To date, there is limited scientific evidence that Bowen therapy works. Treatment has not been extensively researched. There are some studies on its effects, but the results do not provide strong evidence. Bowen is not technically a medical treatment due to a lack of concrete medical and scientific evidence.
Some people refer to Bowen as a massage, which isn't true either. But while success stories are mostly anecdotal, Bowen Therapy believers are devoted followers. There is no clear evidence that the technique is a useful medical intervention. Of course, there are people who also feel healed by the water of Lourdes, but frankly, until you prove to me that they really are the tears of the Virgin Mary, I will attribute it to the power of belief and mind, above the healing power of water itself.
I have no problem with people feeling that Bowen can be of any help to them, but there is no science behind it. Practitioners are generally not clinically qualified in any way, but they may have some impressive initials after their “Bowen” course name. It's a bit like Scientologists in that regard. Meanwhile, your family doctor, who couldn't cure you, recommended it to you.
That's an almost perfect circular argument, an incompetent general practitioner recommends nonsense since he can't do anything himself, because he's incompetent. Bowen therapy uses a holistic technique to stretch the body's soft connective tissue. This gentle stretch can promote pain relief in the muscles and relieve related neurological conditions. Therefore, whatever way we look at it, there is no evidence that Bowen's technique is useful for patients suffering from any condition.
This clearly means that the therapeutic claims made for it are false, and that the way in which the Royal College of Nursing announced it is misleading to the point of being unethical. By definition, the promotion of false treatments is quackery. Therefore, the Royal College of Nursing promotes quackery. In the UK, physical therapists are regulated by the Health & Care Professions Council, Bowen professionals are not.
I don't know for sure, but I bet there are a lot more Bowen practitioners who are women, because this type of business can fit in so easily working part-time and dealing with family matters. Because people in pain are desperate and so-called therapists like Bowen know it, so they set up a small business and leave. In fairness to critics, Bowen Therapy still lacks some scientific and medical credibility, which means it cannot gain general acceptance within the medical establishment. People with chronic pain conditions who couldn't walk, or had limited mobility, or jaw problems, neck problems, or back problems, or even that extended to mental health problems such as anxiety and depression, believe beyond doubt that Bowen helped cure them, while the medical facility couldn't they are not willing to help them.
A univariate analysis of variance of repeated measures, in both groups for the three time periods, revealed significant differences within and between subjects for Bowen's group. As it stands, just as the brain asks for more information, the therapist has left the room and, therefore, the brain has to send specific signals to the area to measure a response. It may well be a placebo, but when osteopathy, physical therapy, chiropractic work, pain relievers, muscle relaxants, anti-inflammatory drugs, etc. they don't work, but Bowen does, so that's my placebo of choice.
I included Bowen in my practice and found that he had varying results depending on the client and their degree of conviction that it would work. However, the massage relies more on a feeling of relaxation throughout the body, Bowen is specifically aimed at activating nerve centers within the body to encourage healing. The study aimed to investigate the effect of the Bowen technique on hamstring flexibility over time. Holistic therapies consider the whole person, the underlying causes of symptoms, and how mental and physical health are related.
To improve my business, I decided to attend a Bowen Technique course taught by one of Tom Bowen's students, “Russell Sturgess”, in the 90s. . .
