Rolfing is a form of
body education in which tissue is reorganized to maximize form,
function, and fluidity.
---- also known as Structural Integration.
This type of bodywork loosens
up and reorganizes the soft tissue of the body, including muscles,
tendons, ligaments and fascia, to bring relief from chronic pain.
Rolfing was developed by Dr. Ida B. Rolf, a biochemist
who found she could achieve changes in posture and structure by
manipulating the body's connective tissue. She called her work Structural
Integration, but it was nicknamed "Rolfing" by clients
and practitioners.
She started working with injured members of her community. She found
that the concept of gravity and length in the body was critical
to support a person being on their line. She discovered it was possible
to put injured tissue back to where it is supposed to be when working
with the fascia in a person’s body.
Dr. Rolf was successful at bringing back body movement and function
to people who had given up after many years of disabling pain. This
is how she developed the principals necessary to have consistent
results with her Structural Integration work. She began teaching
her work in the 1950s and soon found herself with a school (The
Rolf Institute®) in Boulder, Colorado, giving training to many
others to continue her work after she passed away in 1979.
What is Fascia?
"Fascia" --the fibrous layers covering muscles--stiffens,
shortens, and loses its elasticity after prolonged poor posture
and mental and
emotional stress. Fascia describes connective tissue that wraps
muscle fibers and is elastic to respond to muscular movement. Fascia
is found everywhere in the body- it surrounds cells, tissue, organs
and body systems; it is tendons and ligaments. Fascia is a continuous
matrix of the body.
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The science of Rolfing spans from the knowledge
of gravity to the profound understanding of three dimensional anatomy.
Many events pull us off our line like chronic pain, repetition of
movement patterns, emotional distress, and trauma. Rolfing is rooted
deeply in anatomical language and where the Rolfer works is determined
by how a person moves his or her body. Rolfing involves experiencing
release from muscular patterns that no longer serve us. This frees
up energy and truly can offer a new world view of being.
What does the Rolfing contact feel
like?
It is dynamic, from light to deep touch. Rolfing can be intense
at times due to the nature of changing structural patterns in the
body.
Changes of the magnitude discussed above do not
occur in just one session. Rolfing is designed as a series of ten
sessions where each session is focused on a particular part of the
body. One session offers a taste of the power and possibilities
for change.
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