Matthew Appleton

Since my late-teens I have been deeply interested in the relationship between the body, our emotions, the mind and spirituality. This led me, after a varied career of working in a number of charitable, medical and educational settings, to train in Body Psychotherapy, Craniosacral Therapy and Core Process Psychotherapy.

Each of these trainings offered insights and experience that supported me both in my personal enquiry and my practice as a therapist. In the late 1990’s I co-founded the Bristol Centre for Craniosacral Therapy and the Institute of Craniosacral Studies and have over 10 years of teaching experience as co-Principal of the Institute. I am also a supervisor with the Craniosacral Therapy Association of the UK.

For 9 years I worked as a houseparent at A.S. Neill’s famous democratic school, Summerhill. This led to a deep interest in working with babies, children and adolescents. To support this I trained extensively with American Pre and Perinatal Educator Karlton Terry. Out of this experience I developed Integrative Baby Therapy, which I teach to health professionals in the UK and a number of other countries.  I am also director of Conscious Embodiment Trainings, which, along with the Integrative Baby Therapy Training, runs workshops and courses for adults to explore the consequences of their own womb and birth experience. My own training with Buddhist and Shamanic teachers deeply informs my understanding of the relationship between spirituality and physical and psychological well-being.

My work with clients and as a teacher reflects my lifelong enquiry into what it truly means to be a human being. It is in our shared humanity that I find my greatest inspiration.