been on your site) of
    people having chemo being treated but it did not
    say why or how?

    Luv your work!

    Karen
    Australia

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Karen,
    The main thing to get about contraindications
    is they are for YOUR protection as much as the
    patient.

    The chances of you doing any harm to the
    patient are slim to nonexistent.  On the other
    hand, the chances of you giving yourself a major
    fright and setting you palpatory skills back years
    is very high.

    For example, let’s say you go against your
    teachers/mentors recommendation and start treating
    someone who is in the middle of dealing with
    cancer.
    And let’s say they have a major episode the day
    after you treat them and end up in hospital.

    Take a minute and think about how you would
    feel.  Can you imagine how difficult it would be
    to stay objective about your contribution to their
    being in hospital.  Can you imagine how hard it
    would be to avoid putting yourself through the
    wringer wondering if your intention was too heavy
    or too light, how you could have missed what was
    coming and so on.

    I am not saying don’t treat people with cancer
    or who are having chemotherapy.  I am saying that
    you need to nurture and protect your growing
    palpatory skill.  It is hard enough to develop
    without unnecessarily putting it in the way of
    potential body blows.

    To answer your question, I have treated people
    with most stages of cancer, benign, malignant,
    aggressive, in remission and I have treated people
    who are having chemotherapy and radiation
    treatment too.

    Here are some things to consider . .

    When someone has a life threatening condition
    you need to take a very long perspective on their
    situation.  We need to stand back from our
    conditioned response that the happy ending is
    where the patient ‘beats the big C’ and lives
    happily ever after.

    When working with people with life threatening
    illnesses, more than anything else you need
    humility and respect for their process.

    Bearing in mind that you don’t know what their
    process is about.

    I have found it helpful to adopt the
    perspective that the circumstances of a patient’s
    life are not random but are very significant to
    them.  This includes the way they will die.  I
    take it that the way they choose to die is as
    significant as the way they choose to be born.

    This makes it is easier for me to stand back
    and not try to ‘fix’ them.

    I have talked about this in other newsletters
    so won’t go on about it too much now.
    http://www.open-source-cranio.com/sacral-training/cancer/

    Treating someone who is having chemotherapy or
    radiation treatment can be very helpful for them.
    I have found it is similar to treating someone who
    has had a pin or plate put in their body to help
    with a compound fracture.

    Their body will be freaking out and trying to
    dispel the foreign object.  Treatment usually
    involves helping their body to integrate or make
    peace with the foreign object.

    With chemo or radiation treatment the person’s
    body will be freaking out in a similar way because
    it is in essence being poisoned or attacked.  Your
    job will be to help their body deal with the shock
    of attack.  To find some kind of equilibrium in
    the situation.

    Treating people with life threatening illness
    is not for the faint hearted.  It forces you to
    look at very fundamental questions about what you
    are really doing.  Once you embrace the inherent
    challenges it can be very rewarding.

    ***QUESTION***

    Hi, John

    Your Q&A’s thus far have tremendously contributed
    to my knowledge as a cranio sacral practitioner.
    It is now my turn to ask a question.

    My mother is 76yrs old and has had a stroke due to
    her tissue (mechanical) valve being in for too
    long without replacing it. She had a clot in her
    frontal area, which was dissolved with medication.
    She is back to normal and does not have any after
    effects. How can I help her in a cranio way?

    All the best for the New Year.

    Regards,
    Shahnaaz
    Cape Town, South Africa

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Shahnaaz,
    I am glad you find my newsletters helpful.

    As you know, most strokes are caused by a blood
    clot forming in some part of the body and then
    travelling to the brain and causing a blockage to
    the blood supply and then permanent neurological
    damage to the effected area.

    Recovery from stroke is the transferring of
    function from the damaged area to another part of
    the brain.

    If someone comes to me for treatment and they
    are recovering from a stroke, the first thing I
    would do is check if they still had a tendency for
    clotting.  If I got a sense that they did, I would
    withdraw gently and not continue treatment.

    Not because I could cause another stroke but
    because of the effect it would have on me if they
    had a stroke while I was treating them or even the
    day after treatment.

    Also the family of the person involved may not
    understand that I couldn’t have caused a stroke
    and that could cause a lot of complications and
    ultimately interfere with me treating the other
    people I treat now and in the future.

    For me it’s not worth the risk.

    So if you feel that the clotting is over. .

    ‘How will I know?’

    If you are asking this question then you
    haven’t had enough experience yet and you need to
    get a second opinion from a more experienced
    practitioner.

    Assuming you are not asking that question I
    would focus on assisting the transfer of function
    process that will be going on in the brain from
    the area that was damaged to the new areas.

    Based on what you have written it sounds like
    your Mother has recovered well.   Has she asked
    you to treat her?

    If not, you have a very weak contract with her.
    By contract I mean the framework within which you
    work with a person.   It is set by what they ask
    you to help them with.

    So if someone asks you to help them with their
    painful knee then that is the contract.

    Regardless of whatever other issues you may
    feel in the persons system, if these issues don’t
    affect the knee problem directly then you will be
    going outside the bounds of the contract if you
    start trying to treat these issues.

    Just because you can feel it doesn’t mean you
    have been asked to ‘fix’ it.

    I have found the loosest contracts are nearly
    always with family members.  This happens because
    of the history between you and the fact that they
    knew you before you were a cranio sacral
    therapist.

    There is no tricky way around this. It’s not
    like you can go to your Mother and ask her, ‘Would
    you like me to help you recover from your stroke?’

    The strongest contracts come from a request
    that has originated from the person unassisted,
    un-enticed.

    What to do?

    If your Mother hasn’t asked you to help her
    then I suggest you wait until the next time she is
    talking about her health.  When she states a
    concern that you feel you may be able to help with
    then say it.

    ‘What?’

    “I could help with that Mum.”

    Then, and this is important, keep quiet.  If
    she doesn’t respond, leave it.  You don’t have a
    contract.   If you respect the fact that she
    hasn’t asked you it will make it easier for her to
    ask when she is ready.

    ***SHINGLES FOLLOW ON FROM EVA IN AUSTRALIA***

    Merry Christmas John!

    I have two responses to your newsletter below:

    I would be happy to be a mentor. I’m at Lisarow on
    the Central Coast, just north of Sydney,
    Australia. Contact phone no 0410234490.

    I have had shingles myself, or at least that is
    what it was diagnosed as when I was 25. Situated
    in a particular place between two ribs on the left
    side.  Had pain off and on during childhood, then
    a lot of pain and much longer periods during the 4
    years I worked in Nigeria, which was a very high
    stress time, emotionally.

    What sent it on high alert was that I got mould
    allergy and sneezed a couple hundred times a day
    for a few months, and that’s when it was
    diagnosed. It calmed down with nose spray to stop
    the sneezing, but was still very much there in the
    rib cage, just not rampant. I never have had any
    blisters from it, though. Since I started having
    and doing CranioSacral Therapy I haven’t had any
    relapses.

    I have also treated someone with an acute shingles
    outbreak on her arm. The lady had already been for
    treatment a few times for a lot of other problems
    a few months earlier. This time she came for
    treatment the shingles had come out in blisters on
    her arm just 2 days before the session. I treated
    her as usual but also did Photonic Therapy
    (acupuncture with a red light instead of needles)
    on the specific points for shingles as well as
    around the blisters.
    2 days later when she saw the doctor the sores
    were nearly gone. The doctor had never heard of
    such a rapid retreat of shingles without
    medication.

    Best regards,

    Eva Kuhl Bornefelt
    Central Coast, Australia.

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Eva,
    I will add you to the Mentor list.

    Thank you for sharing your personal experience
    of shingles.

    It sounds like you did a great job with the
    woman you were treating too.

    ***QUESTION***

    Hi John, Hope all goes well in the wider world
    beyond our shores. . .

    A quicky that may be a useful topic for the next
    newsletter. . .

    I’m currently treating a fellow who has presented
    with Focal Dystonia. Being a writer, and avid
    keyboardist, he is experiencing a gradual increase
    in tonic spasm mostly within carpal/wrist flexors.

    He is a man who lives life on his own terms, his
    own agenda, despite the fact he has a couple of
    very young children and a loving wife.  Driven,
    ambitious, capable.

    Any resource/ideas/anecdotes . . . politically
    incorrect focal dysplasia jokes???

    PS Happy X-mas to you and yours.

    Greg Robson
    Brisbane.

    MY COMMENTS:

    Hello Greg,

    I don’t make jokes about conditions.

    I am far too wonderful and holy for that.

    From what you have written it sounds like your
    patient has focal dystonia only and not focal
    dysplasia, which is more on the epilepsy side of
    things.   Let me know if I got that wrong.

    The thing that stands out to me about focal
    dystonia is that it mainly occurs when the person
    is focused on a particular task.  Classic cases
    being the concert pianist or surgeon who only get
    the spasms when they are about to perform or
    operate.

    It always feels to me like the bodily version
    of stuttering.

    And in terms of root cause, this is where I
    would be looking.   What is going on for the
    person in relation to their expression or their
    work?

    Are they happy/frustrated in their work?
    Do they feel the work is a good vehicle of
    expression for them?
    Do they feel like they are bursting with
    expression and their work holds them back?
    Are they frustrated?

    Are the spasms symmetrical? If they are
    predominantly in his left hand/wrist it could be
    to do with receiving.  If on the other hand . . .

    ‘Hang on, that’s a joke!’

    No it’s not. I actually meant his other hand.
    His other hand is his right hand . .

    ‘Oh. . . ‘

    If his spasms are predominantly in his right
    hand it could be to do with expression or power or
    expressing his power.

    The medical model for what is going on
    mechanically describes the brain as being a bit
    like a cartoon character that has been given too
    many instructions to carry out at once.
    Eventually they shake their head vigorously, with
    an accompanying sound effect, which I can’t spell
    and shake the confusion away.

    I know you have probably looked this up Greg
    but bear with me while I explain it for the other
    readers who may not have.

    You know the way the left side of your brain
    controls the right side of your body and visa
    versa.

    Just nod.

    Well it gets more specific.  There is a sort of
    map called your somatosensory cortex that deals
    with each part individually.  So each finger, for
    example, has a specific region.

    This is different from you tomato-sensory
    cortex which is the part of your brain that helps
    you find tomatoes in the dark.

    ‘Really?’

    No, not really.  That was a joke.

    ‘But you said . . .’

    It wasn’t about a condition.

    ‘Oh . . ‘

    Can we get on?
    If you have ever watched a musician in full
    flight you will notice that their fingers move so
    fast they are almost a blur.

    The medical explanation for focal dystonia is
    that with repeated practice of the same movements,
    the brain gets confused and the regions of the
    somatosensory cortex for the fingers involved get
    kind of mashed up.  But unlike the cartoon
    character the brain is unable to shake the
    confusion away.

    While it is a good explanation I don’t think it is
    the full story.  To fill out the picture a little
    more let me include a little quote from an
    interview with John Upledger that adds another
    perspective to the smearing of the somatosensory
    cortex theory.

    Here’s Johnny . . .

    ‘I just wanna share a little study that I came
    across.
    In February 1988, ‘Brain Mind Bulletin’
    published in the abstract some work that was done
    at UC San Diego. They were trying to understand
    how somebody like a professional pianist or a
    professional violin player could move so fast,
    with the messages going up to the brain, decision
    made, and back down again. So they used
    electrodes, and they used an EEG.

    What they found was that the electrical
    impulses that control finger movement were not
    going up the arm! The decisions were being made
    right there in the hand! You could use electrical
    measurement of neuron impulse conduction as a
    reasonable indicator. So what that says is, you
    have decision making ability in your hands!’

    You can read the full article here
    http://www.open-source-cranio.com/resources/articles/Intelligence.pdf

    Now that’s jolly interesting isn’t it.

    So another way of looking at it might be that
    the people who don’t get focal dystonia could be
    more surrendered to the intelligence of the hands
    that John Upledger is talking about.  While people
    who do get focal dystonia could keep engaging
    their brain and so confuse it.

    This would lead me to ask the questions I
    always ask about anyone with any condition.

    Why did they get it?  Lots of people don’t.
    Why them and not someone else?
    What does it mean?

    While you are thinking about that here are some
    of the mechanical places you can look because
    regardless of the deeper issues everything prints
    out mechanically.

    As you know, nerve impulses are conducted by a
    mixture of chemical and electrical means.  The
    chemicals are conveyed in fluid and the electrical
    impulses are . . . well . . energy  . . . and
    guess what we work with fluids and energy!!

    Alright!!

    I would check the nerve supply from the brain
    to the area involved, in this case his hand.  I
    would also be taking a close look at the brain and
    in particular the cortex around the posterior
    aspect of the parietal lobes, around where they
    meet the occipital lobes.

    This is generally where the somatosensory
    cortex is considered to be located.  I would be
    checking the cerebro spinal fluid in this area and
    the meninges.  The lambdoid sutures might give you
    an indication for what is going on beneath.

    That’s it for this issue.  I know,
    hard to believe but don’t fret there will be more
    next month.

    Cheerio for now.

    Your Mate,

    John D.

  • How do you get someone to look at their issues if they don’t want to?

    + How do you get someone to look at their issues if they don’t want to? – November – 05

    Dear John,

    I am enjoying your profoundly irreverent letters very much.
    I think you are a naughty man.

    I have a patient for lower back pain.  She also has many
    emotional conflicts and issues within her.  She shows no
    interest in addressing these issues.  The opposite in fact.

    Here is my question.
    Is it possible to invoke someone to address their issues if they
    don’t want to?

    Kind regards.

    N. V.
    Singapore.

    P.S. Be nice.

    >>>MY COMMENTS:

    Cute . .

    When someone first comes to me for treatment, after the
    initial, ‘Hello’, and ‘Take a seat.’ etc.  The first question I ask is,
    ‘What can I do for you?’
    and then I shut up,
    and wait.
    Whatever their answer is, is what they are asking me to help
    them with.

    ‘No kidding Sherlock.’

    That may sound obvious but it’s surprising how many
    therapist don’t get it.  From the sounds of it, you might be one
    of  them.  [That’s me being nice, in case you missed that too.]

    Whatever they answer to question, ‘What can I do for you?’

    ‘I want to sleep better.’
    ‘I want the headaches to stop.’
    ‘I want to stop attracting the wrong man/woman.’
    ‘I want to stop feeling so anxious.’
    ‘I want to get rid of my fibromyalgia’

    It goes to form what I think of as a contract between us.  It
    forms the boundaries within which I work and a declaration on
    their part of what they want assistance with.

    Let’s say someone asks me to help them with a very physical
    problem and while treating them, I palpate lots of emotional
    disharmonies.  If the emotional disharmonies are NOT causing
    the particular physical symptoms I have been asked to help
    with, then it would be very bad juju for me to try and start
    working on the emotional issues.

    First and foremost it’s disrespectful.
    It’s like passing someone on the street struggling to carry
    a new TV into their house.  They ask me to help them carry
    the TV into the house with them.  I do this but once inside the
    house I get a dose of ‘Queer eye for the straight guy,’ and take it
    upon myself to redecorate the hall, stairs and landing
    because, ‘Let’s face it, this person has shocking taste!’

    Secondly, it’s more efficient to stick to the contract because it
    can always be renegotiated in the future.

    How come you are able to palpate the emotional issues in the
    first place?

    You can only ever see what you are shown.

    If you stay within the bounds of the contract, it leaves space
    for the person to say to you down the track, ‘I think I would
    like you to help me deal with my emotional issues.’

    It may sound unlikely but it happens.  It’s another form of
    trusting that the person will allow you deeper when they feel
    safe.  You’re job is not to invoke them to address their issues
    but to provide the safest space you can, allowing them to feel
    empowered enough to address their issues, if they’re ready to.