Bowen Unravelled

Book excerpt: For Bowen technique therapists and any bodywork practitioners interested in using a gentle, nonintrusive pain-relief therapy, this book draws on myofascia and connective tissue dissection to explain how the Bowen technique initiates a body-wide signaling mechanism to start the process of healing and restore normal function. With more than 100 full-color images, this useful guide helps manual therapists understand how the Bowen technique can help people with back pain, neck pain, headaches, frozen shoulder, tennis elbow, carpal tunnel syndrome, respiratory problems, hay fever, high blood pressure, kidney problems, arthritis, and knee pain. The Bowen technique, named after its originator Tom Bowen, has been growing in popularity since it was first taught in the 1980s. Known for its gentle rolling motions and intentional pauses between moves, the technique has been shown to bring extraordinary pain management results with very little pressure on the part of the therapist. Yet until now, little has been known of the actual workings of this technique. Tom Bowen himself called it simply a "gift from God" and treated thousands of people without trying to understand the processes that drove his results. This book fills in the gap in scientific understanding by explaining in anatomical terms what happens during a Bowen technique treatment. Author Julian Baker shows how traditional anatomy fails to fully explain the complex biomechanical relationships that make up human movement. Each move of the technique is analyzed in depth, with an emphasis on the role of fascia and connective tissue.