"In Structural Integration, we expect to give a cycle of ten sessions.  There is a reason for this.  We are not dealing with local problems.  We are not dealing with the kind of thing that you can say, "Well, I fixed that, that's all." We are dealing with an intent to make a body more secure, more adequate within the field of gravity.  This requires that muscles be balanced, and need to be balanced around a vertical line.  And, when I talk about balancing muscles, I'm talking about balancing the right side against the left side.  About balancing the front of the body against the back of the body, and finally, about balancing the innermost muscles against the outermost, the inside against the outside, this is the most important of those balances, and we start from the outside working in, and it takes us ten hours before we can get to the place where we can really balance the outside against the inside." -Ida P. Rolf, Ph.D.

SESSION ONE

Imagine that you are wearing a wetsuit that covers your entire body head to toe.  Now imagine that wetsuit is a size too small.  The human body has a fascial sheath that envelops our body much like this image of the wetsuit.  This layer of tissue lies just under the surface of the skin.

Gravity affects the human structure the same way it affect all other physical structures on earth.  When a builder builds a house and doesn't get the foundation of the house level and balanced, think about how gravity, over time, will affect this structure.  The house will begin to shift and crack.  The doors and windows might not quite fit anymore.  In order to remedy the problem, you cannot just replace the doors and windows, you must address the source, the foundation. 

SESSION THREE

In the human structure, the foundation is found in the arches of the feet, the ankles, legs and knees.  Creating a balanced foundation is the primary goal of the second hour.

The goals of session three are a little more abstract. 

We aim to create length along the lateral line of the body.  Think of a plane that intersects the body through the ears, the front of the spine, hips and knees --the coronal plane. 

Our intention is with this plane in the third session.  We create more space and freedom between the top of the pelvis and the bottom of the ribs -- and between the rib cage and the shoulder girdle. 

SESSION FOUR

Imagine a line that passes through the top of your head, runs down along the front of your spine to your sacrum.  When it reaches your sacrum, it divides into two lines that flow down along the inside line of your legs and exits just in front of your heel.  The line extends down into the very center of the earth through your feet and up into the center of the universe through the top of your head.  In sessions four and five we are creating space and organization along this line.  They are considered "core" sessions because we are addressing restrictions that the body may be holding within the deeper anatomical structures of the body.

SESSION FIVE

In session five we continue to create length and organization through the core of the body, this time working in the torso.  We start by lengthening the most superficial layers of muscle that cover the ribs and gradually drop down into the layers of the deep belly.  We bring length and organization to the inside of the body.

SESSION SIX

The sacrum or "the sacred bone", is a triangular shaped bone that joins with the two iliac bones to form the pelvis.  The joint where they meet is called the sacroiliac joint. 

There are many layers of muscle and fascial tissue that cross this joint in order to hold it together. 
Often times these tissues becomes very tight and hard which causes restrictions in movement in the sacroiliac joint, and the hip joints, as well as causes imbalances in the pelvic girdle. 
Session six aims to free the sacrum of these restrictions allowing for greater fluidity of movement in the pelvis and along the entire length of the spine. 

SESSION SEVEN

The goal of session seven is to balance the cranium on top of the spine.  Many of us carry our heads too far forward of our body which forces the muscles of the neck and back to work overtime just to keep the head on the body.  By releasing the tension and stress held in the soft tissue of the neck, shoulders, face and cranium we gently bring the head to rest on top of the body.  When we are able to relieve muscles that have chronically been working in order to hold the body upright, we suddenly find ourselves with much more available energy. 

SESSION EIGHT

In sessions eight, nine, and ten we begin "putting the body back together".  In the first seven sessions we are freeing up any restricted areas, or restricted moving patterns.  We are creating length and space in the tissue and encouraging order in how the segments of the body relate to each other.  In session eight, we begin to further refine those relationships.  Often times we find ourselves back in the legs and exploring how we may create more order in the legs so that they can best support the weight of the torso. 

In session four the territory that is covered is along the inside line of the leg -- the ankles, calves, knees and thighs. The goal is to balance the pelvic floor by bringing more balance into the legs.

  One of the central themes occurring in each of the ten sessions is creating a horizontal, balanced pelvis -- this is a considerable focus of session six.

In addition to working in the pelvis, we cover the back line of the legs as well.  The feet, the calves, and of course, everyone's favorite, the hamstrings!

The body does not have to work to "hold" itself up and it can rest in a state of dynamic balance.  With each session we begin to use our energy with much more efficiency.

We begin to work within the large facial sheaths of the body and as the client makes small movements in the joints, these sheaths learn new ways of relating to each other.

Session nine, again is a very integrative session.  We may focus more on the upper half of the body, the torso, shoulder girdle, neck and head.  We balance the relationship of the arms with the shoulder girdle, the shoulder girdle with the torso, the neck with the cranium etc.  We may do more work with movement. 

SESSION TEN

Graduation day!  This is the session where we are working for overall integration and balance through all of the joints of the body.  It's a day of fine tuning and celebration.  We continue to work with the relationships of the central vertical axis to horizontal hinges, or joints, in the body.  We tend to cover most all areas of the body in this session, reestablishing information from all of the previous sessions.

Marion S. Stone
Rolf Method of Structural Integration

Asheville, North Carolina, USA

(828) 232-0167

Call for appointments

Email marion@structuralintegration.com