Who am I and why am I doing this?
NPR Article on Rolfing
Here’s a recent article on Rolfing featured on NPR:
Rolfing in the NY Times
Rolfing and it’s benefits were recently profiled in the NY Times as well as The Today Show
Moira Mills Profiled on FOX 23 News
Moira is profiled on Fox 23 news on May 30, 2009 about her work helping a top Freihofer’s Run for Women competitor with body work prior to the race.
Moira’s Rolfing Practice Profiled in the Albany Times Union
Moira was recently profiled in the Times Union by Kathy Ceceri. Full article below.
Getting In Deep
by Kathy Ceceri
Times Union, June 17, 2009
Opera singer Kara Cornell is skinny and athletic – and though many people may envy that, it was hurting her singing. Cornell, who teaches at Russell Sage College and has appeared with Albany Pro Musica, the Octavo Singers in Schenectady and other local groups, knew she was limited in her ability to perform and suffered from upper body pain, but didn’t know how to take care of it. Her muscular core made her torso tight and constricted her ribcage, “where the power in your voice comes from,” she says.
And there was another problem dating back to her days practicing with the pitching machine in her family’s basement when she played high school softball. “When I was singing high notes, I would twist my head to the left,” she says. “I realized I was getting ready to swing.”
Eventually Cornell reached the point where it was time to seek help. “I’m only 28. I’m too young to feel like this,” she says.
So, on the advice of a fellow singer, she tried rolfing. Cornell signed up for 10 sessions with rolfer Moira Mills, who is certified by the Rolf Institute of Structural Integration in Colorado. After the first session, which focused on the feet, she could feel the difference when climbing stairs. Within a few sessions, Cornell says her husband told her that her singing was ten times better. He’s even noticed a difference in her gait. “My husband says I don’t walk like a duck anymore,” she reports with a laugh.
Mills, who works in Albany and Saratoga Springs, says that rolfing (also known as structural integration), looks at the body as a system. “What sets rolfing apart,” she explains, “is that it looks at how different elements of the system interact. Even though the shoulders hurt, that may not be where the problem is. I work with a lot of athletes who have problems with the shoulders, hips, arms and ankles. If they have something that’s going on in the lower leg, that could be creating a problem in the neck and shoulders. If the toes are pointed out, that’s going to have an effect on the pelvis.”
Although rolfing is sometimes compared to massage,
it doesn’t work on the muscles. Instead, rolfing focuses on the fascia, the body’s connective tissue. The fascia is a protective layer that surrounds the muscles, bones and organs and gives them shape and structure. Nick Pavoldi, owner of Bodywork Professionals in Latham, who received his training through The Guild for Structural Integration in Hawaii, compares it to the casing on a sausage. The goal is to loosen the fascia so the body has a sense of space. “It’s like putting on more comfortable clothing,” Pavoldi says. While Mills works mainly with athletes, most of the people Pavoldi sees are over 40, and many have tried other alternative treatments like massage without relief. “They’re ready to feel more comfortable in their body,” Pavoldi says. “It’s become a drag rather than something useful.”
Rolfing was invented by Ida P. Rolf, a researcher in biological chemistry with a Ph.D. from Columbia University. In the 1920s, Rolf went to Europe to study math, atomic physics and homeopathic medicine in Switzerland. She went on to explore alternative treatments such as osteopathy, chiropractic medicine and yoga. By the 1940s, Rolf was treating patients in her Manhattan apartment and developing the technique that bears her name. (Although both the guild and the Rolf Institute trace their beginnings to Rolf herself, only institute graduates can use the designation “rolfer.”)
A course of treatment typically consists of 10 sessions. Starting at the feet and working up, the first three focus on the surface layer of the fascia and aim to provide a stable foundation for the rest of the body. The next three “core” sessions go deeper, centering on the torso and head. The final three sessions seek to integrate the improvements made in the earlier sessions, and vary according to the client’s needs.
Both Mills and Pavoldi say they don’t require clients to commit to an entire 10-session series. Instead, they allow clients to decide how far they want to take it. Pavoldi counsels his clients to begin slowly. “It can be painful,” he says.
What sets rolfing apart is that it looks at how different elements of the system interact.” —Moira Mills
“It’s not a ‘fluff and buff’ massage.” That’s what opera singer Cornell found, although she admits she has a high tolerance for pain. And many of the sessions were relaxing, especially one in which Mills worked inside Cornell’s mouth. “I almost fell asleep,” she says.
Rolfing also differs from massage in that clients are expected to take an active part in what’s going on. They might be asked to move into different positions, for example, and they’re constantly asked for feedback. Some of that communication, Pavoldi says, can include a discussion of other areas of a client’s life. In fact, clients sometimes undergo an emotional release or outburst as a result of the intense physical manipulation.
Both Pavoldi and Mills downplay that aspect of rolfing, however. “Not everybody believes in the mind-body connection,” Mills says. “Because people have different beliefs, I stick more to the structural part of it.”
But both have found that emotions like stress do affect their clients’ bodies and play a part in determining what work needs to be done. “If things are out of control,” Pavoldi says, “you’ll see it in the neck and arms. I may bring that up, if they want to talk about it. I’m not a therapist, but my role is to bridge the gap between what’s going on in their body and what’s going on in their life. Our bodies give us a lot of information about what’s going on in our lives. Finally listening to it can have a really positive effect for people.” Pavoldi cautions that rolfing is not for everyone. People who are recovering from cancer, for example, may not benefit from the intense treatment. And he’s had clients with fibromyalgia who, “despite my best intentions,” found their condition worsened rather than improved under treatment. But he’s found that traditional medical practitioners usually have no problem with rolfing. (New York state does not certify rolfers, but many, like Pavoldi, hold a state massage license. The Rolf Institute and The Guild are the two organizations that train and certify practitioners.)
For Mills, rolfing is about helping people like Cornell achieve the goals they have in their lives. That includes educating them about how their body works, and giving them stretching and other exercise tools they can use to build on the treatment she’s given in the office.
Now that her 10-session series is done, Cornell says she’s looking forward to the continuing improvements in her physical condition and in her singing. “I recommend it to all my students,” she says.