UpClose & Personal - Dr. John Upledger

Over the years I have found that, when touch is intentioned, the craniosacral system is accessed, and the consciousness energy fields of patient and therapist are blended, almost any kind of healing can occur.

It was in 1971 that I “accidentally” became acquainted with the craniosacral system. I was assisting a surgical procedure that involved removing a round section of calcified plaque about 1.5 centimeters in diameter. We had removed the posterior aspects of the third and fourth cervical vertebrae to obtain a satisfactory operative field. Since the plaque was located on the external surface of the dural membrane, we planned to scrape it away without incising the membrane.

My job was to hold the exposed dural membrane still while the neurosurgeon scraped the plaque. This was crucial since a slip might incise the membrane and open an avenue for infection. The watertight integrity of the dural membrane would also be at least temporarily compromised.

The problem was, I was unable to maintain the dural membrane in a motionless state. It kept rhythmically bulging out from and retracting into the operative site at about 10 cycles per minute. More puzzling still, the rhythm was not in synchrony with the patient’s breathing nor his heart rate.

No one in the operating room could recall having seen this phenomenon before. That’s because, more often, the dural membrane was incised during surgical procedures when it was exposed. With some thought and study I discovered this membrane forms the boundary of a semi-closed hydraulic system. The inflow and outflow of cerebrospinal fluid in this system is controlled by multiple homeostatic mechanisms.

In 1975, I joined the Biomechanics Department at Michigan State University as a clinician-researcher with several purposes: To study this craniosacral system (as it was soon to be called), to investigate acupuncture, and to evaluate the uses of Kirlian photography as both a research tool and clinical adjunct. All these works contributed powerfully to the development of my consciousness model.

I teamed up and worked closely with two biophysicists, a neurophysiologist, an anatomist and a designer during my 8-1/2-year tenure at MSU. We developed a basic science model that functioned well as an aid to understanding the clinical effects of craniosacral system dysfunctions. We also used this model to develop the therapeutic approach I named CranioSacral Therapy. This gentle, hands-on modality uses the system’s own self-corrective hydraulic activity as its therapeutic mainstay.

As our work intensified, we began to realize that inherent energies as well as foreign energies were present in the therapeutic process. While the foreign energies were usually identified as obstructions to function, the inherent energies were often used to obtain positive therapeutic effects. We found that a therapist’s hand placement coupled with strong, focused intention would help the patient’s body achieve the proper position to release the foreign energies.

Not content to rely solely on instinct in the laboratory, one of our biophysicists, Dr. Zvi Karni, made measurements of whole-body electrical potential during these treatment sessions. It was observed that patient body position and/or therapist intention were capable of producing recorded patterns of electrical potential changes. We came to regard these as indicative of positive change in the function of the craniosacral system.

It soon became clear that CranioSacral Therapy facilitated access to levels of consciousness that were previously in the patient’s “unawareness.” Over and over we had patients image their various suppressed experiences. The facilitating factors seemed to be that the therapist offered permission and support for whatever the inner wisdom of the patient chose to bring forth. This therapist intention was often transferred by touch rather than verbally.

As we developed these processes several other things became clear. First, that an intentioned touch was a powerful method of helping the patient liberate suppressed emotions, memories and experiences, even beyond physical ailments. And second, that the therapist often received the image before the patient. Indeed, it became a rule that the therapist would never speak of any images before the patient did. We wanted, at all costs, to avoid suggestion to the patient.

Working with Dr. Karni and monitoring the whole-body potential, it was soon observed that when a significant word was spoken, a significant thought was brought forward, or a significant body position was obtained, the level of activity of the patient’s electrical potential dropped, as did its baseline. At the same time we saw that the craniosacral system’s activity, which by now we were easily monitoring by hand, also stopped. When the “energy” of the problem was released, the baseline potential usually came up as the palpable craniosacral rhythm resumed.

Since then, after many years of clinical practice, I have seen hundreds of occasions in which the power of an intentioned touch was central to the healing experience. One such case involved a patient with advanced breast cancer who came in to see me on a Thursday. Linda* was scheduled for a radical mastectomy the following Tuesday.

We blended our consciousness energy fields very quickly. Her inner wisdom disclosed the reason for her breast cancer. In brief, it was a dissatisfaction with being female because of the restrictions this placed upon her in the business world. Linda was vice president of an architectural firm at the time the cancer developed.

In my dialoguing with Linda’s inner wisdom, Linda came to realize that removing the breast would further defeminize her. Yet she did not want her body to pay such a harsh price for her inner emotions. So instead she agreed to soften her personality and allow her femaleness to express itself. Her consciousness in turn agreed to allow the axillary nodes to disappear and her breast cancer to reduce in size so that a simple lumpectomy could be done.

In a period of 45 minutes, Linda’s tumor shrunk to less than half its previous size. A lumpectomy was done and she remained fine for about four years. When she had a tumor recurrence, her inner wisdom related it to the return of her “masculine aggressivity.” Once again, the tumor shrunk as she pledged to once again accept her inherent femininity. To my knowledge Linda remains in good health today.

I believe this is but one small example of what can be accomplished with trust, the blending of therapist/patient consciousness, and the facilitation of healing rather than making therapeutic decisions on your own. The patient’s consciousness knows what it needs and will usually trust you if you are sincere. All it takes is a positive healing intention.

For more information about CranioSacral Therapy call toll-free: 1-800-233-5880. Ask for priority code IN0208. Or visit www.upledger.com today.

Send e-mail to sharon@upledger.com