What is CranioSacral Therapy All About?

You may have seen that our Saskatoon location is now open for appointments. Signe Bone is providing some new treatment techniques for Warman Physio, and one of those treatments is CranioSacral Therapy. We thought our clients would like to know what CranioSacral Therapy (CST) is all about!

The Basics – Where it started

CST was pioneered and developed by John E Upledger, an osteopathic physician from 1975-1983 with extensive scientific studies at the Michigan State University. Upledger was a clinical researcher and Professor of Biomechanics at MSU.

 

What CST treatment involves

When coming in for an appointment you can expect to feel supported and cared for as the therapist will apply subtle movements on the spinal and cranial bones to bring the central nervous system into harmony. Signe will evaluate and address the movement of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which can be restricted by trauma to the body (such as falls, accidents, infections and general nervous tension). By gently working with the spine, skull and sacrum, these restrictions for nerve passages are eased and movement of the CSF through the spinal cord can be optimized. A nervous system free of restrictions enables the body to return to its highest levels of performance. When attending an appointment for CST alone, the treatment can be provided with the client fully clothed. If CST is combined with more traditional massage techniques the client will dress-down appropriately for the treatment with instruction from the therapist. Treatments independently last on average 60 minutes.

What Types of issues can CranioSacral Therapy benefit?

There are a wide array of things that CST can be beneficial in treating including:

  • Migraines and headaches
  • Chronic pain
  • Central Nervous System Disorders (ie spasticity, seizures, hearing problems)
  • Trouble sleeping
  • Reflux
  • Anxiety
  • Orthopedic problems
  • Scoliosis
  • Chronic fatigue

Special continuing education in CST can be done in order to specifically work with infants and children in addition to the adult populations.

 

Want to book in with Signe? You can choose the type of treatment you will receive when you book online!

 

 Signe’s passion for understanding the human body began at a young age with her own sports and repetitive strain injuries from her former schooling as a musician. After seeing the healing benefits of movement, breath awareness, massage therapy and physio,  Signe was inspired to focus on her training in Visceral Manipulation and CranialSacral therapy. After learning and seeing how amazing and intricate the body is, and the impact these treatments can impart on the body, she has developed a treatment style that incorporates all these various techniques to provide the best treatment to each client based on their own unique needs.
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Family Focused – What does that MEAN?

We see many people talking about being family friendly, kid friendly, family centred, or family focused in their business. What does this truly mean at Warman Physio?

When looking to start the clinic, I had worked in several places that were “family friendly”, but didn’t have any change tables, toys, or ways to keep kids occupied. This puts the onus 100% on the parents to remember to bring things for the kids (who may unpack the bag before you leave), and check to make sure that everything is charged (as we sometimes discover that technology requiring a charge isn’t always charged when we want it…) and the snacks are the snacks that the kids will actually eat (and hopefully not make a a colossal mess). Which is a huge undertaking when you are a new mom, or just frazzled trying to get the kids out of the house!

What I wanted to achieve at the clinic is a family friendly environment for everyone. I want each person who comes to the clinic to feel like family, sort of like coming home. The goal is for everyone, regardless of what service, issue, or injury they may be coming in for to get this ‘vibe’. For me, it has been a critical focus that when adding new therapists and staff that we stick to this value – being warm, welcoming, and compassionate. (It is written right into the clinic vision and mission statements!)

At the clinic you will find toys, games, books, swings, chairs, wraps, and carriers all intended to help keep babies and older children happy and content during appointments (regardless of what mom remembers to bring!)

The clinic treats babies and children right up to older adults; we truly are able to help everyone across the lifespan!

Ensuring that everyone is treated like an extended family member is the environment you can expect at Warman Physio.

The biggest reason why I wanted this particular feel is because I often heard that people would avoid going for needed appointments because they were unable to afford childcare; or they didn’t have support around to help watch their children while they attended their treatments. Not because they couldn’t (or were told they couldn’t) bring their babies to appointments, but because the environment of acceptance that sometimes babies cry and appointments don’t go as planned made bringing their kids to appointments difficult and uncomfortable. Now don’t let me give you the wrong impression – the therapists want the kids and babies to come, but when it’s not the “norm” it can be a difficult distraction to overcome!

Seeing prenatal and postpartum women, infants and children at the clinic has been the clinic ‘niche’ from the beginning – we just do it a lot! So having that colicky baby that cries the whole time? We’ve got this. Having that baby that needs to lay on momma the whole time? No problem. Having the two big kids that for some reason just NEED to both be on the blue chair? We can figure that out too. Our therapists will hang onto babies, use the swings, and help older kids problem solve during appointments, and sometimes (when mom is comfortable), Laura will snag some of the babies and wander around with them so the mommas can focus on their appointments. It is wonderful to have the content babies and kids in at the clinic, but the kids that are more ‘challenging’ aren’t any less welcome. We enjoy seeing all the kids that come in and want them to feel welcome as well!

So if you have been waiting until you’re back at work, have been putting off coming because you can’t afford childcare, or simply just didn’t know what to do with the kids for your appointments, don’t hesitate to book in with us! We even have kids attend massage appointments with parents sometimes (but I get wanting to be able to get into fully relaxed mode!) 😉

We are here to welcome you into our Warman Physio family – wherever you may fit!

Haylie has been practicing pelvic health and focused in prenatal and post-partum care since graduating from the U of S MPT program in 2011. She now adds to this education and treatment, her knowledge and experience in pediatric pelvic health providing workshops and presentations in addition to assessment and treatment. Haylie has been advocating for treatment for women, ensuring appropriate and effective care throughout pregnancy and post-partum, and helping all expecting and post-partum moms since she started practicing. This ultimately brought her to open her family-friendly clinic in 2014.  At Warman Physio clients are encouraged to bring their infants and children to treatment if they need. Haylie was recognized as YWCA Women of Distinction finalist for Health & Wellness in 2017, the ABEX Young Entrepreneur Award Recipient in 2018, and a finalist in the 2019 SABEX and WMBEXA Awards.
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Male Pelvic Health – Incontinence and Pelvic Pain

You’ve already read all about WHY pelvic health is also important for men, now let’s dive into a case study!

Case Study – Male Pelvic Health

CT is a 43 year old male seeking help because he is having problems with leaking urine whenever he does physical activity. He has also been experiencing consistent sharp/burning pains around his rectal area. In the beginning he was leaking only a few drops of urine and feeling slight discomfort in his pelvic floor… but after a few months CT is leaking his full bladder and his pain has greatly increased. He is afraid to participate in golf, fishing, and jogging because this is when he leaks the most urine.

During the pelvic assessment it is found that CT has a weak pelvic floor (2/5 strength), and a lot of tension/tightness of his pelvic floor muscles. He is educated that he needs to strengthen his pelvic muscles in order to close his urethra (tube which pee comes out), so that he does not leak before he is able to get to the bathroom, or when participating in golf, fishing, and jogging. CT also requires training in relaxation exercises, and stretches for his pelvic floor, which will decrease the tightness and therefore stop the pain that he has been experiencing.

After the assessment CT is sent home with a breathing exercise, several pelvic floor stretches, and a muscle strengthening exercise.

At the next session CT reports having decreased episodes of leaking and reduced pain in his pelvic area. During a follow up evaluation CT now has 3/5 pelvic strength and a decrease in muscle tension. The therapist manually releases his pelvic muscles and he is once again sent home with progressed pelvic floor strengthening exercises and stretches.

After a few more weeks and 2 or 3 more sessions CT is no longer leaking and feels no more pain and discomfort in his pelvic floor. He is educated to keep up with his exercise program occasionally to maintain strength and proper length of his pelvic floor.

 

Not all pelvic health issues will present the exact same, and as such there is no one-size fits all program that will work for everyone. Need help with your pelvic health complaint? Don’t hesitate to contact us or book an appointment. Not sure if your issues can be helped by a physiotherapist? Give us a call, or send a message, we are happy to help you sort through it.

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Pelvic Health Appointment – What to Expect

As a pelvic health therapist one of the biggest questions I get is – wait, WHAT exactly do you do?!

For an adult (age 18+) pelvic health assessment there is a wide variability as to what this will look like, but for a general appointment you can expect for us to ask a detailed history – and this will include some really thought provoking questions for many! The questions and history will vary slightly depending on the issue that you are coming in with (leaking, pelvic organ prolapse, pelvic pain, etc) but the basics will all be covered. I want to know… What are you coming in for, what is the story behind it? Is this getting better/worse? What have you tried to date? (remember, pelvic health therapy is more than kegels!) Your OBGYN history (kids, how they were delivered, when, how big, instruments, length of labor/pushing, etc). Bladder & bowel history (all about voiding patterns, changes, etc) among others.

Once we are done all the questions, and we get an idea of what you are hoping to accomplish, we will complete a physical exam as well. Looking at how you move (walking, squats, etc) may be completed, and abdominal evaluation (diastasis recti, coordination and palpation).

When explaining to people what we do throughout the day we often get these skeptical looks!

In the majority of cases for adult pelvic health we will also aim to complete a pelvic exam**. In order to be a pelvic health physiotherapist, we have additional coursework that allows us to be certified to complete these exams. We check for reflexes and sensation, movement and positioning of the pelvic floor, as well as muscle contractility and pelvic organ position. Muscle coordination between the pelvic floor and rest of the abdominal muscles is also evaluated (what happens when someone coughs or creates what we call a valsalva maneuver). In some instances, usually not on the first day, there may be an indication to evaluate the client in standing as well.

**In some instances when individuals are experiencing pelvic pain conditions, a complete pelvic health evaluation may not be achieved on the first appointment – and this is ok! We do not need to push through pain in order to get the process going, so there is no need to “grin and bear it” for these appointments, we want to know if something is uncomfortable! There are also instances where a pelvic exam is not appropriate which is evaluated on a case by case basis. It is important to remember that there is always an option to not complete a pelvic health exam at an appointment, with careful consideration with your provider we want to ensure you get the best treatment in a fashion that is suitable for you.

What you will head home with for homework will be dependent on what exactly we find (tightness, weakness, coordination issues, etc) to get you starting your road to resolving your particular issue or issues, but each person will have a unique plan to achieve their goals!

Many people come to their appointments worried about how things will go, anxious it will be awkward, and end up leaving feeling relieved and confident in their plan. As pelvic health therapists we do our best to keep you comfortable and provide the education you need to really take control.

Start your road to recovery today! Book an appointment with one of our therapists!

Have questions? Feel free to send us a message and we will do our best to help you get your answers!

Haylie has been practicing pelvic health and focused in prenatal and post-partum care since graduating from the U of S MPT program in 2011. She officially added to her practice pediatric pelvic floor therapy in 2017. Haylie has been advocating for treatment for women, ensuring appropriate and effective care throughout pregnancy and post-partum, and helping all expecting and post-partum moms ultimately brought her to open her family-friendly clinic since opening in 2014. She now adds to this education and treatment provision her knowledge and experience in pediatric pelvic health providing workshops and presentations in addition to assessment and treatment. At Warman Physio clients are encouraged to bring their infants and children to treatment. Haylie was recognized as YWCA Women of Distinction for Health & Wellness in 2017, the ABEX Young Entrepreneur Award Recipient in 2018, and has been nominated for the 2019 SABEX and WMBEXA Awards.

 

 

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Prolapse – A Case Study

As with many issues, often we aren’t sure if what we are experiencing is normal and expected, if it will just go away, or if we need to have it looked at. For many women who are pregnant and postpartum, this is made even more difficult as we are often told that symptoms we are experiencing are normal because “you’ve had kids” and that “this is just how it is now” which can delay effective treatment of these issues! Here you can see a case study on Prolapse, which outlines some of the issues that someone may experience.

The presenting symptoms:

A 31 year old woman attends the clinic mentioning a history of intermittent pelvic floor heaviness “feeling like things are falling down” and discomfort. She has noticed that the heaviness has been worse since starting back with weight lifting at her gym 1 month ago. She has two children ages 2 years and 4 months old.  She had continued to go to the gym throughout her pregnancy (symptom free), but notes she had reduced her weights somewhat during her third trimester.

She hadn’t returned to the gym until now, as her life has been quite busy since the delivery of her second child! No pelvic floor pain, urinary or fecal incontinence is reported.  She had felt like now was a good time in her life to return to the gym and is quite devastated at this setback. Going to the gym and working out had been an

important part of her life-mentally, socially and physically and she is worried she won’t be able to do any activity at all anymore.

She went to see her family physician as was concerned about her symptoms and was referred to pelvic floor physiotherapy for prolapse. She reports no symptoms first thing in the morning, but these progressively worsen as the day goes on.  Some days are better than others with her symptoms.  Lifting weights at her gym and lifting her children aggravate her symptoms.  She notes she did just get over a bad cold and had been coughing/sneezing quite a lot during the past month. She also identifies that she has always had issues with constipation.  Both of her deliveries were vaginal with no instrumentation (forceps or vacuum) or complications. She is currently breastfeeding.

Assessment and Treatment

The client was assessed with an internal pelvic examination by a pelvic floor physical therapist. A Grade 1 cystocele was found. (A cystocele means the prolapse was from the bladder descending into the wall of the vagina and a Grade 1 prolapse means the organ descent was halfway to the vaginal opening). The pelvic floor muscles were weak with a Gr. 2 strength (a weak squeeze and no lift of the pelvic floor muscles) and tight.

The client and the therapist worked together to increase her pelvic floor strength and coordination, as well as to optimize her intraabdominal pressure management systems. Toileting positions and discussion around constipation management were discussed and the client was able to implement these at home. Optimizing postures during breastfeeding and throughout the day were discussed to reduce strain on the pelvic floor and discussed on how to successfully get them implemented at home.  Education on anatomy of the pelvic floor and the pelvic organs/their supports as well as POP was provided which will help the client to take control and understand the why behind the recommendations.

Activity modifications were implemented but keeping her active was part of the plan and exercises were progressed as appropriate.  The client returned to her gynecologist for a pessary fitting to use intermittently during heavier weight lifting at the gym. She was seen in follow up 2 weeks after the initial assessment and then 1x/month for 6 months. She was able to return to her weight lifting and was symptom free with all tasks and activities at the conclusion of therapy, although her Grade 1 prolapse remained.

Have you been struggling with prolapse symptoms? Not sure if your symptoms could be part of prolapse, please feel free to contact us and we will help chat you through what you are experiencing as best we can.

Don’t delay start your road to recovery today!

Maja Stroh is a physiotherapist that has a particular interest in pelvic health and perinatal care. She graduated from the U of S MPT program in 2009 and has been working with pelvic health populations since 2013. Maja’s interest in helping her clients and spending quality time with her family has brought her to Warman Physio where she will be providing services in the Saskatoon and Warman locations.
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