Rolfing SI Can Restore Your Natural Alignment

Other pro-athletes who have benefited from Rolfing SI include Michelle Kwan and Elvis Stojko, '98 Olympic Silver Medal figure skaters; Phil Jackson, former Chicago Bulls' coach; Charles Barkley of the Houston Rockets; Rob Moore of the Phoenix Cardinals, Tim Salmon, CA Angel baseball star; the Phoenix Suns basketball team; Mario Lemieux of the Pittsburg Penguins; Bob Tewksbury, pitcher for the Minnesota Twins; Edwin Moses, Olympic track athlete; Joe Greene, '96 U.S. Olympic Bronze Medal long jumper; and Ivan Lendl, former tennis champion.

Back Pain

"Those dissatisfied with other back pain treatments often consult a Rolfer^™, whose unique premises and methods are often effective in reducing pain and dysfunction when other approaches have failed."

Low back dysfunction is a common cause of pain and disability. Though its mechanism is often unclear, evidence suggests several factors as possible contributors, including unhealed soft tissue injury, pressure on nerves, chronic muscle tension or insufficient muscle tone, insufficient circulation and fluid movement, and even emotional stress and hostility. And, outcomes of treatment — be it medication, physical therapy, exercise, chiropractic or massage — are often unsatisfactory.

Those dissatisfied with other back pain treatments often consult a Rolfer^™, whose unique premises and methods are often effective in reducing pain and dysfunction when other approaches have failed. A Rolfer believes that many musculoskeletal problems can be mitigated or resolved by balancing the length and tone of soft tissues throughout the entire body. This view is crystallized in Dr. Rolf's admonition, "Where you think it is — it ain't"; in other words, the place where it hurts is not necessarily the source of the problem.

A Rolfer evaluates the client's entire body structure, considering not only the low back as the locus of the symptoms, but also the quality of support available to the low back from the pelvis, hips, legs and feet, as well as the mobility of the body segments above. Do the middle and upper back, shoulders, neck and head engage each other with well-coordinated grace? A Rolfer works with the connective tissue, which not only surrounds every muscle, joint and organ, but also functions as the body's organ of support, to balance the span and tone of the connective tissue network as a whole.

Though recipients of Rolfing Structural Integration often report mitigation of low back pain and dysfunction, scientific research concerning its effects is just beginning. Several promising hypotheses of how the Rolfer's methods might alleviate chronic musculoskeletal pain merit investigation, including:

1. Balanced length and tone throughout the body, including improved support from the pelvis, hips, legs and feet, and improved coordination in the mid and upper back, shoulders, neck and head, might lessen the strain the low back bears in daily activities. Perhaps reduced strain allows injured tissues to heal and reduces the odds of re-injury, which would mitigate chronic pain.
2. Increased pliability of the connective tissues might enhance circulation and fluid flow in regions where nociceptive amplifiers — substances that heighten and/or accelerate the brain's perception of pain — have previously accumulated.
3. More balanced span and tone throughout the connective tissue network might relieve nerve compression and irritation through improved alignment of joints and/or increased pliability of scar tissues that have entrapped nerves.
4. Greater mobility and reduced tension in the soft tissues of the low back and sacrum might facilitate relaxation, as well as reduce the intensity of negative emotions that can exacerbate the symptoms.

At this point in time, these are only theories. Good scientific research needs to be done before we know which of these effects, if any, actually do contribute to the alleviation of chronic pain. Any of these hypotheses might also account in part for the therapeutic effects of chiropractic, osteopathy, massage or acupuncture. What sets Rolfing Structural Integration apart from these other disciplines is:

• its emphasis on balancing span, tone and mobility throughout the entire body,
• its method of working extensively and deeply within the connective tissues to produce long-lasting improvements, and
• its design as a limited intervention.

Repetitive Stress Injuries

Overall cost savings to the company in such areas as turnover, unemployment costs, health insurance, training, and productivity are estimated to be about $2,500/employee/year. Certified Advanced Rolfer^™ Working On-Site Helps to Reduce Problems Related to RSI

According to Larry Miller, Director of Human Resources at Starkey Laboratories, workers' compensation costs were "going through the roof" when he introduced a new element into Starkey's employee wellness program in 1992. The cost increases were due in large part to the growing number of repetitive stress injuries (RSI), including carpal tunnel syndrome.

That year he brought in Siana Goodwin, Certified Advanced Rolfer, to provide Rolfing SI on-site for employees with RSI symptoms. For the last six years, Sandra L. Jones, Certified Rolfer, has been the on-site Rolfer at Minnesota-based Starkey Laboratories (one of the world's largest custom hearing aid manufacturers), with dramatic results:

• The year before the program began, 7 employees had carpal tunnel surgery.
• There have been no carpal tunnel surgeries at the Eden Prairie plant in the last 6 years. After receiving Rolfing SI, one employee who'd had surgery and was recommended for another never needed the second surgery. The cost of the Rolfing work was about $600; the cost of surgery would have been about $35,000!
• Starkey's modification factor (a measure of risk that determines insurance premiums) dropped from .92 to .61, an incredibly low rate. The average national MOD factor is .95, with .85 considered highly desirable, especially in the injury-prone manufacturing sector.
• Starkey's workers' compensation costs decreased 92% in seven years.

Starkey has benefited in many other ways from their on-site Rolfing program, including reduced absenteeism and increased productivity. Furthermore, Starkey's cost savings in areas such as turnover, unemployment costs, health insurance, training and productivity are estimated at about $2,500/employee/year.

Starkey recently purchased two other hearing aid companies and in 2005 built a new facility in Eden Prairie, increasing to 1300 the number of employees there with access to Rolfing SI. In 2005, Erin Herdina, Certified Rolfer, began to bring Rolfing SI to the 228 employees at the plant in Glencoe, MN. Also in 2005, Jon Martine, Certified Advanced Rolfer, brought Rolfing to Starkey's plant in Colorado Springs, CO, where 27 employees receive Rolfing on a volunteer basis.

This program was recognized as one of the "best practices" by the Minnesota Quality Awards in 1996.