Hi Amanda,
Good questions. We are all dense in the physical sense!
Regarding C7 , you can open it from your front side. You can see what you are doing from the perspective of your third eye (inner vision), along with the intention of what you are doing. This is in reference to doing the actual physical movement (sword fingers, etc.) Just point at the throat area and see the C7 and direct your energy work there. You can access the whole spine the same way. Other options would be seeing yourself in front of yourself, again third eye, and doing swordfingers, etc., just like you were working on someone else. Or, just meditate and envision the whole thing. The first one I mention may be a good place to start, or the second option I mention.
I often incorporate some yoga type stretching in my exercise. Sometimes , some of that movement deals with literally accessing those areas of the back more readily. It is possible to reach the C7, the middle of the back and the base of the spine. This is not necessarily better, just a more physical experience. I will actually use this physical flexibility to open my own small universe, using my hands, passing the energy from my left to my right hand as I go up my back to the kidney area, direct my energy from there up to the top of my spine, picking it up with my left hand again and moving it up and down the front to another cycle. This is something that just came up for me. I can't say it is an appropriate method. It works for me. It is of course possible to just move the energy around like you do in the small universe meditation. That certainly opens it. A brief inner period of visualization, as you open up and merge with the universe and relax.
You have physical and non physical choices involving these things. The non physical is great to develop, as it develops the third eye, (connects to long distance healing, which is essentially the same thing...)The physical movement is just that. A nice physical expression of what you are doing inside. I am not a yoga practioner, but adapt aspects of yoga here and there to enhance the physical aspect by gaining flexibility. I see this for myself as something for the time being, and a personal preference, not a program approach for everyone. The other day, I did a healing session with someone, and just sat down next to them, did a healing on them in meditation/prayer, with no physical movement. It all works.
