Dorn m ethod

Back & Joint care – safely, naturally & gently

Dorn Method is a gentle, safe and effective treatment designed to alleviate back and joint pain in people of all ages. It is used to to correct misalignments of the spine and other joints, thus addressing many health issues from back pain and sciatica to migraines.

You can reach Touching Well by mobile: 0794 227 6538, or via our landline 0115 648 9636, or the contact form.

Opening times: Monday to Thursday daytime

I hope to see you soon. With warm regards, Regina

The Dorn method focuses on restoring balance to the body and promoting long-term health through a combination of three elements: the actual treatment, encouraging better posture and a set of self-help exercises to practice at home.

The key to success

One of the key features of Dorn's effectiveness is its approach to getting joints to move more readily back into their correct, natural position and then stay there. A twisted or badly seated spinal column may have vertebrae that are being held out of place by muscles under strain. Any attempt to move the joint back into position will fight against the muscle. Rather than forcefully trying to move the vertebrae Dorn works by cleverly distracting muscles while corrections are made.

The muscle distraction is achieved by asking the client to actively participate in the treatment by moving the joint at the same time as the therapist pushes or guides the joint back into its proper position using gentle thumb or hand pressure. This is completely safe because it requires only light pressure, the correction pressure is stopped as soon as any pain arises and, if you stop moving, the therapist will stop immediately.

“At 31, I had experienced quite painful lower back pain for some 9 years, been diagnosed with an inflamed sacro-iliac and bursitis in both hips. Chiropratics had worked temporarily, but I moved so often from place to place that the treatments never lasted for very long. Chronic pain was a daily experience for me, until I discovered Regina's website. I enquired about the Dorn method and the Breuss massage and, after four treatments, feel well for the first time in almost a decade! Regina is a wonderful masseuse and, most importantly, an excellent listener. The treatments have been tailored to my history and also how I'm feeling at the time, and both the Dorn exercises and the Breuss massages are extremely gentle and relaxing. Since the Dorn exercises can be done at home on a daily basis, I also know that I can help myself, and I am always surprised how such gentle movements can make such a difference. I feel balanced again, and recommend to others to give this a try!"
Tania, Wollaton, Nottingham

History

The Dorn method was developed by Dieter Dorn more than 35 years ago in Bavaria. Dieter Dorn, a saw mill owner, injured himself by lifting a heavy log and suffered lumbago. He was helped by an old farmer who was locally known as a healer. Intrigued, he asked to learn the healer's techniques, who replied: “you already know them”, implying how easy they were to learn and do yourself.

"Dorn's first patient was his wife who for several years had suffered from severe headaches. According to some doctors, the transverse processes of her cervical vertebrae were too long and could be shortened by surgery but she refused to be operated upon. Dieter Dorn checked his wife’s neck and found that the vertebrae were only twisted and that the x-ray was not a correct reading. He gently pushed the vertebrae back into place and since then her headaches have been history. She has since became the most prominent patient of Dieter Dorn.

That was the beginning of the DORN METHOD!

Soon after, Dieter Dorn helped many people in the neighbourhood by correcting their unequal leg length and aligning their joints. To his surprise many other ailments like knee pains, heart problems, hearing problems and others also seem to have disappeared.

The answer to all this he discovered by coincidence in a book about Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), where acupuncture and acupressure were among the techniques used to cure many ailments.

During the course of his treatments he observed that he was also addressing the meridians (nerve pathways) along the spine. Because of the connection between the spinal cord and the inner organs connected through the spinal nerve pathways, many problems disappeared when the misaligned vertebrae where corrected.

Some years later, Dieter Dorn decided that it was time to teach other people this wonderful method, and he started to give seminars. Many learned from him and are now following in his foot steps with equal success. Dieter Dorn still has his sawmill, which makes him independent and his simple and very kind personality keeps on impressing his students.” (from Thomas Zudrell: “The Dorn Method”).

He died on Wednesday, 19 January 2011.

What happens in a Dorn session?

A Dorn treatment starts with checking leg length (after taking history). Many clients suffering from back pain also show a difference in the length of their legs. Mostly this is not due to a physical difference in leg length, but because of bad joint seating in the hips. This can lead to an imbalance of the pelvis and therefore results in an asymmetrical, crooked or displaced spinal column. We will then proceed to correct the leg length (and often succeed) and show you a self-help exercise to help in this process.

Then the pelvis is checked for misalignment followed by lumbar, thoracic and cervical vertebrae and corrected if necessary. We can then work on other joints, for example the shoulder, knee, elbow or jaw joints.

All corrections happen in a dynamic way with the client actually assisting the Dorn therapist by swinging either his or her leg, arm or head, depending on the area being worked on. This helps the bones to be brought back into their proper positions. This also makes it an absolutely safe and gentle treatment.

The treatment often starts or ends with a Breuss Massage. This is a very gentle Spinal Massage that safely stretches, nourishes, aligns and energizes the spine.

Example of a Dorn Exercise

Place your hand underneath your buttock and pull upwards. Lift your knee up and down about five times. Repeat on the other side. This can keep your pelvis sitting horizontal and therefore your spinal column upright. Do a few times a day.

Training

In September 2010 I trained with Brigitte Nath, an authorised Dorn Instructor in Stratford upon Avon. She kindly allowed me to use descriptions from her website in the above text. Thank you.