My Hands, Your Brain, Over a Cup of Coffee?

Good morning!  Many have asked about my recent trainings concerning the brain technique, which I like to call NeuroStructural Release. In Brain 1 I studied basic brain anatomy and main structures, also how to facilitate release in those structures, by being still with them, like we are sharing a cup of coffee. How many times have you come home from a bad day at work and just needed someone to hear about it? They did nothing, just listened but after sharing with them you felt better. Sometimes we just need to be heard. Sometimes your tissue just needs to be heard. Brain 2 took us deeper into the anatomy of the brain and also gave us a better understanding of the connections between the structures and more technique to assess what, more precisely, needs to be paid attention to for deeper release.  

After thinking about it all and letting it soak in a bit, I see touching the brain as being fairly similar to touching muscle tissues.  When a massage therapist works to release restriction in the muscles, it is beneficial to know the origin and insertion of those muscles plus the action that particular muscle participates in.  And once you have an understanding of where and how that muscle is, you need to know the neighborhood it lives in because other muscles close by are often affected by a restriction in the muscle in question.  When working in the brain, it is not so different.  

If you have ever been a participant on my table, you most likely know that everything in your body is connected.  I get asked a lot how I am able to access the structures and tissue in the brain.  If you think about everything being connected, it is easy.  I touch bone, which touches the dura mater, which touches the arachnoid space, which touches the pia mater and so on.  How often have I worked on a muscle in your neck that connects to a place in your hand, arm or even down your leg?  It's pretty much like that.  Also keep in mind that the human body is more than 60% water.  Blood is 92%  water, the brain and muscles are 75% water and the bones are about 22% water.  We really are very fluid, think of it like that.  Having been trained to feel subtle movements in the body helps also. The structures feel differently, so the places that hold fluid feel like fluid and some are rubbery, others greasy and so on. 

Brain 2 has helped me to understand how things work together to complete even a seemingly simple task.  It also explains how when there are lesions and damage to the brain it can mean a very complicated recovery process.  In knowing first hand just how difficult that can be, I see no reason to doubt or even question whether or not this is a type of work that would be beneficial to the healing process.  For brain lesions and restriction it's extremely valuable but the value extends beyond that because so much of our body is governed over by our brains.  It's grand central station for the body, all actions in or out, all feelings and reactions, everything we sense travels through the brain.  It's all pretty amazing.  

We also touched on some brain chemistry in this class but will explore that further in future classes.  Man, when did I become such a geek?  

I'm so excited to be able to share all of this with you.  

On a personal note... During my brain breaks, which I find SO beneficial when learning, I was able to explore the central California coast, found a most excellent coffee shop, (Joe Momma's Coffee on Avila Beach) and tried zip lining for the first time. It won't be the last! Zip lining is so much fun if you have never tried it, you seriously NEED to!  I'll leave you with a scenic view of Morrow Bay...