The Cervical Revolution Course last weekend was taken to a new level in it's development of being the course that introduces " top down" concepts and the neurologic connection of the body with the brain and cranium.  What made this cervical-cranial-occlusal course extraordinary had many components. The technology provided by an international audience online revealed a growing international hunger for PRI. From the Western Pacific, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Singapore were represented. On the other side of the world students from Canada, Iceland, Belarus, Malta, Ireland, Poland and the UK were present as well as all over the USA. There was a great local representation from Nebraska in the live audience that provided energy and interest with questions, feedback and lab demonstration that all in attendance benefitted from.

One of the best questions, and one that is central to this course, is how is it that the occipital bone can move into A/O flexion on one side and A/O extension on the other if it is one bone? During tri-planer movement of this highly neurologic joint a sliding or gliding of the condyles of the occiput in the fossa of the atlas provides a rocking motion the looks like a bowl (occiput) rolling in a tri-planer motion side to side with one side going up and forward as the other side is coming back and down in a balanced alternating fashion. If this alternating/oscillating movement ceases to occur driving the occiput down into the atlas coming up on the ride side, torsions that are torque-like scoliosis patterns occur in the cranium. Hence, in this regard, the neck runs the neurologic and cranial/occlusal system.

What really made this course is not only the student participation and international diversity, but Dr. James Carlson, a world renown dentist, was in attendance. As the course got deeper into the cervical-cranial-occlusal subjects, this instructor went to student mode personally and asked Dr. Carlson for his input. I'm not sure if new students realize what a special opportunity it was to have Dr. Carlson describe occlusal issues as it applies to this course and a holistic approach it provides to all healthcare disciplines in attendance.

What then added to this course was to have PRI faculty members Louise Kelly and Dan Hoglum in attendance. Big "wow" factor for the entire weekend. Louise broke down the Standing Stomatonathic Squat in such detail that described a bottom up and top down integration of ground, vision, occlusion. She will be teaching Cervical Revolution soon and not to be missed!  Dan Hoglum is the Impingement and Instability "rock" in PRI and provided a powerful, concise description of one of the main concepts of this course being "Top Down"!  Both Louise and Dan brought "extra credit" and value along with Dr. Carlson to all our learning experience.

There is no way this weekend could have been pulled off without Jennifer Platt getting to the institute early and the last one to leave the building to facilitate the entire weekend and make it a successful learning environment for all. None of this could happen without her. Not only that, but Jen has so much experience in these courses as well as PRIVY and her knowledge and sharing what she knows gave this weekend so much more depth and color. To my "co-instructors", Dr. Carlson, Louise, Dan and Jen thank you all. And to everyone in attendance thank you for being such a great group!

I recently had the pleasure of joining Tassie Cantrell and some of the accommodating Cantrell Center staff for a course in Myokinematic Restoration course in Warner Robins, Georgia.

An energetic group of learners ranging in PRI experience from PRC’s Samantha Anderson, Jamie Lochner and Cindy Rice, to anticipatory new learners like Kaitlin “not Katie” Blankenship and Sunshine Walton took to the task of learning PRI introductory concepts, theory, rationale, special tests and treatment algorithms. This group flourished during lab demonstrations with tests and according lab practice on various techniques designed to treat specific special test findings.

This instructor especially appreciated the attention to detailed questions about designing treatments to oppose FA and AF compensatory movement strategies inherent in human movement as well as the effort of all students during lab applications. One of my favorite things is watching clinicians bring the science of PRI to life during labs and case studies when applying didactic concepts, and this group excelled!

Thank you each for joining me in Georgia to perpetuate the science of PRI Myokinematic Restoration, I thoroughly enjoyed my time teaching this course!

A few days before I was to present Postural Restoration, I reflected back to the number of times I had taken this course during my 17 year journey in PRI. We were fortunate to have nine movement specialists taking their first PRI course, and with the exception of two attendees, no one else attending the course had attended Postural Respiration previously. Since it was almost everyone's first voyage into this course material, I wanted to really focus on two topics that had escaped me in my previous attendance of this course: what/why/how surrounding Superior T4 Syndrome, and why do the R low trap/tricep and L serratus anterior/low trap hold such high significance in PRI for management of the BC pattern.  

We had lively discussion surrounding human asymmetry and how that asymmetry feeds into patterned respiratory mechanics, as well as the potential detriments of patterned breathing. Once we had the foundational concepts secured, we could move into the prevalence of the R BC pattern and what tests we could use to determine if the R BC pattern was overactive. Using the algorithm found on page 48, we were able to walk through manual and non-manual treatments, as well as spend a lot of time defining why and how Superior T4 Syndrome presents itself, and how to uncover the presence of Superior T4 Syndrome as a pathological, or "phony", respiration strategy.   

Algorithms are used frequently in PRI as a means to learn and improve ones ability to apply PRI concepts, particularly if the learner is new to PRI and the science behind it. Again, using page 48 as a backdrop, we were able to progress through why the R low trap/triceps is a necessary piece of R BC inhibition, but also why the L serratus anterior/low trap are necessary for security after proper management of Superior T4 Syndrome. We were also able to spend time in lab going through several of the non-manual techniques that support the manual techniques presented in this course. Since inhibition is such a huge part of PRI, we were able to focus on several non-manual inhibition techniques surrounding those individual who present with B PEC or B BC findings.

Being able to present this course in the clinic I work in with fellow PRC, Donna Parise-Byrne, was great. It was also rewarding to have fellow PRC, Jill Maida, in attendance as well. My thanks to Gail Trubow, Brock Mitchell, Anne Farkas, and Heather Pappas for their help during labs and asking great questions. We really had many great questions and dialogues over the course of the weekend. Thank you to all who attended the course as we took every precaution possible to ensure everyone felt safe, while still receiving the course content at a level that each individual needed.

For many of us who have taken PRI courses over the years, Lincoln, Nebraska, often becomes a home-away-from-home. This has been particularly true in the last two years with the inception of PRI live-stream courses. It has been such a blessing for PRI to reach so many people via live-stream. In total, we had 78 people attend Impingement and Instability, with 20 of those having attended the course in previous years. However, only 5 individuals had attended the new and upgraded version of I&I before this weekend. Having six people live and in person was such a gift. It was an honor to have 11 PRC's and PRT's in the audience as well.

This course is a clinician's course, and we are able to make a lot of connections and links between several PRI courses in one weekend. Yes, this is a dense course with a lot of great information. The advantage of the live-stream is that all the attendees received the recording of the course for two weeks to listen to the material again. The ironic part of the "new" version of I&I is that a lot of the material is unchanged; the context and neurological links between the floor on the ground and the "floor" under the scapulae are significantly changed. This allows the attendee to further appreciate the "why" and "how" behind non-manual activity application and selection.

This course is dripping with neurology and is a gateway for the attendee to attend the PRI Forward Locomotion Movement, Cranial Resolution, Occlusal Cervical Restoration, and the new Voice Box course. We build off the three PRI primary courses to delve into how to apply those basic concepts using a higher level of decision making based on a neurological sensory framework. Hopefully, we were able to provide the attendees with that appreciation and help prepare them for future PRI courses.

My thanks to RJ Hruska for orchestrating the entire weekend. He was very helpful to me, and made my job much easier. We got so many great questions over the weekend, and we were able to answer most, if not all, of them.  And having six people live in the building provided an additional layer of questions and feedback. My thanks to Benjamin Sandman for his help with our calcaneal sensorium demonstration. He said it perfect when he said he was surprised at how much better he could sense the ground under his L calcaneus even after the demonstration was over.  

It was truly and honor to have attendees from 14 countries. It is amazing to think that this technology exists, and I am very thankful that fellow movement specialists were willing to spend time with us, even from the other side of the world. Even though most, if not all, of the 72 of the live-stream attendees were in their homes, it was comfortable for me as well to be in my home-away-from-home and spend some quality I&I time with so many like-minded peers.