Craniosacral therapy is a holistic approach to healing using the inter-connections of the mind, body and spirit - connections which have long been established. The basic principle is that life expresses itself as motion. At our deepest levels, functioning, healthy tissue produces rhythmic impulses and when palpated by sensitive hands the presence of these rhythms can be detected and manipulated.

Osteopath Dr. William Sutherland discovered the existence of three 'tides' of motion in the human body. These he referred to as the Breath of Life. The first is the cranial rhythmic impulse which has been measured at an average rate of 8-12 cycles per minute. The second is mid-tide - the tidal rhythm which carries ordering forces into the body and has a slower rate of about 2.5 cycles per minute, and the long tide which is a deep and slow rhythmic impulse every 100 seconds or so. The long tide is thought to be the first emergence of life from our being.

The idea is that these rhythms are the blueprint for our health and well being, and that by gentle manipulation and "listening through the hands" to the body's patterns, a practitioner can release places of inertia or congestion. It is said to be an effective form of treatment for a wide range of illnesses.

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