On the Relief of Chronic Sinusitis
Jean M. Reid, RNC, LMT
West Palm Beach, Florida
CranioSacral Therapy Practitioner since 2000
Jeff is a thirty-seven-year-old male who initially came to my office for help with old shoulder injuries (bilateral torn rotatorcuffs) that he had refused to have surgery on some years prior. The visit had been a gift from his parent, who thought he would appreciate the stress-reduction benefit of CranioSacral Therapy(CST).
Amazed with the increased range of motion of his right shoulder after that one visit, he scheduled a second appointment the following week for the left shoulder. Once again he experienced substantial improvement in his range of motion and general relaxation. After that, he occasionally came by for a general CranioSacral Therapy tune-up.
Then, in the spring of 2003, Jeff called saying that he had very bad sinusitis and wanted to know if CST could help. When he arrived, I noted that the sinus areas around the eyes were extremely swollen and inflamed. He had no eyelid folds, and the eye openings were narrow secondary to the edema.
Jeff reported that he could never recall being without sinusitis symptoms. He had experienced two significant accidents when he was five years old. One was a fall against a concrete block in which he struck the left upper lip area. The second was when he was attending a baseball game with his father and was struck on the left upper lip and nose area. He suffered a broken nose that time and required seventeen sutures to the inner aspect of his left upper lip. He had had two sinus drainage surgeries from an excellent ENT specialist, with minimal relief, and was considering a third surgery prior to receiving CranioSacral Therapy.
In addressing the symptoms, I completed a brief, basic 10-Step Protocol and then focused on mobilization of the cranial bones. It was very obvious to both this client and me that the cranial bones in the left temporal area were completely immobile, while the right temporal bones moved quite well. Due to Jeff ’s previous positive results with CranioSacral Therapy, he was extremely patient and cooperative during the three appointments it took to completely mobilize all of the impacted cranial bones.
Each session was dramatic. The first reduced the swelling of the eyes so much that his wife said to him when he got home, “Your eyes are bigger!” During the second session, the cranial bones began to move one by one. Then there was a loud click. “That’s my teeth hitting together on the left side,” he said. “They don’t usually do that.” Over the next five days, large quantities of mucus drainage occurred. The entire shape of Jeff ’s face changed as the bones were mobilized. Symmetry was restored; TMJ symptoms were relieved; and sinusitis symptoms vanished with treatment.
I continue to see Jeff periodically for tune-up sessions or if he needs relief of a specific symptom. It has not been necessary to do additional cranial bone mobilization. He tells me that for many years he took daily doses of antihistamines and prescription medication to alleviate his sinusitis symptoms. He has not required this medication in more than a year now. Jeff credits CST for this and does not hesitate to tell family and friends of this change. He is a great example of the benefits possible with CranioSacral Therapy—even thirty years after an injury.
But the story doesn’t end there. In February 2004, Jeff called early one Friday morning with an urgent request that I see his son Wade that afternoon. He had an important vocal audition scheduled the next day, and he had developed a cold with sinus congestion and coughing. The audition was for admission to the School of the Arts, and no make-up day was available for any candidate who could not perform his talent on the appointed day.
I provided almost two hours of CranioSacral Therapy to the boy that day. I focused on the eustachian tubes, ears, sinuses, neck, and upper chest. Although young, he was as cooperative as any adult CranioSacral Therapy and Adults upon whom I have worked. The results were excellent. There was drainage of mucus and elimination of the nasal vocal qualities that were initially so apparent.
Jeff reported the following week that the difference in his son’s singing was remarkable. In April his son was notified of his acceptance to the School of the Arts. In May, I made a house visit to give father and son a tune-up. Wade said, “I told my friends at school I was going to have a treatment by Jeannie. They asked, ‘Is she really a genie?’ I told them yes!” Doing CranioSacral Therapy may not make you a genie, but on occasion you have very nice things happen.
