Rolfing Structural Integration developed by Dr. Ida P. Rolf, is a way
of restructuring the physical body - stretching the fascial web of the
body in combination with movement education.
Balance is the primary
goal of the work. Our intention is to establish equal tissue tone from
front to back, between the two sides, between the top and the bottom halves
of the body and from the deepest layer of tissue, nearer the bone, to
the more superficial layers nearer the skin. There is another balance
that is needed, the integration of the physical body with life styles,
family history, mental states, developmental background, etc. We are not
working in a vacuum.
In order to understand what that mean, we need insight into how our bodies
are made and how they change. Individuality begins in the physical self.
We recognize someone by a silhouette, a walk, a tilt of the head. Physical
individuality is shaped by the forces of life-how we were born, when we
learned to move, our goals, accidents, mental and emotional sets. All
of these leave a record in our mental and physical memories. The two are
in many ways similar-bodies as well as minds bear witness to the puzzlement,
accidents, unfinished business in our life. The accumulation of this record
in the body can limit our physical range of responsiveness.
Unlike massage, Rolfing does not focus on the muscles. Rather our attention
is with the "packing material" of the body-fascia or connective
tissue. Fascia is an ordered elastic web that starts just beneath the
skin and unsheathes and positions the various elements of the body-muscles,
bones, nerves, organs, etc. It is what Dr. Rolf calls the "organs
of structure:" its properties of elasticity and plasticity (the ability
to hold a shape and yet be malleable) are what makes physical change possible.
The mechanism of fascial
adaptation is contracting and bonding; in order to gain stability and
ward off stress, fascial tissue will shorten, thicken and attach itself
to neighboring structures. The result is that movement is no longer economical;
we use too much energy for the simple business of living and shortchange
ourselves of creative energy.
"This is the gospel of Rolfing: When the body gets working
appropriately, the force of gravity can flow through. Then, spontaneously,
the body heals itself" - Dr. Ida P. Rolf
