How the Bowen Technique can help you

Jo Lunn is a Bowen Technique expert and we asked her why she decided to train in this particular therapy, how it works, and how can others follow in her footsteps and become a Bowen therapist…

How does the Bowen technique differ from other therapies?

The approach of the Bowen Technique is that is allows the body to correct itself. Only a few moves are made at a time to enable to body to respond to the moves made by the therapist. After just a few moves the client is left to rest by the therapist and it is these frequent pauses during the treatment which differ the Bowen Technique from other therapies. When the therapist re-enters the room it is possible to see changes that have occurred to the client and thus proceed with the treatment accordingly. The moves are light and gentle with a rolling type action that is made through the connective tissue of muscles, tendons, ligaments and soft tissue.

How does it work?

Simply stated, the Bowen technique resets the body to heal itself. It creates a deep sense of relaxation and enables the body to return to its optimum health and functionality. This seems to occur by affecting the body’s autonomic nervous system, which creates homeostasis at the cellular level.

It’s a very gentle technique and rolling type moves are performed on the skin over the connective tissue. It may be done through light clothing and no oil or lotion is used. There are frequent important pauses between these moves which give the body time to benefit from each set. By combining moves, both in placement and in combination, the practitioner is able to address the body as a whole or target a specific problem.

When a Bowen move is made, the brain is encouraged to ask the body questions in order to establish what remedial actions are required in response to the move. This communication between body and brain enables the appropriate response to occur in the body bringing balance to the specific area.

Effects may also be felt in other areas of the body as equilibrium is restored. For example, it is quite usual for a client to come back for a second treatment and report that his shoulder pain is reduced, but also his digestion is working better or his hay fever is improved even though these symptoms may never have been mentioned to the therapist in the first treatment. This demonstrates the brain is able to recognise further imbalances in the body and set up the appropriate responses in order to rectify them.

The human body has the incredible ability to self-heal and this can often be achieved with minimal outside influence. The Bowen practitioner is merely a catalyst, setting the stimulus in motion for process of self healing to occur. A Bowen treatment, whether to address a specific problem or maintain a healthy body, is the essence of simplicity.

It is said that the Bowen Technique is a catalyst that enables the body to correct itself.

What conditions can be treated?

The Bowen technique helps many problems including muscle pains and spasms in the back, neck and legs, tilted pelvis, leg length difference, whiplash, frozen shoulder, tennis elbow and RSI patients with MS have reported increased energy and improved flexibility in the limbs. The minimal approach allows people with ME, tension, stress, depression, fatigue, autism and ADHD to also respond very favourably. Migraine, headaches, sinus problems, TMJ dysfunction or jaw problems, asthma and respiratory difficulties and hayfever, infertility and during pregnancy have often shown remarkable benefits too.

Why did you choose to practice this particular technique?

I had previously trained in remedial and sports massage and reflexology. I have had many years of back trouble and tried a variety of different treatments (orthodox and complementary) with limited success. The Bowen Technique was suggested to me and my back has benefited from it greatly. Consequently I decided to train in the Bowen Technique and was then asked to join the European College of Bowen Studies as a teacher.

How many sessions of treatment would you need to be cured?

We tend to avoid the word “cure” in complementary therapy because it could construe false practice/hope. Optimising health and functionality, balancing etc are better phrases to use. Of course cure can be brought about but it’s not a word generally coined in complementary therapy.

What is important when a client comes for treatment is that they don’t think they’re going to have to embark on a never ending road of session after session after session. This can be off-putting, make them lose faith in the practitioner and of course can be very costly.

With the Bowen Technique I usually say give it three treatments, each roughly a week apart. If there is no change within those three weeks, it’s probably not going to help but over 85% of the time we see changes for the better within those three treatments. If this is the case then it is preferable to continue. As progress improves the treatments are spaced further apart as the body is able to hold the corrective changes itself and its optimum state health and functionality is achieved. Once at this stage regular treatments can cease and it is usual for a client to have just the occasional top up maybe three times a year to help maintain the balance.

Of course there are always exceptions to this rule. People that are terminally ill find great relief by having Bowen and this can be as often as they wish – even daily. During pregnancy there is a particular procedure that helps alleviate back pain that can be administered as often as required (great one to teach the dad’s to be!). Throughout the pregnancy I have suggested treatments every three to four weeks to help the mum with the immense changes that her body is going through. Also if someone has suffered a stroke it may well be appropriate to treat more frequently and results may take longer to be seen. Some people are better after just one or two treatments in which case there is no need to continue any further.

Can you give us an example of someone you have treated and how it worked for them?

Mrs L (32) had a bad riding accident in June 2006. She landed on her hip and crushed nerves in her back. She could not walk with a great deal of sciatic pain. Before trying the Bowen Technique she had been continually having other therapies to realign her pelvis, but the sciatic pain never went away. The constant pain was making her feel very depressed and tired and it was affecting her work. It was in October 2007 that she had her first Bowen treatment and walked out at the end pain free and her pelvis aligned. After just three weekly treatments she felt energised, fully recovered and her pelvis was still aligned. Mrs L says: “The Bowen Technique has become an essential part of my remaining fit and healthy and I couldn’t recommend it enough.”

Why did you decide to set up in business as a Bowen practitioner?

I already had an established complementary therapy business offering remedial and sports massage and reflexology. I was finding that my hands were becoming increasingly weaker and more painful with the amount of massage that I was doing and I realized that I would need to make some changes if I was going to be able to continue with my business full time. Then someone suggested the Bowen Technique to me because of my own chronic back trouble. I was amazed how greatly my back was improved from Bowen. The application of the technique is so gentle that is places no strain on the practitioner – this seemed ideal for me, plus the fact of how effective it is so I decided to train to be a practitioner.

How long did it take you to train to become a Bowen therapist?

In total it took just under a year. The training is part time and in five modules. This was perfect as it allowed me to continue to work full time.

Level 1 is four days and covers the history of the Bowen Technique, structural moves and analysis.

After this level the first set of case studies are started which requires 10 people to be treated three times each. The medical history and treatment process is written down for each case study. These have to be completed and handed in to the tutor before commencing on Level 3.

Level 2 is two days and occurs roughly six weeks after Level 1. It is a review of all that is covered on Level 1.

Level 3 is 3 days and occurs a minimum after Level 1. Here the Bowen Technique goes into further detail and how it can help systemically is explored. On this level the case studies are handed back with a report of how they were. After this level a second set of case studies is started, again with 10 people receiving three treatments each. This set of case studies is submitted for the exam.

Level is 4 is two days and occurs roughly six weeks after Level 3. This level is a review of all that is covered on Level 3.

Level 5 is the examination level. This occurs a minimum of four months after Level 3. This is three days long as it also gives an invaluable opportunity to overview all that has been covered in the course. The examination itself is made up of the submitted case studies, theory and practical exam.

What qualifications did you need?

No qualifications are needed to start the course. Anatomy and physiology are covered in the course. Many students go on to take a specific anatomy and physiology qualification either during or after their training as it helps them to have an even deeper understanding of how the body and the Bowen Technique work.

Those that come to train as Bowen practitioners come from a variety of backgrounds. On my practitioner training courses I find there is a mix of about 50/50 of those that are already working in either the medical or complementary health world eg nurses, physiotherapists, osteopaths, chiropractors, therapists etc and those that have no previous experience that have come to train as they want an entirely new career or a second income or to help family and friends. For those that have no health training background to be a room with those that do, the thought may seem a bit intimidating. But the one thing that everyone has in common is that they’ve come to learn the Bowen Technique and as the course progresses everyone learns from each other due to their own personal experiences – including me!

How does the business fit in with your daily/family life?

I run the business full time Monday to Friday. I start at 9.30am and my last treatment of the day finishes at 7.30pm. I have a clinic in my home which I find very convenient – especially with working long hours. On Wednesdays I work in London at the Hale Clinic and travel to London by train. I teach my courses at weekends as much as I can so as not to disrupt my clinic and also as this is easier for students as it means they have to take less time off work. As Levels 1 and 3 or more that two days long, then these do overlap into the weekdays.

My family are very understanding about the hours I work. I have friends who find they can easily fit their Bowen business around their own family commitments, e.g. school days and other part time work they do.

Tags: Inspirational Women, Self improvement & wellbeing, Women in business