Rolfing addresses a wide range of physical struggles, including:

Joint, nerve, or musculoskeletal pain

Chronic discomfort

Recovery from injury or surgery

Balance, coordination, mobility

Postural misalignment

Lack of vitality

& more…

It addresses these issues from multiple perspectives: the tissue restrictions throughout all layers of the physical body, the individual’s movement patterns, as well as their emotional and energetic states.

However, Rolfing isn’t just a way of addressing localized symptoms. Symptoms provide insight into the body’s inner structure, and the resolution of those symptoms are often one piece of realizing a more effortless, aligned structure in the world. What results for clients is often a deeper resilience, vitality and clarity that they did not know their body had. This effortless alignment is the larger aim of Rolfing work, and clients can pursue this work as far as they choose to with their Rolfer.

For me, exploring this alignment has been a long-time personal investigation that began with my study of the Chinese tradition of standing meditation or Zhan Zhuang. I’ve found that internal alignment has had profound implications for my life. It allows me to stay open, energized, and curious about my environment. I sleep better, digest better, and do challenging tasks with far less tension. Often when I experience some sort of pain in my body and don’t have an opportunity to see a trusted bodyworker, I focus on finding that clear inner line and releasing into it, and my body finds ways of resolving itself.

Rolfing, therefore, is a way of helping people overcome the pain and physical restrictions they experience. But it is also a way of helping them along a path towards finding their own resources for health and vitality within.

Most manual therapies focus on specific aspects of the body, like the muscles, the spine, or the joints. Rolfing was one of the first to work on the fascial tissue, but has grown to include the nerves, organs, movement patterns and other territory. Rather than isolating a specific aspect of the body, Rolfers address any area of the body they see relevant to the structural weaknesses in the body. 


Rolfers navigate the areas of the body they work on by searching for the root of the symptom. What is it in the body that is causing this problem and why is it behaving in that way? How could the body be better structured to encourage healthier behavior of that part of the body?

For example, for desk workers that struggle with upper back and shoulder pain, I may focus on the brachial nerves and releasing potential entrapments of the nerve. But that may involve reorganizing the muscles and fascia around the collar bone and arm, and it may involve trying to get more space for the lungs as well. Or I may look further down at the lower back to see how it is supporting the upper body. Finally, I may also identify patterns in sitting that are affecting all these physical restrictions and work with clients to find healthier patterns.

In this way, Rolfing is not a set of techniques but an approach to adjusting the whole body’s relationship to the problems afflicting it.

Depending on the origins of the issue, I may work in deep layers of the body. Many are not used to experiencing touch deep in the body and working on this level can challenge clients to open up in a way that they’ve never had to before. This kind of experience can be intense or sensitive. Even so, clients tend to describe it as a “hurts-so-good” sensation, followed by relief and spaciousness.

I always make sure to work in close communication with each client to assure that the work is tolerable and productive for their body.

See my explanation here.

Please contact me if you are pregnant to discuss your situation, as I adjust my work significantly for pregnancy. Rolfing can be a great complement to postpartum care. Always check with your care provider first.