Trained therapists are able to palpate the motion of the craniosacral system anywhere on a patient's body. Valuable information can be gained very quickly with regard to rate, amplitude, symmetry and quality of craniosacral motion. The regions of the craniosacral system that can be easily palpated are the bones of the skull, sacrum and coccyx because they attach to the membranes enclosing the cerebrospinal fluid. This fluid is filtered out of the blood in a dynamic feedback loop. Pressures build as the amount of cerebrospinal fluid increases, bathing the brain and spinal cord in a action similar to a semi-closed hydraulic system.
Palpation is possible with all of the other bones of the spine and pelvis.
Because of their less direct effect on the hydraulic system, however, it is more difficult to detect the motion. The same is true of the facial bones and the temporomandibular joints. While the existence of the cardiovascular and respiratory rhythms is not disputed today, a debate concerning their reality raged in medical communities around the globe for centuries. Even today, treatment for afflictions associated with these systems remains as diverse as the diseases and their individual practitioners - especially in the area of health maintenance. The history of the craniosacral system's discovery is fairly recent.