Education Spotlight with the American Bowen Academy

This blog is sponspored by the American Bowen Academy.

Bowenwork lets you:

• work smarter, not harder
• improve your clients’ quality of life
• reduce wear and tear on your own body
• work through clothing, without oils or lotions
• get results anywhere, even without a table
• work on multiple clients in the same time frame

What distinguishes Bowenwork from other, more traditional forms of bodywork?

Instead of attempting to directly relax tight muscles, with repeated mechanical manipulation, Bowenwork addresses them indirectly, with subtle signals to the fascial, neural, and energy systems of the body, stimulating the body’s innate healing mechanisms and ability to reorganize dysfunctional tension patterns. Bowenwork is a “hands-on/hands-off” technique, due to pauses between sets of moves to give the body time to integrate its responses. Another signature feature of Bowenwork is the spacing of sessions approximately a week apart, in order to optimize the healing process. Results with both chronic and acute conditions are often astounding and long-lasting—sometimes immediate, other times gradual over several weeks. Compared with some deep-tissue modalities, very little force is required, making Bowenwork easy on the practitioner’s body too.

What sorts of professional opportunities can a certified Professional Bowenwork Practitioner expect?

Bowenwork benefits people of all ages and conditions, from newborn infants to the elderly, including pregnant women and professional athletes. Bowenwork practitioners work in many settings, including private practices, general or specialized group practices, chronic pain and rehabilitation clinics, hospitals, nursing homes, and athletic training programs.

Is training in Bowenwork more appropriate for new or seasoned practitioners?

The basic cross-fiber Bowenwork “move” is unique, and all practitioners, seasoned or new, will need to learn to use their hands differently from what they’re used to. Having more anatomical knowledge makes it easier to find the locations for Bowenwork moves; having less experience often makes it easier to adopt new ways of working.

What do you believe are the keys to success for Bowenwork practitioners?

The desire to help people find relief from whatever ails them. Bowenwork stimulates the body’s capacity to heal to the extent it is able; therefore, practitioners benefit from seeing their purpose as facilitating a process of change. Not trying to “fix” clients increases the likelihood that clients will experience positive changes even beyond those initially sought.

Tell us about the origin of Bowenwork. How was this modality created?

Bowenwork is derived from Oswald “Ossie” Rentsch’s interpretation of the work he learned between 1974 and 1976 in the clinic of the legendary Thomas A. Bowen of Geelong, Victoria, Australia. Ossie converted his own massage practice to Bowen’s more osteopathic style of work, and his practice boomed. After Bowen’s death in 1982, many professionals asked Ossie to teach Bowen’s approach to them. He finally began teaching in 1986 using a manual based on his notes from his years with Bowen. That manual has evolved into today’s Bowenwork manuals.