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through horses. I was helping out at acompetition yard where one of thehorses was virtually impossible to rideand displaying some rather erraticbehaviour, which was probably pain-related. After just two sessions of BowenTherapy the horse appeared muchhealthier, happier and back competingagain. Having observed this incredibletransformation I knew that I had to learnhow to do this great therapy.

I enrolled for training in humanBowen Therapy at the European Collegeof Bowen Studies and followed that withtraining with horses at the European

In 1975, a public inquiry conductedby the state government of Victoriareported that Tom Bowen treated an estimated 13,000 patients a year, withan 80 percent success rate in symptomsthat were associated with a wide rangeof conditions.

However, it was not until after hisdeath in 1982 that the therapy becamemore widely known in other parts of theworld, first in the UK and America, andthen in Europe, Malaysia and Africa.Today it is estimated there are 40,000practitioners worldwide.

I first became interested in Bowen

Bowen Therapy, just like massage, isa hands-on therapy; but there thesimilarity ends. For where massage

is often most beneficial when it isrepeated at regular intervals, BowenTherapy often only needs to be doneonce (sometimes twice) in the same placeon the body to have an effect.

Like many complementary treat-ments Bowen Therapy is attuned to theholistic approach to health and well-being, where the body’s natural balanceis recognised as being fundamental toenjoying good health. Bowen Therapyis a very effective way of helping torestore this natural balance.

During a therapy session the therapist is not trying to make the bodychange but instead prompt the body tomake its own changes. This means thatthe body does most of the work itself.This is achieved, we believe, because thetherapy works on the fascia layer – astructure of connective tissue that surrounds muscles, groups of muscles,blood vessels and nerves, binding somestructures together, while permitting oth-ers to slide smoothly over each other.And that by stimulating the fascia otherbodily tissues are able to get what theyneed (e.g. nutrients, water and messagesfrom the brain) to heal.

Tom BowenThe therapy was developed in Australiaby Thomas Ambrose Bowen betweenthe years 1959 to 1982, and from whomit takes its name. Tom Bowen was agifted, self-taught healer who neverreceived any formal medical training.But despite this he achieved extremelyimpressive results using what he called“soft tissue manipulation”.

Compassionate and hardworking,Tom Bowen offered his services to disabled children for free. And manyparents reported that following BowenTherapy their children had better posture, balance and co-ordination withenhanced motor control.

All photos: Bow

en Therapy Professional Association

Soft tissue therapy – unde

In the second article in our short series looking at differenttypes of massage and other bodywork therapies,

Claire Harrison offers an insight into Bowen Therapy.

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College of Equine Bowen Studies. I’venow been a therapist for nine years.

TechniqueMany therapies, from both conventionaland complementary medicine, rely on“forcing” the body to change to facili-tate healing, whereas Bowen “asks” thebody to recognise and make the changesit requires.A typical session of Bowen Therapy

involves using the fingers and thumbsto create gentle rolling motions alongthe muscles, tendons, ligaments and softtissue on precise points on the body. The therapist will apply only the amount

of pressure appropriate for the individ-ual they are treating and no hard tissue manipulation or force is neededor used.The techniques used by a therapist

comprise of three components, whichare known as the Bowen moves, and areapplied at very precise points on thebody. The move does not slide over thesurface of the skin, but uses the slack inthe overlying skin to move over theunderlying tissue, so each move coversa small area, defined by how far an individual’s skin can move over a targeted area, usually no more than 2-4centimetres across.

All photos: Bow

en Therapy Professional Association

nderstanding Bowen

friends. Her mother often had to take timeoff work to be with her as she was tooweak to attend school. And even whenshe did make it into school, quite oftenher mother had to go and get her as shecouldn’t cope.She also told me that she’d had

glandular fever when she was 15 afterwhich her feelings of exhaustion weremuch more pronounced (some medicalexperts believe there is a link betweenglandular fever and ME). Two years agoshe suffered a gastric bug and was hospital -ised, and since then has been worse.At the first appointment E looked very

pale and wan. Her voice was very smalland weak. Her spirits were very low. Shelooked sad, as if she was resigned to herfate. I only did two Bowen moves on herwith a 15 minute break in between. Atthe end of the appointment she said shefelt as if the top and bottom of her backwere re-connecting, also her arms.I did two more mini-treatments over

the next month and when I saw her at thefourth appointment she had been out thenight before with friends and had startedworking at a local pub. She was still tiredfrom day to day, but felt more positive.She said she felt tired in the mornings andat around 4 to 5pm, but feels better by

about 8pm and has picked up by then. By the fifth appointment she said she

felt the sadness had gone and was in muchbetter spirits. She was eager to get to gripswith her school work and start revising.She was experiencing more good daysthan bad regarding her emotional statenow. The previous week she had walkedtwo miles with her mother and had takenpart in a tug-of-war only the night before;she was also going out running. The latesthospital tests show that her magnesiumand potassium levels are almost normal. E is now enjoying a normal life. She

has been on holiday abroad with herfriends and has started university, com-ing home at weekends to her parents. Sheis enjoying university life, both sociallyand academically. Occasionally she saysshe has to give herself a night off fromsocialising, but apart from that she is cop-ing well with all aspects of being a full-time student. She has also recently passedher driving test.

Enys EvansBowen therapist

E is an 18-year-old woman who has beendiagnosed with Gitelman’s Syndrome.This is an extremely rare genetic kidneydisorder which means that the body hasdifficulty storing magnesium and potassium. She is regularly monitored byconsultants at the Great Ormond StreetChildren’s Hospital and at Alder HeyHospital.When she was a toddler she used to

suffer from fits. When she had a cold orother childhood illnesses she sufferedmuch more than other children and took longer to overcome the illness. The condition seems to affect her more as shegrows older. She often feels completelyexhausted and fed-up with her life.E went down with a heavy cold after

Christmas 2007, just before she was dueto sit school exams in January, whichadded to her stress. Then in February2008 she had tonsillitis. All of this left herfeeling very weak and she would often bein tears. She became breathless walkingup stairs and was even unable to take ashower. She hardly ever went out with her

Low energycase study # one

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A distinctive feature to the therapyis the minimal nature of the physicalintervention and the pauses incorporatedin the treatment. It is these pauses thatallow the body to reset itself and makethe changes it requires to initiate thehealing process. An important rule of thetechnique is “Less is more”, as perform -ing too many moves could actually becounterproductive. The more acute thecondition or the sicker the patient, theless is done during the session and theless pressure is used to do the moves,which will result in a more profoundeffect on the body.

Each Bowen session can last from 30to 60 minutes and is generally pleasantto receive, depending on the age of theclient and the nature of their symptoms.And it is not unusual for clients to feelso relaxed they fall asleep during thetreatment.

Conditions treatedBowen is suitable for all ages, from ababy with colic to an elderly person witharthritis, and there are very few contra -indications (a condition which makes aparticular treatment or procedure potentially inadvisable). Clients are,however, advised not to have otherhands-on therapies while receivingBowen, as this can confuse the body’sresponse and inhibit healing.

Practitioners treat a wide range ofmedical conditions and among the morecommon ailments that have shownimprovement with Bowen Therapy are:back pain, eczema, frozen shoulder, lowenergy, psoriasis, joint pain, post-nataldepression, infant coughs and colds,migraine, arthritis, fibromyalgia, neuralgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, sciatica and digestive ailments.

Clients suffering short-term (acute)injury usually see the problem resolvedin one to three sessions, whereas long-standing (chronic) symptoms mayrequire longer. It is important that clientsallow five to ten days to elapse betweenBowen sessions to enable the body timeto process the subtle information it hasbeen given.

Treating animalsAs I mentioned earlier, my introductionto Bowen was through horses and thetherapy is becoming more widely usedin the equine world and in the treatmentof family pets. However, before anytreatment involving a horse or any otheranimal takes place it is necessary toobtain permission from a vet. Not onlyis this is a legal requirement, it is useful

The client was a 34-year-old male whoworked as a leisure centre manager.He had played squash regularly untila couple of months prior to seeing me.He explained how the problemoccurred.

“I was in a storeroom to locatesome equipment, when I cried out inpain as I reached upwards,” he said.

He told me the pain was from ashoulder injury sustained during asquash game, and that the physio-therapy treatment he was receiving wasnot working. I advised him to con tinueand give it a chance, but to contact mein a few weeks should he still be suf-fering. Two weeks later he called tomake an appointment.

On examining him I suspected hewas suffering from a possible frozenshoulder or some form of rotator cuffinjury, for he certainly had a limitedrange of movement with his left armfrom the shoulder. After having notedthe full case history and backgroundto the injury, I recommended threeBowen treatments, together with theexercises necessary to rehabilitate. Iexplained in detail the type of treat-ment he was to receive, to which heresponded with extreme scepticism.

Nevertheless, he was even moresceptical of the conventional medicalinterventions and drug treatmentsavailable (particularly corticosteroidinjections), so he agreed to give it a gobut insisted it must not take longerthan three weeks, as he wanted to goskiing in four weeks’ time.

After the first treatment he said hefelt some difference, although wasn’tquite sure what. He definitely wasn’tkeen on the arm exercises, but agreedto give them a try. Two days later herang me to say the pain was worse thanever. “What have you done to me?” heasked. I advised him to keep calm andtake pain killers if he felt they wouldhelp, but to stick with the therapy andgive it a chance.

At his second session he appearedto show some improvement in his armmovement. He reported a feeling oflooseness all over his body, but alsosaid he was fed up with all the trips tothe loo he had to make due to thewater I had advised him to drink.

He rang me again three days afterthis session to say that he didn’t thinkthe treatment was working. “I’m stillin discomfort and I don’t think I’llcome again,” he said.

I responded by saying that Ithought he should continue the treat-ment but “the decision is yours”. Hedid attend the last session and thereagain appeared to be a little moremovement in the arm. At the end ofthe session I told him to continue withthe exercises and that I’d like to seehim in about three to four weeks, asI wanted to see how he had progressed.

I received not a word or phone call.Then about four weeks later, he greetedme in the street with a big expansivewave of his previously injured left arm.He shook my hand vigorously and saidthat he’d had a wonderful skiing hol-iday with no pain and no trouble since.

“How does it work?” he asked.All I could say is what I always say:

“It just does!”

Tony CrimesBowen therapist

A case of frozen shouldercase study # two

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to consult a vet to obtain a diagnosis ifrequired and to learn of any other treat-ment that the animal is receiving.

Among the conditions that I’ve successfully treated horses for are osteo-chondritis diseccans (OCD), a commoncondition that affects the joints; equinelymphangitis which is an inflammationor swelling associated with impairmentof the lymphatic system, particularly ina limb; the loss of use in a foreleg thatappeared to have been caused by an accident; cold back syndrome whichdescribes hypersensitivity over the backwith a transient stiffness and dipping ofthe spine as the rider mounts; and filled

legs where the horse’s lower legs becomeswollen and hot.

More and people are enjoying betterhealth thanks to the wonderful legacyleft by Tom Bowen. For when usedappropriately and performed by a qualified practitioner, Bowen Therapycan offer genuine symptom relief formany medical conditions suffered byhumans and animals.

Claire HarrisonChair of the BTPA

Bowen Therapy is not intended as a sub-stitute for medical advice or treatment.

About Claire HarrisonClaire qualified as a Bowen therapist in 2005 and two years later she completed hertraining in equine Bowen Therapy. She qualified as an Emmett 4 Animals HorsePractitioner in 2013. Claire is Chair of the Bowen Therapy Professional Association(BTPA), an autonomous non profit-making organisation representing accredited Bowentherapists, and she’s on the register of the European School of Equine Bowen Therapy.

For more information about Bowen therapy visit www.bowentherapy.org.uk

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