Unlocking The 'Inner Physician'

I had the humbling privilege of working with a severe burn victim. In a freak cooking accident, “Brielle”* had incurred third-degree burns to every inch of her body from the thighs up. After several major reconstructive surgeries—especially to her face and hands—Brielle’s family found me with the hope of helping their daughter heal faster. CranioSacral Therapy was recommended to her (as well as some other stretching-type of therapies in which I have also had training). I believe she had had the good fortune of receiving some CST during her hospital stays.

            In our first session I decided to begin with a CV-4 ‘stillpoint induction’ with the simple goal of watching her body’s response. Unexpectedly, the client went into a 25-minute stillpoint during which time she slept. I will never forget the father’s flood of tears as he watched from the corner of the treatment room as his daughter “finally” achieve a state of deep, peaceful rest.

             When we finished, the client was effusively thankful for the “first deep sleep” she had had in months.  Also, she understood the importance of something as simple as sleep—deep, theta and delta wave sleep—to her health and healing. She wanted more.

            She continued to come for weekly treatments for some time during which she was doing a lot of healing attitudinally as well as physically. Though multiple modalities of therapeutic techniques were used during our sessions, it was always the Cranio-Sacral Therapy techniques (and feedback) that she looked forward to the most.

            I understand that Brielle has been able to return to a very active, productive life—working at a very high-level executive position in a major corporation. It is my opinion that CranioSacral Therapy was able to help reduce the severe tension patterns and restrictive fluid dynamics Brielle’s body had built up due to the severe scarring from her accident as well as from the number of surgical procedures she had received thereafter. But more importantly, I believe the comforting, vagus nerve-stimulating effect of the passive, supportive techniques of CranioSacral Therapy—and especially the magical space created by the Stillpoint induction techniques—enabled a disruption of a cycle of trauma-induced shock which then made room for Brielle’s ‘Inner Physician’ to step up and get to work.

I believe that the effect CST had on Brielle was so much more than just physical. During the time that she came to me for therapy, I feel that Brielle was able to rediscover not only a firm faith in Hope but also her access to Will and even Joy.

* I have purposely substituted the name “Brielle”—which I understand to mean “God’s Heroine”—in place of this client’s real name not only out of respect for her privacy, but also as a tribute to this incredibly strong and inspiring human being with whom I was so privileged to work with and from whom I feel I learned so much.