One of my colleagues in Charlottesville, Connie Staley, who is a fellow bodyworker (massage, Craniosacral therapy and Zero Balancing) heard about how busy I am with school and work, and she generously offered me 3 sessions of Zero Balancing for free. In exchange I told her I would blog about my experience and if she wants to use my testimonials, then great!
I have never received a full session, pure Zero Balancing (ZB) treatment before. On two or three occasions I have received the legs and hips section of it, or the ribs / shoulders section. Another time, someone with ZB certification worked on my neck. But today, I just received 50 minutes of straight ZB. And it was great.
Initially she had me sit on the table and she tested my range of motion in my arms and my hips (sacral-iliac joints). Then I lay down and she mentioned that I could, if I wanted to, voice an intention for the day. I said that physically my neck is stiff and tight and that I want to be able to better balance work and school stress and rest better. I will assess over the course of the next few weeks how that comes along 🙂
Over the course of the next 45 minutes or so, she worked on my hips and legs, doing hip stretches and holding my legs, assessing the range of motion of my feet and hip joints. Then she went to my torso – she adjusted or palpated my ribs and shoulders, spending some time around my shoulder blades. Then she worked on my neck. Last she did my arms. Then she went back through this whole list again, testing range of motion and getting my feedback for what was different. It was quite a nice experience.
Apparently, the theory behind ZB is that we hold tension in our joints and our bones. And sometimes, that energy or tension has no where to go – no outlet to leave the body. ZB helps to align the posture and free the connective tissue and bones of that residual tension. I know I am not explaining it fully – I am definitely not an expert! But whatever it does, I feel better an hour later.
On getting up (slowly and gradually), I felt my feet on the floor and then I took a few steps. I definitely feel more liberated in my neck and shoulders – especially around my scapulae (shoulder blades). My chest and ribs feel different – almost like my posture is natural now. There is no forcing a straight back. The discomfort in my neck is not gone completely, but it feels a little lighter and more free. It is almost like it was tightly bound together and now the tension has a different texture to it.
I will assess what I notice over the next seven days and I go back for another treatment next Thursday. Yay! I’m definitely looking forward to it.
If nothing else, it is a good modality from an excellent practitioner (and that is what matters most). The modality – whether ZB or massage or Craniosacral work or whatever – is only as good as the person doing it. The tool is only potent and efficacious in the hands of a skilled practitioner.
I suspect that after a short nap, I will notice more unfolding and openings happening in my body. I am very glad she offered and that I agreed to do this!
If you want to schedule a massage or a ZB session with Connie, I would highly recommend it!
Her contact info is 434.996.2640 and she sees clients in Charlottesville and maybe out at Lake Monticello.
Thanks for reading!
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