Posts from — January 2008

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Many people today are sharing conversations about how to take better care of themselves and improve their health. Every day we read in newspapers and magazines about the rising numbers of people suffering from various cancers, diabetes, autoimmune disorders, and especially the rise in obesity in young people. And we then ask ourselves, “How is this happening in our society so rich in access to information?”

It is important to understand that our national and global communities are the first generations to experience exposure to thousands of industrial chemicals and pollutants in our air, water, and food sources. Articles on manufacturing, slaughterhouse, and pharmaceutical contamination occur almost daily and have become a main focus of conversation. Again, we ask ourselves, “What can I do to help myself and not become ill?”

An effective answer to this important question centers on understanding how our bodies detoxify the pollutants we ingest; what actually happens within the body biochemically and physiologically that begins the undermining processes leading to discomfort and ultimately disease.

The body has two main pathways to detoxify unwanted materials. This science may be generally too complicated for the layman to understand at first; however, it is important to know that our bodies are capable of detoxifying most pollutants effectively. The breakdown occurs when too much pollution enters the body and backs up the detox processes, much like the Sandpoint summer tourist traffic congestion : it all just slows down the process. When this happens, chemical reactions begin to occur with the vast mixture of chemical compounds all competing for vital nutrients for breakdown, assimilation, absorption, and/or elimination, oftentimes creating more volatile combinations that hold the potential for damaging healthy cells and ultimately creating disease situations.

Supporting detoxification pathways becomes an important routine endeavor by each person not only as prevention, but for assisting the body when overtaxation of these pathways has begun. You will know when this occurs when you feel undue fatigue, digestive discomfort, aches and pains, headaches, and the like.

An effective way to assist your body with detoxification is to receive massage therapy on a regular basis. Specialty massage protocols such as Swedish massage for general relaxation (repair processes begin with good relaxation), deep tissue massage for moving stagnant and trapped interstitial fluids out of muscles and joints, hot stone massage for dilating vessel systems to improve fluid flow and elimination, and lymphatic drainage massage for overall clearing of waste fluids through lymph vessels as well as for specific retention regions are positive choices that assist our detox pathways and our immune system. Another great way to help your body detox is to sweat: far infrared saunas are one of the best ways to sweat, but also cardio workouts that break a sweat or steam or moist saunas assist in the endeavor.

What is most important is that each of us understands the importance of taking care of ourselves every day because of the onslaught of pollution we cannot control. Choosing a method of detoxification regularly makes a big difference in improving your chances of having a healthy body and extending your lifespan. Adjusting dietary habits to eliminate as much as possible unnecessary harmful ingredients and processed foods improves all endeavors.

Take care of yourself. You are important. And you are the only one who gets to choose how you do what is best for you.

Krystle Shapiro is a Washington State licensed medical massage therapist. She owns Touchstone Massage Therapies located in the Stepping Stones Wellness Center at 803 W. Pine Street, Sandpoint. Krystle specializes in oncology massage therapy with emphasis on lymphedema treatment. She is currently undertaking a Master of Science of Holistic Nutrition program and can be reached at 208/290-6760.

Rolfing focuses on restoring order to the body’s structure so that it is structurally integrated and aligned with gravity. Through a series of 10 one-hour sessions, the soft tissue (muscles, tendons and fascia) of the body is remolded into a looser and straighter shape. This procedure of sculpturing is a slow, firm manipulation of the soft tissue. As pressure is applied to the tissue, the body releases tension as it relaxes.

Each session focuses on specific goals and areas of the body. These sessions are cumulative, as each session builds on the results of the previous session. As the body is reordered, so are its movement patterns. New, more efficient habits enhance the structural changes, preventing the likelihood of a re-injury or the return of old tension.

Releasing stress in the body
Most often, the need for Rolfing is stress-related. It may be due to stress resulting from an accident, athletics or repetitive motion; or it may be the psychological stress that we all endure.

For example, an old childhood injury may be compounded by a sports injury and then accentuated by a minor auto accident. Six months after the auto accident, in spite of all that has been done to get well, pain still lingers. While many therapies treat recent conditions with success, a chronic condition may actually underline the most recent injury. To relieve the pain of the recent injury, the chronic tension needs to be released. When a tight body experiences one too many traumas, it no longer has any resilience.

Simply put, even the healthiest body will reach a place where there is no more room for stress. This body will remain tense until the older trauma is released as well as the more recent trauma. Rolfing addresses these long-held traumas as well as the more recent traumas.

Rolfing in the news and on TV
The Oprah Winfrey Show devoted a section of their program to Rolfing. The million people who have been Rolfed , until now, have driven the growth of Rolfing’s popularity. It was only a matter of time before Rolfing became main stream. Oprah’s show will likely be a major contributing factor. Oprah is known for investigating and scouting relatively undiscovered phenomenon that can help people. Oprah´s allure is base on her ability to discover the next beneficial wave. Vogue magazine is also touting the benefits of Rolfing.

The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal write about the success of Nathaniel Kahn’s documentary Two Hands. The film is about classical pianist Leon Fleisher return to performing. Fleisher used Rolfing as one of his therapies to recover from extreme focal dystonia.

Good Morning Spokane did a segment on Marcus´ pilot study on Rolfing and cellulite.

The structure of the Rolfing series
Basic Rolfing usually consists of 10 sessions performed between twice a week to once per month. After an integration period, which may be six months to a year, clients often return for a short series of advanced Rolfing. One-session tune-ups are conducted to alleviate new problems.

Owen’s Rolfing

With more than 28 years of experience as a Rolfing practitioner, Owen Marcus has developed his own refinements of Rolfing. Through his graceful approach to Rolfing, it is possible to achieve significant changes with the minimal amount of effect.

Owen Marcus, MA is Certified Advance Rolfer in Sandpoint, ID. He has trained and employed other Rolfers in his integrative medical clinic in Scottsdale, AZ. He conducted Rolfing research with ASU and employed his Sports Rolfing approach on Olympic and professional athletes. His Rolfing sites are www.align.org and www.RolfBlog.com. He can be reached at 208.265.8440.