by Georgi Ilchev – President Bowen Association of Bulgaria
IN THE third and final part of my series of articles highlighting some of the lesser known or ‘unsung heroes’ of Bowen practice, I have selected Shoulder Release 3 (SR3), in my view the true gem of the Bowtech programme.
This procedure is one of the advanced moves available exclusively from Original Bowen Technique training and can be found in the SBP-2 manual.
I remember when I first saw this manual I was impressed by its sheer size and the number of procedures and additional moves covered. Among them was the SR3 but I did not pay it much attention! After all, there are so many other Bowen procedures and moves for the shoulder and this one, at that time, did not inspire confidence.
Moreover, the student’s attention is strongly drawn to a number of other procedures and moves, with standouts like Vagus, Colon, Gallbladder 2, Quadriceps and many others that can seem more interesting. As an instructor myself I know students are highly excited by these and the SR3 seems to be introduced almost as an afterthought. I admit, I also fell into this category. As I mentioned in the introduction to Part I of this series of articles for Bowen Training UK, I know therapists who don’t even remember studying this procedure.
My breakthrough came in 2016, in Geelong, excited to see the city in Australia where Bowen therapy began. I met many people and took the famous Tom Bowen tour. I was fascinated to connect and talk with people who were far more experienced in Bowen than myself, some were even patients of our visionary founder Tom.
I was able to ask many questions and heard many stories of Tom’s work and the results he was achieving. I remember a particular conversation regarding how exactly he worked on children who had neurological conditions and whether it was true some of them were even freed from the need for a wheelchair? It appears Tom was not much interested in peripheral work for these children. Rather, I was told he would regularly check the coccyx and work on it if required. Then, he would spend time to assess and work on the neck where he placed most of his focus followed by work on the jaw if necessary.
We know the neck is a key site. I couldn’t stop thinking about it and memories of the SR3 procedure kept coming to my mind. Returning home I started to apply and study this procedure more often. This was not only the beginning of my SR3 revival but also the start of something significant that has greatly impacted my practice and results achieved.
Our Bowtech SBP-2 manual lists only two indications for this procedure – swelling along the top of the shoulder and unresolved shoulder problems. However, my practice and observations for the past eight years have significantly broadened the indications to headaches and migraines of cervical origin, dizziness, high blood pressure, neck restriction and pain, high stress levels and more. SR3 has become a favourite procedure and integral to my daily Bowenwork. It greatly supplements and upgrades BRM3 for most neck issues, beautifully supplements TMJ and shoulder work and is my primary choice when working with high blood pressure alongside the Kidney procedure. SR3 can be used either as an alternative or in addition to Kidney. It is a true ‘unsung hero’, a valuable diamond that simply should not be overlooked.
The procedure relies on the therapist’s assessment skills which are entirely dependent on their tactile sensitivity. For beginners it may be difficult to even feel the suboccipital pulse let alone detect asymmetries in it. But the more you practice the easier it becomes. An experienced practitioner, one that has developed good tactile sensitivity, will not struggle with the assessment. The rest is simply a technical execution of the moves.
Editor’s note: Related articles can be found in our archive dated July 16th and July 31