What Is Manual Therapy and How It Helps Chronic Pain, Undiagnosable Pain, Deep seated Stress, Chronic Tensions, and Bio-Mechanical Dysfunction

Do you live with chronic pain, tension, or stress that never seems to go away — even when medical tests and scans don’t show anything is wrong.

Consider manual therapy.  it often helps people who feel like they are stuck with pain and discomfort because nothing has brought them enough relief.   It is science based.  Much of it was developed by osteopaths.  It is safe, effective, relaxing, not painful, and calms the central nervous system.  The client remains fully clothed receiving manual therapy.  Manual therapy being wholistic  supports  long-term healing.  It is wholistic in that it addresses the physical, emotional and mental and spiritual aspects of a person.  This is why it can relieve pain and stress when nothing a person has tried Has brought enough relief.  We find that in order to help multifaceted  complex pain that sustains, often a combination of techniques needs to be used.  Techniques that can address any combination of physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual aspects of a person that are contributing to pain and stress.  None of these techniques involve any psychotherapy.   My clients do feel safe to let me know about situations that are causing them worries and concerns and to express any feelings without feeling judged. 

What Is Manual Therapy?  

Common benefits of manual therapy include:

Relief from chronic and undiagnosed pain

Reduction of common types of stress including trauma stress, and nervous system tension

Improved posture, flexibility, and body awareness

Greater sense of calm and emotional wellbeing

Manual therapy is a form of hands-on techniques that facilitates  the body’s natural ability to heal. Through gentle touch,  subtle techniques, and unique assessment  techniques a skilled manual therapist can find where in the body there are sources of pain and stress and address with painless  techniques.   Assessment techniques of manual therapy allows a therapist to get at root causes of problems and to become aware of the problem areas of the body that are acting together to cause pain and stress.  For example a person with chronic shoulder pain could have a restricted sacrum contributing to the pain. That the sacrum has to be addressed in order to resolve the shoulder pain.  Manual therapy allows a therapist to put the whole picture together.  In this example the chronic shoulder pain could be labeled as undiagnosable pain or mystery pain because nothing is showing wrong and nothing is helping the pain.  manual therapy offers  techniques that can pick up on situations that are not commonly  found with standard means of assessment  such as how the sacrum is involved with the shoulder pain in the example I stated.   Also trauma stress could be lodged in the shoulder that typical diagnostics don’t find. Trauma stress can be held anywhere in the body-and it can be a primary reason for pain. I use special manual therapy techniques to identify and release it.  Also PTSD energies get released along the way of therapy sessions. PTSD energies contribute to blocking healing.   Often people have a variety of sustained  tensions running all over the body that seemingly can’t be released. These along with mystery pain can be left behind by accidents, injuries, situations making unrelenting stress, surgeries, frights, and any types of trauma.  I can help Pain and painful movement  of any joint using a combination  of myofascial release, biomechanics, and a technique called muscle energy.  These were developed by osteopaths.  Now they are used by a variety of professionals besides osteopaths  such as physical and massage therapist. 
Unlike deep tissue massage or chiropractic adjustments, manual therapy is not about force.   It’s about listening to the body and encouraging it to self-correct through gentle techniques. this is known as indirect therapy.  It’s completely safe, not painful, relaxing and effective.

The Origins of Manual Therapy

Healing through touch is one of humanity’s oldest practices. From the teachings of Hippocrates in ancient Greece to the manual traditions of Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine, hands-on healing has long been recognized as essential to restoring health.

Modern manual therapy integrates this wisdom with current science — especially insights from neuroscience, quantum  physics,  fascia research, and biomechanics. The result is a holistic approach that addresses not just symptoms, but what’s driving symptoms.

My Approach: Three Complementary Therapies

I combine three highly effective forms of manual therapy to help clients find lasting relief from pain and deep-seated stress.  They are cranial sacral therapy, myofascial release, and integrative manual therapy. They create a synergy and complement each other which makes for effectiveness and help for a wide range of problems causing pain and stress.

1. Cranial sacral Therapy (CST)
CST works with the natural rhythm of the Cranial sacral system. This rhythm makes a continuous movement of the sacrum, vertebral joints, each bone of the face and skull, and membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord.  Also it causes  production of cerebral  spinal fluid  and makes it circulate in the brain and spinal cord and around the perimeter of them. If any of these bones have something preventing their freedom of movement many different symptoms can appear. They could be chronic anxiety, unrelenting stress, TMJ pain, facial and head pain, migraines, shoulder pain, trouble sleeping, any back pain especially low back pain, Tinnitus and ear pain, constipation, and others. Essentially cranial sacral therapy finds and releases restrictions that prevent freedom  of any of the bones of the cranial sacral system.  This is done with very gentle techniques using the hands.  In doing this  allows the ability of the central nervous system to function optimally.  Cranial sacral therapy promotes deep relaxation, and allows the body to reset into balance. I was drawn in to becoming a manual therapist by how deeply I relaxed in receiving my first cranial sacral therapy session. 

2. Myofascial Release (MFR)
Fascia is the connective tissue that surrounds and supports every muscle, bone, and organ in the body.
When fascia tightens — due to injury, stress, or poor posture — it can cause chronic pain and limit movement.

Myofascial Release uses gentle, sustained pressure to soften and lengthen the fascia, improving mobility and easing pain.
This therapy is ideal for those with fibromyalgia, postural imbalances, or long-term tension that hasn’t responded to other treatments.

3. Integrative Manual Therapy (IMT)
Integrative Manual Therapy takes a whole-body approach, addressing the musculoskeletal, circulatory, lymphatic, immune, and neurological systems together.
IMT identifies subtle restrictions that can affect organ function, circulation, or nerve communication — often the hidden roots of chronic or “mystery” pain.

By restoring natural movement, circulatory freedom, and releasing blocks to life force energy flow IMT helps the body function more efficiently and recover more fully.

Why Manual Therapy Works

Manual therapy helps on multiple levels — physical, neurological, and emotional.

- Releases physical restrictions: improving mobility and blood flow.
- Regulates the nervous system: calming the “fight-or-flight” response and activating rest, repair, and digestion.
- Supports emotional wellbeing: safe, intentional touch communicates safety, helping the body let go of stress and trauma.

Manual Therapy for Chronic Pain and Stress: A Path Toward Wholeness

If you’ve been living with pain that doctors can’t explain or tension that never seems to ease, manual therapy may offer the relief you’ve been looking for.
It’s a gentle, evidence-informed, and holistic approach that works with your body’s innate wisdom — not against it. 

Through cranial sacral therapy, myofascial Release, and Integrative manual therapy, I help clients move beyond pain and rediscover ease, calm, and connection within themselves.

Ready to Begin?

If you’re seeking manual therapy for chronic pain, stress relief, or holistic healing, I invite you to book a session or reach out to learn more.
Together, we can help your body find balance, resilience, and a renewed sense of wellbeing.


Healing is not about forcing change — it’s about creating the right conditions for the body to restore its own balance. Manual therapy offers a gentle, integrative way to do just that. Whether you’re living with chronic pain, stress, or tension that seems to have no clear cause, this approach helps you reconnect with your body’s innate intelligence and natural capacity to heal.

About the Practitioner

David Herring is a dedicated manual therapist passionate about helping people reconnect with their bodies and find relief from chronic pain and stress, and mystery” pain, drawing on craniosacral Therapy, myofascial Release, and Integrative Manual therapy.  He creates a safe, and compassionate space where healing unfolds naturally through intuitive touch,  skillful listening, and a science-based understanding of the body’s interconnected systems.