Rolfing - the next frontier

As some of you may be aware, I am heading to Colorado this summer to study Rolfing. This is a three-part certification course. This first unit runs through June and July, so I'll be managing my practice from a distance. I can do a lot of work via email and phone, and I'll still be able to do consultations and send out remedies.

Everyone asks "What is Rolfing?" Well, it's another obscure healing method, kind of like homeopathy. No, seriously, in order to answer that question, I asked my Rolfer, Jennifer Eslinger. Her practice is called Structural Energy.
Here is what she had to say:

How did you hear about Rolfing?
I found out about Rolfing® Structural Integration in 2002, shortly
after graduating from college.  My sister was seeing a Rolfer™ after
hearing about it through the Yoga Journal.  She mentioned that her Rolfer
had a one year old son and that she needed someone to babysit him.  I
ended up babysitting in exchange for my first three sessions.  I fell in
love with the work and proceeded to pay for the rest of the series.

What made you decide to go study it?
I was a Psychology major and was having doubts about further pursuing
Psychology.  Both the commitment of years and years of schooling as well
as my lack of desire to be surrounded by negativity swayed my thinking.
About halfway through the ten-series, I could see myself doing this work.
I enjoy helping people and what I loved about Rolfing SI is that it not
only affects the physical body, it also affects the mental and the
emotional body.  With Rolfing SI, there is an end in sight.  This is
goal-oriented work that gets to the root of the problem.  As I was
considering Rolfing SI as a career, my Rolfer told me of a saying, “If you
want to change, get Rolfing.  If you really want to change, become a
Rolfer.”

Can you briefly explain what Rolfing is?
Rolfing® Structural Integration is a hands-on form of bodywork that
works by lengthening and freeing the wrappings around the muscles, known
as connective tissue.  Rolfing SI systematically organizes the body
through a series of ten individual sessions, with each session focusing on
a different part of the body.  With heat and pressure, Rolfing SI is able
to mold a body like plastic.  When this tissue “hardens,” it takes on a
new form and the effects are long-lasting.

I sometimes describe Rolfing SI as a cross between deep tissue massage and
chiropractic, but it is really neither of these two.  If anything, it
feels like deep tissue massage, but has the added benefit of structural
alignment.  Chiropractic works on the bones, whereas Rolfing SI works on
the soft tissue that surrounds the bones.

What kinds of conditions have you seen benefit from Rolfing treatment?
Rolfing SI is great for helping people improve their posture.  My
clients seek my work for this reason as well as to address some form of
chronic pain, be it neck pain, shoulder pain, back pain, and so forth.  A
lot of my clients come to Rolfing SI after they have exhausted other
modalities and nothing has fully helped them.  The beauty of Rolfing SI is
that it works on the whole body, not just the point of pain and
discomfort.  Rolfing SI recognizes that our body is connected and that
neck pain could actually begin with the feet.