"Hi there Dr. Allan!

It's been some time (since) I visited you … I mentioned that I would keep in touch, discuss my personal experience doing scalp therapy massage and ask you questions, etc...

I did visit your web site. … (it) encourages me to find out more about Cranial Sacral Therapy. I need to understand more what somatic tension is.

I had quite an exceptional experience when you used this technique with me at the end of our session. The first instance that you gently manipulated my head I felt like there was two of me. My spirit body (new and emerging self) was floating over me, happy and smiling at me. This message told me that I am following my true path and need to forget and let go of the past. This (past emotional history) relates to a very deep rooted sharp like a knife point around the middle of my shoulder blade/scapula. it has ALWAYS been on the left side. At some point, I don't know when but this exact sensational pain now exists on the right side. A shiatsu professional described the spot as a place where deep rooted emotions are stored. I'd love it if you could give me some insight on this particular area of pain.

Then you approached me a second time for cranial. (We had a sort of time out in the session and D.P. thought that it was over - ed.) Perhaps because I had asked you if the session was finished. I didn't realize it wasn't. That moment I experienced an overwhelming rush of warmth and happiness fill me till my face was flushed. That experience brought me into connection with my new self; accepting myself as becoming/being a now, mother. An incredible acceptance of healing. I'm so glad that I allowed myself to be open to this experience.

Thank you again for your care, time and attention. It has been long overdue to credit you to it.

I look forward to hearing from you; your comments or opinion of my shoulder blade pain. I guess that the best I can do at this point is to put a hot water bottle on it. …
I look forward to visiting some time this year after the baby is born for some postpartum alignment.

Yours Truly!
D.P.

What are symptoms? Michael Vertolli says they are the bodies best response to a problem. That’s at the physical level, but we are mind body and spirit, and we are %100 of each.

Uppledger, the founder of CranioSacral Therapy, sees symptoms as the mind/body/spirits way of talking to itself. Symptoms are a message. Often that message is a metaphor. Often, as with dreams, here are many different meaning.

Louise Hayes gives meanings for different parts of the body, but to me that’s rather like using dream interpretation books to understand your dreams. I think there are themes we share, but a lot of this is individual.

In classical psychotherapy we might say hat to offer an interpretation is to rob the patient of owing their own truth. Further, when we offer interpretation we risk "projecting" our individual story onto our patient. Having said that, here goes…

Shoulder blades link to arms. Arms link to actions, etc. Shoulder blades are a little like a shell. Perhaps they shield the heart. The heart is associated with love, with courage, with fear, etc.

Of this area I would also wonder about the expression "stabbed in the back" and therefore I might think of betrayal and abandonment, etc.

My friend JKW, when I asked her for Louise Hayes book (which she can’t find just now) said, "Shoulder blades, I think this is about being overwhelmed, luggage."

You see, there are as many meanings as our imagination allows. We need to find your meaning.