Spinal Flow

Spinal Flow Technique® is a touch-based healing practice that prompts our spine and nervous system to release stress and help heal itself. The body has an innate intelligence to grow, repair, and heal itself. This innate intelligence, or life force energy, flows through the spine and nervous system. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) likewise flows through the spine and nervous system. Gentle touch at "access points" on the sacrum and head stimulates a wave-like flow of CSF, clearing blockages and stress stored in and around the spine, and restoring the flow of this innate healing intelligence through every vertebra, the nervous system, and every cell in the body. Anyone can experience this healing practice; it is safe, gentle, and has no contraindications. 

Susan was drawn to Spinal Flow because its philosophy and techniques align with her experience and practices for addressing pain and imbalances in her own body and for a multitude of other people. The story of how she came to be focused on this for herself and others explains why she now offers Spinal Flow and finds it to be highly effective.  

To significantly shorten a long story, in her mid 30s, Susan had knee pain that was not relieved by physical therapy or custom orthotics. She was told about a  chiropractor who uses only nonforceful methods to address musculoskeletal conditions. The chiropractor said that her knee pain resulted from a "stuckness" in the sacroiliac joint that had caused her pelvis not to be level. Having received a scoliosis diagnosis at age 4 and later treatment with a brace, she knew that her hips were different heights and one leg appeared shorter than the other. The chiropractor placed wedge-shaped bolsters under her hips and applied gentle stretching and massage-like techniques. Her pelvis became level, legs appeared the same length, and knee pain completely disappeared. Her scoliosis improved substantially.

Through this process, Susan learned the importance of having a level pelvis. When the hips are not level, the legs, which are attached to the hips, are affected, potentially leading to hip joint, knee, and foot issues. The sciatic nerve travels through that area, and sciatic pain also can result. The sacrum is the foundation for the vertebra above it.  When the sacrum is not level and is stuck, the vertebrae above it are affected all the way up the spine to the skull, potentially resulting in back pain, neck pain, headaches, jaw tightness, or even scoliosis. 

Wanting to find ongoing relief for herself and others, Susan developed non-chiropractic methods drawn from yoga and massage to address this sort of blockage in herself and many other people. She incorporated the bolsters into Thai massage sessions. She has taught many people a few gentle movements that can be done at home in just a few minutes to clear the stuckness and level the pelvis. 

 After working with these methods for many years, Susan came across Spinal Flow. Spinal Flow offers a very effective yet gentle way to clear blockages relating to an unlevel pelvis as well as blockages throughout the spinal column. It recognizes that a pelvic imbalance can cause issues going up and down the entire body, and uses the same wedge-shaped bolsters under the hips to release stuckness in the sacrum-hip area. It recognizes that blockages are the root cause of many problems. If the root causes are not addressed, then techniques such as massage, stretching ,or PT that target the resulting pain or other symptoms will, at best, give only temporary relief. Spinal Flow recognizes that blockages can be the result of physical, chemical, or emotional stress that is held in the body. Blockages from stored stress affect the nerves exiting the spinal cord and therefore can affect any system of the body, from digestion to reproduction as well as musculoskeletal. Spinal Flow offers correlations similar to those of yoga related to the chakras for understanding the relationship between types of stress and resulting symptoms. An aspect of Spinal Flow that Susan finds particularly brilliant is its use of gentle touch at "access points," places with close connection to the dura matter that surrounds the spinal cord and brain, to stimulate the flow of cerebrospinal fluid and life force energy (called prana in yoga), so that it is the recipient's own body and innate healing ability that clears the blockages and stress that has been stored in the body. 

Susan is a certified Spinal Flow practitioner. An initial Spinal Flow session typically will begin with an assessment of where any blockages may be and how they correlate to the person's goals for feeling better. For the treatment, the fully-clothed person lays face down on a massage table.

Susan offers Spinal Flow on its own and in combination with other modalities. For example, a session could begin with the technique she has developed for leveling the pelvis (which also can be done at home to speed progress and for maintenance) and end with brief marma work at the neck and head. Susan has found it to be particularly powerful to begin with 30 minutes of Spinal Flow followed immediately by a complete Tibetan Cranial session. Spinal Flow addresses the entire spine, working from the bottom up, by increasing flow from the sacrum to the cranium. Tibetan Cranial therapy also works on the entire spine, but with more emphasis on the cranium. Together, Spinal Flow and Tibetan Cranial can be especially transformative. 

For more information about Spinal Flow, visit the Spinal Flow website here and Spinal Flow YouTube channel here. 

Call or email for more information or to schedule an appointment, or make an appointment online at Schedule an Appointment. 

703-718-6894
susan@essenceayurveda.com