Treatable Conditions are in alphabetical order. Please refer to the  Index to locate your condition.

Alzheimer's

Alzheimer's disease is unfortunately associated with poor functioning of the brain. Brain function is dependent on several factors: the health of the brain tissue, the circulation of the blood through the brain tissue, and the cerebrospinal fluid flow. Without proper flow of blood and cerebrospinal fluid, the brain cannot function at all, and if this flow is impeded or compressed in any way, function slowly begins to deteriorate. So it is so very important to insure that the fluid flow characteristics of the brain are optimized.

This is where NCR can help. By improving the shape of the head, fluid flow patterns of the blood and cerebrospinal fluid can be improved, allowing the brain tissue to function at the peak of its capabilities. Granted, with Alzheimer's disease, this will still be sub-optimal performance, but it will be a distinct improvement over the non-treated patient.

It is possible to reverse two or three years of Alzheimer's symptoms in each four-day sequence. NCR is an important part of a treatment protocol for Alzheimer's patients.

Anxiety

Clinically, it has been found that many NCR patients have reported major improvements in the levels of their anxiety, indicating greater levels of calm and poise and heightened feelings of optimism and cheerfulness. This is very gratifying to not only the patient, but their families as well.

The underlying cause of anxiety is a functional problem of the brain, so its treatment addresses brain functioning.

The problem with anxiety is associated with the levels of neurotransmitters in the brain. However, it is rarely a simple situation of under- or over- production, but instead a problem of the distribution of the neurotransmitters. Some areas of the brain have too low a level of some neurotransmitters, or some areas of the brain have too many neurotransmitters, or both situations are occurring at the same time in different areas of the brain. This situation makes it difficult to give medications that are effective, and most importantly, without side effects.

The flow of cerebrospinal fluid and the flow of blood are actually what governs the distribution of neurotransmitters. The shape of the skull determines this. With NCR, the skull shape changes, altering the patterns of the flow of cerebrospinal fluid and blood. As the fluid flow characteristics change, the patterns of distribution of neurotransmitters are changed as well. With NCR, the distribution patterns of blood and cerebrospinal fluid can be normalized, ensuring normal levels of neurotransmitters throughout the brain.

As skull shape is optimized, then, the functioning of the brain becomes more optimal also. This creates a lasting change in conditions like anxiety and nervousness.

Arthritis

Excellent results with arthritis conditions using NCR therapy have been realized.

Arthritis and rheumatism are conditions of the joints. NCR can change joint function in two major ways: through its ability to change:

1. The positions of the bones of the spine and pelvis, and

2. The nervous system.

Have you ever noticed that people who have these conditions usually have poor posture? With NCR, the postural patterns change, and, the areas of pain and stiffness in the spine and pelvis begin to disappear. When the weight - bearing patterns of the spine and pelvis are changed, the weight - bearing patterns of the hips, knees and feet change too. This means that the position of the feet during walking will not be the same. This can make incredible changes in a person's pain pattern.

The nervous system controls everything in the body, including the immune system. With conditions like rheumatoid arthritis or other autoimmune arthritides, optimizing immune function can make a great change in levels of inflammation, and this can be achieved through NCR.

People with bursitis many times are wrongly diagnosed with it. Fortunately, with these shoulder conditions, there is room for great improvement. Often the problem with a chronically frozen shoulder or other painful shoulder condition is both postural and muscular. The muscular problems are often caused by the joint dysfunction created from the postural pattern, which triggers chronic spasms of the muscles to guard the body from performing painful joint movements.

This occurs especially after whiplash injuries. It can make performing everyday activities, such as washing the hair, reaching toward the ceiling or zipping up the back of a dress almost impossible. Great success dealing with this syndrome by combining NCR with specific trigger point therapy and specific shoulder manipulation has been achieved.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Dyslexia and other Learning Disabilities

Learning disabilities are frequently treated with prescriptions of Ritalin, a nervous system stimulant. The prevailing theory is that neurotransmitter deficiency in the brain leads to malfunctioning of the brain. The immediate solution is to increase neurotransmitter levels throughout the brain with Ritalin to correct the deficiency. This medication often helps, but it does not cure. It increases the levels of some neurotransmitters throughout the brain.

The effectiveness of Ritalin shows that learning disabilities are not psychological but are, instead, conditions created by problems with nervous system function. A nervous system stimulant like Ritalin works by changing levels of neurotransmitters in the cerebrospinal fluid in the brain. This means that inappropriate levels of neurotransmitters in specialized areas of the brain cause learning disabilities. When the brain lacks neurotransmitters in some areas, concentration or interpretation of visual or auditory phenomena is impaired. So increasing the level of these neurotransmitters helps to temporarily get rid of the problem.

Then why doesn't everybody with learning disabilities take Ritalin or some similar medication?  The problem with administration of Ritalin is the side effects, which are generally symptoms associated with other areas of the brain becoming overdosed with neurotransmitters. If some areas of the brain improve function by increasing levels of neurotransmitters and if other areas of the brain get side effects by increasing the same, there is a problem of DISTRIBUTION, not a deficiency of neurotransmitters. So the symptomatic treatment of learning disabilities with medication that increases the level of neurotransmitters can never cure the problem because it doesn't address the situation properly.

A cure of learning disabilities must include optimization of fluid flow characteristics in the brain. With optimal flow of blood and cerebrospinal fluid, learning disabilities improve or cease.

The approach of NCR is to improve the flow of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) by changing the shape of the skull. As the cranium optimizes, the flow of CSF becomes more and more uniform, removing the problem of poor distribution of the fluids in the brain.

This seems like such a simple solution to an aggravating problem, and it is. But clinically it provides better results than the medications. There must be more truth to this model than the Ritalin deficiency model outlined above.

Autism

Autism is not understood and there is no predictable, effective treatment. It is believed   they all have problems with brain function, similar to those discussed with ADHD and hyperactivity. With autism, there is no simplified model that allows medications to control the symptoms, and people who come out of their autistic state can shed little light on it's cause.

Doctors practicing NCR have reported definite improvement, but it is slower and less predictable than with learning disabilities.

An important part of the effective treatment of autism is to optimize the structures of the head and spine in order to optimize the functioning of the brain. This can be done through NCR.

Brain surgery

After brain surgery, NCR is very important.

When the network of bone and connective tissue in the brain is changed through surgical intervention, there are great implications for the functioning of the brain and body. The structures of the head are changed dramatically with surgery, and there are usually no efforts to return the head to its normal mechanical function.

NCR can actually remove surgically induced dent and depression in the skull, optimizing the flow of the cerebrospinal fluid and thereby influencing the overall function of the brain in a positive, life-enhancing direction.

Cerebral palsy

Cranial therapy has been used for many years to treat persons with cerebral palsy. People generally fall into two classes with this disorder: those with excessive muscle tone (they used to be called "spastics") and those with too little muscle tone (it has been known as "flaccid paralysis").

Both of these conditions are related to the level of functioning of the cerebellum, a part of the brain in the back of the skull that controls muscle tone and the ability to stop movement once it has begun. One patient may have a hyper-functioning cerebellum and the other a hypo-functioning one. With NCR, once movement of the back of the head has been accomplished, the function of the cerebellum can be optimized.

Manic-Depression;Depression;Obsessive-compulsive disorder

Psychiatric conditions like depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and manic-depression (bi-polar disorder) are rarely effectively treated with counseling. Most of the time, psychiatric drugs are used, with the hope of changing the levels of the neurotransmitters in the brain. There are two problems with this: side effects, and the eventual uneven distribution of the neurotransmitters throughout
the brain.

The chemicals of the brain flow in liquid (blood and cerebrospinal fluid.) The flow of fluid is determined partially by the shape of the vessel. The brain resembles a sponge in ways. A round sponge can be put into a cubical container, but it won't hold as much water in the areas that are squished to fit in the box. Bottom line: you will have optimized brain function if you optimize the SHAPE of your skull!

With NCR, the shape of the skull gradually moves closer and closer to its optimal design. As the skull optimizes, the fluid flow characteristics of the skull, and the brain functions that are controlled by the fluid dynamics, optimize as well.

NCR is a must for anyone suffering with these conditions.

Concussion

Dramatic results using NCR on patients who have had previous concussions, from the head injuries associated with boxers to the auto accident victim whose head crashes through the windshield have been realized.

A concussion is a brain injury that results in a temporary loss of consciousness. This does not imply that there is significant, long-term damage to the brain. Concussion and other head injuries are the product of trauma. The normal medical procedure is to use X-rays or CAT scans to diagnose skull fractures and
then watch to see if there is any indication of cerebral hemorrhage. Beyond that, there is no medical treatment. However, even with no measurable brain damage, there are long-term problems caused by concussions, and people should receive treatment for them.

The head trauma involves some sort of blow or fall on the head, and the cranial bones will move because of this. This upsets the normal structural pattern that exists between the interlocking bones of the head, and it is unlikely or impossible for the head to resume its original position without treatment.

Down's Syndrome

These patients have many skull-related problems: poor vision, chronic infections of the sinuses and middle ear, nasal breathing difficulties, poor balance and posture, difficult speech, poor thinking and headaches.

Down's Syndrome is very treatable with NCR. Even with some of the old cranial therapies, there was dramatic improvement. As the nervous system functioning optimizes, improvements in speech balance, vision and coordination are obvious. They seem smarter as well.

Many doctors practicing NCR have received very encouraging reports from colleagues who have, and I believe it dramatically improves not only the patient's function but the cosmetic appearance as well.

Dystonia

Dystonia is a condition affecting the brain stem - a part of the brain found low in the back of the skull. Symptoms include spasms of the eyelids, uncontrollable closing of the eyes, chronic and uncontrollable closure of the mouth, spasms of the muscles of the anterior throat, muscle tension headaches and uncontrollable writhing movements of the head/neck. There is no medical cure or even understanding of where the condition comes from.

Standard therapy revolves around two treatments: 1) injections of botulism toxin to temporarily alleviate the annoyingly recurrent, uncontrollable muscle spasms and 2) prescriptions of tranquilizers and sedatives to calm these anxious, upset people.

NCR has proven successful to reduce the symptoms of dystonia.

Double vision is a condition in which the person is unable to focus their eyes without tremendous strain. Their comfortable eye position causes them to see two disparate images, hence the name double vision. The ability of the eyes to focus on a single image depends on the muscles of the eye working together. Double vision occurs when the eyes are unable to aim the visual field at the same image at the same time. When the images cannot superimpose, double vision results. There is no medical treatment of double vision besides prism installation in the glasses (to bend the visual image into an alignment in which the double vision is improved) or surgery for people who have one eye turned in or out.

The muscles of the eye work together in a simple fashion: they have common nerve enervation. The brain sends out one signal, and matching muscles in each eye receive the signal. The muscles contract the same amount (because there is only one muscle contraction command), and normally the eyes move the same distance in the desired direction. But with asymmetrical eye sockets, the eyes move different distances with the same amount of muscle contraction. This makes visual focusing problematic and, in severe situations, it leads to double vision. NCR technique addresses this problem by changing the shapes of the orbits of the eyes. As the skull is optimized, the orbits of the eyes achieve their ideal shapes, and the visual focusing mechanism operates as it was designed.

There have been excellent results treating double vision with NCR.  In severe cases, though, it could require twenty or thirty treatments to resolve.

Headaches, Head Pressure and Migraines

Headache, head pressure and migraines are treated very successfully with NCR. These conditions have many causes such as past head trauma, chronic sinus infections, allergic sinusitis, constipation, TMJ, stress, eye strain, glaucoma, and chronic misalignment of cervical vertebrae.

The head encases the brain and meninges. The head is held up by the spine, and its first bone (C-1) is known as the atlas, which surrounds the spinal cord (the continuation of the brain) and meninges. The stabilization pattern necessary to hold the head steady is created by the positions of the skull bones and the muscle tension patterns, which determine where the atlas is found.  Many people find relief from their headaches through treatments that move the atlas into a central position beneath the skull. These treatments are sometimes temporary because the body may need the atlas not to be centered to uphold the skull in the most stable way. The body will always choose to maintain the most stable structure even if it creates pain in the head. The priority is not to be pain-free but to be stable. So the painful position of the atlas may be the bestposition for the atlas, in terms of overall bodily function.

Most people with head pressure have not found any relief from conventional treatment. The head pressure is from meningeal tension, and the manipulation of the atlas is usually not effective in relieving meningeal tension.

Many patients with headaches, head pressure and migraines have a tilted occiput. (But there are people with a tilted occiput who do not complain of pain.) The tilted occiput causes instability in head balance that is best stabilized by moving the atlas out of a centralized position. The tilted occiput is the cause of the head pain. In theory, effective pain relief should be found by correcting the painful stabilization pattern of the skull/spine. And it is with NCR.

NCR is a wonderful therapy for head pain. It is the best treatment for headaches, head pressure and migraines that NCR doctors have found during many years of practice.

Heart conditions

People with heart conditions are safely treated with NCR. However, this is not addressing the cause(s) of the heart condition itself.

Insomnia

Insomnia is a condition that is difficult to treat. The many causes, and conditions to rule out are: hormonal problems, allergies, heavy metal poisoning, mineral imbalances, stress and poor home environment.

A leading cause of insomnia can be stress, which is often considered to be a psychological condition, but is very mechanical as well, regardless of its causation. Once present, stress can be relieved very effectively with NCR. Often times the stress can be relieved long-term by the NCR. (See anxiety)

Treatment of insomnia is generally biochemical. Sometimes changing nervous system balance with the mineral magnesium or pantothenic acid (vitamin B-5) can be effective. The use of tranquilizers and sleeping pills is usually of symptomatic help, and botanicals such as valerian, skullcap and hops are just a little better. Melatonin, (a pineal hormone), tryptophan (now a prescription item) and 5-HTP (a tryptophan precursor) can be symptomatically corrective too.

NCR can help to balance the body's hormonal patterns by optimizing nervous system function. Thus adrenal problems like high cortisol levels (a cause of insomnia) can be corrected. Similarly, low estrogen levels, which can lead to insomnia and hot flashes, can sometimes be treated with NCR.

Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and the related condition fibromyalgia, as well as the general term "low energy" are closely related problems, and part of the condition seems to be structural in nature.

There are many biochemical parameters associated with fibromyalgia and CFS, and they are an important component in a patient's recovery. In CFS and fibromyalgia, treatment of allergies, chronic and acute infections (viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites), detoxification of heavy metals and chemicals and the correction of problems in the home environment are all important.  Treatment of poor sleep, sleep apnea and insomnia is an important consideration as well.

But these are not enough. It is important to realize that there is an additional element to health besides diet and lifestyle, detoxification and treatment of infection, and that is the body's structure. Without proper STRUCTURE, the brain and nervous system cannot function optimally.

This is why NCR is an integral component for recovery from low energy conditions. With fibromyalgia, the major complaint is the aching of the muscles. The muscles primary job is to assist the skeleton in supporting the body. When there is chronic aching of the muscles, the obvious assumption is that the muscles are overworked because the skeleton is not positioned to support the weight. This is an obvious situation in which to use NCR.

Lymphatic Problems

The lymphatic system is part of the body's fluid circulating networks, returning the larger protein and waste products from the cells and tissues. It empties into the circulation at the vena cava near the heart. (The smaller, more watery waste products from the tissue and cells are in the venous blood already.) Lymphatic fluids circulate through the lymphatic system by the contraction and relaxation of the skeletal muscles, moving by muscle actions like toothpaste squeezed through a pastry tube.

With less skeletal muscle action, there is less movement of the lymphatic fluids. Proper lymphatic function is especially crucial during periods of detoxification from illness, dieting or cleansing programs. When the lymphatic system is not working right, the body can get toxic rapidly. It is sluggish lymphatic functioning that makes the muscles sore, the bowel movements especially foul, the breath smelly, the skin greasy and the temperament sensitive during these times because toxins are backing up in the lymphatic system.

The role of NCR for lymphatic circulation is small. There will be a difference in lymphatic functioning, but it will be indirect. The skeletal muscular tone will be different as a result of the postural pattern changes from NCR. This makes chronically tight muscles shorter and more flexible, which promotes lymphatic fluid movement where there would normally be little. There are also changes in nervous system functioning with NCR that could make a difference in the nervous system's response to the toxic situation.

TMJ (Mouth, head and jaw pains)

Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) Syndrome is a condition involving pain in the muscles of the jaw used for chewing and/or the temporomandibular  joint, which connects the lower jaw with the skull. There are limitations in the use of the jaw and joint sounds (clicking, popping or grating noises) when the jaw is used. However, many people normally have such joint sounds in the absence of pain. Pain can spread to the muscles of the shoulders and neck. More rarely, TMJ can cause disturbances of vision and balance.

These symptoms are created from the overall position of the bones in the head. Why would TMJ occur? The main reason is the position of the temporomandibular joints. When the temporal bones are not positioned
symmetrically, the mandible has difficulty making smooth contact with the skull. The temporomandibular joints are then stressed separately and uniquely. When the jaw joint binds, there are joint sounds and often, but not always, pain. The cranial balancing pattern, obviously asymmetrical with the TMJ, requires a painful position of the neck bones and musculature to maintain stability. This results in headaches, neck and shoulder pain, jaw pain and even problems with vision. The lop-sided, uneven positions of the temporal bones can lead to balance problems.

Repeated, great results using NCR to treat TMJ have been experienced. The correction for TMJ must address the problems of the entire skull, not just the local symptoms. When NCR treatment has progressed and the pain decreases from improved function of the entire head, the patterns of chewing are
different. Usually it will be better, but sometimes it can seem worse, especially with bridges, crowns and fillings that are shaped for the mouth of a crooked head.

When poor occlusion occurs, it is important to see a dentist for fine-tuning of the shape of the biting surfaces of the teeth. Continued chewing with a poor bite can traumatize the skull and move the bones of the skeleton into a different, undesirable pattern of stabilization. Rarely dental orthopedics
or even orthodontia will be required.

Muscle Spasms; Neck Pain and Shoulder Pain

Muscle spasms and neck and shoulder pain are obvious conditions to treat with NCR, and wonderful results have been achieved.

Muscles assist the skeleton to support the body, helping to oppose the actions of gravity. Muscles are tight and painful when the skeleton fails to support the body adequately. Generally, when the neck and shoulder muscles are painful, they are actually working perfectly! It is the skeletal structure that is so out of position that the muscles have to be painfully tight to help the skeleton hold up the body.

In many ways the muscles and bones "working relationship" resembles the use of cables to hold up crooked trees in an orchard. The tree would fall over without the support of the cable. No one blames the cable for being tight. Similarly, the muscles need to be tight to support the body because of the skeleton's lack of support.

Blaming the muscles for pain from tightness makes no sense.

To correct the muscle spasms or the pain in the neck or shoulder, the structural problems of the body must be corrected. Without correction, the problems of pain and spasms will reoccur. Traditional physical medicine treatment modalities have been shown to be ineffective. NCR is the only treatment technique that has the ability to address the CAUSE of the problem: the poor structural relationship of the body to gravity.