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Craniosacral Work is Energy Work....
The problem starts with the name "craniosacral" which is descriptive of actually a limited area of the work. Or, what it evokes is a limited idea of the work that only deals with the head (as most people don't know much about the sacrum.)
The real essence of the work has no name and cannot be spoken.
(collage by Elsah Cort, copyright 1998 The Other Shore)
What I know about craniosacral work...so far
Craniosacral work unfolds in each session in ways that are unique to each individual. It does not have any predictable form. No session is the same. No session with the same individual is the same.As a biodynamic craniosacral practitioner I do not know what is going to happen or not happen. There is no script or formula for it.
The cranial wave has several documented forms which can be "felt" or sensed through light touch with the hands. Something happens when contact with cranial wave occurs.
This "something" that happens can be experienced as very subtle, yet very profound. When contact is made within a neutral conciousness, in both client and practitioner, then we are open to a very slow, deep presence which has been called "The Breath of Life"-- a stillness beyond cranial wave movement, a multi-dimensional permeation, on all levels, of unconditional wholeness and health that is both inside us and outside us, all at once. We are knowing without knowing. We are doing without doing.
In fact, a craniosacral work session is optimal when there are no intentions, including any so-called good intentions, from the practitioner (and from the client) and this takes practice. I have found this to be a great relief....to know that, as a practitione,r I am not here to "fix" the client. Only my deep, still presence is required....a sacred kind of waiting.
Craniosacral work evolves as healing for the client. It is not quick or obvious, but it can be very thorough. It takes time. It can take more than one session. It can take more than ten sessions. It can take more than one year. Because it brings change at core levels, it takes courage to work with it.
We humans are resistant to change, even change that could relieve pain or confusion. We are creatures of habit and comfort, even our pain patterns are oddly comfortable. Life forces change on us when we resist it. We are suspicious of change while longing for it at the same time. Our survival depends on it.
Craniosacral work has changed me. It continues to support change in me. It surprises me. It delights me. It soothes me. It disturbs me. It loves me. It teaches me.
It is the best work I know.
- Craniosacral Sessions with Elsah Cort, RN, CMT
- offered in Three Rivers, CA, for guests of Cort Cottage Bed and Breakfast and students in the burnout retreats from The Deeper Well.
- Nursing (Job) Burnout Retreats from The Deeper Well
- Retreats for nurses with nursing burnout
(open to anyone with job burnout)
RETREAT LEVEL ONE
Beyond Nursing Burnout:
launching your exploration for transformation
launching your exploration for transformation
RETREAT LEVEL TWO
Re-membering the Healer's Spirit:
deepening into the journey itself, with a leap
30 hours of continuing education for CA and NV nurses
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Beyond Nursing (Job) Burnout
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Burnout is a signal heralding transformation. Explore this lens for ...innovative paths for re-membering the healer's spirit... "Your hand moves and the fire's whirling takes on a different shape. All things change when we do." (KuKai, 8th century Z...
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Burnout Bibliography for The Deeper Well
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This is the official bibliography list for the Nursing (Job) Burnout retreats offered by the Deeper Well. The books are (sort of) in alphabetical order by author, but it is not an exact science here. Some of the books are included in the fee for the...
Where to learn craniosacral work
- The Milne Institute
- Milne Institute Inc (MII) offers training in Visionary Craniosacral Work. The classes are based upon the work of the third-generation Scottish osteopath, Hugh Milne. MII offers classes worldwide, with a particularly busy schedule presented by resident teachers in the USA, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland. The seven 4-day classes that form the core of the MII curriculum offer various ways to help deepen perception. Norman Maclean observed, 'All good things come from art, and art comes from grace, and grace doesn't come easy.' So the work encompasses the art of the inner journey, as well as the acquisition of outer skill sets in craniosacral perception and touch. The training emphasizes meditation, perceptual clarity, anatomy, technical mastery, and the art of loving kindness. All our training is designed simply to bring us to that point, where we can see clearly.
- Biodynamic Cranial Touch Mentor Course
- taught by Charles Ridley
"Why Biodynamic Craniosacral instead of craniosacral therapy?
One difference between Biodynamic Craniosacral Work and craniosacral therapy is in the goal. Generally, the end goal of craniosacral therapy is health related: to restore balance between the sympathetic fight/flight side of the nervous system and the parasympathetic nurturing side. It is our ability to access the nurturing side of the system that enables us to heal and repair tissue, build immunity, and restore healthy function throughout the body. That is the end function of craniosacral therapy, however, it is the beginning of Biodynamic Craniosacral Work, which includes building our health, yet it also revolves around the evolution of consciousness. When autonomic nervous system balance becomes stable, it is called a neutral." - The Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy Association of North America
- The Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy Association of North America (BCTA/NA) is a non-profit organization supporting practitioners and schools of the biodynamic model of craniosacral therapy, as developed by Franklyn Sills, in the lineage of William Garner Sutherland, DO, and others. BCTA/NA was founded in 1998 and incorporated in Canada as a not-for-profit in January 1999. Subsequently BCTA/NA was incorporated as a non-profit in the US in February 2006. This unique organization was founded to establish a curriculum, approve teachers and recognize, register and provide a referral service for, Registered Craniosacral Therapists (RCST®s) and to educate the public about its trainings and the practice of Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy.
- The Upledger Institute
- The Upledger Institute (UI) is a healthcare resource center recognized worldwide for its comprehensive education programs, advanced treatment options and for its unique outreach initiatives.
- Michael Shea Teaching, Deep Healing for Embryo, Infant and Adult
- Michael J. Shea is one of the preeminent educators and authors in the fields of somatic psychology and craniosacral therapy. He presents seminars throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe. He received his master's degree in Buddhist Psychology at Naropa University, and a doctorate in Somatic Psychology at The Union Institute. Dr. Shea was certified in 1986 as one of the first Full Instructors of CranioSacral Therapy by the Upledger Institute. He is currently adjunct faculty and teaches human embryology in the pre and perinatal psychology doctoral programs at the Santa Barbara Graduate Institute in California.
- Equine CranioSacral Workshops
- Equine CranioSacral (ECS) work, with Maureen Rogers, is a holistic healing practice which uses extremely light finger pressure to optimize body movement. When applied correctly, this gentle and subtle technique can be highly effective in addressing a number of conditions in the horse. Equine CranioSacral Workshops offers classes, lectures and private consultations which combine an analytical with the intuitive approaches of CranioSacral methods for horses. Classes are based on the philosophy that the cranial wave is an intelligent form of communication. The Equine CranioSacral Workshops class series is designed to equip the student practitioner with the skills necessary to practice equine craniosacral work at a deeper, more intuitive level than that of technique. Listening is a challenge.
Maureen also teaches canine workshops.
The cat's meow...
What cranial teachers are learning and sharing.
Stillness: Biodynamic Cranial Practice and the Evolution of Consciousness
Amazon Price: $14.96 (as of 12/29/2009) 
The Heart of Listening : A Visionary Approach to Craniosacral Work VOL. 1
Amazon Price: $19.77 (as of 12/29/2009)
The Heart of Listening: A Visionary Approach to Craniosacral Work: Anatomy, Technique, Transcendence, Volume 2 (Heart of Listening Vol. 2)
Amazon Price: $23.10 (as of 12/29/2009)
Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy: Volume One
Amazon Price: $26.37 (as of 12/29/2009)
Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy: Volume Two
Amazon Price: $29.16 (as of 12/29/2009)
The originator of Craniosacral Work
William Garner Sutherland, DO (1873-1954)
He was a student of Andrew Stills (circa 1900) who took Dr. Still's admonition to "dig deeper" very seriously. As a student Dr. Sutherland had an inspiration that the bony cranium was capable of respiratory motion. He initially did not understand its implications, but could not let the idea go. Throughout his years of practice, with diligent research and study, he continuously developed a revolutionary expansion of the osteopathic concept.Dr. Sutherland called his discovery "Osteopathy In The Cranial Field" (OCF), implying that he did not create anything new; he had simply applied osteopathic thinking and principles to the cranium.
Though it did not fully emerge until much later in Sutherland's life, at the core of his new understanding lies the concept of PRIMARY RESPIRATION.
The definition of the Primary Respiratory Mechanism (PRM):
1. Primary: it is a system that comes "first." It underlies all of life's processes and gives dynamism, form, and substance to all of anatomy and physiology.
2. Respiratory: It is the spark that gives rise to the breath, as it moves through the tissues. It is the foundation of metabolism. It has both an inhalation and exhalation phase.
3. Mechanism: It is a system composed of many parts that work together to create a whole, greater than the sum of the parts.
The beauty of primary respiration, is the ability to experience it directly. It is not simply a sublime concept. In the hands of a skilled practitioner, one connects directly with primary respiration to bring about a therapeutic response. It is the guiding principle; it is the inherent intelligence within.
the writings of Sutherland
With Thinking Fingers: The Story of William Garner Sutherland, D.O.
written by his wife, Adah, published in 1962, available used
Amazon Price: (as of 12/29/2009)
Contributions of Thought: The Collected Writings of William Garner Sutherland
available used
Amazon Price: (as of 12/29/2009)
The cranial bowl: A treatise relating to cranial articular mobility, cranial articular lesions and cranial technic
Original published in 1939, out of print, rare
Amazon Price: (as of 12/29/2009)
Teachings in the Science of Osteopathy
Amazon Price: (as of 12/29/2009)
William G. Sutherland, D.O., D.Sc.(hon.) signing the charter incorporating the Sutherland Cranial Teaching Foundation
- Sutherland Cranial Teaching Foundation, Inc.
- Sutherland Cranial Teaching Foundation, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization established in 1953 by William Garner Sutherland, D.O., D.Sc.(hon.) and senior members of his teaching faculty. Dr. Sutherland conceived of the foundation as a way of providing a continuity for his teaching. Dr. Sutherland was the first president of the foundation, and since his death in 1954, there have been just four subsequent presidents, which has provided for a continuity in the organization's teaching program. The presidents who followed Dr. Sutherland were Howard Lippincott, D.O., Rollin E. Becker, D.O., John H. Harakal, D.O., F.A.A.O., and Michael P. Burruano, D.O., who has served as president since 1993.
The charter of the Sutherland Cranial Teaching Foundation calls for the organization to dedicate itself to educational activities. It specifically states its objective as using its resources to establish the principles of osteopathy in the cranial field as conceived and developed by William Garner Sutherland, to disseminate a general knowledge of these principles and the therapeutic indication for this approach to treatment, to encourage and assist physicians in osteopathy, and to stimulate continued study and greater proficiency on the part of those practicing osteopathy in the cranial field.
In its endeavor to carry out these objectives, the Sutherland Cranial Teaching Foundation supports research, produces publications, and offers both basic and continuing studies courses. As a not-for- profit educational foundation, it accepts charitable contributions to support its work of perpetuating and disseminating the teachings in the science of osteopathy as expanded by William Garner Sutherland, D.O. The current address of the Sutherland Cranial Teaching Foundation is 4116 Hartwood Dr., Fort Worth, Texas 76109.
from The Deeper Well
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craniosacral therapy
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I want to talk about my work as a craniosacral therapist and encourage you (and myself) to take the steps necessary to prioritise their own health. We need to listen to our heart and our body to know when we are 'coherent' with the loving universe an...
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Cranio Sacral Therapy
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CranioScral Therapy (CST) is a gentle, hands-on method of evaluating and enhancing the body's natural healing processes. It has been effective for a wide range of medical problems associated with pain and dysfunction, and is increasingly used as a pr...
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Dolphin Therapy
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Dolphin therapy is a wonderful version of CranioSacral Therapy (hosted by the Upledger Institute), and it involves ocean therapy, CST, and work with dolphins! I have a deep love and appreciation for dolphins. If you would love to work and...
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got biodynamic craniosacral?
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Craniosacral therapy is the single most amazing therapy I've ever experienced. I became a biodynamic craniosacral therapist because the people who taught me are so clear and have such integrity. The neutrality of the practitioner--the way their hands...
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CranioSacral Therapy: Light Touch for Deep Healing
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CranioSacral Therapy is a gentle and effective method for resolving physical and emotional issues. The therapist takes advantage of the continuity of the body's connective tissue (which connects and supports every part of your body) to be able to acc...
more about Sulamith Wulfing...
She made the painting at the top of this lens, the swirling woman's head.
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The Art of Sulamith Wulfing
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The discovery of some postcards with the images of Sulamith Wulfing in a small bookshop in Glendale, California, in the early 1970's started a quest to find out more about this person. At first I did not know if she was a man or woman (no google or...
Fantastic Art of Sulamith Wulfing
beautiful rare, out of print book, available used
Amazon Price: (as of 12/29/2009)
Nature Spirits
From Sulamith Wulfing's vast selection of paintings with Nature Spirits, thirty images were selected to be included in this book. Well-known images were selected as well as images that have never before been published in a book. They are accompanied by true stories and fiction about Nature Spirits: most of them have been written by well-known authors such as Dora Kunz-Van Gelder and Flower Newhouse. The stories are all based around nature - how humans can interact with nature beings, the influence of nature beings on animals, and the tasks that nature beings have in nature. This book is wonderful to look at as well as providing interesting insights into the world of Nature Spirits as a whole. It will give the reader a fresh appreciation for the topic and enhance one's love for nature.
Amazon Price: $11.21 (as of 12/29/2009)
Angel Spirits: the Art of Sulamith Wulfing 2009 Wall Calendar
No other artist has captured the wonders of angels and otherworldly spirits as delightfully as Sulamith Wulfing (1901-1989). The Angel Spirits 2009 wall calendar makes this hidden world apparent to the naked eye by capturing its beauty and spirituality. The childlike innocence and hope portrayed in each painting acts as a balm to the spirit, more needed than ever in this modern world. All thirteen paintings are accompanied with text by Lunaea Weatherstone, written in the voice of the angel spirits guiding us throughout the year.
Amazon Price: (as of 12/29/2009)
Mother's Wisdom: A 40 Card Deck
There is nothing as precious as a mother's unconditional love. The nurturing care that comforted us as children is needed more than ever in today's world. The Mother's Wisdom Deck presents forty wisdom cards, illustrated with exquisite images by the incomparable Sulamith Wulfing, each accompanied by words of gentle wisdom from the heart of mother-love. The cards offer guidance and understanding for difficult times, or simply a daily reminder of the infinite source of divine tenderness that lives within us all.
Amazon Price: $9.95 (as of 12/29/2009)
Are you wondering about all this?
Share your story...
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- Brian Tierney Brian Tierney Aug 6, 2009 @ 11:06 pm
- Craniosacral Work is at the cutting edge of healthcare as it often resides very close to the boundary between empirical medical science and spirituality. As Physics continues to explicate the subject-object bias in any observational study and scientific method, the clear cause/effect distinctions that alopathic medicine seeks get opened up to a much larger discussion about how energy in the universe organizes. Our bodies are an incredibly complex System of systems that has a natural ordering principal imbedded in it. This, at least, is a fundamental assumption that I make as a craniosacral therapist- that there is a system of order (some call it homeostasis)-this idea can be expanded further to a more complex and multifaceted meta-principal of order- quite contrary to physicists ideas about the universe is a mistake. Craniosacral therapy uses the cutting edge of science and spirituality to invoke and evoke your body's powerful organizing force.visit www.aucklandcraniosacral.co.nz
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- elsahc elsahc Jul 14, 2009 @ 7:25 pm
- Craniosacral work is good for chronic pain, but it rarely resolves with just a few sessions. It takes time with craniosacral work to process pain. So when you say "a friend had craniosacral therapy" it makes me wonder what that means. Energy work is subtle and is not an instant healing. On a personal note, cranial work did permanently heal a 7-year sciatica pain scenario I had. The pain was constant for all those years, and orthopedic doctor told me I would just have to live with it for the rest of my life. It took 6-8 months of fairly frequent craniosacral sessions for the pain to work itself out. This is how I became interested in learning how to practice it myself. I do think it is THE BEST energywork there is, as it cuts to the chase and goes directly to the source.
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- Angelus Angelus Jul 14, 2009 @ 2:26 pm
- A dear friend had craniosacral therapy recently and I'm happy to say she was relieved of a long-standing and painful problem.
