Instagram story viewer> @k__suavi> Posts

Dr Kiefer Avi | Manual Medicine

@k__suavi

1.7K

followers

936

following

Manual Therapy & Somatic Education
Doctor of PT
CranioSacral
Cranial Somatics lvl 1 - Oct 23-25
📍Boulder, CO

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Are your headphones making you feel anxious?

Well, maybe…

Over the ear, noise canceling headphones may be super comfy but they come with a hidden effect

These type of headphones encompass and squeeze your temporal bones (the cranial bone which houses the ear) and reduces their ability to naturally rotate & move freely

It might seem small but it can have huge downstream consequences

It can lock up your diaphragm (can’t breath) and immobilize your sacrum (can’t feel safe) if prolonged for too long without intervention

My recommendation?

Take breaks and gently pull laterally on your ears to reset the rhythm after long days of work or travel.

It’s a shotgun technique, meaning it’s not super precise, but it’s better than remaining totally stuck!

As the tech increases so must our analogue self care abilities 💖
#cranial #craniosacral #osteo #osteopathy anxiety by @k__suavi

55

16

6 months ago

by @k__suavi

38

4

2 years ago

Cranial Somatics Demo

Want to learn how I do what I do?

April 25-27, Cranial Somatics level 1 course at the @oasis.denver

There are a few spots left for this first launch. All participants of the inaugural course will be honored with lifetime discounts and benefits for all future courses and trainings!

This is just the beginning
.
.
.
.
.
#movement #dpt #physicaltherapy #manualtherapy #somatics #somatic #therapy #somatictherapy #Osteo #osteopathy #cranial #craniosacraltherapy by @k__suavi

86

14

2 years ago

The “what” is basic, the “how” is infinite

In Cranial Somatics 1 we cover anatomy & biomechanics not from a clinical lense, but an artistic one

Like primary colors we build the understanding that it’s more about how we blend the basics

A joint can only move so many directions
A muscle can only contract one way

Once this foundation is understood we can focus on the qualities which uniquely connect the body through basic actions

That’s the real artistry
That’s the real journey

Not the “what”, but the “how”

_________________________

2 seats left for this Octobers Cranial Somatics level 1

Curious? Reach out for more details or visit the link in the bio at kieferavi.com/cranial-somatics

#dpt #manualtherapy #somatic #craniosacral #somatictherapy by @k__suavi

12

9

17 days ago

The guarding you feel is the first step to heal

Tension & guarding are natural

They protect the body after any traumatic event

Trying to “get rid” of tension is like asking to cut off your parachute after jumping out of a plane

Instead of viewing it as the thing your running from, what would change if it was viewed instead as a life saving cushion from an otherwise fatal drop?

These are the questions we aim to ask & answer in Cranial Somatics

I’m very excited and have some special twists (no pun intended) for this next round

Still 3 seats left, October 23-25 in Boulder, CO

Online versions coming 2027

Reach out for sign up and details

#manualtherapy #dpt #somatic #craniosacral #touch by @k__suavi

26

2

23 days ago

Allow me to explain why this is so special

1. The patient is working just as hard as we are - though you can’t see it, there is a constant invitation for her to express, push, pull and move with us throughout the treatment. This is different than any other modality I’ve seen up until now.

2. This is a family dialect, a recipe we’ve been honing for decades through multiple generations. My father and I made up the dance, so we can weave effortlessly between us. This is a combined 70+ years of experience when my father and I treat together

3. Beyond what we know, what we can study, we’re listening and aiding in the natural unraveling of the patient’s system. This process cannot be formulaic, it must be guided and adjusted to constantly

There is no name for what we do - because this is not a system. Just like in mathematics, the ability to write a formula which functions in the world comes through understanding the natural building blocks of the environment.

We are just observing her ecosystem and attempting to help guide it back to the neutral, harmonious state it inherently knows.

We aren’t changing the system, we’re restoring it by means of its own self-definition.

Interested? The next course is Oct 23-25 in Boulder, CO. Contact info@kieferavi.com for more details.

Before you can move fast, learn to be still and listen

#listen #touch #osteopath #craniosacral #fatherandson by @k__suavi

22

3

25 days ago

~ I am an artist, your body is the art

Still from a shoot with the incredibly talented & always inspiring @romanelikestodance

The intention of this shoot was to capture the treatment process off of the table - to show how movement meets manual therapy in an elegant dance when two people come together with patience & listen to the body’s subtle desires

Watch out for the film coming soon, and maybe some other collaborations in the future

Merçi Romane 🙏🏼

#touch #art #dance #move #feel by @k__suavi

156

12

a month ago

Cranial Somatics Level 1 October 2026

This will be a smaller cohort, and the first to receive the opportunity to bundle Level 1 & 2 ✨

It doesn’t matter how experienced you may be - if you have not participated in Level 1 there is no jumping ahead to Level 2

The concepts build on each other and the complexity from 1 - 2 is exponential

This is not so much a manual therapy course as it is a philosophy & language course. For that reason, among others, you NEED the experience of level 1

Level 2’s main theme is “Spiral Mechanics”

If you’re interested, this is the time to reach out.

Space will be limited so secure your spot before it’s filled up

Much love 💕

#manualtherapy #craniosacral #bodywork #touch #healing by @k__suavi

35

4

2 months ago

Pains come back if we don’t reset patterns at the system level

The best way we can reset a pattern at the system level is to understand why it was valuable in the first place

The body always has a reason for the patterns it creates, and when we can learn to see them as valuable art pieces we gain access to their meanings

A Picasso painting (The Pattern) may not look pretty to some, but to the artist (The Body) it is an incredible work of art

Seeing our bodies twists & pains as the brush strokes of incredible art changes how we interact with them

Novelty, curiosity… leading with loving interest

This is how the body can receive our ideas

For guidance on your own healing journey reach out about private practice, group trainings and 1:1 transformative containers

#somatic #healing #bodytalk #sensitivity #touch by @k__suavi

55

15

4 months ago

What’s missing from most manual therapy? Stillness

Most therapists are too focused on the outcome & never give themselves permission to slow down to a complete stop, but that’s where the magic is

Stillness is the best diagnostic tool of all

It allows the nervous system to trust another’s hands and touch, which will reveal more than any special test

When the nervous system stops guarding the entire system changes

Pains vanish and deeper tension/strain patterns are revealed effortlessly

Patients need patience

Try it out

#somatic #touch #bodywork #nervoussystemregulation #dpt by @k__suavi

43

13

4 months ago

“Normal” doesn’t exist, but “Standard” does

When balancing the body, we have to have a reference point we balance to

This could be unique for every individual, and still, you’d see common themes arise

This is standard - the commonly repeated and often reliable means of measuring unique bodies

If there is no standard benchmark it makes it much harder to identify problems & measure success

However “standard” can become its own kind of mental prison for even the seasoned practitioner

The important thing is to able to recognize what makes one persons standard DIFFERENT than another’s

This means that standard itself is a fluid concept, and is dependent on a multitude of factors

Knowing what to look for, how to test it and ultimately what that means for treatment is the difference between great practice and guess work hooligans

For someone to actually feel safe enough to relax and be held they need to trust the hands holding them

Knowing how to speak the language of both standard and unique, in reference to the exact body your working on can be a HUGE foundation for that trust

Don’t overlook standard, but don’t get stuck in it either

#manualtherapy #physio #dpt #fascia #myofascial by @k__suavi

21

4

6 months ago

On Manipulations

TLDR; Manipulations should be used as a final touch after treating the pattern, not as the entire treatment.

Manipulations are neither good nor bad. Like anything else they are just another tool

The problem is how overly prescribed they are

What you see here is a High Velocity Low Amplitude (HVLA) thrust of the upper cervical spine

What you DON’T see is the 2 hours of work I did to PREPARE the joint, the system & the pattern before administering it

And herein lyes the secret sauce: Manipulations are like the cherry on top of a treatment, not the foundation

When we (my father & I) choose to use a manipulations it is because we have released the pattern sufficiently across the multiple bodies (nervous system, musculoskeletal, fascial) so it can actually take root

The way most people use them is AS THE ENTIRE TREATMENT

And for us, that simply will not do

Imagine how silly it would be to continuously push a block back in place which is being pulled out by an attached cord - without ever releasing the cord

(The bone is the block and the musculoskeletal- nervous-fascial system is the cord)

It would be very silly!!!

Not wrong, but silly indeed. Although there is a temporary benefit, the system hasn’t been prepared to actually receive the change (so it goes right back)

Instead, what I’m showing here is the final moments of a 2 hour session where I “put the block back in place” after having prepared the surrounding environment

This is a specific and precise adjustment to the area I had been working on, not a shotgun technique spread across the whole area

If you’re in a chronic pain loop and your best effort to fix it is a weekly or bi-weekly adjustment you aren’t going to get better. That’s just not how it works

Actually, constant and repetitive manipulations can turn a nagging injury into a chronic pain pattern if it goes on too long

The underlying pattern MUST be addressed before any manipulations will have a long lasting effect. Bones don’t just “fall out of place”, they’re pulled

Cracking your neck isn’t a problem, but not doing everything else to accompany it is

#hvlamanipulation #physio #dpt #manualth by @k__suavi

14

8

6 months ago