Student and Therapist Newsletter Archive
   - Ears

+ What does a shudder in the cranio sacral rhythm mean? - July 07

Hi John,
Thanks again to you for your always welcome newsletter with pertinent and humorous comment.

I've just started treating a two and a half year old girl (caesarian birth) for chronic ear infections. While assessing her cranially I picked
up a 'shudder' when her CS rhythm was in extreme extension; that is, a shudder in the rhythm as opposed to the body shuddering. I assumed it was connected to CNS trauma (possibly from drugs administered, or shock ...??). I would be grateful for any light on the subject.

Regards,
Harold Epstein.
Cape Town.

>>>MY COMMENTS:

Hello Harold,
It sounds like your palpatory skills are deepening, which is great.

To quote Sammy Davis Junior, 'The cranio sacral rhythm is like the great rhythm of life.' That's not an exact quote obviously, I've shortened it a bit because Sammy had a habit of waffling on about flexion and extension and the reciprocal nature of the system at the drop of a hat.
   And people used to wear a lot more hats back then so it happened much more frequently.
   Hat dropping that is.
   Hat-Tricks were popular too but I haven't got time to go into that now.

The cranio sacral rhythm is present in all the people we treat and the more you go into it the more you begin to pick up the subtle differences in expression of this rhythm between one person and the next.

This shudder that you describe is one of those differences. It is an expression of how this girls system interacted with her birth and her life to date. The great thing is that you can feel it. Remember when feeling extension was hard? Let me illustrate.

Let's say that you and I are sitting in the ballroom of the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas in 1966 and we are waiting for the Sammy Davis Junior show to begin. You haven't done too well at the gaming tables and I am feeling sorry for you. The fact that all the showgirls are hitting on me is not helping your mood either, but I digress.

I try to change the mood by talking about Sammy's music. I say how much I like the song, 'The rhythm of life.' and particularly how the use of the hi-hat causes anticipation in the verses and build up the chorus.

You don't know what a hi-hat is so I explain that it is part of the drum kit and consists of 2 cymbals. The lower cymbal remains stationary while the upper cymbal can be lifted up and down via a foot pedal.

You're not really getting it and I'm getting a bit tired of you ruining the party . . . and this always happens with you . . . and what did I invite you for anyway . . . Luckily Sammy takes the stage and conveniently launches into a
stirring rendition of 'The Rhythm of life.'

I point out the hi-hat to you. You see it and you can hear what it sounds like. Great. After the first chorus the booming sound reduces to the
simplicity of just the hi-hat and Sammy's voice. You look at me and smile knowingly. You wouldn't have noticed it if you weren't listening for it but now you can hear it very clearly. The effect the hi-hat has in the song.

The cranio sacral rhythm is like the hi-hat and the shudder is like the effect it has in the song.

Now don't get the idea that there is only one abnormality to the rhythm, 'the shudder'. There are millions of variations.

Right about now I expect you are saying, 'Well that's all great John and thanks for the trip to Vages but what does the shudder MEAN?'

I could give you a mechanical semi-enclosed-hydraulic-system kind of answer including cross currents etc. but I don't think it will help you
much.

Here is the useful thing to know. . . The very thing that allowed you to feel this shudder will also allow you to know what it means. It won't stop with the shudder.

Next time you are treating this little girl and you feel the shudder, allow yourself to feel what it means in the context of her whole system system.

I would pay close attention to how the shudder is expressed in her neck and here's why. . .
With chronic ear infections it is important to check the integrity of the Eustachian tube, as it is the main drain for the middle ear.

The Eustachian tube is an unusual shape. In cross section it's not circular like a pipe but is more of an elongated circle shape like a lozenge or capsule.

As the tube travels up the neck it twists. The twist acts as a valve to keep foreign bodies from travelling up the tube into the middle ear. If there are restrictions in the neck it will have the effect of inhibiting the tube and so drainage will be compromised.

Drainage may be very important if the child has had repeated antibiotics as they kill all the bacteria in the middle ear and leave a kind of sludge. It is difficult enough for the body to drain this sludge, a restriction inhibiting the Eustachian tube will make it even harder.

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