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it helped me connect with my body so that I could honor it and do what it needed to rejuvenate itself.”


Craniosacral Therapy


Chiropractor Lisa Upledger is vice president of The Upledger Institute, in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. A cranio- sacral therapy (CST) practitioner, educa- tor and wife of CST developer Dr. John Upledger, she advises that tension-relat- ed problems are a growing complaint in our modern world. Fortunately, such issues are among the myriad conditions that respond quickly to the gentle touch of this modality. In a 2007 Massage magazine


article, she advised that the positive ef- fects of the therapy rely to a large extent on the performance of the body’s inher- ent self-corrective mechanisms. “CST works through the craniosacral system to facilitate this function and thereby normalize the environment in which the central nervous system functions,” she noted. “As this is accomplished, a wide range of sensory, motor and neu- rological problems are improved.” CST practitioners listen with their


hands to the slow pulsations of the craniosacral system. With a soft touch, equivalent to the weight of a nickel, they explore any fascia restrictions through- out the client’s body, which rests fully clothed in a supine position. Effects of the treatment can be wide-ranging, affecting the musculoskeletal, nervous, cardiovascular and immune systems as well as organs, connective tissues and energy systems. It works to release deeply held physical and psychological patterns held within the body.


A coin with different impressions on


each side is still only one coin, a blend of precious metals. When the coin is tossed to reveal either heads or tails, the visible symbol is one interpretation of the whole imprint—an analogy that may best define the difference between mas- sage and bodywork. All variations on the theme share the same goal—restoring health to the whole person.


Linda Sechrist is a senior staff writer for Natural Awakenings. Find other natural living articles at her website, ItsAllAboutWe.com.


16 NA Twin Cities Edition


inspiration


How to Be a Healing Presence W


The Gift of Empathy by Margret Aldrich


hen someone is suffering, it can be agonizing just to listen—we feel compelled


to jump in with advice or stories of our own trials, filling any awkward space or moments of silent air with word upon word. The first rule of empathy, however, is listening in silence. Miki Kashtan, writing for the Tik-


kun Daily interfaith blog, points out that giving our full presence is the most important step in practicing true empa- thy, and it doesn’t require us to utter a thing: “There is a high correlation be- tween one person’s listening presence and the other person’s sense of not being alone, and this is communicated without words. We can be present with someone whose language we don’t understand, who speaks about circum- stances we have never experienced or whose reactions are baffling to us. It’s a soul orientation and intentionality to simply be with another.” When we achieve full presence, empathic understanding follows, Kashtan continues. “Full empathic presence includes the breaking open of our heart to take in another’s hu- manity. We listen to their words and their story, and allow our- selves to be affected by the experience of what it would be like. “Then we un- derstand. Empathic understanding is different from empathic presence. We can have pres- ence across any bar- rier, and it’s still a gift. If we also understand, even without saying any- thing, I believe the other person’s sense of being heard increases, and they are even less alone with the weight of their experience.”


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There are signs that empathy might be on the decline, with narcissism elbowing it out of our modern lives. As reported in the Utne Reader, University of Michigan Psychologist Sara Konrath, Ph.D., found that empathy levels among college students measured on the Inter- personal Reactivity Index plummeted between 1979 and 2009. The greatest drops were in empathic concern and perspective-taking—the ability to imag- ine another person’s point of view. But don’t yet lament the death of human compassion. According to scientific studies, empathy is built into us. In recent research at the University of Southern California, Professor Lisa Aziz-Zadeh, Ph.D., pinpointed where and how the brain generates empathy, regarding it as a naturally occurring emotion. “It appears that both the intui- tive and rationalizing parts of the brain work in tandem to create the sensation of empathy,” Aziz-Zadeh told The Times of India. “People do it automatically.” However we get to that utterly tuned-in, selfless state of empathy, pro- viding a listening ear, giving our full presence and being moved by another can be gifts not only to the others, but to ourselves, as well. Concludes Kashtan, “Allowing into our heart the other person’s suffering doesn’t mean we suffer with them, because that means shifting the focus of our attention to our own experience. Rather, it means that we recognize the experience as fully human, and behold the beauty of it in all its aspects,


even when difficult.”


Margret Aldrich is a former associ- ate editor of Utne Reader.


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