• Welcome to Phoenix Rising!

    Created in 2008, Phoenix Rising is the largest and oldest forum dedicated to furthering the understanding of and finding treatments for complex chronic illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), fibromyalgia (FM), long COVID, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), and allied diseases.

    To become a member, simply click the Register button at the top right.

Atlas Profilax treatment

WoolPippi

Senior Member
Messages
556
Location
Netherlands
I found no references to use on animals.
But there are not many animals holding their head on top of their spine, most wear it in front, walking on four legs.

regarding "trolls": trolls are commenters who try to derail a conversation and try to get a raise out of people. They do not post genuine comments. Often they try to hurt and mock people. Or influence opinions for their own gain. It's cyber bullying really.
We have no trolls in this conversation, we're all genuine people :)
All view points and contributions are very much appreciated.

Cricket's story was what made me cautious before I had the AP. I decided to take the risk but was well aware that I too might be plunged into chronical pain.
 

golden

Senior Member
Messages
1,831
I found no references to use on animals.
But there are not many animals holding their head on top of their spine, most wear it in front, walking on four legs.

regarding "trolls": trolls are commenters who try to derail a conversation and try to get a raise out of people. They do not post genuine comments. Often they try to hurt and mock people. Or influence opinions for their own gain. It's cyber bullying really.
We have no trolls in this conversation, we're all genuine people :)
All view points and contributions are very much appreciated.

Cricket's story was what made me cautious before I had the AP. I decided to take the risk but was well aware that I too might be plunged into chronical pain.

Personally, woolpippi, i like to be fully informed you see, of a treatment before i consent which is why i like to hear everyones genuine stories.

The inclusion of a story which is not genuine, from a 'troll' would be a nuisance. Either touting positive or negative.

I see now the reference to troll was initially meant regarding the alien implant theory.... I wanted to just check though by initially asking.

still not got the full flavour of the word and language is always in a state of flux.

I thought someone who 'derailed' a thread was said to have 'hijacked' a thread - i guess then this could be due to a 'troll'.

As it happens, the alternative practitioners i trust, are really eagre to hear negative feedback. And are not scared, insecure, defensive about it fearing that if they focus or acknowledge it in any way then it increases it and so on!

Awareness is the key, here.


This could be a marker in fact of how good they are (they are very good in their area off expertise ) - I do have naturally high standards -

They also don't try to make silly excuses as to why something is not working - and GOODNESS ME!!!

Have I heard some silliness. I have heard practitioners have such disdain for their clients it is UNBELIEVABLE:

Some more common things said about clients :

1. They dont really want to be well
2. They drained me of energy
3. They are vampires
4. Its bad karma from their past lives
5. Its not my technique - the damage is just a healing crisis.


It warrants its own thread probably. I guess over the years I have built up my own good guide. II would have appreciated a head start.

I have already picked up on how your practitioner for the AP technique gave you the option - after walking you through the pros and possible cons - of walking away free of charge - with no bad feeling.

This is a very good policy. *


I was chatting about all this yesterday with my friend.

We ended up doing a spontaneous play about healers who metaphorically :

push you over and make you cry (the crying is the healing tears lol)
take your money
then make you responsible for not getting better!

HA!

Do I have a few stories ! :)


I am 100% for empowering the healer within.

Best
Golden

p.s. I am sorry but I don't understand reference to Hilary Clinton.
 
Last edited:

golden

Senior Member
Messages
1,831
http://spinalalignment.com/2007/09/17/atlasprofilax-a-potentially-dangerous-procedure/

I have been reading this which may explain why people are having such contrasting experiences of AP.

Something about 1) not everyone has a displaced atlas

2) when there is displacement it is individual not all on one side.

I have been trying to find a Chiropractor today. I dont know about getting an xray before and after.

But on this thread a Upper Cervical Chiropractor is specifically mentioned/guppa/oa and nucca.

Does anyone know what will be the safest chiropractic method i should try?

I think McTimoney is my past experience.

Best Golden
 

leela

Senior Member
Messages
3,290
Wow! I *loved* this treatment! Of course we'll have to see how it unfolds, but I must say those machines were what my gluey, hardened neck has been craving forever! (I admit I fantasized about breaking in later to steal them for home use!) There was no pain at all--in fact quite the opposite, I was in heaven. He had perfect sensing-in about what was just the exact right pressure.

I loved the guy from the get-go: zero paperwork, zero attitude about being chronic, unemployed, etc. Some brief questions about history but not a shred of attitude about it, or even a word of "advice". None. How refreshing! I knew we were on the same page when, without any coaching from me he said he was not there to DO anything to me, just facilitate and work *with* me. Right on.

I feel an incredible brightness, lightness and alertness. I am standing straighter without effort or thought. My step is stronger, less fragile and tentative. Turning my neck to back up the car is no longer painful. During a stop at the food co-op on the way home, I noticed that Hunger you all were talking about. Not the usual no-appetite-but-need-to-eat-immediately hypoglycemic feeling, but a genuine, welcoming hunger for healthy nourishing food.

I did three errands after the treatment, which is usually past my limit, and which would mean the groceries sitting in their bags on the floor for several hours before I could put them away. Nope, I put them away right when I got home, and then sat down to eat.

I really hope this holds! I especially hope it makes my migraines disappear. That alone would be worth every penny.
Thanks to all for this lively, engaged thread, which totally prepared me to know whether this guy was the right fit or not. He definitely had no hidden agendas.

@WoolPippi , I forgot to take the before picture! I even brought my iPad, but I didn't remember to ask him to snap a "before."
Your photos were a large factor in the decision, so thank you for having had the presence of mind to take and post them.

Oh and @Wayne, your careful notes are inspiring me to write down the things I notice now and as they develop.
 

perchance dreamer

Senior Member
Messages
1,691
I'm glad the AP helps so many people, but I did want to add that it didn't help me at all. In fact, my neck and back pain was worse for awhile afterward.
 

Wayne

Senior Member
Messages
4,300
Location
Ashland, Oregon
Wow! I *loved* this treatment! I feel an incredible brightness, lightness and alertness. I am standing straighter without effort or thought. My step is stronger, less fragile and tentative. Turning my neck to back up the car is no longer painful. During a stop at the food co-op on the way home, I noticed that Hunger you all were talking about. Not the usual no-appetite-but-need-to-eat-immediately hypoglycemic feeling, but a genuine, welcoming hunger for healthy nourishing food.

HHHOOOORRRAAAYYYyyy!!! ... :thumbsup::balloons:;):):balloons::thumbsup::hug:

Leela, do keep us posted; this is exciting! I just remembered an inner reference I used to think about: "Before AP", and "After AP". It was just that significant for me. --- A friend of mine mentioned how much safer it was for him to ride his bike after doing the AP, because he could now turn his head and look over his shoulder. Also, he went to sleep that night and never stirred, waking up in the exact same position he went to sleep in.
 
Last edited:

golden

Senior Member
Messages
1,831
I'm glad the AP helps so many people, but I did want to add that it didn't help me at all. In fact, my neck and back pain was worse for awhile afterward.

Sorry to hear this.

I personally really value the feedback.



@thread
Upon requesting a refund for my failed treatment in the most gentle tone I have been told

1) To be patient

(its been over a year)

2) That I need to take responsibility for my own healing journey.


I am displeased that these are the sorts of comments being made to people who offer feedback of the failed treatment as it really is inaccurate.

It simply attempts to deflect the acknowledgment of truth of a failed treatment .

It borders upon the ridiculous to say to some one that healing from the AP may come after a year and with a course of Chiropractic treatment.

This AP has been more problematic lately for me and I wouldn't have dreamed of blaming the treatment I received over a year ago.

Needless to say, I have sent a very aware reply back including questions sparked from the information gleaned from this thread.

Best
Golden
 

golden

Senior Member
Messages
1,831
@leela

I think that maybe the most successful write up of a treatment i have ever read.

Are we looking at an instant cure? I really hope so :)

From strength to strength
Golden
 

brenda

Senior Member
Messages
2,266
Location
UK
@WoolPippi

I had a treatment about 4 years ago, by a doctor in Germany giving light therapy treatment for Lyme. While he was examining me he felt that I needed some spinal realignment and asked me permission to do it there and then. He said he was trained in Swedish chiropractic. I said yes and he proceeded to wrap himself around me and gave my neck a yank. It was not painful and the relief was immediate. I felt a burden had been removed and was much more relaxed but the effect wore off in time. I have heard that chiros in the UK are not allowed by law to do some manipulations and perhaps this is one of them.

I am really interested in following this up and wonder if you would mind telling me who the practitioner is in the Netherlands.
 

Lou

Senior Member
Messages
582
Location
southeast US
I've got too much going on right now to try this, but am very interested and may have it done this spring. If they are willing to give names of their practitioners my choice would be between Leela;s and Wayne's.

Getting the right person to work on (uh, sorry, leela) work with you seems to me key.
 

WoolPippi

Senior Member
Messages
556
Location
Netherlands
@WoolPippi
I am really interested in following this up and wonder if you would mind telling me who the practitioner is in the Netherlands.

Felix Baas in Amsterdam: http://www.corpusmassage.nl/ :)
Wayne's link provides all trained practitioners there are, including Felix Baas.

@leela YAY! weird eh? I forgot to take a before picture too, I happened to have one because I learned how to sew a dress. For me the AP-honeymoon is over, 7 days later. I have to wórk to keep the free posture and movement.

@perchange dreamer Thank you for your input. I hope the pain subsided after a while.
 
Last edited:
Messages
2,565
Location
US
With a little luck, I will get AP done in the next 7 weeks.

For me the APhoneymoon is over, 7 days later. I have to wórk to keep the free posture and movement.

A lot of your benefits have worn off? If you work at it, I hope you can maintain benefits.
 

WoolPippi

Senior Member
Messages
556
Location
Netherlands
With a little luck, I will get AP done in the next 7 weeks.
A lot of your benefits have worn off? If you work at it, I hope you can maintain benefits.

none of the previous posture problems have returned
but I find old habits creeping back in

(sitting hunched in front of the computer, not moving or stretching, not keeping my posture straight, pulling my shoulders up, being tense all over, wearing my head tilted, not allotting my energy or time very well.)

It takes wórk to go outside and take a walk. I've never done so, I was too tired. Besides: what's outside? There's plenty to do inside (surf the internet mostly)
Also: once outside it takes about 5 minutes before the AP joy of moving returns. Those 5 minutes I feel grumpy. So I have to overcome both not-wanting-to-go-outside ánd grumpiness.

it is wórk, to install new habits. I tend to be lazy energy-efficiënt and be set in my ways. But I'm adament to embrace this new, better posture. So I'm doing the work.

One trick I have is: wear a dress. In a dress I feel like a princess or ballerina and they sit up straight.
Another trick is to invent a goal outside: go post a lettre, go buy mint tea, go look at a tree where I once saw a squirrel. Go buy a dress. (I live in the city centre, it's only a short walk to the shopping street.)
Third trick: pace myself. Stick to that one goal per day you had before the treatment. Shower or cooking a meal. Do one, be content. And dance whenever vertical.
 
Last edited:

Dainty

Senior Member
Messages
1,751
Location
Seattle
The Atlas Profilax is only one of a myriad of adjustments that could be made to the body, depending on the problem.

Anytime there is a structural issue in the body, it causes or creates other structural issues. Because it's all so closely connected. Bones don't just "fall" out of place (as I've heard a chiropractor tell me), rather, they've being held out of place by a myriad of connections. This is why structural treatments often do not stick. And the more instantaneous the treatment is, the least likely it is to last. Our bodies instinctively resist fast forces, but slow forces can literally bend bone without harming it.

My osteo tells me about people who come in with neck problems, who see a chiropractor for it but the treatment doesn't stick. He says most often, all that's needed is some gentle work on the middle of their back and he doesn't even touch their neck. They protest - "you didn't even touch the problem!' He says "do the exercises I gave you and call me in two weeks." Two weeks rolls by and they call back. The issue is completely resolved for them.

Structural adjustments have been my primary treatment for the past, year and a half, I think? There is so much more involved than just moving bones. If bones are out of place, there are reasons behind that which must be carefully unraveled in order to heal the problem for good. Furthermore. bones are actually classified as connective tissue and will change shape according to how they're being pulled. If they've been pulled in the wrong direction for a long time then a single adjustment isn't going to change their shape overnight.

If someone is able to take one adjustment, listen to how that helped their body and what needs to change and carefully continue to build on that, then that's absolutely fantastic! But I find it puzzling why someone would choose the Atlas Profilax over a professional who can do that plus hundreds of other adjustments, and is trained to customize the treatment specific to your body's needs and physical state.

This stuff can be dangerous - a treatment caused an issue where my airways were shut except if I held my chin to my chest. That was the only way I could get a little bit of air. Raising my chin, I could not inhale at all. I spent the better half of a day like this. The first osteo I saw dismissed the issue as psychological. With the second osteo, I warned him about it, and he was able to tell how the treatment would have resulted in that based on my physiology, which fascia was causing this restriction, and instructed me to gently apply heat and pressure to certain areas, particularly the base of my ribcage where that fascia attached. This slowly resolved the problem over a few hours.

Another time, following a treatment my food and water was constantly "going down the wrong pipe". We're talking at least 4 times per meal. This is after extremely gentle treatments - nothing exceeding light pressure, no kneading or massaging of tissue. Yet it can be extremely powerful, because a treatment makes your OWN body want to move stuff, change the way you carry yourself or hold yourself. And if your structural issues are complex sometimes one issue can get tangled with another and cause a mess.

This is why I personally am not comfortable with most structural therapies out there, including the Atlas Profilax. I need a doctor who knows precisely how each structural adjustment would have a chain reaction on the rest of the body, who would be able to determine if there are structural issues that might interfere with it, or if there are more pressing needs that should be dealt with first. And if something goes wrong I need my doctor (neuromusculoskeletal specialist, a.k.a. 100% cranial osteopath) to be able to determine why and how to fix it.

leela's experience with AP is very similar to my experience with cranial osteopathy, though over my whole body. One thing to note regarding headaches is that the bones in my skull were literally too hard, from trauma that hadn't healed fully. "She's - literally - hard-headed" became the running joke. To date there has never been a pain anywhere on my body that my osteo couldn't immediately ease and also provide ideas and information on possible ways to relieve it long-term and for good.
 

leela

Senior Member
Messages
3,290
I'll add that my decision to do AP was based on a knowing that this was the pressing need for me at this time. I believe that is why I responded so well, because this area was highly problematic, and had not been addressed sufficiently in the myriad modalities I have tried to date. These have included some wonderfully skillfull and lovely practioners of craniosacral, osteopathy, massage, orthodontics (splint), chiropratic and acupuncture.

The pressing-need POV had been confirmed by my neurologist who had assessed that something like 75% of my brain swell is due to C1/C2 being whacked and blocking drainage. Another good indicator was the horrible grinding, pain, and rock-hard tension perpetually at the occiput and neck.

It was when I spoke to this particular practitioner and determined that his approach was in alignment with my needs that I was able to know this was right for me. I would not have considered it had it not been an hour appointment, among other things.

I believe it is important to note that when we talk about any modality, we are also talking about the practitioner and the patient, which are crucial variables. Those who eschew, say, acupuncture because they had an unsatisfactory experience may (or may not) be throwing the baby out with the bathwater in the sense that that practitioner may not have had the proper skillset, either in general, or for that particular relationship.

Personally I would never say "everyone should do AP." That's like saying "everyone should take penicillin."

****

And now for an update: I slept incredibly well the night I had the AP, but not so much this night. I had the Wonderful Appetite
(and still do) which is to say, my appetite for hearty, healthy food in completely reasonable quantities remains, and it is such a relief after a very long time of no appetite beyond a sense of duty to the body. Digestion is remarkably improved.

However, sometime yesterday afternoon I got the crashy blood-sugar feeling (which isn't always blood sugar but the adrenals going wonky) despite having eaten well. This morning I awoke from a fretful sleep with the headache and tension from nocturnal teeth-clenching. I think yesterday afternoon what was hitting me was PEM from both the treatment (there is a lot of vibrating at the core-level) and the many errands I did after the appointment. This morning's bleurgh I think is continued PEM.

I'm appreciating @WoolPippi's explication about need to participate actively in the body's restructuring, as I notice my own core strength renewed, but somehow "at odds" with my energy envelope. I guess I'll rephrase it from "at odds" to something like recognition that I must bring more conscious awareness to moving with the strength, and balancing with the need for rest.

I can see that clearing this block has shifted also the need to "block out" pain and exhaustion with a set of habitual tactics. Therefore, I need to be extra aware of not turning to these tactics out of familiarity, and instead create new patterns for when it is time to rest and restore.

The need to lie down a lot is a fact of life for managing OI and energy envelope. But the way I do it is all wrong now in terms of posture etc. I am going to have to figure out how to support the body for rest and comfort while still supporting postural integrity.

Anyhow I'll stop there. Thanks to all for your input. It is wonderful to open together to how our individual alignments with reality are of collective benefit.