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Visceral Osteopathy and the importance of the liver (Part 2)



Liver dysfunction (loss of mobility and tension in the connective tissue that covers it) generates an increase in abdominal pressure. Low back pain is common for this reason (among other symptoms). The human body has 4 virtually closed cavities: The pelvic, abdominal, thoracic and cranial cavity. Each of them has a specific pressure. We can imagine them as four soccer balls joined vertically (one on top of the other), and these have greater pressure from the bottom to the top. The pelvis has more pressure than the abdomen, the abdomen has more pressure than the thorax, and the thorax has the least pressure of the three chambers. These pressure differences from higher to lower, from bottom to top, allow an efficient circulation of liquids in the body (when we speak of liquids we refer not only to venous blood, but to liquids in general). These return "fighting" against the force of gravity from the lowest area (the feet) and rise until they reach the heart, and on this journey they circulate through all the aforementioned cavities. We could also imagine a hose that goes from the feet to the heart, and if any cavity presents more pressure than normal, it would be an area in which the hose is "somewhat tight", and the water that circulates through it has greater difficulty in travel. This is why it is important to evaluate and treat the liver, since liver dysfunction increases abdominal pressure. It is an organ frequently addressed in osteopathy sessions, due to mechanical, nutritional, emotional, surgical issues, etc. Regarding the emotional part, anger or rage is what generates dysfunction in the liver (this has been corroborated by Chinese medicine thousands of years ago, and osteopaths can corroborate it through palpation).

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