About Rolfing

“Humans have always developed and still live within the gravity pull of the earth.  They must make peace with this energy field, whatever it really is…..The energy of this field can enhance or dissipate the energy of the individual man.  You cannot change the energy field, but you can change the man.”
Dr. Ida P. Rolf (1896-1979)

The term “Rolfing®” refers to a system of body education and physical manipulation.  Stress, strains, traumatic injury and even simple every day life can cause an array of issues.  Rolfing unwinds these issues in your body facilitating the rediscovery of your natural grace and youthfulness. 

Rolfing® Improves:
• Posture and Alignment
• Aches and Pains Including Chronic Pain
• Flexibility
• Athletic Performance
• Stress, Emotional and Physcological Health

Feel yourself whole, healthful, and dynamically integrated
with forces that modern life trains us to otherwise swim against.

What others have said about Rolfing®:

"Rolfing® made me more comfortable in my own skin."

“Oh Rolfing® isn’t like a tune up or an oil change; it's a huge transmission overhaul…That’s what you did to me----changed out my transmission!!”

"If massage is an ice cream sundae, Rolfing® is eating your vegetables."

"Most people work too hard all day long, just to keep themselves standing up. Rolfing® aligns and organizes your body, so you don't have to fight against gravity."

"Y'know how easy it is after living a bunch of years to feel that work, injuries and stress have got you tied in knots, and you're stiff and sore and wonder where your energy went? Well, Rolfing® unties the knots."

"Rolfing® teaches you to relax the muscles that make you crooked."

"Rolfing® brings out the deliciousness in your body."

"Trying to describe Rolfing® is like trying to describe chocolate. You just have to try it."

“Rolfing® is a mysterious cult of pagan practitioners who worship the goddess Gravina the high priestess of gravity, and demonstrate their devotion by physically realigning humans who wish also to worship and feel her power of restorative well being.”

“Rolfing® dun make a body stand straight and purdy, then move with ease like a sleek tail birdie.”

"A serious therapy with a funny name."

The word Rolfing® is a service mark of the Rolf Institute of Structural Integration.

So...What is Rolfing?

The term “Rolfing®” refers to the system of hands-on body education and physical manipulation to balance the body’s structure, and thus posture, so that you can move more easily and efficiently in the gravity we live in.  It is an original and scientifically validated method of structural integration that is the product of more than 50 years of study and development by Dr. Rolf.

As a Rolfer, I am looking for where you have gotten “stuck” over time.  Our bodies are our life experiences.  As we move through life we compensate for injuries, physical and emotional traumas, work postures, and habitual activities including athletics.  The result of these compensations is that the soft tissues begin to shorten, become stiff and lose elasticity making us uncomfortable in our bodies.  We find less ease and sometimes pain in sitting, standing and moving though our day to day routines.  Even simple movements can become cumbersome and exhausting.

Rolfing releases the body’s segments (legs, torso, arms, etc.) from many of these lifelong patterns of tension and bracing and permits gravity to realign them.  With guided movements, the Rolfer slowly stretches and repositions the body’s fascia, which is the supportive wrapping of the body.  This restores normal length and elasticity to the network of deep connective fibers of the fascia and allows these changes in the ‘wrapping’ to occur.

The ‘wrapping’ we are working most directly with is the myofascial system…. Fascia is a complex web of tissue that covers and connects muscles (‘myo’) and bones (as well as other body organs). It covers individual muscles, but also forms broad sheaths that in turn form a completely interconnected web throughout the body.  Dr. Rolf called this network of fascia, with its ability to compensate for and adapt to strain anywhere in the body, the "organ of structure."

In a Rolfing session, I apply hands-on pressure this fascia using my hands and forearms.  In applying pressure and direction and sometimes asking for small movements on your part, the fascia lengthens, repositions, and releases where it is stuck. Where the fascia has adapted to strain, its release can facilitate your gradual rediscovery of more freedom of movement, improved balance and function, improvement in symptoms such as pain or muscle soreness, and a greater sense of well-being.

Rolfers are trained at the Rolf Institute of Structural Integration, located in Boulder, Colorado. Further information on Structural Integration and on Dr. Rolf's work can also be found through the Guild for Structural Integration.

Craniosacral Therapy

First developed in the early 1900’s by Dr. William Sutherland and further significantly developed over the past 25 years by John Upledger, Craniosacral therapy has gained rapid acceptance among health practitioners due to its non-intrusive nature and how it works with the entire structure, physiology, mind and spirit.  As a Rolfer and a Craniosacral Therapist I tend to integrate the Craniosacral therapy into my Rolfing sessions.  I find it provides an enhancement to my Rolfing work as well as solid grounding and a ‘clearing of the cobwebs’ at the end of each Rolfing session.

So What Is It?

Cranio refers to the cranium, or head, and sacral refers to the triangular shaped bone at the base of the spine that includes and ends with the tailbone.  These are connected by the spine and surrounded by a continuous membrane system housing the brain and spinal cord.

The spinal fluid is pumped through the membranes and creates a quality and rhythm which can be monitored and balanced.  It can be palpated (felt) most easily on the head, but can be perceived anywhere on the body through the movement of the fluid between the cells of the body.

How Can It Help?

Restrictions that result from injury (including head injuries), inflexibility of the joints of trhe spine and cranium, or from dystunction in other parts of the body, can cause abnormal motion in the craniosacral system leading to stress in the system which can then lead to dysfunction and poor health.

How Does It Feel?

As your craniosacral system comes into balance, you will usually feel a release of accumulated stress and a general sense of well-being. 

Through Craniosacral Therapy techniques, I check the movement of the system as a whole by locating specific points of restriction in the cranium.  When abnormal motion is detected, I then locate the point of restricted movement and bring about a release by gently tractioning which elongates the continuous membranes throughout the craniosacral system.

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How Can You Benefit From Craniosacral Work?

Infants and children as well as adults benefit.  The manipulation of these bones of the craniosacral system can affect ease and relief from stress, head injuries, temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJ) , headaches (yes, migraines too), sinus congestion, recurring ear infections (especially in children),  and tinnitus (ringing in the ears).  Victims of spinal cord injury, stroke, and head injuries can also receive a degree of benefit from Craniosacral work.