Bodywork for Sensory Integration - by Susan Vaughan Kratz

Book Synopsis

Bodywork for Sensory Integration offers a fusion between the sciences of structural medicine and neurobehavioral principles. While structural medicine suggests ways to discern the autonomic state continuum of the whole body, neurobehavioral principles, such as self-regulation and sensory modulation management, have become a primary need in therapeutic services for babies and children. Determining if irregular behaviors are "sensory" or "behavioral" is a daily challenge facing pediatric therapists. It is well-accepted that sensory and behavioral difficulties reflect autonomic nervous system physiology. Tension and tone of organs, blood vessels, and lymphatic movement play an underappreciated role in sensory regulation. The function of fascia and connective tissue, autonomic states of organs, cranial nerve pathways, and innervation sites hold important implications as sensory integration challenges are treated. The walls of blood vessels nestled in masses, the meninges' tension, and the sensory cells' structural health all have information relevant to sensory wellness. The sensory-compromised person whose body feels uncomfortable can benefit from Bodywork for Sensory Integration. Parenting a child with neurodiversity or sensory differences can be made easier by understanding the lessons revealed through receiving bodywork. Tangible strategies help the whole family move towards a place of comfort, adaptability to sensory responses, homeostasis, and stress management. The information presented in this book came from a most valuable resource: the author's clients. Kratz learned these lessons and shaped the opinions from an estimated 45,000 patient encounters. Bodywork for Sensory Integration supports formal education in various methods and guides the practitioner in discovering structural issues behind sensory challenges. Craniosacral therapy, visceral manipulation, lymphatic drainage, acupressure, and other soft tissue manipulation are the main tools. Professionals with a license to touch people can learn these techniques that assist self-correcting responses for modulation, regulation, and behaviors related to sensory wellness.