Body Work Or Energy Healing: What Is Cranial Osteopathy?

Cranial Osteopathy
A Whole Body Therapy

Cranial osteopathy is an extremely gentle, minimally invasive method of delivering osteopathic treatment. Originally developed for working with the cranium, or skull, modern cranial osteopathy is a holistic whole-body therapy

Far from being a distinct form of treatment, cranial osteopathy adheres closely to the basic principles of osteopathic medicine. It can be applied to all conditions treatable with osteopathy, from back pain and migraine to managing stress and anxiety

The subtlety of cranial treatment renders it effectively invisible. And rather than offer our patients lengthy explanations we let the results speak for themselves. However, if you’re wondering what’s behind it all, here's your chance to peep under the bonnet

In this article we’ll explore cranial osteopathy, from basic principles and treatment approaches to dispelling some common myths. And of course we’ll look at major ways it can help you get fitter, healthier and happier

What Do Cranial Osteopaths Do?

‎A well known British actor visited my practice a few years back, declaring in true thespian fashion:

I was never sure what he made of my explanations, but he got better, so all's well that ...

Cranial osteopaths can adopt a variety of working models. However, they all share one trait. To the observer it would appear we're doing - nothing

But this is a very special kind of nothing

What Is Osteopathy?

Cranial osteopathy will make better sense in the context of osteopathic medicine, of which it is an extension

Osteopathy was the brainchild of the 19th Century American physician Andrew Tailor Still. It is a total healthcare system emphasizing the importance of healthy structure for healthy function

Following the tragic loss of three of his daughters to meningitis, Dr Still sought an alternative approach to healing

He reasoned that the body is equipped with all the pharmaceutical agents it needs to live and thrive. When internal or external factors upset the body’s equilibrium, the physician need introduce nothing external. Instead she should help the body access its own medicine cupboard to return to health

Central to his thinking was the importance of structure for the body’s myriad internal activities. Altered structure disturbs vital function, and disturbed function is reflected in the body’s structure

Though structure as a whole is important, Still emphasized the vertebral column with its 31 pairs of spinal nerves. Thus, the spine becomes a vital link between the musculoskeletal system and the proper functioning of the vital organs

Osteopathy In The Cranial Field

The 31 pairs of spinal nerves are essential for the function of the organs. But what of the 12 pairs of nerves entering and leaving the cranium?

Enter W G Sutherland, a student Dr Still. Wishing to plug this "gap" in osteopathic practice he set about studying the intricate structure of the cranial bones. Dogma has it that the skull is fixed, and does not move. However, Sutherland argued that a joint's primary purpose is to allow movement

While studying the cranium Sutherland noted that

The question of whether or not the cranial bones can "move" rages on. It's a favourite objection for detractors of cranial osteopathy. But to most practitioners the question is largely redundant. Rhythmic motion is evident everywhere, even there are no joints at all! And Dr Sutherland's real gift to us was not cranial mobility, but the discovery of involuntary motion

Modern Cranial Osteopathy:
Core Principles

Primary Respiratory Mechanism

Sutherland named involuntary motion the primary respiratory mechanism (PRM)

In physiology, the breathing of the lungs is known as ventilation, while respiration is reserved for energy release within the cells. But for Sutherland, primary respiration was neither, referring instead to a fundamental "breathing" of the tissues themselves

From Cranial to Cranio-Sacral
Sutherland's Early Model

Sutherland set up his initial cranio-sacral model. It ran from the cranium at the top, to the sacrum at the base, and positioned the cranium as the driving force

Based as it was on cranial mobility, the model has proved contentious. While modern cranial therapists have moved on, the model persists. Mainly, it seems, to attract criticism from its detractors. Curiously, it is also taught today at some educational establishments

For this reason, I include it here for your reference

Or just skip to the next section

To date, it seems only the hand can confirm the presence of involuntary motion. Otherwise, there is no external verification of its existence. Further, primary breathing has a particular quality which I can best describe using my own experience

Close Encounters Of The Cranial Kind
Or How Cranial Osteopathy Nearly Blew My Head Off

I first came accross involuntary motion as an osteopathic student back in the 80's. A patient with neck pain was too vulnerable for standard manipulation, and we called in a cranial oriented tutor. Describing his approach, he proceeded to lightly rest his hands on the patient

The mystery only deepened - or clarified - when, later that day we were invited for a follow-up practical. Slightly daunted, but guided by my earlier experience, I took myself to "the place", contacted my fellow student's head and ... 

Looking at my hands there was nothing to see. Following that experience I became convinced that, whatever its physical expression, involuntary motion must be an energetic phenomenon

What Drives Involuntary Motion?

If the "cranial" hypothesis cannot convincingly explain involuntary motion, how else might we account for it?

I'm fully aware that in the absence of rational explanations, we humans are wont to take solace in esoteric solutions. However, for myself, the "energy" hypothesis was not borne from lack of knowledge. It was the result of a positive lived experience. When I first engaged with involuntary motion, I had only the vaguest notion of Sutherland's cranial model. My experience was entirely spontaneous and, frankly, surprising 

This was Sutherland's own conclusion, as his thinking evolved from cranial mechanics to a philosophy encompassing the body, mind, and spirit

Breath Of Life

No doubt touched by that transporting and transforming quality of involuntary motion, Sutherland's language shifted over time one from based structure to another embracing energy. He concluded that primary respiration was rooted in a deeper source. A universal intelligence he called the Breath Of Life. Or simply, The Tide

Potency As Health

Between the universal breath of life and the body's primary respiration lay Sutherland's third element: the quality of potency

Potency describes the body's drive towards health, that innate capacity to maintain function and integrity. It is synonymous with homeostasis, a physiological concept describing the body's ability to return to a set point following a disturbance

Thus, the universal breath of life gives rise to primary respiration in the body through the agency of potency

The relationship of the three is beautifully described by the teacher and craniosacral therapist Katherine Ukleja as akin to

Cranial Osteopathy Works Through Intention

There is (yet) another peculiarity to cranio-sacral work

In principle, cranial osteos´ work with the body in a fairly simple way. Working hands-on, we first and foremost "listen". Where the body reveals an imbalance, we guide the tissues in whichever direction yields a relaxation. Reaching a point of maximum ease our work is done. From here we allow potency, the body's natural drive to health, to guide the tissues towards freedom

In fairness, structural osteopaths can take a similar "functional" approach to facilitate tissue release. However, where structural osteopaths move the body towards ease, cranial osteopaths do no such thing. We simply think our way there

Cranial osteopathy works entirely through intention

The line between thinking and doing is not as distinct as it might first appear. Brain regions once considered to control movement (eg the cerebellum or basal ganglia) turn out to also have a role in aspects of thinking and feeling

Another area of interest is the so-called supplementary motor cortex. This brain region lets you visualize and mentally rehearse movements. And as you visualize, it stimulates the relevant muscles. It seems you can't think of a movement without subtly performing it

But, as so often with cranial osteopathy, there's more to working with intention to mere brain circuitory ...

Distance Craniosacral Healing

If we accept the energetic dimension of cranial osteopathy, there's another fundamental aspect of energy work to consider: locality

If energy is everywhere, connecting everything to everything, can craniosacral, like Reiki, or Pranic Healing, be practiced hands off? At a distance, even?

Many are the times when, gazing into the middle distance to focus on my palpation, I find I'm no longer touching my patient. Even though it feels as if I am

Since the body uses electricity to function, there may be some bio-electric field surrounding it. But this would be a physical field, and distinct from the "energy" we call qi, prana, the tide and others

Energy healing works through the medium of universal life force, which is not confined to the body, or anything else. In cranial osteopathy we know it as the Tide. It's the Tide that connects client and therapist. The tide that reveal patterns of health and dysfunction. And the tide that brings about physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing. With just a little help from the therapist, through the medium of intention

On Quatum Theory

Energy healing has parallels with the fundamental principles of our best description of reality, quantum mechanics

In the quantum world, the fundamental particles of which we are made hang out not as objects, but as fuzzy waves. Moreover, these waves are in a superposition  - they are nowhere in particular, and everywhere at once

Only when measured or otherwise observed do they behave as particles, with definite traits like position and direction of spin

Furthermore, particles themselves can become entangled, such that they mirror each other’s behaviour, instantaneously and across any distance

So weird is this effect, it seems to break Einstein's speed of light rule, which is the fastest anything can travel. He famously called it "spooky action at a distance". In fact, it does no such thing. Entangled particles only break the "being separated by space" rule. For they remain a single system (wave function), no matter how far apart they find themselves

The effect of observation on the fabric of reality, the non-locality of quantum entanglement are not theoretical constructs. Scientist have observed them experimentally

I had the good fortune during the Covid lockdowns to train in Distance Craniosacral with the excellent Thomas Atlee and team. I'd had far too many hands-free experiences to let the opportunity pass

I continue to work as I always have. Connecting with the Tide and allowing the wisdom of the body to lead the way to health and wholeness. And I let the results speak for themselves. After all, the viability of one's practice relies entirely on being able to help our clients resolve their issues

Benefits Of Cranial Osteopathy

Cranial osteopathy can help with a wide range of conditions in adults and children of all ages, from newborns to the elderly

Being so gentle, it is particularly apt for the very young and elderly. And during times when the body is extra sensitive, such as during pregnancy. Or vulnerable, such as when suffering from bone thinning (osteoporosis, osteopenia)

As a way of applying Still's osteopathic principles, the cranial approach can deal with all those conditions treatable with osteopathic medicine. Commonly treated conditions include:

• wear-and-tear (osteo) arthritis 
• back & neck pain
• tension headache & migraine
• sports’ injuries
• fibromyalgia
• pregnancy care
• care of the newborn

A more comprehensive list of benefits for adults and children is available on my page benefits of osteopathy. You can also check my post cranial osteopathy for adults for more great benefits from cranial osteopathy

Cranial Osteopathy
Body work, Or Energy Healing?

The answer was always going to be: both. Cranial osteopaths work with the body - using the medium of energy

What started as a method for working with the cranium led the the discovery of involuntary motion in the body.

Any rational explanation of involuntary motion will need to include what we currently call its "energetic" dimensions

While the life sciences remain largely rooted in classical science, the day must surely come when biology embraces quantum. For quantum is not only our most successful theory of reality. It also holds the greatest promise to one day help us understand the nature of cranial work

Cranial osteopathy covers a wide span, theoretically and practically. Some therapists engage with the anatomy. Others connect with health in the form of potency. And some of us even work hands-off

To the casual observer we all seem to be doing nothing. However, as you can now appreciate, this is a very special kind of nothing