Bowen is a holistic therapy that assist healing of the body. It is a non-manipulative, non-invasive soft tissue remedial (corrective) therapy.
Bowen brings about profound and often remarkable results by penetrating to a deep cellular level, incorporating your body’s unique ability to heal itself.
Working on your fascia (which is a connective tissue throughout the body); it releases any restrictions, enabling freer movement, improving flexibility and posture.
Bowen ‘educates’ the body’s muscles, tendons and ligaments and helps them return to a balanced, preferred position, improving your functionality. Bowen Therapy may very well be one of the single most important complementary therapies to facilitate healing of the whole body.
How can we help YOU?
- Pelvic tilt and leg length discrepancies
- Shoulder, neck and head tension (whiplash)
- Lower back pain and sciatica
- Sports & accident injuries (also improve your performance)
- Musculoskeletal pain and imbalance
- Lymphatic disorders (oedema)
- Menstrual difficulties (PMS, Cramping, Amenorrhea)
- Pre- and post-natal care (IVF alternatives, treating both partners)
- Baby Bowen from newborns to toddlers
What is Bowen Therapy?
Bowen is a non-manipulative, non-invasive holistic treatment and soft tissue REMEDIAL therapy. The treatment brings about profound and often remarkable results by penetrating to a deep cellular level, incorporating the body’s unique ability to heal itself. The release of dysfunctional muscle, skeletal or nerve states, toxins and old patterning removing the restrictions on the body’s ability to self-heal. Bowen addresses the body as a whole unit and the cause of problems, rather than just the presenting symptoms – it embraces the physical, chemical, emotional, and mental aspects of each person receiving treatment.
The Benefits gained from receiving Bowen Therapy
The principal benefit of Bowen Therapy is the often rapid and long term or permanent remission from pain, reduced stress, greater mobility and improved physical and emotional quality and enjoyment of life. Additional benefits can include increased energy, improvement in your immune system, re-balancing of your body, improved circulation, lymphatic drainage and detoxification. Further and important benefits of Bowen Therapy are that it has few contraindications and continues to ‘work’ on your body for up to 5 days following treatment. It is very gentle, relaxing and non-invasive involving no manipulation, and is therefore ideal for everyone from newborns right through to the aged, at any level of fragility. You no longer have to restrict yourself to live/work within your pain limitations.
How do we determine what is needed?
We ask YOU what your immediate problem areas are, about your discomfort levels, how and when they occur, sleeping patterns, etc. What may have happened to cause your current discomfort? This can highlight important information about which muscles, tendons, ligaments are involved. What other treatments you may have tried and what benefits you may have gained? Also, we gather details from your health history, dietary intake, etc. This tells us about your lifestyle choices and helps us to determine treatment specific to your needs. Our questions are simple and easy to answer, plus we listen to what you have to say.
Visually we check stance and posture of your whole body, as this is an accurate method of defining your muscle restrictions – as changes often show up in the way you sit, stand and walk. It can sometimes demonstrate that an underlying problem can be some distance from the presenting complaint – ‘referred’ pain. We may carry out ‘range of movement’ assessments, to determine what and where limitations are experienced. This tells us which of your muscles are affected.
FAQ's About Bowen Therapy
You will need to allow an hour for the initial treatment, as we take your health history and make a thorough assessment of your current physical problem. Further treatments may need between 30 minutes and 45 minutes, depending on progress and how you ‘present’ on the day of your appointment.
We are Therapists (Diploma level) and as such attracted government recognition from health funds. Unfortunately, the government legislated to remove many Natural Medicine benefits on 1 April 2019.
Unless your injury is severe enough to warrant time off from work, your treatment will not affect your ability to work. Depending on your presenting problem, you should be able to continue your normal routine in the gym. If however, you have injured yourself in such a way that it has affected your ability to perform specific exercises or use specific equipment, then we recommend you take time off from using that equipment or performing those exercises that would re-injure or exacerbate the area of concern. We will work that out with you and/or your personal trainer if required.
How long is a piece of string? However, this can be determined on the full evaluation during your first visit. Typically 3-4 treatments are often sufficient to achieve lasting relief from even long-standing pain, though more are sometimes required.
A big resounding YES! Bowen Therapy often helps reduce inflammation and if injured, the quicker you receive Bowen Therapy, the better. It enables the body to return to its ‘normal balanced and preferred position’ quicker and better than if the injury is left to ‘settle down’. Settling down, often involves the body learning to hold itself in a restricted manner which seems to cause less discomfort. However, this more often than not creates long term issues of incorrect posture, i.e. holding one shoulder higher than the other.
Most definitely! Bowen Therapy re-educates the body. It releases tight muscles, encourages stretched or slack muscles to perform better and returns the body to ‘normal’. This just may take a few visits to achieve long lasting results. Very worth the process to achieve the outcomes!
NO, if anything, the medications work better, because Bowen Therapy actually helps the body improve assimilation of nutrients and better expel toxins, (by perking up the lymphatic system).
Service Information
Initial Consultation
Allow 1hr – $100
Your case history is taken, followed by assessments relevant to your issue. A treatment takes around 30-45 minutes with the work performed on skin or through light clothing. One treatment often provides immediate relief and sometimes can completely fix the problem. As a minimum it will initiate your body to respond, like a wake-up call, providing improved ease of movement, suppleness and relaxation.
(Note: no additional fee applies for an initial consult)
Further Treatments:
Allow 20-50mins – $100
3-4 treatments at weekly intervals are often sufficient to achieve lasting relief from even long-standing pain, though more are sometimes required. (Further treatments may range from 20 mins to 50 mins). We ask that before your next visit, you consider how you responded to your treatment and any changes you have noticed so you can share that with us at your next appointment. This enables our treatment to stay responsive to your progress.
When your initial concerns are fully addressed, maintenance treatments every 4-6 weeks are extremely beneficial to ensure your body stays balanced and avoids a return of undue tension and posture problems.
Treatment Times:
Tuesday to Thursday through to last appointment starting at 6pm
Client Journeys
General Wellbeing & Oedema
After the very first treatment, I was able to raise my arms fully above my head. I was so amazed I burst into tears as I had not been able to do that for many years. It felt so wonderful. I was also able to stand straight and walk more easily.
Later I was treated for fluid retention and it wasn’t long before I had to literally purchase new clothes as the old clothes were now so loose they were falling off me. I lost so much ‘weight’ with the fluid, that walking is much easier; turning over in bed is done with virtual ease. Even my doctor was amazed at the changes in me since I’ve been receiving Bowen on a regular basis.
Due to my condition (previous operation damaged lymph nodes) I will always retain fluid, but with the help of Bowen, and thanks to their suggestions for exercise, better diet and added nutritional support, I have my life back on track and see possibilities for continued improvement more than I ever thought possible, before I came to Susan and Steve’s clinic.
A healthier start to Pregnancy
My partner and I had been trying to start a family and not knowing if this would take a long time it was suggested that Hormonal Bowen treatment might help (with ovulation, etc). Within 3 months I was pregnant and my baby is now due anytime soon (in late May)!!
I also discussed my anxiety, sleeping problems and fluid retention, and the benefits of mineral therapy that would not only benefit me, but the health of my baby. I decided to give it a go as I’m always striving to eliminate my anxiety.
After taking the minerals for about 3-4 weeks I noticed subtle changes: going straight to sleep; better sleep; feeling good at work; thinking less of work and less of unnecessary things; no stomach cramps from food and a less puffy looking face. My anxiety seems to be a thing of the past.
I continued mineral therapy and specific ‘Pregnancy Bowen’ throughout my pregnancy and felt very fit and healthy with no back pain or swelling and sleeping really well. I did include lots of exercise and drinking plenty of water during this treatment. I would highly recommend Bowen Therapy whilst pregnant.
Lisa
Gentle & Non-Invasive Treatments
After receiving a few treatments the pains disappeared and I was able to walk more freely again.
I fully appreciated the gentleness and non-invasive nature of Bowen Therapy.
Erica
A decade of Back Pain, Spasms & Rib Pain
I have tried the medical profession, who investigated for “nasties”, and finding nothing just gave me drugs to help deaden the pain and knock me out. I tried physiotherapy, chiropractic, osteopathy, acupuncture, Pilates, Tai Chi, swimming and gym. Some of these things reduced the problem for a short time, but then it came back.
Some helped me cope; but still gradually it was getting worse. I was unable to sleep on my back, or on my left side at all, and could manage half an hour on my right side and a little longer on my stomach. I was getting spasms when I walked, and gradually my function was deteriorating and the future was looking pretty grim.
I hadn’t tried Bowen Therapy or Tissue salts (aka Mineral Therapy). A thorough assessment was done and I was started on tissue salts. Nothing dramatic, so we decided to try the Bowen as well, as the body was so locked in bad patterns and dysfunctional muscle spasms, that it needed more help to release itself. I had 9 treatments over 5 months.
Each session my therapist would listen intently and attempt to understand every little ache and pain I described. They would try moves that they thought would help, and if they didn’t know they went to no end of trouble to try and find out what might be causing the pain and (develop) strategies to work on it. Gradually over the weeks the muscles relaxed and the body began to right itself.
Like pealing the layers of an onion, they worked through each issue as it presented and released the muscles and thereby the pain. I was able to sleep on my left side again for the first time in 5 years. I have even managed to sleep for 8 hours in one go, although not consistently. I no longer take the non-steroidal anti-inflammatories or the heavy duty pain medication the Dr had prescribed.
My posture has improved and I can walk without spasms. I am not totally pain free, but my quality of life is so much improved I am eternally grateful, as it is only these things (minerals & Bowen) that have managed to sustain an improvement for more than a few weeks.
PD
Finally sleeping 7hrs
After 30 years of only getting 2 hours at a time, I’m a different person.
DH
Pain Reduced, Sleeping Improved
My legs had always been a problem and having a car accident at about 13 didn’t help (ran over my legs). The pain was constant and the only way I could sleep at night was to put my legs up against the wall for 30-40 mins, which would provide some relief (allowing about an hour’s sleep), before I would have to go through the routine again. Not much sleep for years really.
Bowen helped to some degree (certainly with the sciatica), but it wasn’t until I was put onto minerals in January 2013 that I noticed a marked improvement. It was slow at first and I was reassured that if I stuck with it, it should help improve my aching legs and therefore my ability to sleep. Since taking the minerals I’ve noticed improvement in things I didn’t expect. My eczema improved and I no longer bite my nails.
More importantly, as the muscle pain receded my sleeping improved. Within twelve months I was sleeping at least 7-8 hours a night. I no longer had to put my legs up against the wall and pain medication is now seldom required. I can leave off the minerals for longer periods, so I can now see the future being consistently pain free, with quality sleep. The minerals will always be there if needed, but I will no longer be reliant on them like I have been on the drugs.
Diana