Rolfing - Part II

Today's blog entry is about finding a Rolfer and some of the benefits I've had from Rolfing so far.

Finding and Appreciating a Good Rolfer

Without knowing all that much about Rolfing, I went about trying to find one.  While the Rolfing Institute has a search engine where you can find certified Rolfers in your area, the web sites of many of these practitioners leave a lot to be desired.

In my area, there were two Rolfers listed within 10 miles of my zip code, and both were Advanced Certified Rolfers.  Trying to find anything more about them seemed futile.  So I scheduled the one closest, and lucked out.

Diane Kuschel has been certified in Rolfing for about 16 years, and she practices in Clinton and Lambertville, NJ.  She charges $110 for an hour and fifteen minute session.

My first impressions of Diane were that she is very relaxed and easy to be around and that she had a level of confidence in her practice that usually is only accompanied by someone quite skilled.  I didn't feel much awkwardness even in our initial interactions.  She gave me a very brief introduction of what to expect and got right to work with a visual assessment.  I stood in my boxers and she looked at my front, my back, with my knees slightly bent, with my arms out to the side and my arms out front.

She pointed out a few areas where she thought she could make some big differences for me, which were similar to what I had heard from chiropractors and massage therapists for years...mainly that my head and neck jutted forward too much and my shoulders were rounded forward.  The main difference was that chiropractors and massage therapists always blamed my computer use, my knitting and/or my driving, Diane told me that my upper chest fascia was too short and tight and encouraged me to keep my head forward...and she could help.  She did.

What She Did, How I Felt

Lying in various positions on a standard massage table, Diane applied pressure with her hand, fingers or forearm...pressing and moving slowly in the same direction...kind of like she was trying to squeeze something out of a tube.  There were other techniques too...but nothing overly intrusive and nothing painful.

When I expressed surprise at the lack of pain (based on what I knew about Rolfing), she said they have found ways of accomplishing structural integration without pain, except in some rare cases.  I was both relieved and a bit disappointed, as I had prepared myself.

So far, I have had six sessions, and while the changes are not huge, my sense of feeling free within my own body has been nothing short of amazing.

Current Knitting

Since I've made the most progress with my current sock project, I figured I'd display that today.

So, it appears the mystery yarn is Trekking XXL and as I mentioned the last time I showed this project, the contrasting heel and toe is Koigu KPPPM in a beautiful colorway.

I've also done a short-row heel and side-reducing toe, finishing with Kitchener stitch bind-off.