Bowen Therapy

Bowen treatments

Heard of Bowen Treatments? Your Back Will Thank You

“Healing doesn’t always mean doing more. At times, it is just enough to remind the body of what it already knows.”

Have you ever spent hours Googling how to relieve your back pain? Have you tried massages, swallowed pills, and received too many chiropractic appointments, only to wake up in pain again? Then you are not alone. But there’s a gentle, often overlooked solution that’s quietly changing lives: Bowen treatments.

This is distinctly not a regular kind of therapy that forces the body to react, but the treatment merely works with the body. It involves light touch and is subtle, yet shockingly effective. The poor back that has been screaming for relief might find a perfect reset with this.

Let me walk you through what it is, how it works, and why these treatments are currently winning the hearts of those who were once stuck with chronic pain.

What Exactly Are Bowen Treatments?

This Therapy (or the Bowen Technique) is an Australian method of doing bodywork. But think nothing of deep-tissue pressure or complex bone-cracking adjustments. The Bowen Technique uses a gentle rolling motion across the muscle, tendon, and fascia, along with short but necessary pauses. It is subtle; it really is during these pauses that the magic takes place.

The body has a chance to “hear.” To recalibrate. To get out of the fight-or-flight scenario and into healing mode. No brute force. Just gentle cues and time to respond.

Clients often report:

  • Relief after just one or two sessions
  • Deep relaxation that lasts
  • Less inflammation and stiffness
  • A renewed sense of balance in the body

Why Your Back Will Thank You

Backache is a prevalent reason why people seek medical advice from a doctor. It is frustrating to resolve. People try to power through auto-stretching, correcting posture, or using expensive ergonomic chairs. While these measures can help, they cannot really directly address the deep source of what is causing the muscular tension.

Bowen operates in a very different manner. Rather than trying to “fix” the pain, it just allows the body to heal itself by resetting the autonomic nervous system (ANS).

Consider the simple notion of rebooting a frozen phone. You’re not forcing anything; instead, you give the system a chance to sort out its own glitch.

For those with sciatica, lower back tightness, herniated discs, or long-standing strains from sitting all day, Bowen therapy offers an alternative path, one that involves no popping of painkillers or scheduling of surgical procedures.

Not Just for Backs—Bowen Helps the Whole Body

While the relief of low back pain unfortunately tops the list of benefits of this gentle approach, Bowen’s therapy encompasses a whole spectrum of other ailments. A couple of the more common ones are the neck pain treatments Dallas has to offer and frozen shoulder therapies in Dallas, particularly for those who find themselves sitting at a desk or performing repetitive tasks.

More often than not, Bowen therapists are doing work on fascia, the connective tissue that stretches through your entire body. When this is tight or constrained, injured, or stressed, it can hold tension in unusual locations. This is precisely what makes neck and shoulder problems so persistent.

Stretching these gentle rolling movements around the shoulders, upper back, and neck, Bowen treatments release this tension. Clients have enjoyed a better range of motion, restful sleep, and even relief from headache and jaw tension.

If you have held onto years of tension locking your stiff neck, or a lingering nuisance of shoulder pain with a cherry-on-top of limited range of motion due to a past injury, a few sessions of Bowen can be just like someone finally cracking open a window in a room that had been slammed shut for years.

What to Expect During a Session

First-timers are usually surprised. There’s no deep digging, no oils, and no machines. The practitioner might work for a few minutes, then leave the room for a short time. That pause? It’s intentional and powerful.

This is how a standard session takes place:

  • You are lying comfortably on a massage table, fully dressed.
  • The practitioner makes light, rolling movements on specific points.
  • Between sets, they’ll give your body a break to process the signals.
  • The whole session usually lasts 30–60 minutes.

Most people walk away feeling deeply relaxed. Some feel changes immediately; for others, it takes a day or two. But the effects? They last longer than traditional massage or physical therapy.

The Emotional Side of Physical Pain

Another common point Bowen deeply understands: pain is not merely physical. Stress, emotional pressure, and trauma may rest within the body. Sometimes we carry that tension for one or two decades without being aware of it.

Bowen therapy interfaces with your parasympathetic nervous system, the part responsible for resting, digesting, and recovery. It calms the nervous system as it unties emotional stress alongside any pain.

For clients dealing with burnout, insomnia, anxiety, PTSD, or grief (sometimes even termed as complicated grief), Bowen often provides emotional release that is unexpected in nature.  Many report that it feels therapeutic.

Why Bowen Works When Nothing Else Does

Many people look to Bowen after treatment by a chiropractor, physiotherapist, or even injections has failed to grant long-lasting relief. Subtlety is at the heart of Bowen. Instead of pushing the body to make changes, it gently encourages it to do the recalibration.

Bowen lets healing take place without any strain by focusing on fascia, nervous system response, and muscle tension. It is more helpful when pressure is put on you by the stresses of standard treatment rather than giving support. This method will generally give relief when conventional approaches are unable: recurrent back pain, joint stiffness, or difficulty in functionality.

Final Thoughts: Give Your Body the Cue to Heal

So, the next time the old big bad back or even the shoulder acting up, and something stiff along with it needs fixing, remember that:

You do not need to go through suffering. You do not need to push on. You need a gentle reminder that would help your body feel better. Bowen treatments are never an instant fix but a lasting shift.

It offers a restoration approach to center your body, not through force but through gentle manipulative suggestions.

Pain Eraser from our Bowen Therapy in Dallas center focuses on care and compassion in resetting these patterns. Whether it is about aggressive back pain, neck pain, or frozen shoulder, we facilitate your healing journey, naturally and gently. Your body deserves to have relief that genuinely feels like relief.

Let Bowen find it for you. Call us today and schedule your first session. Your back will thank you!

Bowen Therapy for strokes

Lately I am working successfully with stroke victims. This may not be something you’d think about sending your loved one to receive Bowen Therapy for. But when something so simple, gentle and non-invasive is known to be effective for this devastating life issue, don’t you think it is worth pursuing?

Bowen Therapy is a hands-on bodywork so effective that it often takes only one to three sessions for most issues to resolve. E.g., in the case of a stroke, there is usually one side of the spinal muscles that are raised and “bulked up.” The other side will be more depressed. The goal is to communicate with the brain via the autonomic nervous system, inviting it to rebalance. Once accomplished, the musculature on either side of the spine is level with one another. More importantly, symptoms improve and sometimes totally resolve. For instance, a client with a left-sided stroke could not use his right hand properly (writing, getting wallet out of his pocket). After three sessions, this functionality is now greatly improved, and he feels like he can do life better.

Meditation Releases Stress – BrainTap Gets You There

At Living Well Dallas, sleep disorders are one of the main issues we help people with.  It seems to be so prevalent these days.  We carry some great nutritional supplements to help with sleep.  We also have health coaches who can guide you on eating and drinking habits that can help with your sleep.  Bowen Therapy can also be very effective in helping down-regulate the autonomic nervous system, so as to get you to sleep better at night.  Getting enough exercise on a daily basis helps resolve issues if done consistently.

The practice of meditation has been proven to be very conducive to getting a good night’as sleep.  Here is an article that elaborates on this subject.  Also, did you know that at LWD we have a device called BrainTap that quickly and easily takes you into a meditative state? It even has several programs you can listen to that are specifically designed to help you sleep to your heart’s content.  Come in and sample it for free.  Just call 972-930-0260 and ask for your free initial demo of BrainTap if you have never experienced it with us before.

Bowen BOGO with Brenda Briscoe

 

You got your kids and grandkids through another school year — now it’s time to take care of YOU! Get rid of that nagging pain issue before vacationing.

Buy a Bowen Session with Brenda and Get a Second One at 50% off!

Sale runs June 1 to June 30. 
Bowen Therapy session is $100.
Bowen plus LED light therapy is $150.
Offer is for two sessions of the same kind – half off the 2nd one.
 
The two sessions must be purchased together when you book your first one in June,
but you can use the second session in June, July or August.
Must be used by August 31.

Bowen Therapy for Fluid Flow

Did you know that our bodies are more than 70% water? That being the case, fluid flow in our tissues is very important.  Moving the water in our tissues and doing it slowly leads to healthy hydrated fascia.

Stimulating the receptors and breaking adhesions has been thought to be the top priority in body work, but now researchers are finding that fluid dynamics are just as important, if not more. Moving the body’s fluid results in more lubricated tissues and, essentially, more mobility and ease.

Cells called fibroblasts are crucial players in this process.  A fibroblast is a type of cell responsible for making the Fibroblast-cellsextracellular matrix and collagen. Together, these form the structural framework of tissues in animals and play an important role in tissue repair. Fibroblasts are the main connective tissue cells present in the body.

Fibroblasts really like slow movement, as confirmed by clinical studies.  They respond positively, changing tissue structure. So, the slow speed of manipulation, which happens in a Bowen Therapy session, is extremely therapeutic. With Bowenwork, the intent is to push the water around, as the fibroblasts like it, so that the nutrients are distributed around the tissues, and the tensional forces are balanced.

Bowen Therapy’s slow and gentle manipulations cause the fluid in your cells to flow better and your fascia to be rehydrated, bringing quick, profound, and longer lasting resolution to pain and mobility issues than some other techniques that are deep and more invasive.

For a Bowen Therapy treatment with Brenda Briscoe, call 972-930-0260.

Electrical Currents and Energy

Today I am going to borrow, but give credit to Jenny Petridis (a Bowen practitioner in Austrailia), something that Bowen Therapy piccaught my attention regarding piezoelectricity.  This is a very important aspect of what happens with energy and the body’s response in a Bowen session.

~ Because of piezoelectricity, every movement of the body, every pressure, every tension anywhere, generates a variety of oscillating bioelectrical signals… (throughout the continuum of the connective tissue matrix). ~

(rephrased from the work of J Oschman)

collagen-piezo charges

Piezo (means ‘pressure’). The term piezoelectricity is where stress is passed through a material and deforms it. In biological materials such as our fascia this creates a slight electric impulse which is said to cause a response in the tissue, effectively changing the tissue intercellular and extracellular environment.

And of Bowen therapy? We may postulate that it has something to do with the unique shear + compression + tension of the Bowen ‘move’.

Studies have brought to our attention, that the piezoelectrical response in tissue is sensitive to whether collagen is aligned or not. In simple terms, the more ‘organized’ the fascia, the better the flow of bioelectrical information within the soft tissues. 

Plus, it is accepted that, according to fascia research, piezoelectricity seems to be an explanation for more long term change, not immediate. Thus, each Bowen therapy session builds on the previous one. So, if sessions are done in succession (within a couple of weeks or less), we can take advantage of the body’s energy momentum and how the body is responding to this piezoelectricity from each session and build on it.

Thanks, Jenny Petridis, for such wonderful information!

General Causes of Back Pain #8

A significant number of back problems arise from sudden forces applied to a flexed, bent-over spine.  This can occursneezing with apparently simple forces, such as coughing or sneezing while reaching for or lifting heavy objects.  

If the force is great enough, a disc could rupture and exert pressure on the nerves where they exit the spinal column.  A large ruptured disc is one cause of sciatica, a condition where pain radiates down the buttock and leg and can be accompanied by numbness, tingling, and muscle weakness on the affected side.

Many clients come to me after this kind of injury has happened.  It really didn’t take much, especially if they were dehydrated to start with.  Bowen Therapy can quickly help realign the spine and relax the muscles that got strained when you sneezed, coughed, or did some other abrupt type of movement while twisting the spine or lifting an object.

So, here’s what to do.  If you are reaching over to get an object or bending over to pick something up and you get the urge to cough or sneeze, abort that effort and wait until the cough or sneeze is over.  Then go back and pick up your object.  Hopefully, this will eliminate the possible muscle strain.

Call 972-930-0260 to book your appointment for a Bowen Therapy session which will give you quick, profound and long-lasting recovery from your pain.

Information taken from The Bum Back Book by Michael Reed Gach.

General Causes of Back Pain #6

Prolonged, strenuous or unaccustomed exercise can strain the back muscles.  This strain can lead to soreness and tightness.  gym workout

For example, most of us have made a New Year’s resolution at the beginning of January to become more fit.  We go back to the gym after a long period of little or no exercise for months, and we overdo it to the point where we are sore for days afterwards.  Instead of going all out, we should ramp up the weight and reps gradually so that we don’t suffer so much or don’t get discouraged.

How about those holidays where the guys get outside and play football on Thanksgiving or Christmas Day?  They’ve waited all year long to do this ritual with family and friends, but they want to go all out and really play hard once or twice a year.  They are going to suffer.  

Stretching before and after exercise can help with the soreness, as well as icing the sore areas afterwards.  LED Light Therapy and Bowen Therapy are two good therapies to receive after a workout like this.  Both will help speed recovery along tremendously. 

To make an appointment for either of these therapies, call our front office at 972-930-0260.

Some of this information was taken from The Bum Back Book.

General Causes of Back Pain #1

Did you know that back problems happen with sedentary people just about as much as with those who do a lot of heavy physical labor?  In fact, it’s back painone of the most common ailments in our society and certainly the most common of the health complaints that I see in my practice. Sometimes this pain, stiffness, or tension is acute and incidental, but many have suffered with it for years.

Many elements may contribute to back pain. Often, we try to blame one thing for causing our back pain when, in fact, it may be due to several contributing causes.  It is best to recognize all contributing factors so that their individual and combined effects can be understood.  Many causes will be covered in these blogs, but let’s discuss just one here.

Weak Musculature:  Muscles give needed reinforcement to the bones and the bones act as a support frame for the muscles. This is not unlike the components of a suspension bridge, where the components act on each other to hold the whole bridge steady. The spinal column is like a bridge, connecting our upper and lower halves.

When the muscles don’t support the spine-bridge, it will sag from its correct curvature, resulting in pain. Then we tense up to try to return the spinal column to its proper position. This compensation strains the back. Good muscle tone is needed for proper support. Strengthening exercises, along with stretching to lengthen the spine, can erase the strain and pressure in your back and improve your posture naturally. Effective therapies for the back can speed this process.

One of the best therapies for back pain is Bowen Therapy.  With its precise but gentle moves that create a vibrational effect that penetrates to the cellular level, the brain is given new nerve input for the body to respond to rather than its usual pain response.  Call our office (972-930-0260) to schedule an initial 1-hour consultation. This will give you the opportunity to sample Bowen therapy, as well as LED light therapy, which synergistically magnifies the effects of the Bowen treatment.

Check back to my blog to find out other causes of back pain that will be published soon.

This information comes from a book called “The Bum Back Book.”

So what’s the big deal about “piezoelectricity?”

The word “piezo” means to press or squeeze, and piesoelectricity is the energetic charge that builds up in certain materials in response to mechanical pressure.  Think of a spring. . . the extension of a spring is directly proportional to the load applied to it.  When we press onto a coiled, spring-like structure, there will be a recoil.  

Scapular work
Scapular work

This is similar to the potential energy built up in our fascial tissues.  Bowen therapy uses piesoelectricity to make changes in the fascia that surrounds muscles and that runs through them.  If your fascia is too tight and tense, it crystalizes and the muscle cannot relax and return to its normal size and shape.  Once the fascia is released by this pressing and squeezing action, it returns to its normal gel-like consistency and allows the muscle to return to normal balance.

Not much pressure is needed for this change to take place in a muscle. That is why it is said that Bowen therapy is non-invasive and gentle but effective.  It really does not take much effort, strength or pressure by the Bowen therapist for the body to respond with amazing changes toward better tissue health and a return to homeostasis. Each muscle, tendon, ligament, nerve, etc. has its own existing energy stored in the fascia that runs through it and around it, known as its potential elastic energy. So it is the fascial structure itself which is responsible for its own change and release in response to the Bowen therapy moves.

So, the big deal about “piezoelectricity” is that the body uses this principle when the tissue is manipulated in order to make subtle, as well as remarkable, changes in its healing process.

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