Why CST?

by Dr. Kathryn J. Woodall, DC

Why CST?

The benefits of CST can be many:

• Improved neuro-immuno-endocrine response
• Increased range of motion
• Increased strength in multiple planes of motion
• Release of fear-reactivity
• Improved balance
• Improved overall health

The advantages of CST can be many:

• Relatively low investment to learn a practice that can be done daily for the rest of one’s life
• A practice that can be performed at home or away
• The ability to progress as one’s sophistication of skill improves
• The ability to be creative with the motions so that practice never becomes boring
• Health first is the approach of CST, and the coaches live their lives by that
• Almost anyone at any skill level and age can either practice or have a CST instructor or health care provider help them to modify the material so that they can practice and gain benefit from that practice.

The above lists are not all inclusive by any means. While those benefits are all things that I consider to be of extreme value, none of them captures my main reason for practicing CST daily.

A long-time client of mine recently asked me why, after all these years of never “jumping on any bandwagon,” I endorsed CST wholeheartedly and passionately. I was running through the lists that I made above when she stopped me.

“No, those are benefits and advantages,” she said. “But there are other programs out there that offer at least some of things that you are listing. You aren’t easily sold on something, so why are you personally choosing to practice CST every day?”

That question surprised me, but she was right. Something else was motivating me, or I wouldn’t have so easily turned from some of the things I was doing before to get a few of those benefits. My gut reaction was that it just feels right; it makes sense to me. But that isn’t the kind of answer one gives to a patient. I thought it through some more, and this is what I realized.

CST is a physical practice, but to me it is much more than that. It is the daily practice of a micro system which mirrors the macro of how to solve almost any problem in life. Just as in my physical practice, if there is something wrong or if something is causing me pain in any area of my life I ease off and go away from that problem. From a distance I determine what I can do that will shave away at the problem without taking me into too much discomfort. There can be some discomfort present, but not too much discomfort. If it gets to be too uncomfortable I back off a little more. If it starts to be really comfortable, I advance. By practicing those skills every day in my daily personal practice I become more and more proficient at them.

This doesn’t just apply to problems. It can also apply to goals. If I want to accomplish a certain goal I don’t go straight for the end result. I start with something that is slightly away from my target and I slowly shave away the distance to the goal by building my skills daily. Sometimes I might go too fast so that my technique gets sloppy and I experience a setback (or if I wise up and be honest about it, I regroup and do what is necessary to prevent trauma). At other times I realize that I could use more effort. Because I practice getting feedback about my perceived discomfort/technique/effort levels every day, I become more skilled at knowing when one of those levels needs to be adjusted so that I might be more effective in my life. This back and forth motion becomes a rhythm so that when I am doing it well it is a symphony, and when I am not there is disharmony.

Over time I will become more and more proficient with the feedback system, until it becomes an ingrained skill which can be accessed as quickly or as slowly as is appropriate to the situation. The phrase ‘selective tension’ is used often with regard to the physical practice of CST. If one lets CST techniques spill over into the rest of one’s life, you begin to access the ability to apply selective emotional and mental tension as well. As with selective tension in physical practice, when applied correctly to emotional and mental experiences it uses less energy and it leaves a person more refreshed on the other side of those experiences.

While I couldn’t verbalize all of this when my client asked, I now realize that my answer to ‘Why CST?’ is: Because it is far more effective than I ever imagined the first time I looked through the material, and because it applies to more than just the physical practice that it appears to be solely comprised of. Daily practice seems so simple, but over the years the benefits increase exponentially. Through adaptability and flexibility, by being able to flow with life, we each increase our power to induce positive change within ourselves, and potentially within the world that we are a part of.

And that brings me full circle back to my gut reaction – it just makes sense.

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VOLUME 4 ISSUE 4

ISSN#: 1555-7723

Publisher: Scott Sonnon - Senior Editor: Ryan Murdock

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