One of the most surprising things for clients on the table: “this feels amazing!” When your body opens up, you feel pleasure! This rush of pleasure is like a reward to the nervous system, and is a big part of what makes the work ‘sustainable’. Why? I am not %100 sure, but I have ideas on that. The body is aware of very subtle gradations, of movement, position, temperature, degree of stretch, load. etc.. When a joint is in a more normal position and has more normal range of motion, suddenly we realize what we’ve been missing! Ahhh! That’s how my shoulder should feel!
A lot of our senses are geared to the fundamental question: ‘where am I?’ Improved body awareness also gives us a sense of security about this. Feeling more secure, suddenly-that sounds pleasurable to me! We literally can have a better ‘feel’ in movement and stillness for where we are, in space. Blood flow to the previously-restricted area, which had been slightly impeded like a kinked garden hose, is also suddenly increased, and the blood flow ‘hoses’ are un-kinked! The trick is knowing how to do this releasing, at what layer, in what sequence – that’s structural work – and knowing what can best be freed through movement/spatial awareness – that’s the functional part – and integrated back into the whole – that the ‘integration’ that helps make Rolfing Structural Integration more sustainable.