03/16/2026
This morning at 9 AM I will be teaching a six-hour hands-on Thoracic Spine and Rib Cage Workshop at my Cascade Village office.
The thoracic spine and rib cage are among the most overlooked regions of the body in manual therapy, yet they play a central role in breathing, posture, spinal mechanics, and many persistent pain patterns that affect the neck, shoulders, and low back.
Today’s workshop will include seven clinical case studies exploring conditions where thoracic and rib mobility can dramatically change patient outcomes. We will look at cases involving automobile accident injuries, scoliosis, asthma, COPD, pulmonary fibrosis, post–open heart surgery restriction, and long-term respiratory compromise in patients with a history of heavy smoking.
Participants will be learning a series of very unusual and rarely taught mobilization techniques for the thoracic spine and rib cage.
Many of these methods trace back to the early osteopathic tradition. I first learned them in the mid-1970s from a remarkable osteopathic physician who was well into his nineties at the time. He had been trained in the classical osteopathic tradition by physician Andrew Taylor Still, the founder of osteopathy in the late 1800s. That lineage of hands-on clinical knowledge is something that has largely disappeared from modern training programs.
In addition to the manual therapy techniques, we will also explore ways to support thoracic and respiratory health using herbal medicine, topical herbal-infused oils, castor oil packs, and breath work to improve rib cage expansion and respiratory function.
Workshops like this are one of the ways we keep older clinical traditions alive, passing knowledge from teacher to student through direct hands-on instruction.
Looking forward to a full day of learning and shared clinical experience.