mother & child craniosacral: healing for the whole family

There's a bounty of wonderful resources for mothers, mom-blogs that offer advice on how to get through the day with your sanity more or less intact. While remembering to "put on your own mask first" is a common piece of advice, most mothers are still more likely to take care of their child's pain before their own. Laurie did just that with her 3-year-old son Ian.  They have a family bed, and Laurie had been awakened frequently by Ian's teeth-grinding and moaning. He was active in bed and had a hard time settling down; during the day, when overtired, he'd go overboard with little-boy energy, and from infancy, it took a lot of work every night to get him to sleep. When Ian's posture looked out of balance, she brought him in for craniosacral therapy.

Ian wasn't the only one suffering here, obviously. Laurie was experiencing both the stresses of creating a new family and of being the stepmother in a blended family. Her stress came out as pain at the base of her skull, on one side of her neck and one shoulder. Her mind was active at night, making falling asleep difficult. She also had history of headaches that felt like a "a stabbing spear" piercing her head.

So I treated both mother and child. After two paired CranioSacral therapy sessions, Laurie's sleeping improved; after three, she reported "really good sleep," which for her meant waking up refreshed, with "what I used to have, and didn't think I'd get back." She was better able to handle her emotions when they come up instead of being consumed by them. She feels lighter. Her own inner sense is that her posture has changed for the better.

And Ian? He's sleeping deeper, resting well, and no longer grinding his teeth or moaning. He's calmer. He is still full of active little-boy energy but now he has an upper limit -- no more Energizer bunny.

These paired CranioSacral Therapy sessions -- or "CST for Two" -- create a healthier overall family atmosphere, allowing emotions held in the body to be freely expressed, so they don't continue to manifest as physical pain. Deep physical relaxation in which the whole you is included inspires tremendous emotional release. When a mother is able to handle her day-to-day life, her children don't take in her stress and express it as their own pain or troubled behavior. Taking care of your family means taking care of yourself as well.

Q & A: What can you do for your own body that you've been putting off? 

If you resonated with this ~ leave your answer below!