Dr. Upedger and I paused before going into the treatment room. Sammy, who had the left side of his brain removed to stop his constant seizures, was waiting inside with his mom. “Let’s work with Sammy’s stem cells to help him rebuild his missing brain,” Dr. Upledger said without reservation or apprehension. “Since stem cells can create any type of cell in the body, why shouldn’t they make a new brain?” He paused to let this idea sink in. “You know, bone marrow in flat bones is a main site for stem cells, so his head is a perfect place to start. I’ll begin at his head. Will you start with his ribcage?” I nodded, “Yes, sure.”
When we entered the room Sammy was lying on his back upon the treatment table, awkwardly trying to roll from side to side while crying and screaming. His mother, Alicia, introduced herself to Dr. Upledger, her eyes darting to Sammy then to Dr. Upledger, back to Sammy and then to the CD player. “We Can Work It Out” by the Beatles seemed way too loud. Alicia, sensing our concern about the music, said, “Beatles’ songs help Sammy calm down.” Raising his voice a little Dr. Upledger said, “I’d like to work with Sammy’s stem cells to see if they’ll rebuild his brain, OK?” “Sure, I’m open to anything that’ll help Sammy,” Alicia replied, her eyes continuing to fleet between Sammy, me, the CD player, Dr. Upledger, the wall, and back to Sammy.
We drew our chairs alongside the treatment table quietly so that we wouldn’t startle Sammy. Alicia, now singing along with the music to help calm Sammy, sat down, put one hand on his leg and began patting his leg just out of rhythm with the music.
Placing our hands upon Sammy, Dr. Upledger and I focused on sensing Sammy’s brain, body and stem cells. After about five minutes Dr. Upledger began to speak softly as he held Sammy’ head, “Sammy, I’m John and I’d like to help you. Is that OK?” Brief pause. “I’d like to ask stem cells in the bones of your head to go and make new brain parts. Is that OK?” Pause. “Great, thank you Sammy.” Then, “Sammy, you already know Tad, is it OK if he helps stem cells go from your chest into your head?” Pause. “Great, thank you Sammy.” Twenty minutes or more passed. I could see Dr. Upledger’s mouth moving as he talked to Sammy, but I couldn’t hear what he was saying. Sammy was screaming louder, Alicia was patting faster, and she kept turning the volume up on the Beatles who were now blasting out “She Loves You”.
All of a sudden Sammy’s bones and blood began to vibrate as if the New York Symphony and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir were playing and singing the same note. In that moment, like a switch turned, Sammy became still and quiet, his eyes softened and stopped moving all around; Alicia stopped singing and patting his leg, slowly stood, turned, and clicked off the music.
Then, after time passed in this quiet state, Sammy’s body signaled that he had finished his session’s work. Dr. Upledger said, “Great job Sammy, we’ll see you tomorrow, OK? Thank you.” We slowly removed our hands and pushed our chairs slightly back from the table. Dr. Upledger asked Alicia if she had any questions. She was staring at Sammy as he lay quietly on the table and said, “Well, yes, but right now I don’t know what to say, can we talk tomorrow?” Dr. Upledger smiled and nodded, “Yes.”
After two weeks of daily treatment Sammy and Alicia returned home to Iowa. Sammy came back to the clinic with his mom two to three times a year for several years, and he improved with each visit until he could manage at home with local practitioners.
Dr. Upledger is constantly using his intelligence, clinical experience and research to create and perfect his ideas within a CranioSacral Therapy context. He has a remarkable ability to investigate current thinking and research, and then distill the information into practical CST technique.
Dr. Upledger has shown me that each one of us is uniquely creative, insightful and perceptive, and when we embrace these qualities in ourselves to help others then the possibilities for growth, both of our clients and ourselves, is immense.
