ROLFING OR STRUCTURAL INTEGRATION

by Dr. Lawrence Wilson

All information in this article is for educational purposes only. It is not for the diagnosis, treatment, prescription or cure of any disease or health condition.

Rolfing is a method of bodywork involving deep tissue massage or manipulation with the intent of freeing adhesions in the fascia layers of the body that restrict the proper motion of the muscles and other tissues.

There is a basic series of 10 sessions that deal with each area of the body. An advanced series and more sessions can also be done to go deeper. Rolfing may be somewhat painful, as the therapist actually puts pressure upon and perhaps separates fascia layers during the course of a session. However, the results can be well worth the effort or temporary discomfort.

One can read much more about Rolfing on the internet. The purpose of this article is to bring Rolfing to your attention, as it can be helpful for a wide variety of health conditions, from poor posture to unexplained aches and pains, and much more.

THE THEORY BEHIND ROLFING AND OTHER DEEP BODY WORK

Deep body work seems to be able to “wake up” or increase the body’s awareness of parts of the body that have been somewhat walled off in some way, usually due to trauma and/or nutritional deficiencies. It is like “banging on the door” of the tissues, and this, alone, has a healing effect.

This does not occur from a gentle massage, for example, but it can occur from deeper body work such as deep, or forceful massage and Rolfing. This is a large subject beyond the scope of this article.

CAUTIONS WITH ROLFING

While the Rolfing technique is very safe, getting a session may not be that safe, especially for women. One must do the session dressed in just one’s underwear. As a result, one is vulnerable to sexual predators with this therapy, as with massage and other bodywork. For this reason, I suggest that you only visit a Rolfer, structural integration therapist, or any body worker who comes very highly recommended by several people.

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