HISTORY AND FOUNDATIONS
of the Structural Decompression Technique
The deepest roots of Structural Decompression Technique lay in classical Chinese medical theory. There is a well-known “statement of fact” in Chinese medicine that goes: “Where there is pain, there is stagnation; where there’s stagnation, there’s pain.” This chiasmic assertion causes the practitioner of Chinese medicine to so closely relate pain with stagnation as to make the two terms synonymous. Stagnation is a blockage in the natural flow of circulating substances (usually identified as “qi and blood”.) The blockage can come from the presence of heat, cold, an external pathogens, or from physical trauma. One of the most common causes of stagnation, however, does not originate from these external influences. One of the most common causes of stagnation is generated by our own habits. These habits can be kinetic (the way we move) or postural (the way we hold ourselves, such as the way we stand, sit, or lie down, and especially the way the we tense up.) Oftentimes, an injury will cause us to compensate in some way for the vulnerability. If this compensation persists, we develop unequal distribution of work and weight between articulating structures. The result is contracture; the habituation or persistence of this unevenness can easily lead to structural issues both major and minor, including deformities of the joints.
When stagnation is treated in Chinese medicine it is “moved out,” “dispersed”, “dispelled”, “broken up” or, if the “stagnation” is really just sluggish flow, it is “invigorated”. With soft tissue contractures, such as knots or tight muscles and tendons, the strategy is to “release” the contracture or “dispel” the accumulation. No other technique can accomplish the comprehensive, broad-scale release in one session better than Structural Decompression Technique.
Nicola Tesla
Structural Decompression Technique would not be possible without the mechanized focal percussion instrument. The theory behind the way this instrument works is founded upon comments made by the great inventor, Nicola Tesla. Tesla made many contributions to medicine, but he writes in his autobiography that felt that oscillation, delivered through percussion, was, of all his medical contributions, the most useful and valuable.
Tesla wrote in his autobiography that he felt that percussion held extremely powerful and effective possibilities for medicine — even more than electro-therapy! Tesla’s ideas of oscillation delivered through percussion for medical purposes materialized in Europe as an instrument used to free the Atlas by releasing contractures in the soft tissue. One of these techniques is a Swiss treatment model known as AtlasPROfilax™. AtlasPROfilax™ is a highly effective technique for allowing the Atlas to return to its natural position. A similar modality comes from Italy and is called ATLANTOtec™. From reports, both of these systems tend to be fairly stable, but they are not permanent and not comprehensive. There are degrees of stability and comprehensiveness; the next advancement from the European models is called Atlas Evolution™.
Atlas Evolution™ was developed by an intuitive healer named Ranan Shahar. Ranan is a trained acupuncturist and studied the AtlasPROfilax™ system in Switzerland. He practiced AtlasPROfilax™ for a few years and began to realize that the PROfilax technique could be “evolved” to include the whole spine and hip structures, as well as for energy balancing—all in one treatment. Ranan was the one to realize the importance of correcting both ends of the torque trajectory to increase the stability of the alignment. He developed many more innovations over the years, and continues to do so. Ranan provides Atlas Evolution™ treatments in dozens of cities in several countries and is always on the move. http://www.atlasevolution.com/
Structural Decompression™ builds upon Atlas Evolution™ by completing and expanding the 5 Axes component.
COMPARISON OF TECHNIQUES:
On the average, an Atlas PROfilax treatment takes about 20-25 minutes of actual hands-on work from the practitioner and treats only the Atlas area.
Atlas Evolution™ takes around 90-110 minutes for an evaluation + a full hands-on treatment and treats tailbone to Atlas, plus hips, jaw, and energy balancing.
A Structural Decompression™ treatment, even though it eliminates some non-essential pieces from the other forms, typically takes about 2.5 hours because a great deal more attention is paid to all of the 5 Axes.