BIODYNAMIC CRANIOSACRAL THERAPY Andrew Radley
07989 590181 | info@andrewradley.com
Barbican EC2Y | Marlborough SN8 | Devizes SN10
 

'The potency of the tide is what we have to consider…
more power than any force you can apply from the outside'

– W G Sutherland

What is Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy?

Craniosacral Therapy is an exceptionally gentle yet very powerful form of treatment which interacts with the deepest inherent healing forces within the body, facilitating integration of the whole body-mind. The body has a powerful self-healing potential which can be encouraged in order to counteract the effect of injury, disease, trauma or stress. Craniosacral therapy offers the creation of a safe space where these kinds of challenges can be processed and the body’s natural affinity towards health re-ignited.

 

Craniosacral therapy has its roots in the work of Osteopath William Garner Sutherland (1873-1954), who in the early 1900's observed that the cranial bones have a very subtle rhythmic motion, and that the cerebrospinal fluid that bathes our brain and our nervous system has its own ‘pulse’ and is essential to maintaining our health. He termed this system Primary Respiration. Initially the treatments he gave were mechanistic in approach but towards the end of his career he came to the strong belief that the deepest and most powerful healing work was more energetic or biodynamic in form.

‘The quieter you become the more you are able to hear’
- Rumi

What happens in a session?

At the first session there will be a detailed and sensitive discussion of your history and your reasons for coming for craniosacral therapy. During the treatment you remain clothed and will usually lie face-up or on your side on a treatment table. I will gently use my hands to make contact with your body and listen to its various systems (musculoskeletal, nervous, lymphatic, cardiovascular, fascia) as well as the subtler energetic qualities of Primary Respiration.

 

I listen to my clients’ bodies with my hands in a similar way that a talking therapist would listen to their words. Because the body functions as a whole, I may focus on areas other than where your symptoms are occurring. It is common to feel deep relaxation, warmth, tingling, a sense of ease, increased energy and a sense of feeling more alive, balanced and heard in the truest sense of the word. 

'Silence is the perfectest herald of joy'

- William Shakespeare

How many sessions, when and how much?

There are no set number of sessions. Sometimes people report relief from their symptoms after one or two treatments. For long-standing problems or chronic conditions further sessions may be needed, and I may recommend weekly treatments over a longer period, the course of which would be reviewed regularly between us.

 

Generally I work at Ahead4Therapy in Devizes on Mondays, the Barbican Physio in the City of London on Wednesdays and Bramham Therapy in Marlborough on Fridays. Outside of these clinic times I am able to see clients in my treatment room at my home in West Lavington. In particular circumstances I can also offer home visits to clients in Wiltshire.

 

My sessions fees are : London £80 per hour / Wiltshire £70 per hour. I am able to offer reductions to those in full-term education. I also offer discounts on packages of treatment: 5 sessions for the price of 4.5. 

 

'Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it'

- Helen Keller

What conditions can respond well to Craniosacral Therapy?

Because it is so gentle CST is suitable for all; new-born, toddlers, children, teenagers, pregnant and post-natal women, adults and the elderly. I regularly work with clients who to come to me with conditions including:

  • stress
  • performance anxiety
  • tinnitus
  • digestive issues
  • fertility issues
  • trauma
  • post–operative recovery
  • depression
  • anxiety
  • general aches and pains

 

Craniosacral therapy is not intended as primary healthcare but to work alongside the relationship you have with your doctor or other health professionals.

'Touch is the first language we speak'

- Stephen Gaskin

Mothers and Babies

Having a child is one of life’s most profound events. CST can help provide support to mothers, partners and babies in this period of physical, emotional and psychological change. In my experience of working with ante and post-natal women CST sessions can help:

  • relieve minor ailments (such as back pain)
  • settle nervous and hormonal systems
  • support the body’s current and future physical changes
  • preparing for birth

 

As it is so gentle, CST can be beneficial for babies helping:

  • establish and supporting breastfeeding
  • developing good sleep patterns
  • helping with colic, reflux and allergies
  • torticollis (wry neck)
  • bonding with parents and siblings.

 

'Andrew worked with our 9 day old baby daughter who was brought into the world with a forceps delivery. Although she didn’t seem ‘injured’ we had noticed she didn’t like to turn her head to one side. Ever since the treatment she has been happy to turn her head both ways. We believe this greatly aided a successful breastfeeding journey.' IK
Craniosacral therapy is not intended as primary healthcare but to work alongside the relationship you have with your doctor or other health professionals.
 

'When I am silent, I fall into the place where everything is music'

- Rumi

ANDREW RADLEY: MY CST JOURNEY

After reading music at Clare College, Cambridge University, I studied singing at the Royal Academy of Music in London and at the Paris Conservatoire (CNSMDP). After completing my studies I had a wide ranging concert, recording and opera career including singing principal operatic roles with companies including Scottish Opera, Opera North, Welsh National Opera, Berlin Staatsoper, Royal Danish Opera and the Gottingen Handel Festival.

I first encountered Craniosacral Therapy in 2003 on the recommendation of my singing teacher Noelle Barker. In the midst of a busy and important patch of prestigious work, I found my voice inexplicably shutting down. Craniosacral therapy provided a supportive, compassionate and non-judgemental environment in which I could gently contact and process the physical feelings and emotions that were causing my voice to malfunction.

A performer's way of life puts them regularly in high pressure situations and environments. I continued to find that craniosacral therapy helped me reconnect to an inner state of calmness, health and potential, deepened my relationship with my physical body, settled my breathing and aligned me fully with my performing instincts.

In 2014 I found myself at a crossroads. I felt I had achieved all I could ever have dreamed I wanted to do in my performing career and found myself drawn to finding out more about the therapy that had helped me so much. I began studying at the Craniosacral Therapy Educational Trust in North London in 2015, graduating in 2017. During the intense two-year training I learnt the palpation and verbal skills required for craniosacral therapy practitioners as well as deepening my knowledge of anatomy, physiology, embryology and trauma resolution. Since 2019 I have been a tutor at the Craniosacral Sacral Therapy Educational Trust Practitioner trainings at the Craniosacral Therapy Educational Trust’s Teaching Clinic and am also an Assistant Tutor on the current Practitioner Training course which started in October 2019. 

Although naturally I understand first-hand the challenges of performing artists I enjoy working with clients from all walks of life. My primary aim as a therapist is to support my clients in becoming more aware of, and more skilled in allowing the healing forces of their bodies to express themselves in their everyday lives.

I am a registered therapist accredited by the Craniosacral Therapy Association (CSTA). I adhere to the CSTA’s Code of Ethics and requirements for continuing professional development.

I am also registered with the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC). CNHC's register is approved as an Accredited Register by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care,a body accountable to Parliament. This provides additional assurance that CNHC registrants meet UK-wide standards of patient safety and service quality.’

 

'Within you there is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time'

- Hermann Hesse

Testimonials

I came to CST in despair, reeling from a tumultuous period of breakups, health scares and chronic stress. I’ve been seeing Andrew for the last six months, and in that time I’ve seen my insomnia, low mood, allergies, anxiety, vertigo and muscle pain recede and my energy restored.

I was nervous about CST at first, but the beauty of it is that it is gentle and your body will never tackle something its not ready for. Instead Andrew will focus on parts of you that are working well, to encourage space, healing and balance. Every CST session is different, but it is a very physical therapy that feels akin to deep meditation or sinking into a warm, hot bath. You walk out feeling zen and aligned. After the first session I felt like I had lost 10kg from all the emotional stress I had been needlessly carrying around. After a few sessions, you become better attuned to your body and you can feel the therapy working in subtle ways in-between sessions as you heal old injuries; energetic, emotional and physical. I have already referred my families and friends to see Andrew. It is my heartfelt belief that in this stressful, urban jungle, everybody needs CST in their life and I will be forever grateful. (RJ)

I’ve found that CST is able to regulate my body's energetic flow. When a “blockage” I'm feeling is addressed during a session, I can clearly feel the blocked part of my body re-establish an energetic connection with the whole and tension is resolved. CST aids me in finding complete relaxation and has helped me in many aspects of my health; digestive, menstrual cycle, back ache, hips, neck and has also been a great positive influence on my mental state. CST also helped me process the experiences of a difficult labour. I was able to gently and safely deal with the after effects of an epidural and the shock I was still carrying'. (IK)

 

 

Andrew is a marvel - with magical hands, and a reassuring manner, he manages to release tensions which are held deep below the surface. CST has helped me keep a clear head and a "more relaxed" body which is imperative in any performance-related career. By listening with his hands to what my body needs - without having to ask probing questions - Andrew has cleared away pent up neck and back tension completely noninvasively, allowing me to breathe deeper and connect more fully, which is not only useful as a singer, but as an educator too. After a CST session with Andrew it feels like I am floating on a cloud, without the emotional and physical tensions I had entered the session with.” (DEP)
A possible ray of light for those suffering with Long Covid symptoms: Today I ran 3km, without stopping, for the first time since I was ill in March 2020. In October I was pushed to run 100m! I had 4 sessions with Andrew Radley, who is a brilliant Craniosacral Therapist. I approached the first session with a slightly doubtful, open mind. I felt immediately improved. This only lasted around 10 days, so I went back for more. Each time my improvement lasted longer. I've not been back since the early December restrictions in London and I still feel SO much better.' (E.A, January 2021)

'Sound is our mind. Silence is our being'

- Osho

Locations

Barbican Physio

1 The Postern, Wood Street, London EC2Y 8BJ

Barbican Moorgate Liverpool Street
Moorgate Liverpool Street Farringdon
100 (London Wall) 153 (Beech Street) 4 (Museum of London)

Bramham Therapy Marlborough

6A London Rd, Marlborough SN8 1PH

Ahead4Therapy

41 St. John's St, Devizes , SN10 1BL

'SILENCE IS A GREAT SOURCE OF STRENGTH' LAO TZU