Navigating the aftermath of an emergency C-section with craniosacral touch
Georgie’s story
I’m grateful to share Georgie’s inspiring healing journey with you. I first met her when she needed help with the lasting effects of a concussion. Georgie had dealt with daily headaches and migraines for a decade. To our surprise, after just one session her headaches and migraines stopped. Her body was able to fully dissipate and digest the impact of her concussion. In other words, the trauma resolved. At the session's end, she felt like herself again—it was such a joyful moment!
I saw Georgie six months later, and she still had no headaches or migraines. Wow.
Emergency C-section
When Georgie had her first child, the birth was difficult. She reached out for support, and I was glad to give her some biodynamic craniosacral work.
The arrival of little Kyuss hadn't gone as planned or hoped. The labour was long and challenging. When Kyuss got stuck, the medical team tried everything but needed to proceed with an emergency C-section. Although he was born healthy, the experience was very difficult.
Mum was worried that Kyuss might have some birth trauma, and she wanted to help to support him in letting go of what he might have experienced.
Georgie was right to think this. It is well known, in the prenatal and perinatal research field, that birth is a formative experience that can lead to lasting psychological and biological consequences. And a traumatic birth can lead to more difficulties, both immediately and later in life.
Biodynamic craniosacral therapy can support newborn babies to release trauma. It’s also one of the rare therapies that can help adults resolve their birth patterning, even if they had an uneventful or ‘normal’ birth and even if it’s 50 years later.
The impact of birth on the body is a foundational experience which can result in a limiting pattern and expression of health for life. A practitioner with a skilled touch can feel this and help your body let that pattern dissolve.
The session part one - Mum
The whole family came to the session - Mum, Kyuss and Dad. As Georgie explained what had happened, I noticed that her body seemed to be struggling with the trauma.
Like on an airplane, when you should put on your own oxygen mask first, Georgie needed some care for herself. Dad took care of Kyuss. He provided both Mum and Kyuss stability, love and support throughout the session. Dad sat by the massage table and fed Kyuss with a bottle since it was too painful for Georgie to breastfeed him.
I worked with Mum for most of the session. Using a craniosacral touch, I gently met her body and listened to what was going on. Georgie had a lot of stress in her body from the emergency surgery.
In our culture, people often think surgery is a minor event; but that's not how the body feels. The body must deal with the shock and overwhelm of being cut open. It's not natural for our bodies to stay calm during such events, unless you are a very advanced yogi / yogini!
One of the founders of osteopathy (which craniosacral work is based on), Dr Rollin Becker, called surgery ‘organised trauma’. A necessarily procedure, but one that is traumatic for the body.
As Mum started to feel more at ease and regulated, Dad noticed that Kyuss relaxed each time mum did. This shows how strongly a baby and their mother connect and influence each other. When the mother is relaxed, it creates a space and resonance for the baby to feel calm. That is part of the special bond of being human.
“Infants lack the physiological capacity to self-soothe self-regulate, or enter into parasympathetic rest-and-digest states on their own. They learn to regulate themselves by co-regulating with their caregivers, largely through loving safe touch. ”
After resolving the initial shock of surgery, Georgie was able to address a deeper issue - the pain of breastfeeding. I guided her to check in with her body about breastfeeding; how did it feel about that? Her body quickly responded with a strong "no" by bracing her muscles throughout her core.
Using a NeuroAffective body-mind dialogue technique developed by Dr Aline LaPierre, I encouraged Georgie to ask her body if it had a message about breastfeeding. Her body immediately shared, “it’s not safe” along with some strong emotions. I supported Georgie to process these difficult emotions and feelings. Meanwhile, Dad continued to provide stability and support to both Kyuss and Georgie with his presence.
None of us know where the message ‘it’s not safe’ came from. I can speculate that it’s probably a remanent of Georgie’s experience of being breastfeed. Or it could come from many different experiences and events. Therapeutically, what matters is that the situation was met in real-time and given support.
I checked in with her body again, asking, “how do you feel about breast feeding now?” The response was clear - it's okay! It was time to bring in Kyuss.
The session part two - Kyuss
Dad passed Kyuss to Mum. Kyuss snuggled up on her chest. As we settled into this new experience, I sensed a change in Mum’s chest. She felt a warm glow and love emerging; they were melting and bonding together. They were both very relaxed.
I wondered how Kyuss was doing and told Mum and Dad that the changes for him might be subtle. Soon after, they said “Hey, he’s stretching his legs!” He was relaxing and stretching his legs for the first time! I had an aha moment.
When babies are born and are then placed on their mother’s chest, they have an instinct to ‘breast crawl’ - they use their body to find the breast and their first feed.
This process doesn’t always happen, especially when there has been lots of disruption to natural birthing. Kyuss was starting to take that developmental step now; he was doing what he hadn’t been able to do before. It was a magical and joyful moment for us to see him unfurl his legs in this safe moment. He was looking to latch and be feed.
Outcome for the family
The immediate outcome for the whole family - Mum, baby Kyuss, and Dad - was a heartwarming session together. It was touching to be part of their closeness.
The next day, I spoke with Georgie, and she was delighted! “We’re doing amazing! We’ve finally figured out how to breastfeed Kyuss to sleep, which we couldn’t do before!” She shared that Kyuss is latching much easier now. Although it’s not entirely pain-free for her, she said, “it’s definitely better, and I feel more confident about trying again!”
Georgie shared more, “guess what? Kyuss is calmer now, not just during feedings but all the time! I love watching him stretch out his little legs instead of being all scrunched up.” She added, “I knew I could count on you for help, but I didn’t expect such great results for both of us!"
A month later, Mum reports being a “breastfeeding pro and loving it!”
YEAH!
Biodynamic craniosacral therapy is a gentle touch and powerful body-led approach to trauma resolution.
Seeing this work in action and it bring such beautiful changes for this whole family is incredible. I witnessed the magic that happens when bodies are given a safe space for resolving shock, not just for Mum but for her baby, too. And it's an experience of resolution that will positivity impact Kyuss in ways that cannot be known or quantified.
