What is Ortho-Bionomy?
Ortho-Bionomy is a gentle, non-invasive, osteopathically-based form of body therapy which is highly effective in working with chronic stress, injuries and pains or problems associated with postural and structural imbalances. The practitioner uses gentle movements and positions of the body to facilitate the change of stress and pain patterns. Ortho-Bionomy is very effective in helping alleviate both acute and chronic pain and stress patterns by reducing chronic muscle tension, soothing the joints, increasing flexibility, improving circulation, and relaxing the entire body.
Ortho-Bionomy was developed by Dr. Arthur Lincoln Pauls, a British osteopath, who wanted to find a way to work with the body which honored the body's inherent wisdom. From his experience as a Judo instructor and through his training as an osteopath, he found ways of working with the body by exaggerating the body's preferred postures, thereby permitting the body's self-healing process to create greater balance and alignment. He discovered that by working WITH the body and not against it, the body could find balance on its own without having to use force to correct it.
The term "Ortho-Bionomy" comes from "ortho" meaning correct or straight, "bio" meaning life, and "nomy" meaning the laws of or study of. Dr. Pauls defined the term then as "the correct application of the laws of life." He stated "[Ortho-Bionomy] is really about understanding your whole life cycle. Naturally, we focus on the structure because that is the literal skeleton upon which our life is built. When your structure works right, your circulation works better, you feel better, you think better." (Kain and Berns, 1992)
How does Ortho-Bionomy work?
Ortho-Bionomy stimulates the body's self-correcting and self-balancing reflexes by way of the proprioceptive reflexes located in our joints and muscles. The practitioner uses movement and gentle compression to find positions of comfort which allow the body to change the stress and pain patterns which are causing the discomfort.
Ortho-Bionomy also employs the homeopathic concept that what cannot be cured from within cannot be cured from without. Using gentle positioning and light touch, Ortho-Bionomy stimulates inner awareness to awaken within the individual a sense of natural balance and well-being, both physically and emotionally. The inner wisdom of the body is recognized and affirmed. Self healing occurs as the person remembers their natural ability to move away from pain and toward ease.
About an Ortho-Bionomy Session:
In an ortho-Bionomy session a client wears loose comfortable clothing in order to facilitate ease of movement during the session. A session is a conversation about comfort. The goal of an Ortho-Bionomy session is for the client to have an increased ability to be comfortable in their body. The session is about listening, touch, and movement. It is about finding places of comfort and affirming those places while providing the opportunity for change in the place of discomfort. By focusing on the place of comfort we allow the body to re-affirm comfort and provide a referencing point for the places of discomfort.
A good example of this is when we hold our shoulders up around our ears from stress or cold weather or whatever. In an Ortho-Bionomy session the practitioner will exaggerate the posture by supporting the shoulders up around the ears and generally add a slight pressure into the joints as a way of affirming the preferred comfortable position. Since the practitioner is now the one holding up those tight shoulders the body has the opportunity to recognize that the shoulders were up around the ear, to relax the muscles, and to communicate back through the nervous system that perhaps the more comfortable position might be a bit farther down from the ears. As the practitioner gently releases the shoulders the clients can now make an informed choice about the most comfortable position of the shoulders.
This is just one of the things that may occur during an Ortho-Bionomy session. Each session is different and a practitioner has many resources for engaging in a conversation with the client in order to provide opportunities for change and comfort.
Now What?
You, the reader, now have several choices.
1. Schedule a session and experience Ortho-Bionomy for yourself. No amount of words can replace the experience of Ortho-Bionomy.
2. Attend an Introduction to Ortho-Bionomy evening. This is a 1 hour overview discussion and I try to get as many participants experiencing Ortho-Bionomy as possible. I also spend most of the time answering questions and talking about the different things that come up during an Introduction night. No two are the same! For dates and times visit the Classes page.
3. Attend a 3 hour mini class. These classes are designed to provide an opportunity for individuals to beginning learning different techniques and principles of Ortho-Bionomy. For dates and times visit the Classes page.
Ortho-Bionomy was developed by Dr. Arthur Lincoln Pauls, a British osteopath, who wanted to find a way to work with the body which honored the body's inherent wisdom. From his experience as a Judo instructor and through his training as an osteopath, he found ways of working with the body by exaggerating the body's preferred postures, thereby permitting the body's self-healing process to create greater balance and alignment. He discovered that by working WITH the body and not against it, the body could find balance on its own without having to use force to correct it.
The term "Ortho-Bionomy" comes from "ortho" meaning correct or straight, "bio" meaning life, and "nomy" meaning the laws of or study of. Dr. Pauls defined the term then as "the correct application of the laws of life." He stated "[Ortho-Bionomy] is really about understanding your whole life cycle. Naturally, we focus on the structure because that is the literal skeleton upon which our life is built. When your structure works right, your circulation works better, you feel better, you think better." (Kain and Berns, 1992)
How does Ortho-Bionomy work?
Ortho-Bionomy stimulates the body's self-correcting and self-balancing reflexes by way of the proprioceptive reflexes located in our joints and muscles. The practitioner uses movement and gentle compression to find positions of comfort which allow the body to change the stress and pain patterns which are causing the discomfort.
Ortho-Bionomy also employs the homeopathic concept that what cannot be cured from within cannot be cured from without. Using gentle positioning and light touch, Ortho-Bionomy stimulates inner awareness to awaken within the individual a sense of natural balance and well-being, both physically and emotionally. The inner wisdom of the body is recognized and affirmed. Self healing occurs as the person remembers their natural ability to move away from pain and toward ease.
About an Ortho-Bionomy Session:
In an ortho-Bionomy session a client wears loose comfortable clothing in order to facilitate ease of movement during the session. A session is a conversation about comfort. The goal of an Ortho-Bionomy session is for the client to have an increased ability to be comfortable in their body. The session is about listening, touch, and movement. It is about finding places of comfort and affirming those places while providing the opportunity for change in the place of discomfort. By focusing on the place of comfort we allow the body to re-affirm comfort and provide a referencing point for the places of discomfort.
A good example of this is when we hold our shoulders up around our ears from stress or cold weather or whatever. In an Ortho-Bionomy session the practitioner will exaggerate the posture by supporting the shoulders up around the ears and generally add a slight pressure into the joints as a way of affirming the preferred comfortable position. Since the practitioner is now the one holding up those tight shoulders the body has the opportunity to recognize that the shoulders were up around the ear, to relax the muscles, and to communicate back through the nervous system that perhaps the more comfortable position might be a bit farther down from the ears. As the practitioner gently releases the shoulders the clients can now make an informed choice about the most comfortable position of the shoulders.
This is just one of the things that may occur during an Ortho-Bionomy session. Each session is different and a practitioner has many resources for engaging in a conversation with the client in order to provide opportunities for change and comfort.
Now What?
You, the reader, now have several choices.
1. Schedule a session and experience Ortho-Bionomy for yourself. No amount of words can replace the experience of Ortho-Bionomy.
2. Attend an Introduction to Ortho-Bionomy evening. This is a 1 hour overview discussion and I try to get as many participants experiencing Ortho-Bionomy as possible. I also spend most of the time answering questions and talking about the different things that come up during an Introduction night. No two are the same! For dates and times visit the Classes page.
3. Attend a 3 hour mini class. These classes are designed to provide an opportunity for individuals to beginning learning different techniques and principles of Ortho-Bionomy. For dates and times visit the Classes page.
