Bowen Technique was developed in the 1950s by an Australian sports enthusiast turned therapist named Tomas Ambrose Bowen. It is a gentle technique that provides holistic relief for many types of injuries and health problems. It is appropriate for people of all ages, in almost all degrees of health. By delivering signals to the nervous system at specific prescribed points on muscles, tendons, ligaments or nerves, Bowen uses the body’s own natural healing mechanisms to shift into repair mode.

Rather than focusing on a single complaint, Bowen Technique addresses the entire body, by restoring balance via the autonomic nervous system (ANS). The ANS controls over 80% of bodily functions and is very susceptible to external stressors. Most people today live in a constant state of high stress and sympathetic ANS over-stimulation. This is the “fight, flight or freeze mode”. Healing can occur only after the ANS shifts from sympathetic to parasympathetic dominance or the “rest, relax and repair mode”. By balancing and calming the ANS Bowen Technique promotes this shift to healing mode. This shift is often indicated by the client dropping into a profoundly deep state of relaxation or sleep.  This shift to rest, relax and repair mode, could explain the common observation that a Bowen

Technique session seems to reactivate the recovery process in situations where healing from trauma, sickness or surgery has stalled or reached a plateau.

What you can expect in a Bowen session: A typical Bowen session takes anywhere from fifteen minutes to one hour. In most cases the session will begin with the client on the massage table face down. A series of subtle moves that are designed to stress and roll over muscles and connective tissue are used. The practitioner then steps away, allowing the body to respond. A few minutes later more moves are performed. The gentle stress and rolling motion of the Bowen techniques tells the body to shift into the parasympathetic mode of rest, relax and repair. The rest time allows the body to respond on its own.

Because of the continuity of muscles from the neck, back and down the legs, a common approach is to balance the entire body by treating neck, upper back and lower back. Manipulation of these muscles can have a profound effect on the spine and posture. After a Bowen session it is important to drink plenty of water, get up and move every 30 minutes for the rest of the day, and wait at least 5 days before receiving another treatment.

                                                          -Maggie Borowiak C.M.T.