Structural Integration
What is Structural Integration?
Structural Integration (SI) is a field of bodywork growing since the phrase was first coined during the life of the founder of this work, Dr. Ida P. Rolf. The work differentiates itself from other systems of manual therapy such as chiropractic, osteopathy, and massage therapy. That main difference lies in the essence of the process. Structural Integration organizes the fascial matrix of the body in a systematic way over the course of time. Rolf's genius observation was that gravity becomes the most potent therapist between treatments, so that the time between appointments is part of the efficacy of the work.
For example, a client will receive a session aimed at providing more support in the body through the arches of the feet. As their body moves with these changes overtime, a new shortness can reveal itself in relationship to the new alignment of the legs. Perhaps, more tissue bunches in the torso as a result. Then, the client can go in for some work and have their torso lengthened which leads to the next part of the process, and so on, until the work is complete. Each session builds upon the next until ideally, the body resolves its own complaints by moving within the improved arrangement.
A little about the process:
The process of SI usually begins with the client and practitioner agreeing to do The Series together. The series is a session-by-session recipe that organizes a person's body holistically. It's great place to start when there has been chronic pain or injury. Often enough, when spot-work is done in the myofascial system, the entire body cannot integrate the work; Either the same pain returns a few days later or a new problem emerges.
The Series is typically 10 sessions, categorized into three parts. The first part is about allowing the extrinsic fascia and musculature to move off the intrinsic structures that are deeper in the body. This usually takes three sessions in which we work first on the ribs and shoulder girdle to bring more freedom for breathing. The next session involves bringing the feet, knees, and pelvis into alignment. The third part of the this session focuses on freeing the connections between the shoulder and pelvic girdle. The first three sessions prepare the body to have the intrinsic fascia balanced, softened and lengthened.
The fourth through seventh sessions reveal the deeper holdings in the body. The fourth session begins to find length through the deeper pelvis musculature through to the feet. The fifth and sixth sessions find alignment between the front and back of the torso, bringing about depth through the ribcage, and stability through the lumbar spine. The seventh session focuses on aligning the neck and head on top of the lengthened torso. These sessions tend to create a space for new awareness and a new relationship with gravity.
The next two sessions, eight and nine, are built into the Series to work with what comes up in the body's structure after the seventh session; or after the intrinsics have the space to lengthen with less surrounding extrinsic tension. At this point in the series, new imbalances and asymmetries have the chance to emerge, and old injuries can show themselves in a new way. These two sessions create the container for an important aspect of the series: Creating a congruent and balanced connection between the front and back, the left and right, and the upper and lower halves of the body. In essence, these sessions lay the groundwork so that more solid relationships between all the parts of the body can be built through the new movement patterns that emerge.
The last session, Session 10, resets the skeleton's position in the fascial matrix. This is a gentle process and involves a lot of movement and teamwork between the client and practitioner. The main goal of this session is the go through the entire body and make sure that all the joints are tracking horizontally. When a joint moves at an angle that is not perpendicular to the way force transmits through the bone, that joint doesn't have as much integrity, as well as, tension starts to arise as a compensation somewhere else in the body. The other part of this session is about completing the Series and looking at the experience overall, and/or making a plan about what is best for the client to do next.
*A little note about my work specifically: Sometimes, I need to prepare a client's body before the series, and sometimes I need more than one appointment to complete a session. Ideally, I make it through the series in 10 sessions, and sometimes I need 11 or 12 depending on what's happening with each client.
For example, a client will receive a session aimed at providing more support in the body through the arches of the feet. As their body moves with these changes overtime, a new shortness can reveal itself in relationship to the new alignment of the legs. Perhaps, more tissue bunches in the torso as a result. Then, the client can go in for some work and have their torso lengthened which leads to the next part of the process, and so on, until the work is complete. Each session builds upon the next until ideally, the body resolves its own complaints by moving within the improved arrangement.
A little about the process:
The process of SI usually begins with the client and practitioner agreeing to do The Series together. The series is a session-by-session recipe that organizes a person's body holistically. It's great place to start when there has been chronic pain or injury. Often enough, when spot-work is done in the myofascial system, the entire body cannot integrate the work; Either the same pain returns a few days later or a new problem emerges.
The Series is typically 10 sessions, categorized into three parts. The first part is about allowing the extrinsic fascia and musculature to move off the intrinsic structures that are deeper in the body. This usually takes three sessions in which we work first on the ribs and shoulder girdle to bring more freedom for breathing. The next session involves bringing the feet, knees, and pelvis into alignment. The third part of the this session focuses on freeing the connections between the shoulder and pelvic girdle. The first three sessions prepare the body to have the intrinsic fascia balanced, softened and lengthened.
The fourth through seventh sessions reveal the deeper holdings in the body. The fourth session begins to find length through the deeper pelvis musculature through to the feet. The fifth and sixth sessions find alignment between the front and back of the torso, bringing about depth through the ribcage, and stability through the lumbar spine. The seventh session focuses on aligning the neck and head on top of the lengthened torso. These sessions tend to create a space for new awareness and a new relationship with gravity.
The next two sessions, eight and nine, are built into the Series to work with what comes up in the body's structure after the seventh session; or after the intrinsics have the space to lengthen with less surrounding extrinsic tension. At this point in the series, new imbalances and asymmetries have the chance to emerge, and old injuries can show themselves in a new way. These two sessions create the container for an important aspect of the series: Creating a congruent and balanced connection between the front and back, the left and right, and the upper and lower halves of the body. In essence, these sessions lay the groundwork so that more solid relationships between all the parts of the body can be built through the new movement patterns that emerge.
The last session, Session 10, resets the skeleton's position in the fascial matrix. This is a gentle process and involves a lot of movement and teamwork between the client and practitioner. The main goal of this session is the go through the entire body and make sure that all the joints are tracking horizontally. When a joint moves at an angle that is not perpendicular to the way force transmits through the bone, that joint doesn't have as much integrity, as well as, tension starts to arise as a compensation somewhere else in the body. The other part of this session is about completing the Series and looking at the experience overall, and/or making a plan about what is best for the client to do next.
*A little note about my work specifically: Sometimes, I need to prepare a client's body before the series, and sometimes I need more than one appointment to complete a session. Ideally, I make it through the series in 10 sessions, and sometimes I need 11 or 12 depending on what's happening with each client.