Cranial Osteopathy

Who discovered Cranial Osteopathy?

The first concepts of cranial osteopathy were made by Dr William Garner Sutherland (1873-1954), an Osteopath from Missouri, U.S.A, who despite nearly 20 years of research, had to wait until 1940 to have his ideas accepted. There has been a steady growth of Osteopathspracticing this method of applying osteopathy ever since.

So who needs Cranial Osteopathy?

Almost all people can benefit from the use of Cranial Osteopathy at some stage in their lives. This may vary from birth trauma, both for the mother and the child, through the growing years, and during our working life, particularly if there has been trauma to the head….small trauma like dental work, through to major head injuries following car accidents and the like.

How do babies benefit from Cranial Osteopathy?

During birth the bones of a babies skull are compressed and will often overlap each other. Following the birth the bones will try to reform into their normal positions to allow the inner movement of the brain, the fluid and the containment membranes to take place.

Commonly not all the positions are how the body would like it to be, and when this happens the body must now attempt to compensate for these malpositions. These compensations will often cause the baby to become unsettled in a variety of ways, as the babies body tries to come to terms with the problems that exist. Some of these problems may lead to colic, poor sleeping ability, poor feeding ability or just crying or unsettled.

The Osteopath, working cranially, will locate the areas in the babies body where the problems exist, and facilitate the babies body to release these areas of tension and take away the bodies compensations that are causing the problems. The baby should be more relaxed and a far happier child.

Glue ear in children responds very well to cranial work, likewise many conditions that need the immune system to be at best. Things like tonsillitis, colds, and stomach problems like colic and reflux all are much helped by getting the babies system working at its best.

How many treatments will my baby need?

The number of treatments will depend on the problems that the Osteopath finds when the child is examined. Some children need only minimal treatment and others require quite extensive treatment. Many children have problems that are corrected following birth but as the child goes through growth spurts the bone’s movements again become restricted and they may need further follow up treatments.

As a general rule, if a growth spurt occurs and the child departs from their normal cheerful self for a period greater than a week, then it is probably a good idea to get their heads checked. A check is also a good idea if the child receives a blow to the head, and although shows no physical signs of injury, is just ‘not themselves’.

What sort of adult problems can be treated Cranially?

When an injury occurs to a person, not only do the physical bony structure and the musculature get compromised but also the more interconnected structures, the fascia, and the membranes and nerves all become involved in the problem. Following the normal structural adjustment, the tissue and nerve conditions often need to be addressed, and cranial osteopathy is well suited to do this as it allows the body to regain its normal equilibrium in the shortest period of time.

Following childbirth the mother’s body will often need attention due to the strains it has under gone during labour and postnatal conditions like ‘baby blues’ respond very well to cranial osteopathy.

Tooth and jaw pain following dental work is another area that responds to the gentle treatment of cranial osteopathy as does any post surgery conditions that often don’t have a regular explanation in terms of the amount of residual pain. Trigeminal pain can often be relieved through cranial treatment, as in many cases it is the nerve path along the inside of the skull bones that is causing the problem.

Any major trauma that occurs to the head, including whiplash or broken bones needs to have the cranial side of the injury addressed.

What is different about a Cranial Osteopathic examination?

When you consult an osteopath about your problem, you can expect the osteopath to take a normal case history, but the practitioner may ask several questions regarding injuries that have occurred in the past, what you can recall about your birth….(apart from you being there), and ask about any medication you may be on.

In terms of a cranial examination, the osteopath will usually gently hold the head and feel how the body responds to the compensations that every person has. The osteopath will be feeling the slight movement of the bones, the way the membranes move, and the flow of the spinal fluid as it circulates around the brain. Most people feel very little as the process takes place, this is because the movement that is being felt is the actual rhythm of your own body and the Osteopath is working in harmony with this.

Once the Osteopath has determined where the problem is manifesting itself, they will give you an explanation of this and explain how they propose to treat the problem.

So what happens next?

After explaining what has been found and how it is proposed to treat the problem, the treatment is similar to the initial examination process except that instead of just following the movement and quantifying it the Osteopath will now facilitate the patients body to correct the situation as far as it can. This will take some time as the practitioner has to work with the constraints of the patients system and doesn’t try to force anything. The patient usually feels very little of what is going on in their body as the systems are working together to correct the situation.

After the treatment has finished the body will continue to make changes within itself for quite some time as all the membranes and tissues resolve their long held tensions. Long held problems, or problems that are multifaceted may take several treatments to resolve.

Does ACC cover cranial treatment?

If the condition is the result of a specific injury within the past 12 months, then an ACC Injury Claim form should be filled out and submitted by your Osteopath.

Do all Osteopaths practice Cranial Osteopathy?

Cranial Osteopathy is considered an advanced technique that is usually acquired after the osteopath has been in practice for some time and has usually done some post graduate study to gain experience. One of the post graduate courses offered is carried out by the Sutherland Cranial Teaching Foundation, a nonprofit organization devoted to the study and propagation of the work begun by Dr Sutherland.

Members who have achieved a standard that is acceptable to this group and have joined the organization usually have the letters Mem. S.C.T.F. in their qualifications.

 

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