Gentle Touch Produces Miracles
by Gerri Shapiro, MS Ed., Bowen Practitioner
http://www.miraclepainrelief.com
For as long as I can remember, I've suffered from
back pain. Although I have experienced some relief using
heat, cold, massage, chiropractic and acupuncture,
invariably the pain has always returned. Until one day I
visited a friend in California who had similar back
problems. She told me she had some body work done called
Bowen. Her back and hip pain were gone after just one
session! I was definitely intrigued. I couldn't wait to find out
more. When I arrived back home I got on the internet and
learned that the Bowen Technique involves a series of very
gentle rolling moves on the body using thumbs and fingers.
It was developed in Australia in the 1950's by Thomas
Bowen, a gifted healer who devised a simple but powerful
method for releasing pain. Hoping to find a Bowen practitioner near me, I emailed
close to 40 practitioners around the U.S. and asked if they
could refer me to someone. After 39 "no's" I got
one "yes!" I arranged to have three Bowen sessions. After
the third session, my back pain and sciatica
were "history!" I got so excited I decided to train to
become a Bowen practitioner. The Amazing Tom Bowen
Tom Bowen was a gifted natural healer from Australia. Late
in life he discovered he had an unusual gift that allowed
him to intuitively know what was ailing people and how to
help them relieve their pain. His healing technique is
unique in that it was developed without him having had any
previous medical or healthcare training. He claimed he could feel tiny vibrations in people's
muscles that helped him find the exact location to work
on. He spoke of his skill with great humility and
frequently stated that his work was ~simply a gift from
God. Tom had the capacity to quickly assess what was wrong with
someone and where they were out of balance. He could look
into a room full of people, glance at them for about 20
seconds, and know what their problems were. Although he
never advertised, it was estimated that he treated over
13,000 people in the course of one year, and he claimed a
success rate of about 88%! A Unique Technique
The Bowen Technique is quite unique. There are several
features that set it apart from other modalities Gentle
It is so gentle that you hardly notice you~re being
touched. People usually become very relaxed right away,
and often fall asleep during a session. Fast
Rapid pain relief is common. Most pain and injury will
respond within two or three sessions. Long-Lasting Relief
People often experience a deep and long-lasting relief.
Two to three sessions spaced one week apart are usually
enough to achieve lasting relief, even from long-standing
pain or injury. Safe
There is no one who cannot be treated safely with Bowen.
It is so gentle, it can be used on babies, pregnant women,
the elderly and the disabled. It is not dangerous to those
suffering from chronic illness and it is ideal for treating
children because it is non-invasive and non-threatening. Two Minute Pauses
It is a unique feature of the Bowen Technique that there
are two minute breaks in which the practitioner actually
leaves the room. These pauses are crucial as they allow
the body time to absorb the ~messages~ presented by the
moves. Painless
There is no cracking, no force and no needles. There is
little discomfort or pain involved because there is no
heavy pressure or hard probing into sensitive muscles or
joints. Less Is More
The practitioner does the minimum needed to bring about a
healing response in the body. The more acute the pain, the
less they do. The less they do, the more profound the
effect on the body. Great First Aid Tool
When you apply the Bowen Technique right after a fall,
injury or accident, the release of tension acts in a
preventive way to help correct any imbalance before it can
adversely affect the body. Easy To Learn
The technique is easy to learn. There is only one basic
move. How Does Bowen Work?
The gentle yet powerful Bowen moves send neurological
impulses to the brain resulting in immediate responses of
muscle relaxation and pain reduction. The moves create
energy surges which are concentrated in specific areas of
the body using "blockers" or "stoppers." These are
released when you stand up. The Bowen Technique helps the body remember how to heal
itself. Electrical impulses sent to the nervous system
remind the body to regain normal movement in joints,
muscles and tendons. This helps relieve muscle spasms and
increase blood and lymph flow. Several of the moves are
located along acupuncture meridians or on specific
acupuncture points which are known to stimulate and balance
the body~s energy. A Bowen Session
A Bowen treatment lasts about 30-45 minutes. No oils are
used. Treatment can be done through clothing or directly
on the skin. The practitioner "rolls" over the muscles with
her fingers, which causes the muscles to relax. The moves
are done in groups. Between sets, the practitioner leaves
the room for at least two minutes to allow the body to
relax and make its own adjustments.
The moves send out signals which: stimulate energy flow; facilitate lymphatic drainage of toxins and waste; promote good circulation; release tension; increase mobility; encourage the body to relax, realign and heal itself.
Some people feel shifts in their bodies during and after a
Bowen session. While many experience immediate pain
relief, improvement is just as likely to unfold over the
next few days to a week. Two or three treatments are
usually enough to achieve long-lasting relief. Even long-
term conditions may respond very quickly. The ideal situation is to give the Bowen Technique a try
for 3 sessions, once per week, without having any other
kind of bodywork in between. Success Stories
Arthritis
My eighty year old mother suffers from severe arthritis.
After just one Bowen session, she slept through the entire
night for the first time in six years. The next morning
she was able to walk without her walker. Frozen Shoulder
A woman who suffered from severe pain in her shoulder
couldn't lift her arm. Her hands and fingers felt numb.
The night after her second session she called from a
restaurant and said that during dinner she heard
a "popping" sound. Her shoulder had popped itself back in
place. She's been pain-free ever since. Fibromyalgia/Chronic Fatigue
A woman with fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue lived in a
constant state of severe pain (a "10" on a scale of 1-
10). After two sessions her pain level dropped to a "4".
She slept through the night and was able to go through an
entire day without having to rest constantly. The main difference between Bowen and other modalities is
how fast it works, how gentle it feels and how long the
pain relief lasts. Anyone can learn how to do the Bowen
Technique: there is only one basic move. The technique has been successful in treating back pain,
sciatica, headaches, migraines, arthritis, fibromyalgia,
sports injuries and much more. For me, the miracle lies in
the fact that doing so little produces such long-lasting
relief. Gerri Shapiro, MS Ed, is a Bowen practitioner and leading
health educator who produced the self-help video entitled
Miracle Pain Relief - The Gentle Power of Bowen for Family
and Friends . Click here for more information about the
Bowen Technique.
http://www.miraclepainrelief.com
This article courtesy of http://www.health-resources.co.uk.
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