Our organs are soft and need to move inside your body to do their jobs. Overburdened or damaged organs can develop adhesions and scar tissue that makes them less pliable. When the fascia — the connective tissue and fluid around organs — becomes stiff, it limits their movement and pliability and hinders your organs’ function.

Your whole body’s movement stems from your core, and pain and tightness from your organs sends the signal to limit movement from the parts of your body that will expose the vulnerable area. Visceral manipulation does three things:

1. Reveals visceral adhesions. A well-trained practitioner will know what healthy, mobile organs feel like, and will be able to determine whether your organs have tight spots.

2. Helps you find your own tender spots. Your practitioner will communicate with you throughout the procedure, asking whether you feel tenderness here or there when she presses. Speak up, and describe what you’re feeling, even if it’s barely noticeable.

3. Breaks up adhesions. Massaging and pressing stretches the collagen fibres that make up your fascia, which loosens tightly-bound fibres to break up adhesions.

This releases the organs and allows them to move more freely.