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ST. LOUIS PARK :: 952-345-1953 :: 4200 Minnetonka Boulevard, St. Louis Park, MN 55416

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Structural Integration

"If you can imagine how it feels to have a fluid, light, balanced body, free of pain, stiffness and chronic stress, at ease with itself and the earth's gravitational field, then you will understand the goals of Structural Integration."
~Ida P. Rolf, Ph.D.

Availability:
Sundays 7:30am-3pm
Mondays 7am-12pm
Tuesdays 3pm-9pm
Wednesdays 7am-12pm
Fridays 9am-6pm

Cost:
Structural Integration sessions ranges from 55-75 minutes for client customization
1 session $125
3 session package $325
7 session package $775
10 series $1100

Schedule your appointment with Molly Brackett, NCBTMB, SIP online or by phone (952-345-1953).
Questions: molly@mybodyrestoration.com
Cancellation Policy: Cancellations made within 24 hours (including no-shows) will be charged the full value of the service scheduled.

What is Structural Integration?
Structural Integration Rolf Method, also known as Rolfing, is a process of re-education of the body through hands-on manipulation and movement. It systematically releases patterns of stress and impaired function. The primary focus is facilitating the relationship between gravity and the human body. Over time, our bodies get pulled down and forward giving us less room and fluidity compromising our structure & function. This creates compensatory patterns. Structural Integration is a method to release patterns of tendency; creating greater freedom and comfort within the body.

The goal of Structural Integration is to obtain balance and alignment, serving both structure and function within the field of gravity by freeing and unwrapping the connective tissue called fascia. Fascia is a thin yet fibrous tissue that is the binding tissue and support of the body. If you’ve skinned chicken breasts, it’s the white tissue that is between the meat and the skin. Read about the history of Structural Integration Rolf Method, and Ida P. Rolf.

What is a Structural Integration ten-series?
The Structural Integration ten-series is the typical progression whereby the client receives ten, one-hour sessions addressing every part of the body to achieve balance and alignment as a whole. Sessions range from 55-75 minute in length due to customization. Each hour is a progression of the series and is important to gain the appropriate balance and alignment goals. SI works by lengthening and opening the connective tissue to obtain greater freedom to function in the body riding old patterns of tendencies and creating new, optimal patterns. As a result the thickened, toughened tissue becomes soft, re-hydrated and more pliable, thus allowing movement and flexibility. Structural Integration changes the body's compensations because it organizes the imbalances in the tissue. The systematic approach to relating gravity through the myofascial layers aligns the body and improves posture consequently feeling uplifted and light. Ideally, the ten-series would be performed one session a week for ten weeks.

Do I have to get a ten-series to receive the work?
No, there are stopping points in the series where the client can stop the process and obtain some order & alignment. Clients have the option to try one session of SI, continue through to three appointments or complete the ten-series. However, once you pass session #3, you have to continue through to session #10.

Will the benetifs last?
Yes, the structural integration ten-series is a launching pad for continued ease, fluidity, and balance. Keep in mind however, as life changes, the body changes in response. Any injuries, accidents, lengthy illnesses and emotional stress may necessitate additional work.

Who can benefit from Structural Integration?
Dr. Rolf believed that everyone would benefit from Structural Integration. In fact, all human bodies hold a level of dis-ease & compensation, which makes everyone an ideal candidate for Structural Integration. Frequently people find structural integration or come to it with specific purpose or goal in mind. Click to view a short list that may describe a symptom, collective symptoms, or activities that structural integration can help facilitate whole well-being.

Will Structural Integration hurt?
SI practitioners gained an early reputation associated with pain, but the work has advanced and evolved since then. There are several factors to be considered if SI will hurt. First, there are areas in the body that hold chronic tension or stress. Also account for how long the compensatory pattern has been prevalent in the body. The practitioner and client will gauge the level of intensity and threshold that is best pending the type of sensation present. Sensations range from a ‘hurt so good’ satisfying release, tenderness, or temporary discomfort. My goal is to customize each structural integration session to each client’s goals and that of the overall focus of SI. Structural integration is a very personal process and no one person’s is exactly alike. The client and practitioner work together as a team.

What should I wear to a Structural Integration session?
Sessions are completed with comfortable attire for the client. Women commonly wear running shorts and sports bra or tank top, a 2-piece swimsuit, or undergarments. Men can wear undergarments or running shorts. Again, I urge clients to wear comfortable attire. The more comfortable the attire, the more engaged in the process the client can become and less worried about being uncomfortable or uncovered. All clients will have a blanket on them during the session to provide further protection and comfort. The blanket will be gently moved when the practitioner needs to work in a certain area of the body.

What does a session look like? What are the benefits?
First, the client and practitioner will discuss the goals of the treatment and converse how it relates to the client’s health history and primary concerns. The practitioner will assess how client stands, walks, breathes, and generally moves with dialogue between client and practitioner. Client will receive work from practitioner occasionally asking for small movements on or off the table to further the process of elongating and freeing the body. The practitioner can take before and after photos to track the progression upon client’s request.

What's the difference between Structural Integration & massage?
Massage and Structural Integration are both healing in nature, but the techniques performed are different. Both therapies include hands-on manipulation, but SI practitioners are broadening and lengthening connective tissue called fascia to create fluidity, whereas massage is primarily concerned with muscles. Although there are various forms of massage, it is commonly used for relaxation achieving short-term results. Structural Integration aims to achieve long-term results via structure and alignment organizing, shaping, and integrating within the field of gravity. Those are not principles massage shares.

Structural Integration & Yoga
Dr. Ida Rolf used yoga as a method to gain length and balance in her own body before she began developing the Structural Integration Rolf method of bodywork. Yoga was a tool to advance her understanding of SI and the human form. Today, yoga can help gain flexibility, length, balance, and structure in addition to the Structural Integration Rolf Method ten-series. Oftentimes clients report a deeper understanding and connection to their bodies particularly when they accompany the 10-series with yoga or other personal wellness regimes.

Read more about gravity, fascia, connective tissue and musles in relation to SI

What people have to say about Structural Integration...
MEDIA:
Oprah & Dr. Oz say, "Rolfing literally releases the joints. When you talk to folks about the impact it has on them, a lot of them just stand taller. A lot is just freeing you up to live the way you're supposed to live." Vogue magazine says "I'm sold. Like yoga, rolfing is one of those practices that your body instantly tells you makes a lot of sense."

MOLLY'S CLIENTS:
Linda
After sustaining injuries from a very serious fall, I spent years seeking relief from the residual pain. While physical therapy, medication and chiropractic treatments gave me temporary relief, these treatments were beginning to consume my life and empty my wallet. My yoga instructor had recommended me to Molly Brackett suggesting her Rolfing treatments could give me the relief I was seeking. During treatments with Molly, I came to understand how my body interconnected in a way I had never appreciated. She is the consummate professional who possesses an innate ability to “read” my body’s deficits and immediately determine the root origin. My sessions with Molly are comforting and gentle and her intuitive touch has produced tremendous positive changes in my overall health. And who could have guessed, a recent annual physical puzzled everyone in the doctor’s office who wondered how a 62 year old woman had gain a half inch in height! Thanks, Molly!

Tanya, Thai Yoga Bodywork therapist
In Spring 2008, I realized I needed some help in getting my body recovered from pregnancy. My son was 1.5 years old, and my upper back and neck were really suffering. Also, as a bodyworker and yoga teacher myself, my physical lifestyle really was putting more stress on my structure and soft tissues than I would have liked. I talked with Molly about doing a series of Structural Integration for my complaints and decided to do it. As a Thai Yoga Bodywork therapist, I’ve had a good amount of fascia work with the thumbing of the lines, therefore, the SI was not as uncomfortable as I had heard about. Also, I really enjoyed the work, as it was contemplative, slower moving, and overall, pretty relaxing for me. I liked the work on the feet and shoulders the best. We took photos of before/after each time, and I felt improvement over the course of a few months. By summer, I was feeling more and more like myself, and had improvement in posture, less pain in my upper back and shoulders, and felt that my gait and stance were also improved. I recommend this work to anyone with issues they’ve had to live with for awhile and need a new approach that builds upon the previous sessions. Thanks Molly!

Kelly, Graphic Designer:
As a massage therapist and structural integration practitioner, Molly's level of professionalism and personalization is key in her work. She understands the human body to such a great degree that she is able to provide incredible relief. I have had chronic neck pain for years and nothing relieves it better than the magic hands of Molly Brackett! Whether you are a massage-lover or a first-timer to structural work, Molly will create the perfect environment for you.

Jennifer, High School Counselor
In October of 2007, I was rear ended by a drunk driver going 100 mph. The accident caused major pain and damage to my sacrum. For over a year I tried physical therapy and chiropractic care. Both of these avenues only gave me temporary relief of my pain. I had heard about rolfing from a friend so thought it was worth looking into - it was the best decision I ever made. I just completed the 10 sessions and feel like a new person. I can now comfortably do many of the things I was not able to do before: ride a bike, pick up my son and to the relief of my husband, help around the house a little more--vacuum and mow the lawn. I was a major disbeliever and now think anyone with chronic pain should give rolifng a try. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.