Fascial Unwinding: A Gentle Way to Release Deep Tension

What Is Fascial Unwinding and Why Does Your Body Need It?

When clients come to me with persistent neck pain or stiffness, one of my go-to healing techniques is something many people have never heard of—fascial unwinding.

It’s gentle, intuitive, and incredibly effective. While it’s not commonly used by most massage therapists, it remains one of the most powerful ways I support the body to release deep-held tension—especially as part of my craniosacral therapy sessions.

What Is Fascia?

To understand fascial unwinding, we need to talk about fascia—the connective tissue that wraps around and weaves through every part of your body. It’s more than the fibrous tissue around muscles. Fascia is found in your organs, bones, nervous system, and cells. It helps hold the structure of the body together, allowing for movement, tension regulation, and coordination.

When your fascia is tight, it can affect your entire system, not just one area. Imagine squeezing one side of a water balloon—the other side bulges. That’s how fascia works: tension in one place can show up somewhere else.

What Is Fascial Unwinding?

Fascial unwinding is a technique that allows the body to gently release this accumulated tension.

Picture this: take an elastic band and twist one end tightly. That twisting creates stored tension. Now, let go. The band spirals and moves in all directions until it naturally finds rest again. That’s a perfect metaphor for how fascial unwinding works.

During a session, I apply very light contact to key areas of your body, inviting your fascia and nervous system to let go. Your body may begin to move spontaneously—subtle rocking, spiraling, or shifting—as it unwinds. These movements are not directed by me. Instead, your body leads, and I simply follow and support the process.

Why Try Fascial Unwinding?

• Deeply releases physical tension without force or pressure

• Relieves neck, shoulder, and limb stiffness gently

• Improves fluid movement and postural alignment

• Reduces stress by calming the nervous system

• Can be learned by your body over time, making self-unwinding possible

Fascial unwinding is now one of the core elements of my craniosacral therapy work, which I continue to offer—even though I no longer provide traditional massage therapy.

It’s a beautiful, body-led approach to healing that empowers your system to remember how to come back to balance.