Gerri Shapiro, MS Ed.
Copyright 2002, All rights reserved

Dedication

This handbook is dedicated to Thomas Bowen, the gifted healer who developed the original Bowen Technique which has helped thousands of people all over the world relieve stress and pain.

What is pain?

The Chinese consider good health to be a state of energy balance within the body.  They believe that pain and illness are caused by an imbalance which blocks the flow of energy.  What often happens is that problems accumulate and our self-healing process becomes overloaded.

What is healing?

Healing is not something that just “happens.”  It is a continuous movement toward harmony and balance.  The body has a great ability to heal itself, but sometimes it needs assistance to remove
the blocks getting in the way of the healing process.

Pain Goes When Energy Flows

When energy flows freely, all our body functions improve by the release of tension.

The Amazing Tom Bowen

Tom Bowen was a gifted natural healer from Australia.  Late in life he discovered he had an unusual gift that allowed him to intuitively know what was ailing people and how to help them relieve their pain.  His healing technique is unique in that it was developed without him having had any previous medical or healthcare training.

He claimed he could feel tiny vibrations in people’s muscles that helped him find the exact location to work on.  He spoke of his skill with great humility and frequently stated that his
work was “simply a gift from God.” 

Tom had the capacity to quickly assess what was wrong with someone and where they were out of balance.  He could look into a room full of people, glance at them for about 20 seconds, and know what their problems were.  Although he never advertised, it was estimated that he treated over 13,000 people in the course of one year, and he claimed a success rate of about 88%!

“He was an incredibly generous man,” says Kevin Ryan, an osteopath who trained in the technique under Tom Bowen.  “He had an amazing energy and passion for his work.  He ran
a free clinic one Saturday morning per month devoted entirely to children with disabilities, and every Saturday night he opened his clinic to injured football players,” he said.

Like Palmer (Chiropractic), Rolf, (Rolfing), Feldenkrais (Feldenkrais Technique) and Usui (Reiki), Tom Bowen had a unique talent.  He dedicated his life to turning his gift into a practical application that has proven to be of great benefit to thousands of people all over the world.

A Unique Technique

The Bowen Technique is quite unique.  There are several features that set it apart from other modalities.

Gentle

It is so gentle that you hardly notice you’re being touched.  People usually become very relaxed right away, and even fall asleep during a session.

Fast

Rapid pain relief is common.  Most pain and injury will respond within two or three sessions.

Long-Lasting Relief

People often experience a deep and long-lasting relief.  Two to three sessions spaced one week apart are usually enough to achieve lasting relief, even from long-standing pain or injury.

Safe

There is no one who cannot be treated safely with Bowen.  It is so gentle, it can be used on babies, pregnant women, the elderly and the disabled.  It is not dangerous to those suffering from chronic illness and it is ideal for treating children because it is non-invasive and non-threatening.

Two Minute Pauses

It is a unique feature of the Bowen Technique that there are two minute breaks in which the practitioner actually leaves the room.  These pauses are crucial as they allow the body time to absorb the “messages” presented by the moves. 

No Diagnosing

No diagnostic procedures or exams are used to choose a specific treatment for each ailment.

No “Fixing”

No special attention is given to “fix” the area that is in pain:  the technique addresses the entire body.

Painless

There is no cracking, no force and no needles.  There is little discomfort or pain involved because there is no heavy pressure or hard probing into sensitive muscles or joints.

Less Is More

The practitioner does the minimum needed to bring about a healing response in the body.  The more acute the pain, the less they do.  The less they do, the more profound the effect
on the body.

Great First Aid Tool

When you apply the Bowen Technique right after a fall, injury or accident, the release of tension acts in a preventive way to help correct any imbalance before it can adversely affect the body.

Easy To Learn

The technique is easy to learn.  There is only one basic move.

A Bowen Session

A session lasts about 45 minutes.  Treatment can be done through clothing or directly on the skin. The practitioner "rolls" over the muscles with her fingers, which causes the muscles to relax.  The moves are done in groups.  Between sets, the practitioner leaves the room for at least two minutes to allow the body to relax.

During a session the contracted muscles relax so that the surrounding areas are freed from constriction.  People may feel relaxed or energized.  The moves send out signals which help:

*    stimulate energy flow;
*    facilitate lymphatic drainage of toxins and waste;
*    promote good circulation;
*    release tension;
*    increase mobility;
*    encourage the body to relax, realign and heal itself.

The healing process begins once your body is relaxed.  You may feel shifts in your body during and after a session.  The technique promotes the removal of waste products.  Once the “garbage” has been cleared out, your body can start to function properly again.

Move The Pain Out of Your Body

Until recently, heavy lifting was thought to be the main cause of back pain, but studies now indicate that SITTING causes the most problems.  Sitting puts a lot of strain on our lower back.  The longer we sit, the more it hurts.  That's because 40 percent more weight is placed on the lower spine when we are sitting.  Our body, particularly our spine, was not designed to sit in chairs for hours on end.

Movement is actually “medicine”, according to Carol and Mitchell Krucoff, M.D., authors of Healing Moves:  How to Cure, Relieve and Prevent Common Ailments with Exercise.  Walking is the best natural health remedy for many kinds of conditions, disorders and symptoms. (1)  It can help speed your recovery process and has many other benefits as well: (2)

*    helps ease back pain;
*    goes easy on your joints;
*    can be done in short spurts;
*    strengthens your bones;
*    costs you nothing.

The 3 W's

1.    Walk
Right after your Bowen session, you should take a 15 or 20 minute walk to start  moving the pain out of your body.  Do not sit for more than 30 minutes at a time the first day. 

For the rest of the week take a 15-20 minute walk each day... or a few short 5-10 minute walks.  This will help “turn on your body pumps” and move the toxins out of your body.


2.    Water
According to F. Batmanghelidj, MD., most pain is due to chronic dehydration.  He says that we hurt because our bodies are thirsty. (3)

Drink at least 8 glasses of water each day.  This helps:

*    relieve pain all over your body;
*    relieve congestion;
*    flush out toxins;
*    lubricate your joints;
*    keep your body in balance.

3.    Wait

After a Bowen session, you must wait at least one week before having any other kind of bodywork, massage or chiropractic so you don’t interrupt the healing process.

The Bowen moves send electrical signals to your muscles, nervous system and brain, which help realign and balance your body.  The effects of the treatment will actually continue to work during the rest of the week, and possibly longer.


Foods That Help Relieve Pain

apples	apricots	avocados	bananas
beans	beets	berries	broccoli
cabbage	cantaloupe	carrots	cauliflower
celery	chard	cherries	cucumber
currants	dates	figs	garlic
ginger	grapes	kale	lettuce
mangoes	melons	mushrooms	olives
papaya	parsley	peaches	pears
peppers	potatoes	pumpkin	radish
raisins	soybeans	spinach	squash
sweet potatoes	turnips

According to Neal Barnard, M.D., author of several books on the healing properties of foods, certain foods, particularly most vegetables and fruits, are excellent painkillers.   They work against pain in four ways:

     1.  they can reduce damage at the site of an injury;

     2.  they cool your body’s inflammatory response;

     3.  they provide analgesia on pain nerves themselves; and

     4.  they work within the brain to reduce pain sensitivity.  (4)

You Can Help Your Friends and Family

There is nothing to compare with the feeling of knowing that you yourself can help relieve the suffering of someone you love - using only the power of touch.  The Bowen Technique is easy to learn, yet powerfully effective.  The Miracle Pain Relief Video, based on the Bowen Technique, is designed to teach you step-by-step how to use the basic Bowen moves to help your family and friends relieve their pain quickly and painlessly.

Disclaimer

We make no medical claims as to the benefits of Miracle Pain Relief or the Bowen Technique to improve medical
conditions.  This handbook is for informational purposes only so that you may make better informed decisions.

1.    Krucoff, Carol and Mitchell Krucoff, M.D., Healing Moves:  How To Cure, Relieve and Prevent
       Common Ailments with Exercise,  Harmony Books, 2000.

2.    Bowman, Sherry and Randy Rodman, Walk Yourself Well:  Eliminate Back, Shoulder, Knee,
        Hip and  Other Structural Pain Forever Without Surgery or Drugs, Hyperian, 1999.

3.    Batmanghelidj. F., MD., Your Body’s Many Cries For Water, Global Health Solutions, 1997.

4.    Barnard, Neal, MD., Foods That Fight Pain,  Harmony Books, 1998.