GUIDED MYOFASCIAL RELEASE: Process and Intention

 -HEALING HAPPENS WHEN YOU ARE DIRECTLY ENGAGED AND AWARE IN THE PROCESS-

During a good acupuncture treatment you FEEL the connections happening through your body, and you feel changes happening, even if its hard to mentally articulate.  The entire process of Structural Bodywork and Rolfing relies on CONSCIOUS ENGAGEMENT AND AWARENESS of the myofascial system as the practitioner makes contact with different points and regions, encouraging release and lengthening in some areas or increased tone and engagement in others.  In Medical Qigong breath and awareness link together to illuminate imbalance or stagnation in the body and help to create the subtle shifts which lead to healing.
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Yet still, a majority of people approach these forms of healing as a magical cure-all, in which the PRACTITIONER heals or fixes the PATIENT.   Many people expect a practitioner to fix them and all their problems while they lay on a table passively. In these situations we can usually temporarily 'disarm' or break up a pain-cycle, but there's no engagement in the process, and the issues usually come right back.  
The focus in this case is exclusively on the GOAL, NOT THE PROCESS.

Our modern-day culture is undoubtably obsessed with goals and finish lines.  It seems to go without saying for many people that if one achieves their goal, they won; end of story.  No matter the trade off.   This mentality works in a closed-circuit where people keep checking boxes and achieving material goals which confirm that they're doing it right.  

BUT.... Organic processes including the human body don't work in a world of isolated goals.  If we don't respect and appreciate the process in life then we miss the opportunity to learn and change.  THE HUMAN BODY NEEDS TO PROCESS THE EXPERIENCE TO UNDERSTAND IT SOMATICALLY.

Guiding people through self-treatment bodywork requires that they engage in the process.  Yes its challenging, and it can be uncomfortable at times.  But when you feel a change or shift happen, and consciously move through the process, then something amazing happens; you begin to understand your body.  It may not even make sense in words or cerebral concepts, but you begin to unlock an inner-sense and body-awareness which can be applied to everything else in your life.  When emotions are too much to process in the moment we store them as tension in our body.  When we release this tension we also learn to release and process the subconscious and somatic aspects of our thoughts and feelings.

 I find that guided myofascial work is a direct and effective approach in helping people find this awareness and healing in themselves.  People feel empowered as they learn to work through their chronic pain and tension.  They have the opportunity to slowly build up their skills each session, engaging in the endless process of somatic (body)-awareness.  The body is an incredible source of wisdom, and learning self-treatment techniques can help to open up this realm to everyone.  I believe that it is our inherent right to fully-inhabit our own body and learn to be present in our own form.  My intention with the guided myofascial therapy is to help people find this space and presence for themselves.