Using pressure that feels as light as a nickel, Sarah Weaver has been treating patients with migraines, chronic sinus problems, and a variety of other ailments for the last nine years.

Weaver, a massage therapist at Northwestern Health Sciences University’s Bloomington Natural Care Center, has been using craniosacral therapy – or CST – in her practice since 1998. She says she uses the treatment on about half her patients, and often treats patients referred to her by chiropractors also working in the clinic.

“Some people see immediate results,” she says. “Others see results gradually over the long term, like any other treatment. But usually after three sessions, I see some sort of change.”

Practitioners using CST evaluate the function of the body’s craniosacral system, which consists of the membranes and cerebrospinal fluid that surround and protect the brain and spinal cord. The system extends from the bones of the skull, face and mouth down to the sacrum.

According to Weaver, the craniosacral system has a rhythm that can be felt throughout the body. Using a light touch, CST practitioners monitor the rhythm to identify the source of an obstruction or stress. Once a restriction has been found, the practitioner adjusts the natural movement of the fluid and related soft tissue to help the body self-correct. A typical CST session lasts about one hour. It is performed with the patient laying supine, fully clothed. The therapist places his or her hands lightly on the patient’s body and begins “listening” to the craniosacral system, says Weaver. The therapist then begins to work to release restrictions in the craniosacral system.

In her experience, the modality is particularly effective for ailments related to the skull, says Weaver. In addition to treating patients with migraines, sinus problems, and neck and shoulder pain, she says CST has worked well for patients with intestinal problems.

Patients who may benefit the most, however, are those who may not be able to tolerate a typical massage therapy session, she says.

“I am able to help people who are in severe pain who couldn’t tolerate a regular massage,” says Weaver. “CST uses less force that is more sustained over time. It is a very relaxing therapy. A lot of patients go right to sleep.”

CST has been in the news lately, and more and more patients are asking for the therapy, says Weaver. Although she has been practicing CST for nearly a decade, until recently she was treating clients after explaining the therapy. Now, she says, patients are asking for CST by name.

“People used to have no idea what CST was,” says Weaver. “But in the last two years, I’ve been seeing people who are looking specifically for it. Either they have read about it or heard about it from a friend. It’s definitely more in people’s minds.”

For Anne Packard Spicer, an associate professor and practitioner in the Bloomington Natural Care Center, CST is a boon to her pediatric practice. She is seeing an increasing number of pediatric patients with plagiocephaly, which could led to health problems down the road. Utilizing CST, Dr. Spicer is able to work on infants using the lightest possible touch.

“It is a very powerful therapy,” she says. “But it’s very gentle. That’s why it’s so good for babies.”

But babies are not the only patients Dr. Spicer treats with CST.

“It’s a great adjunct for chiropractic,” she says. “Any time an adjustment won’t hold, I consider using CST.”

Dr. Spicer has been a fan of CST for years. She credits the therapy with eliminating her migraine headaches, which would occur several times a week. Now she routinely treats her patients with CST. She often refers patients who might require longer sessions to Weaver; about a quarter of her patients are referred, in fact.

“For a lot of people, their pain is primarily caused by muscle imbalances,” she says. “Until the muscle is taken care of, an adjustment is not going to hold.”

Source: Northwestern Health Sciences University, Northwestern Naturally, Spring 2007.