What Is Polarity Therapy?

Polarity therapy is the modality I get the most questions about, mostly because it’s the least familiar to most people. Here’s a plain-language version of what it is and why I include it in the practice.

The Short Version

Polarity therapy is a form of bodywork developed in the mid-twentieth century by Dr. Randolph Stone, a chiropractor and naturopath who spent decades studying both Western anatomy and Eastern energetic traditions. The work uses gentle touch at specific points on the body to invite the natural flow of energy — what Stone called the body’s “currents” — to rebalance.

You stay fully clothed. The pressure is light. From the outside, it can look like very little is happening. From the inside, it often feels like a lot.

What a Session Feels Like

People describe it differently. Some feel deep stillness, like their nervous system finally got the memo that it can rest. Some feel small movements — warmth traveling, places softening, a held breath releasing. Some don’t feel much during the session and notice afterward that something has shifted: they sleep better that night, or a low-grade tension they’d stopped noticing is just gone.

The work isn’t dramatic. It doesn’t usually produce the satisfying crack of a chiropractic adjustment or the deep release of myofascial work. What it does is meet a different layer — the layer that holds tension underneath the muscles, in the space between the body and whatever it’s been carrying.

When It Helps

I find polarity especially useful for:

• People whose nervous systems are stuck in high gear and can’t seem to settle, even with rest
• Periods of grief, transition, or burnout, when deeper bodywork can feel like too much
• The end of a longer massage session — a few minutes of polarity to help everything integrate
• Anyone who’s curious about energy work but wants something grounded and unmystical

It’s not a substitute for medical care, and it’s not magic. It’s a careful, attentive approach to the body that takes seriously the idea that we’re not just mechanics — we’re also patterns of flow.

If you’re curious, you don’t have to commit to a full polarity session to try it. Just mention it during a regular massage and we can include some at the end.

Book a session.