The Therapeutic Value of Visceral Manipulation

Premier Therapy Services offers Visceral Manipulation by three Barral Institute trained providers.  Visceral Manipulation (VM) was developed by world-renowned French Osteopath and Physical Therapist Jean-Pierre Barral. Comparative studies found Visceral Manipulation beneficial for various disorders.

Acute Disorders                                                         Digestive Disorders
Whiplash                                                                      Bloating and Constipation
Seatbelt Injuries                                                           Nausea and Acid Reflux
Chest or Abdominal Sports Injuries                             GERD
Concussion                                                                  Swallowing Dysfunctions
Traumatic Brain Injuries

Women’s and Men’s Health Issues                          Musculoskeletal Disorders
Chronic Pelvic Pain                                                     Somatic-Visceral Interactions
Endometriosis                                                             Chronic Spinal Dysfunction
Fibroids and Cysts                                                      Headaches and Migraines
Dysmenorrhea                                                            Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Bladder Incontinence                                                  Peripheral Joint Pain
Prostate Dysfunction                                                   Sciatica
Referred Testicular Pain                                              Neck Pain
Effects of Menopause

Pediatric Issues                                                        Pain Related to
Constipation and Gastritis                                          Post-operative Scar Tissue
Persistent Vomiting                                                     Post-infection Scar Tissue
Vesicoureteral Reflux                                                  Autonomic Mechanisms
Infant Colic

Emotional Issues
Anxiety and Depression
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

VM assists functional and structural imbalances throughout the body including musculoskeletal, vascular, nervous, urogenital, respiratory, digestive and lymphatic dysfunction. It evaluates and treats the dynamics of motion and suspension in relation to organs, membranes, fascia and ligaments. VM increases proprioceptive communication within the body, thereby revitalizing a person and relieving symptoms of pain, dysfunction, and poor posture.

An integrative approach to evaluation and treatment of a patient requires assessment of the structural relationships between the viscera, and their fascial or ligamentous attachments to the musculoskeletal system. Strains in the connective tissue of the viscera can result from surgical scars, adhesions, illness, posture or injury. Tension patterns form through the fascial network deep within the body, creating a cascade of effects far from their sources for which the body will have to compensate. This creates fixed, abnormal points of tension that the body must move around, and this chronic irritation gives way to functional and structural problems.

Visceral Manipulation relies on the palpation of normal and abnormal forces within the body. By using specific techniques, therapists can evaluate how abnormal forces interplay, overlap and affect the normal body forces at work. The goal is to help the body’s normal forces remove abnormal effects, whatever their sources. Those effects can be global, encompassing many areas of bodily function.

How Does Visceral Manipulation Help You?

Visceral Manipulation is used to locate and solve problems throughout the body. It encourages your own natural mechanisms to improve the functioning of your organs, dissipate the negative effects of stress, enhance mobility of the musculoskeletal system through the connective tissue attachments, and influence general metabolism. Today, a wide variety of healthcare professionals perform Visceral Manipulation. Practitioners include osteopathic physicians, allopathic physicians, doctors of chiropractic, doctors of Oriental medicine, naturopathic physicians, physical therapists, occupational therapists, massage therapists and other licensed body workers.

How is Visceral Manipulation Performed?

Visceral Manipulation is based on the specific placement of soft manual forces to encourage the normal mobility, tone and motion of the viscera and their connective tissues. These gentle manipulations can potentially improve the functioning of individual organs, the systems the organs function within, and the structural integrity of the entire body.

Harmony and health exist when motion is free and excursion is full – when motion is not labored, overexcited, depressed, or conflicting with neighboring structures and their mobility. Therapists using Visceral Manipulation assess the dynamic functional actions as well as the somatic structures that perform individual activities. They also evaluate the quality of the somatic structures and their functions in relation to an overall harmonious pattern, with motion serving as the gauge for determining quality.

Due to the delicate and often highly reactive nature of the visceral tissues, gentle force precisely directed reaps the greatest results. As with other methods of manipulation that affect the body deeply, Visceral Manipulation works only to assist the forces already at work. Because of that, trained therapists can be sure of benefiting the body rather than adding further injury or disorganization.

If you’d like more information about visceral manipulation feel free to visit the Barral Institute website or call Premier Therapy Services today!

https://www.barralinstitute.com/index.php