A Shiatsu Story: Svetlana in Croatia
Hearing stories from practitioners around the world who share an interest in energy and bodywork can be so interesting and educational. It also helps us connect to one another!
Below is a story from Svetlana Maksimovic. She’s been practicing bodywork and light body activation for many years in Croatia both for herself and for others. I hope you enjoy hearing a little about her and find her story of value.
“During the last 7 or 8 years I've been working with my own cranial bones and have been tapping into their movement and energy regularly through proprioceptive exercise. Feeling the movement of the bones and doing simple and small (but powerful) adjustments have had many benefits which reverberate throughout my whole system. The overall feeling right after the exercises and in the days that follow is one of ease, having more energy during the day and having a clear sense of direction in moments when everything around me seems chaotic.
I had a surgery 17 years ago that impacted my whole system.* It was to free the back brain tonsils which were stuck in the spinal canal. Part of the occipital bone and the inner part of the foramen magnum had to be removed. Even though it has been 17 years, I can still feel the after effects of that surgery.
* The cerebellum is the part of the brain located low down at the back of the head. It has two small areas at the bottom called the cerebellar 'tonsils'. Tonsillar herniation is the movement of brain tissue from one intracranial compartment to another, specifically the movement of the cerebellar tonsils through the foramen magnum.
The best thing about working with the cranial bones and releasing the stress patterns is that I can help myself every day. Even if there is no opportunity to go to a craniosacral therapist, I have powerful tools to support my body and go through the day with ease.
I first learned about the vertebral adjustments through the cranial sutures back in May of 2010 during an Advanced Central Channel course in Zagreb. At that time it was not very clear to me how this technique worked and I didn't begin to use it in my treatments. I realize I wasn’t ready for it at that time.
Last year I took the livestream course Cranial Suture Vertebral Adjustments to relearn and begin using this material. I listened to Saul teaching and tried to come into contact with my own sutures during the course. That was an interesting experience. As he was teaching about a specific part of the cranium related to the area of the spine, I felt some very pleasant chills along the sutures and my breath became deeper and quieter.
Contacting the cranial sutures of a receiver and making a connection to the associated vertebrae, and even just recognizing when it's the right time to switch to this layer of the system, is challenging but it can be done. It requires expanded perception, focus and an open mind with no judgements or opinions. I realized at one point that I myself was resisting it.... that is my own inner work and I am accepting the challenge.
When I have used this vertebral adjustment technique I felt changes in the receiver's system as well as my own. Their feedback afterwards included experiencing lightness in the body, less pain in the shoulders, deeper sleep, less pain in the lower back and one client reported back that they had reduced food cravings and need for sugar. I was mainly contacting the lumbar area on the cranium, i.e points along the sagittal suture. The reaction in my body after those sessions was of deep inner peace in my heart."
To read more about Svetlana's journey, here is a link to a recent article about her: https://www.24sata.hr/lifestyle/inspirativna-prica-iz-rijeke-vid-sam-izgubila-s-19-godina-a-sada-imam-obitelj-i-radim-shiatsu-890854