Bowen Technique

The Bowen Technique or Bowen therapy is a holistic system of healing developed in Australia in the 1950s by Tom Bowen. The technique was limited to Australia until Bowen's death in 1982, when it was named, and spread by Bowen's apprentices.

Similarly to acupressure, the Bowen Technique involves a rolling manipulation of key points to stimulate energy flow, but the Bowen Technique uses only light touches, normally through light clothing. The practitioner may stimulate several points at once, identifying, as in other forms of massage, areas of built-up stress in the muscles.

An alternate view held by many Bowen Therapists is that the specific way that Bowen Technique addresses the muscles stimulates the stretch and golgi tendon reflexes as well as joint proprioceptors in a way that hightens the sensory awareness of the body in the area worked on. This can lead to strange sensations that are often mistaken as “energy movement” but actually have a sound physiological basis. Through increasing sensory awareness the move taps into the body’s ability to self regulate which, in turn, can stimulate the body to heal itself.

A typical session takes place over 30 to 45 minutes, with breaks during the session to allow the treatment to sink in. Sessions are usually part of a series of three to five sessions, beginning with general stress points such as the back and neck, before moving on to areas of stress specific to the person being treated.