Your Health History
In your first session I we will begin with an extensive health history. If you prefer I can email this to you in advance of your session, but in either case, we will spend some time talking about what you hope to get out of your sessions and any history that may be relevant to our work together. Many painful symptoms can occur years after seemingly insignificant injuries. It helps me to be able to come up with a treatment plan if I know more about your background and what circumstances got you to where you are now.
Checking In
In each session we’ll spend at least the first 15 minutes checking in. This gives us a chance to go over any changes in your body or your life that may be relevant to our goals in that particular session. Your body will most likely be changing throughout your series and it helps me to know what you’re aware of and how things are improving. It also helps me to tailor what we do in each session to your particular needs if I hear more about how you’ve been before getting to work. Sometimes these check-ins go on longer than 15 minutes and can even become the entire session. I will leave it up to you to decide if you want to cut the check-in short and move on to bodywork or movement.
Clinical Assessment
Several times throughout each session I will do various kinds of clinical assessment to determine what has shifted from the adjustments we are making with your body. This allows me to work more accurately, saves time, and ensures that the postural changes made to your structure last longer and are more effective at bringing you towards balance. This assessment often includes: postural analysis in standing, sitting or walking; myofascial “range of motion†testing, visceral, energetic and cranial sacral diagnosis, and occasionally photographs. Sometime it will seem like I’m not doing anything or the assessment may seem odd. I’ll often explain what I notice, but please feel free to ask what I’m doing or what a test is for if you’re curious. Learning more about what’s happening in your body can be an empowering experience!
Movement
The work of Structural Integration is always at the service of movement. The focus of the movement work we do together will be on your awareness. Though it’s not always apparent at first, this is often the key element to making the opening created by structural integration last a lifetime. When we become aware of how we move, we have the opportunity to create lasting change.
My primary focus with most of my clients is with sitting, walking, standing, and whatever movements you find difficult in your daily life. If your work involves repetitive movements or sitting at a desk for hours, becoming more aware of your movement patterns will be a key factor in your treatment program. Changes to common daily habits such as sitting at a desk, or lifting correctly can prevent symptoms from returning. The exercises we do together will help reconnect you to your core, and give you the tools to bring balance and grace to the way you move and feel, long after your series is over.
Dialogue
Dialogue during the bodywork provides an opportunity how you think, feel and sense through your body. By bringing our awareness to the subtle physiological patterns that create stress, anxiety, physical tension and certain emotional states, we can consciously limit their effects on us by uncovering their causes. When we become aware of the subtle patterns we carry in our physiology and consciousness, we are given the opportunity to create lasting change in all aspects of our life. This is truly holistic work.
The Bodywork
After thorough clinical assessment, the bodywork begins. Treatments are completed on a massage table, sitting at a bench or in various yoga-like postures that support your ability to unwind deep set postural or movement patterns.
Structural Integration Sessions
Structural Integration is a unique method. Don’t come expecting a massage! While many sessions are relaxing, the work is often challenging and sometimes intense. The treatments are often deeper and slower and you will often feel a shift in the balance of your body with each stroke as range of motion is restored, stuck areas are released and scar tissue left by previous injuries is reorganized.
Because I ask my clients to frequently shift positions to assess the effectiveness of the work we do, I do not do bodywork under sheets. I prefer that you come clothed in either underwear, bathing suit top and bottom, or loose shorts (and a bra if you’re a woman). This will
Your Posture
Simply put, the more aligned your body is, the more energy you will have available to do other things besides holding yourself up. Most pain and tension patterns are reflected in posture. For example, neck or shoulder pain can cause one shoulder to be raised higher than the other. Many of my clients discover that their attitudes about themselves are held in their posture and that when they learn to find more balance in their bodies, they have more options for who they are, how they feel and how they move. During your series we will work with your postural imbalances to improve your relationship to gravity and help you find more ease and grace. More energy, easier movement, and more balance in all aspects of your life become more available. You may never feel the same again!
