If you are interested in healing, read the book Your Inner Physician and You by John E. Upledger, D.O. (Doctor of Osteopathy). I learned about it when researching CranioSacral Therapy (CST), a form of treatment that Dr. Upledger developed. My physical therapist is a CranioSacral therapist and has been using CST techniques to help me recover from a head and neck injury.
The back cover of the book describes the treatment nicely: “Using a light touch generally no greater than the weight of a nickel, practitioners today use CST to improve the functioning of the central nervous system, eliminate the negative effects of stress, strengthen resistance to disease, and enhance overall health.” The touch is gentle yet powerful. Dr. Upledger also writes about what he calls Somato-Emotional Release, which “helps rid the mind and body of the residual effects of trauma and negative emotional experiences.” Some of the stories about this type of healing show us that often disease and pain result from early emotional wounding. Beliefs stemming from these hurtful experiences must be unlearned in order to recover.
Upledger’s discoveries are groundbreaking and the stories in his book unforgettable. It’s hard to summarize the work because it’s so far-reaching, but it’s not only potent for healing most types of injuries but for treating PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), TMJ (tempero mandibular joint) problems, hyperactivity and learning disabilities in children, and many other conditions. Here are some quotes from the book that won me over:
“At present I am reasonably convinced that the only limitations imposed upon our self-healing abilities are those that we ourselves construct out of the negative beliefs that we hold about self-healing.”
“By ’tissue memory’ I mean that the cells and tissues of the body may actually possess their own memory capabilities. These tissue memories are not necessarily reliant upon the brain for their existence.”
“I think that what happens is that we all live with a sort of ‘censor’ in us that rather paternalistically keeps certain memories and experiences out of our conscious awareness The intentions of this censor are good. It feels that it is protecting us. However there is an ongoing cost to keeping these memories and experiences beneath the surface. This cost can be manifested as pain, disability, unhappiness, chronic anger, irritability, lack of self-esteem, and so on.”
I’ve been getting significant help from CranioSacral Therapy for TMJ, a condition that I’ve suffered from for as long as I can remember. In my case, the origin of this condition is gritting in agony from infant surgery without anesthesia. Of course, the surgery and pyloric stenosis are way in the past, but I’m still grinding my teeth as I sleep. I often awake tense, my jaw sore. I look forward to the day that I post a piece announcing with great joy that I no longer hurt from TMJ. Think positive for me.