If you’ve never experienced CranioSacral Therapy before, you might look at a photo of a session and think it looks a little like Reiki.

Someone is lying fully clothed on a treatment table. The practitioner may spend several minutes with their hands in one position. There can be a lot of stillness.

But what is actually happening in the two practices is very different.

CranioSacral Therapy has its roots in osteopathy. It is a hands-on form of bodywork with a strong focus on anatomy, fascia, the craniosacral system and the relationships between different structures in the body.

Reiki is a form of energy work.

I have trained in both, but the work I offer today is CranioSacral Therapy, not Reiki. My background in energy work has influenced me, as have all the different things I have studied over the years, but I don’t approach a CST session as a Reiki treatment.

So, what am I actually doing when my hands seem to be sitting still?

What Is CranioSacral Therapy?

CranioSacral Therapy developed from osteopathic work with the cranium and the rest of the body.

Its history is usually traced back to osteopath William Garner Sutherland and his work with cranial osteopathy. John Upledger later developed and taught the approach that became known as CranioSacral Therapy.

This osteopathic background is important because CST can sometimes look very subtle from the outside, but the training itself is very anatomy-heavy.

We study the bones of the cranium and how they relate to one another, the spine and sacrum, membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord, cerebrospinal fluid, fascia, muscles, joints and the relationships between different structures throughout the body.

And despite the name, we certainly don’t only work on the head and sacrum.

During a session, I might work with your feet, legs, pelvis, sacrum, diaphragm, ribcage, shoulders, neck, cranium or jaw.

I am using my hands to feel what is happening in the body.

Where is there movement?

Where does something feel restricted?

What is the fascia doing?

How does one side compare with the other?

What changes when I stay with a particular area?

How does the rest of the body respond?

Because fascia forms a continuous network throughout the body, the area where you feel a symptom is not necessarily the only area I will work with.

Rather than deciding that something needs to be pushed back into the “correct” position, I listen to what the tissues are doing and work with the response I feel beneath my hands.

If you want a much deeper explanation of CST itself, you can read What Is CranioSacral Therapy? The Ultimate Beginner Guide.

What Is Reiki?

Reiki originated in Japan and is a form of energy work.

A Reiki practitioner may lightly place their hands on different areas of the body or hold them above the body. The practice is based around working with energy rather than physically assessing fascia, tissues or anatomical structures.

People may experience warmth, tingling, heaviness, emotional shifts or deep relaxation during Reiki. Others may not notice much physically at all.

This is quite different from what I am doing during CranioSacral Therapy.

The Biggest Difference Is What the Practitioner Is Listening To

If my hands are underneath your head and I appear to be doing very little, there can actually be a lot going on.

I may be feeling the position and movement of particular bones, the pull of fascia, tension through the membranes, differences between the two sides of the body or changes happening elsewhere as the tissues respond.

If I move to your sacrum, diaphragm or feet, I am still following what I can physically feel through my hands.

With Reiki, the framework is energetic. The practitioner is not assessing fascial restriction or working with the anatomical relationships of the craniosacral system.

So although there may be moments when the two practices look similar, that doesn’t mean the practitioner is doing the same thing.

Is All CranioSacral Touch Extremely Light?

No, and I think this is worth mentioning because CST is so often described simply as “light-touch therapy”.

A lot of CranioSacral work is incredibly gentle and subtle.

But not every technique feels the same.

Some holds involve very light contact, while others use more specific or firmer pressure depending on the structure we are working with.

Work around the atlas, the first cervical vertebra at the top of the neck, for example, can feel considerably more direct than someone might expect if they have read that CST only uses feather-light pressure.

I might hold your ankles, place a hand underneath your sacrum, work around your diaphragm, support the back of your head or work with particular bones of the cranium.

We can also work with the jaw and, where appropriate and with your explicit permission, use gloved intraoral techniques to work with structures from inside the mouth.

So CST is gentle, but gentle doesn’t always mean barely touching you.

Fascia Is Another Big Difference

Fascia is a continuous network of connective tissue that surrounds and connects structures throughout the body.

It adapts to movement, posture, injury and repeated physical strain. It can also change in response to prolonged stress and protective patterns in the body.

Fascial work is an important part of CranioSacral Therapy.

As tension changes, you may notice sensations elsewhere in your body or feel an unexpected urge to move.

Sometimes the body begins to unwind.

Your head might slowly turn.

An arm may move.

Your spine may rotate.

Your jaw might shift.

You might feel the need to stretch into a particular position without consciously deciding beforehand what movement you are going to make.

When this happens, I can support and follow the movement rather than directing it.

This kind of fascial unwinding is very different from the framework of Reiki.

Can Emotions or Memories Come Up During CST?

They can.

Fascia does not literally store conscious memories in the way the brain does, but our tissues and nervous system can adapt around repeated stress, injury and protective responses.

Sometimes when an area begins to change or release, something emotional comes with it.

Someone might suddenly feel tearful.

A memory may appear.

An image or thought might come into their mind.

Or they may simply notice that a particular area of tension feels strangely connected to an emotion or experience.

That doesn’t mean every tight muscle contains a hidden trauma waiting to be released.

But I also don’t dismiss what comes up simply because we cannot always neatly explain why it appeared at that particular moment.

If something does arise during one of my sessions, there is space for it.

My background includes EFT, Matrix Reimprinting, coaching, somatic approaches and energy work, so I am comfortable exploring an emotion or recurring pattern with you if you want to.

And equally, you may spend your whole session quietly enjoying what is happening in your body.

There is no requirement to have an emotional release.

What About the Nervous System?

The nervous system is also an important part of how I understand CranioSacral Therapy.

I might notice that your body initially feels very braced or alert.

Your breathing may be shallow.

Certain muscles may be holding.

As the session progresses, your breathing might deepen. You may sigh, swallow or yawn. Sometimes people suddenly realise how tired they are.

These can all be interesting signs of a change in state.

For me, nervous system regulation isn’t about trying to make you permanently calm. We need our sympathetic nervous system and its fight-or-flight response. It helps us mobilise and act when we need to.

Regulation is more about having the flexibility to mobilise when something requires it and then being able to come back down again when the threat or demand has passed.

You can read much more about this in CranioSacral Therapy for Vagus Nerve & Nervous System Regulation.

Is CranioSacral Therapy Energy Work?

CranioSacral Therapy is a hands-on bodywork modality with roots in osteopathy.

When I am giving a CST session, I am not performing Reiki.

I am working with your body. I am feeling tissues and fascia beneath my hands, working with anatomical structures and listening to the craniosacral system.

At the same time, I don’t experience the human body as purely mechanical.

I have been around and interested in energy work for a long time, and I have trained in it myself. I also have a long background in meditation, yoga and other therapeutic approaches.

All of that inevitably influences the way I work.

I use my intuition.

Sometimes I feel drawn to stay with an area before I could necessarily explain why. Sometimes something I notice intuitively is then reflected in a physical change beneath my hands.

I don’t feel a need to call that Reiki.

It is simply part of the way I work.

I can be interested in anatomy, physiology and fascia while also being open to intuition, energy and aspects of our experience that we don’t completely understand.

Which Should I Choose: Reiki or CranioSacral Therapy?

It depends on what you are looking for.

If you specifically want an energy healing practice, Reiki may be what you are looking for.

If you are looking for hands-on bodywork and are interested in things such as physical tension, fascia, headaches, jaw tension, nervous system regulation, holding patterns or the relationship between physical and emotional experiences, CranioSacral Therapy may make more sense for you.

Neither needs to be better than the other.

They are simply different practices with different frameworks.

My Approach to CranioSacral Therapy

Over the years I have trained in yoga and meditation, EFT, Matrix Reimprinting, coaching, somatic approaches and energy work, alongside CranioSacral Therapy.

I don’t separate everything I have learnt into individual boxes when I work.

Different pieces have gradually become part of how I listen, ask questions, notice patterns and respond to the person in front of me.

But the foundation of these sessions is CranioSacral Therapy.

I am working with your body.

I am feeling the tissues and fascia beneath my hands.

I am listening to the craniosacral system.

I am noticing your breathing and nervous system responses.

If your body begins to unwind, I follow it.

If an emotion or recurring pattern emerges and you want to explore it, we can.

And I use my intuition throughout.

I don’t need to give every part of that process a separate label. Over time, all the things I have learnt have simply become part of my own way of working.

CranioSacral Therapy in Estoril

I practise CranioSacral Therapy in the beautiful therapy rooms at HUMA in Estoril, Portugal.

If you’re completely new to CST, you may want to start with What Is CranioSacral Therapy? The Ultimate Beginner Guide.

Or, if you want to know what actually happens when you come to see me, you can read What to Expect in Your First CranioSacral Session.

CranioSacral Therapy may look subtle from the outside, but there is a lot happening underneath my hands.

And that, for me, is one of the most fascinating things about it.