Concussion Program
An Integrative Treatment Approach
"During the summer before the 2009 football season, I went through the CranioSacral Intensive Program at The Upledger Institute looking to deal with some nagging physical complaints I had from past injuries. I ended up getting the relief I was looking for and much more. I credit much of my well-being and my 1000 yard season to the multi-modality manual therapy program I experienced at Upledger."
The Dr. John E. Upledger Foundation and the Ricky Williams Foundation, in conjunction with the Upledger Institute Clinic in Palm Beach Gardens, FL, have successfully facilitated manual therapy treatment programs for 11 former professional football players from the NFL and Canadian Football League suffering from concussions and post-concussion syndrome.
The treatment program uses CranioSacral Therapy, Visceral Manipulation, Neural Manipulation, and other healing modalities aimed at helping the body heal itself.
CranioSacral Therapy and Visceral Manipulation: A New Treatment Intervention for Concussion Recovery — published in Medical Acupuncture, November 2017 — describes the effects of CST, VM, and NM modalities for patients with post-concussion syndrome.
A Commitment to Healing
Within our seven-day therapy program, pre and post testing is completed alongside four hours of manual therapy daily for five days, with daily group discussions for support and camaraderie.
All clients must meet the following requirements:
- Post-concussion syndrome diagnosed by an MD
- Not currently experiencing acute concussive symptoms
- Must be a retired professional football player
Introduction to Concussion Program — 5 minutes
Concussion Program with Participant Interviews
Several former NFL players are now advocates in the campaign about the debilitating long-term effects of traumatic brain injuries and multiple concussions. We continue to partner with them to spread the word about how manual therapies — including CST, NM, and VM — are critical missing pieces in existing concussion treatment protocol for people of all ages.
The Ricky Williams Foundation teamed up with the Upledger Institute Clinic in 2014 using CranioSacral Therapy, Barral Neural Manipulation, and Barral Visceral Manipulation for a five-day intensive manual therapy concussion program preliminary pilot research project.
Ricky Williams, who played professional football for 12 seasons and suffered repeated trauma to his head and body throughout his career, strongly supports this pilot program. The intensive was designed for football players with a predisposition to Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), with the objective of demonstrating that advanced therapies administered by certified, licensed manual therapists would help alleviate post-concussion syndrome symptoms.
The results from this study reach far beyond professional football — these manual therapies can help anyone who has sustained repeated trauma, including those injured in accidents of many kinds.
Presenters:
- Sally Fryer, tDPT, CST-D, SIPT Certified
- Melinda Roland MA, PT, LAc, OMD, Dipl-Ac, CST-D
- George Visger, BS, Wildlife Biologist, TBI Consultant, NFL Athlete (Retired)
Sally, Melinda, and George presented results from The Ricky Williams Concussion Project conducted at the Upledger Institute. The poster results were prepared by Gail Wetzler, PT, DPT, EDO, BI-D.
The 4th Santa Clara Valley Brain Injury Conference was held February 5–7, 2015 in Santa Clara, CA, with an audience of approximately 500 rehabilitation professionals, individuals with brain injury, family members, and caregivers. Notable attendee: Bennet Omalu, MD — the forensic pathologist who coined the term Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE).
No upcoming dates are scheduled. Check back soon.
