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Headaches are NOT in My Head?
By Susan Cotta
Do you have headaches and have not had results with medications, physical therapy or biofeedback? Are you looking for something non-invasive? Look no further - I’m here to let you know that your symptoms may be coming from a place outside of your head! How can this be so? Let me explain about connective tissue, which is also referred to as fascia.
There is a great quote from the book, Job’s Body, by Deane Juhan, which describes the connective tissue in an interesting way. He asks the question “What is a human being?” and answers it in an interesting way: “A human being is a container invented by water so that it (the human being) can walk around.” So we are basically big sacks of water, but in order for us to walk around, we need this system of guide wires (the fascia) and spacers (the bones of the body).
If we took a tour through your body’s fascial system, we would find that it is a laminated-like sheet of connective tissue that binds, supports, connects and envelops the entire body. It is apparent at 14 days after fertilization! Every cell, muscle, muscle fiber, blood vessel and organ (to name a few) is surrounded by fascia. This fascial system is like a body stocking. So like putting on a pair of stockings or nylons, if there is a twist in the stocking, you can feel it all up your leg and into your pelvis. It can feel very uncomfortable, like it is turning your leg in a direction your leg doesn’t want to go. You really feel as though you need to take the stocking off and put it on in a more symmetrical way. Likewise, if the fascial system gets a twist in it, this twist can lead to lots of symptoms in a part of your body distant to where your ‘twist’ is located.
These ‘twists’ or restrictions can be the result of anything, such as, physical, chemical, environmental, emotional or mental trauma. Under the best of circumstances, this system of fascia works fabulously, but as we age and sustain traumas, we become less flexible and more dehydrated, fascia can really start to bind down the very things it surrounds such as the muscles and nerves, thus producing very interesting (and painful) symptoms.
Since it is possible to travel from head to foot and never leave the fascial system, a fall onto your buttocks can produce compensation in the fascia which can lead to pulls on your upper neck, pain or headaches. These dysfunctions can lead to a variety of symptoms over time, such as headaches, shoulder pain, neck pain and fibromyalgia to name a few.
When a client comes to my office with a certain symptom or symptoms, I try not to be jaded by the location of these symptoms. My hands ‘listen’ to their body. You might be asking “How is this possible for your hands to ‘listen’ to my body?” I thought the same thing when I was first taking some of my early classes in Myofascial Release (MFR), Cranio-Sacral Therapy (CST) and Visceral Manipulation (VM). Now I feel like my hands can listen to my client’s body by using the various rhythms of the body I’ve been taught to palpate. These rhythms can lead me to the potential causes of the symptoms my client’s experience.
If you have symptoms that have been unable to be effectively treated, a look into your fascial system - utilizing MFR, CST or VM - may provide the key to unlocking the mystery surrounding your symptoms. I usually tell my clients, “Let’s try 2-3 sessions to see if these may be effective treatments.” These therapies are relatively conservative treatments (compared to drugs or surgery) with usually no real side effects (other than those produced by your body re-arranging itself more functionally). Really, what is there to lose - except your pain!
Susan Cotta
Sue Cotta is a licensed physical therapist in Massachusetts and Rhode Island and a nationally certified athletic trainer. Her hands-on practice includes the spectrum of infants to adults with an emphasis in treating children, especially those on the autism spectrum.
She has been teaching CranioSacral Therapy for the Upledger Institute for over seven years. Her practice is located in Swansea, MA and you can contact her at 508-982-1100 or by email at suecotta@verizon.net.
If you’re frustrated and looking for a less invasive option to getting pregnant, call me (508)982-1100. All treatments are done fully clothed in a private, caring and professional session.
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