BOWEN & SCAR TISSUE TREATMENT QUESTIONS
WHAT WILL MY 1ST SESSION BE LIKE?
WHAT TO EXPECT​
In Bowen Therapy, you can keep your clothes on throughout the whole treatment.
The treatment requires various pauses of time between sets of therapeutic maneuvers for the body to respond effectively. These pauses are the most important aspect of the treatment as it is a therapy that doesn’t impose a change in the body; it is a therapy that acts as a catalyst for the body to change on its own.
The session is deeply relaxing and falling asleep during your session is a likely occurrence.
The whole body is usually addressed with the specific areas of concern being a focus of the treatment session. Interestingly, the body is treated on both sides to create balance. As an example, if you only had one wrist problem the therapist will treat both.
Your first visit is essentially a test of the treatments effect upon your problems and will enable the therapist to predict future treatment options and strategies. It will also clarify for yourself the overall effectiveness of the therapy for your concerns and give you an idea of how many future sessions are necessary and at what interval.
There is such a thing as doing too much Bowen Therapy, so it’s important to know how you respond to it before addressing some of your symptoms.
Finally, expect to get better!
CAN I DO ANOTHER THERAPY AT THE SAME TIME?
No one can know for sure the answer to this as there may be times where more than one therapy can work perfectly well together. Alternately, there are other times where it will be problematic. The ideal situation is to take a couple of weeks off your current treatments and try 2 or 3 Bowen Therapy sessions, approximately a week apart, as this is usually a good number for evaluating the benefit of the treatment for your problem. It will also give a clear idea of how many future visits are needed.
Heat and cold applications and hot tubs can be another therapeutic influence so best to avoid these. However, if you are in need of pain relief in order to function do whatever you know to be effective at the time you need it.
Overall, Bowen Therapy is not that fussy and you will know quite clearly its overall benefit for you very soon after treatment.
CAN I CONTINUE WITH MY REGULAR
EXERCISE PROGRAM?
This is worth discussing with your therapist as it can depend on the type and vigor of the exercise activity you want to do. It also depends on your level of athleticism. In most cases, exercise is fine if it remains moderate and well within your limits and in some instances it may prove helpful. Some conditions simply do better with rest and recuperation, please trust your therapist’s advice and be assured that they will want you returning to normal activity as quickly as possible.
HOW OFTEN SHOULD I RETURN FOR TREATMENT?
Because Bowen Therapy is so quick to get responses of healing from clients, practitioners are commonly used to seeing their clients only a few times. They are also keenly aware that the benefit occurs because the therapy gets the obstacles to healing out of the way and the client’s own body does the work of healing. Therefore, Bowen Therapists will expect unusually long periods of time between follow-ups. When they say to come as needed it is because they need to know how lasting the benefits are. So, if the good results last 6 weeks or 6 years then go with that and remember that just because your symptoms return it doesn’t mean that Bowen Therapy doesn’t work, it simply means that you have relapsed and the body just needs a re-inforcement from time to time.
Examples of time frames between treatments when the therapy has been effective are:
Migraines – 6 to 9 months
Neck spasm – 3 to 6 months
Shoulder – 6 to 9 months
Upper Back – 6 months
Lower Back – 6 to 9 months
Sciatica – 6- 9 months
Hip misalignment – 6 months
Knee (arthritic) – 6 weeks
Knee (ligament or tendon) – 6-12 months
Bunions – 6 weeks – 3 months
Plantar Fasciitis – 6 months
IS BOWEN LIKE OTHER THERAPIES?
Yes and No.
Yes, Bowen Therapy is a form of bodywork that achieves all the same therapeutic benefits of the following methods.
No, because effects come quickly and the benefit is long lasting, eliminating the need for multiple and sometimes endless visits.
Like Massage, Bowen Therapy soothes muscle spasm & affects the circulation & lymphatic systems.
Like Acupuncture, Bowen Therapy stimulates the acupuncture points & meridians & promotes improved functions in the body’s systems like digestion, respiration hormonal and nervous systems. This is achieved without invasive needling or vigorous cupping and massage.
Like Chiropractic, Bowen Therapy achieves skeletal adjustments. This is achieved because it is a therapy for the soft tissues such as muscle, tendon & ligament and it is these structures that govern the alignments of joints & vertebrae. The affect is ongoing after the treatment and is long-lasting because the body has self-adjusted without forceful encouragement.
Like Emotional Bodywork Therapies, Bowen Therapy stimulates a release of held emotions. This occurs quite naturally as the body responds to the treatment during the session & there is no need for discussion or analysis.
​
As a complementary treatment, Bowen can be used to enhance the benefits of other modalities. We find Homeopathy to be especially beneficial when used in conjunction with Bowen. However, certain alternate modalities affecting deep tissue, when used within a week of a Bowen Therapy treatment, will usually counteract the Bowen’s action (e.g., massage, chiropractics.) If you plan to combine Bowen with any other modality, please be sure to discuss an appropriate treatment schedule with me.
MCLOUGHLIN SCAR TISSUE RELEASE.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Surgery or traumatic scarring can cause pain or numbness in the scar area, referred pain or lack of sensitivity in other areas not obviously seen to be connected to the scar. Scarring, from surgery such as caesarean sections, hysterectomies, appendectomies, knee replacements & traumatic scars can usually be helped by McLoughlin Scar Release Technique.
​
McLoughlin Scar Release Technique can affect scar tissue in the following four ways:
1) By reducing pain or by increasing sensitivity through affecting nerve pathways
2) Scars often change colour to blend in better with the surrounding tissue, due to the increase in blood flow to the scar
3) Scars can often become less indented or lumpy, due to the increase in fluid and lymph to and from the area;
4) Energy flow in the body can change as meridians can be ‘unblocked’.
With 70% of clients reporting great effects after just one session of scar work, why not get in touch and see if McLoughlin Scar Release Technique can help you! This work can be done as a stand alone treatment or integrated into a Bowen Therapy session as well.
Thanks Alastair McLoughlin www.theartofbowen.co.uk for creating and sharing this work!