rolfing

Drawing of man with arms out streatched - DaVinci influenced

Rolfing – What’s In A Name?

Rolfing is actually a slang term coined during the ’70s. Dr. Rolf, the founder, wanted her work to be known as “Structural Integration.” She was one of the first women biochemists to graduate from Columbia University in the 1920s.

Many people do not know what Rolfing is. This powerful treatment helps you to stand taller, breathe more fully, and move with greater ease. 

Our bodies store years of accumulated stress, surgeries, and injuries. Rolfing de-stresses the body with fascial manipulation. Fascia, a form of connective tissue determines our posture and movement.

Picture yourself breathing more fully and moving with greater ease. Rolfing helps you to feel stable and connected to the ground while providing your body with a sense of lightness and upward lift. Additionally, Rolfing is calming to the nervous system, leaving you with a sense of peace.

 

By • Physical Therapy, Rolfing • • Tags: , , , , , ,

Infant - Flexor tone

Our Birth Experience and Rolfing

How does our birth experience influence our personality? Does it matter if we travel down the birth canal or if we are born via a C section?  Many Rolfers believe that we are shaped by our early experiences, including childbirth. 

Even when childbirth goes smoothly, the journey from being inside a mother’s womb to being out in the world is challenging.  When the baby is in utero, she is in a protected environment, safely embraced. As the fetus grows and develops, a pattern of flexion emerges. The chin is tucked, and the arms and legs are drawn into the body as the uborn baby prepares for the trip to the outside world.

When the fetus experiences difficulty or trauma during gestation or in childbirth, Rolfers and other somatic therapists believe the body stores these experiences in the tissue. These tissue “memories” can become part of the physical structure of the infant.

Whether the birth goes smoothly and without complications, or if it is more challenging, all newborn babies have a dominance of flexor tone that keeps the arms and legs flexed, head tucked in and spine curled. Ideally, as the baby matures, the flexor tone recedes, but this is not always the case.

Rolfing is a remarkable tool for mitigating all kinds of trauma. Trauma, whether emotional or physical creates fascial shortenings in the structure. The body remembers traumatic experiences. Rolfers use gentle pressure to release shortenings in the tissue. As the body lengthens, the heart opens and the baby becomes more comfortable in its own skin. Changes from Rolfing are both physical and emotional.   

In our experience, a small amount of input goes a long way with newborn babies. We have Rolfed newborn children with the gentlest touch and watched the body unfold – Rolfing eases the infant’s way into the world. We also Rolf children with neurologic and developmental challenges including Cerebral Palsy and genetic disorders. Minor issues resolve easily, while complicated problems often require more input.

Is there an appropriate age to begin Rolfing? Rolfing is suitable for newborn babies and throughout life. It is always a good time to receive this healing touch.

By • Physical Therapy, Rolfing • • Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Close,Up,Young,Asian,Woman,Feeling,Upset,,Sad,,Unhappy,Or

Rolfing and Post Traumatic Stress

As an advanced practitioner of the Ida P Rolf Method of Structural Integration, the emphasis of my work is to bring greater organization to the physical structure. In a series of ten sessions breath, movement and the interrelatedness of major body segments (i.e. arm, legs, trunk) are enhanced. The opportunity to release longtime patterns of chronic tension and bracing become available to the client.

Rolfing can help to heal survivors of emotional or physical trauma. During the first hour of Structural Integration, the client and therapist begin to develop a rapport through verbal dialogue as well as touch. As the therapist finds the appropriate level of pressure the client responds with a deepening of respiration and relaxation.

As the touch dialogue develops the client will be encouraged to breathe into and move areas of her body that she has become disconnected from. These areas may be lacking in sensation. Other areas of the body might be hypersensitive and the client might even request not to be touched there. Her requests are always honored. Sometimes these areas can be approached again as she becomes receptive.

When a person is attacked or abused the sympathetic nervous system mobilizes with a “fight or flight response” as a mechanism of self-protection. The body responds to this  life-threatening situation by releasing adrenaline,  which causes the heart rate to increase. When faced with danger and unable to fight back or escape, the victim will passively freeze. Opiate-like chemicals are then released to numb the pain. This enables the victim to “leave the body” or dissociate.

Long after the traumatic episode, patterns of dissociation remain with the victim as a remnant of the attack. She may have areas of physical rigidity or regions that lack sensation as if the perpetrator’s hands had never left her. This rigidity becomes a self-limiting influence as she experiences life with compromised respiration, self-awareness, and movement.

During the Structural Integration sessions the client takes an active role. She is invited to meet the pressure of the Rolfer’s hands with her breath. The Rolfer guides her to make small, easeful movements to facilitate the opening that is occurring in her body. Breathing and moving with intention, she becomes more self aware and present, contradicting her old pattern of dissociation.

During the Rolfing series the soft tissue network becomes reorganized and the body’s segments become better aligned. The client experiences a stronger sense of connectedness within herself and her universe. As the therapist releases areas of soft tissue restriction, she may find that her feet are more firmly planted on the ground, giving her a new sense of confidence. As she breathes more fully and deeply, she might become more spontaneous and resilient emotionally.

As areas of rigidity soften the distortions of body image can shift. As she releases longstanding tensions and blocked energy related to her trauma, she may begin to envision her own transformation.

The intimate nature of this work is based upon trust, openness and communication. As the client shares her physical pain, she is not alone with it anymore. Rolfing is a process during which the client can connect with and let go of the physical manifestations of trauma, and in doing so find that its emotional content has also surfaced. The client is supported emotionally during the session, however it is not within the realm of these sessions to explore psychological issues with any depth. Rolfing can be a powerful adjunct to psychotherapy in that it can help to bring forth unconscious memories that were previously unavailable to the client.

“ Psychological trauma such as physical abuse, abandonment, feelings of inadequacy, attitudes of fear and anger affect structure. Tightening against pain, holding breath to block emotions, slumping in order not to feel too big, become physically locked in the body and thus perpetuate the attitude.”

Betsy Sise, Certified Rolfer

“Physical stress mirrors emotional suffering: relief from physical restraint markedly affects emotional misery.”

Ida P, Rolf, Ph.D.

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Dorsal Kyphosis

Are Hunchbacks Inevitable? A Rolfer’s View

Have you ever wondered if you would wind up like your grandma, or the senior citizen who is stooped over and shuffling across the street? You might have commanded yourself to sit up straight and practice good posture in order to avoid the fate of this older person you hope never to become. 

How did grandma’s body shrink and why is she looking at the ground instead of straight ahead?

Forward rounding of the upper back is often referred to as hunchback or Dowagers Hump. The medical term is dorsal kyphosis. Kyphosis is an exaggerated, forward rounding of the back that can occur at any age but is most common in older women.

One thing is certain, while cell phones and text messaging do put a great strain on the upper back neck and shoulders, they are not what lead to grandma’s hunchback. No doubt about it,  as we sit with our heads drooping forward and our upper back rounded, we are compromising our spines. 

Over time, poor posture leads to overstretching of  the ligaments and muscles that support the vertebrae. Laxity of the  strap like paraspinal muscles, ligaments and other supporting tissues that run along either side of the spinal column give way for the spine to move from the vertical to the horizontal plane. As the support system for the vertebrae becomes over stretched the bones can move out of alignment , resulting in a kyphotic spine and predisposing one to pain, poor circulation, breathing issues, herniations, arthritis and other unwanted conditions.

Poor posture in childhood, such as slouching, leaning back in chairs and carrying heavy school bags, can also cause the ligaments and muscles that support the vertebrae to stretch. This can pull the thoracic vertebrae out of their normal position setting the stage for kyphosis.

Childhood is a perfect time to develop good postural habits and monitor the book bag burden. Early interventions, including Rolfing, can save a lot of children from developing age related postural kyphosis later in life.

Osteoporosis can lead to compression and deterioration of the spinal bones.  This degeneration of the vertebrae may have  caused grandma’s upper spine to round forward and lose it’s vertical alignment.

The more the spine moves off center, the greater the energy and muscular effort required to hold oneself up. For every inch that your head protrudes forward from its normal alignment, you add approximately an extra 10 pounds of force to support your head upon your neck. 

This extra effort causes pliable soft tissue structures to harden as one works against gravity to keep their head up resulting in bracing, tension and pain. As soft tissue structures solidify, muscles, fascia and soft tissue of the entire upper trunk lose their ability to move. The upper trunk becomes wrapped in a tight soft tissue corset making it impossible to stand erect.  Deep breathing which requires  rib, diaphragmatic and spinal movement is hindered. Kyphosis is also associated with tight chest and hip flexor muscles.

Making attempts to sit and stand up straight are a good beginning, however as soon as your mind moves onto the next thought your body is likely to resort to its habitual posture. Our structure plays a key role in our posture. While our bodies are a collection of parts (muscles, bones, organs) what keeps these parts together and in relationship to each other, is the fascia or connective tissues.  When you look at a person’s posture, you see the underlying relationships that are set in the structure. Shortenings within the structure have a direct and constant influence on posture. Tight, shortened pectoral muscles do not allow the shoulders to come back and the chest to open. Shortened inflexible paraspinal muscles do not allow the spine to extend and the head to sit comfortably on top of the spine.

During the 1920’s Ida Rolf, a young biochemist, began to see the important role that fascia plays on the shape of our bodies as well as posture. Over decades of research and practice she explored the vital role fascia plays in how our bodies are shaped by our experience. How we used our bodies in both work and play, the injuries, surgeries and illnesses we have endured and emotional history all determine our structural pattern and shape. Rolf began with the insight that fascia is not unyielding but can change  with manual manipulation.  This premise gave birth to Rolfing also known as Structural Integration.

Rolfing can help bring a kyphotic spine back on to its vertical axis. By balancing the tensions in the soft tissue network, Rolfing realigns the structure and provides the framework for an upright posture.

By • Good Posture, Physical Therapy, Rolfing • • Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Davinci Vector

Rolfing and the Mind – Body Connection

“Physical stress mirrors emotional suffering, relief from physical constraint markedly affects emotional misery.” – Dr. Ida P. Rolf

The Irish say, the past is not the past. Each of us has a history. We are formed by both our physical and emotional experiences. The important things that happen during our journey leave their mark upon us, and shape our structure. Your unique movement pattern reflects athletic and career choices, psychological and physical health, as well as your genetic predispositions.

We are all moving around our physical limitations. When we recognize someone a block away it is often their movement pattern that distinguishes them first. How we walk and move through life is idiosyncratic. Traumatic injury, such as a physical accident or an emotional wound becomes part of our structure.

Consider an ankle sprain. In response to pain, we hold the ankle rigid. This internal bracing is an unconscious and instinctual – we do it to avoid more pain. In a matter of weeks, the fascia, the fabric of the body that organizes the structure, adapts by shortening. This shortening becomes a part of our structural pattern. The fascial shortening influences our movement patterns and our pattern of organization.

What happens when the ankle sprain heals? The fascial shortening remains and stays with us. Without therapeutic intervention the new pattern often remains with us throughout our life. Our freedom of movement (range of motion) becomes  limited by the injury and the internal “repair.”

Psychic injuries are also formative of the structure. We often absorb sexual violence into our physical and emotional bodies. The experiences that we are unable to process become “stuck places” in the structure. Young children who become chronically embarrassed will often go through their lives with their shoulders elevated and rolled in, and their head forward.

This defensive posture actually becomes cemented into the structure. The pectoral and upper trapezius fascia shortens and thickens. We may carry these structural changes throughout our lives. Both the ankle sprain and the embarrassment create chronic holding patterns that influence how we stand, move, feel and think.

It is with great tenacity that we propel ourselves forward into space despite our physical and emotional wounds. Our survival depends on our ability to move. We find inventive and unique movement patterns to compensate for our losses.

These compensations come at a cost. Sometimes, the price we pay is the loss of efficiency. It takes extra energy to stay upright and to move when the body is not well aligned. Sometimes, we pay with the loss of confidence. Emotional trauma becomes lodged in the structure.

Rolfing supports the structure to become better balanced. The Rolfer uses deep pressure to release the chronic shortening in the fascia. As the tensions in the fascial network become more balanced, the structure becomes more upright. The stuck places become “unstuck.”

The implications of releasing these chronic shortenings from old injuries are far reaching. As the body changes and becomes more open, the heart and mind changes too, inevitably. 

Rolfers use a ten session format to work progressively through the structure. Each session works on a different part of the body. Our goals include helping you become more vertical and upright, with openness and span. Ultimately, we want to help you become more comfortable in your own skin.

Five Element Acupuncture is also a wonderful tool for addressing old wounds and creating balance within the structure. Each area of chronic holding is present in our energetic field as an energetic block. As the acupuncturist removes each of these blocks, the body and the mind and heart move towards balance. Change within the structure offers great possibility and promise for change within the heart and mind.

By • Acupuncture, Good Posture, Rolfing • • Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

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