“In Structural Integration, we expect to give a cycle of ten sessions. There is a reason for this. We are not dealing with local problems. We are not dealing with the kind of thing that you can say, ‘Well, I fixed that, that’s all.’ We are dealing with an intent to make a body more secure, more adequate within the field of gravity.”
– Ida P. Rolf, Ph.D.
THE ROLF METHOD OF STRUCTURAL INTEGRATION
About the 10-Session Process
The Initial Sessions
Session One
The first session addresses the superficial fascial layer around the arms, chest, ribcage and diaphragm in order to increase the effectiveness of the breath. By opening and expanding the surface area, we begin to create the space necessary for the major segments to shift into a more balanced relationship.
Session Two
The second session focuses on the feet, ankles and knees to improve balance and support of the body. Creating a balanced foundation through the lower legs and back is the primary goal of the second hour.
Session Three
In this session there is expansion through the sides of the body, balancing front and back, and thus the central vertical axis becomes more apparent.
The Core Sessions
Session Four
The “core” sessions address restrictions that may be held within the deeper anatomical structures of the body. This sense of core support is initiated by working on the inside line of the leg — the ankles, calves, knees and thighs.
Session Five
In session five, core integrity is cultivated by balancing both surface and deep abdominal tissue with the low back, which creates lifting and lengthening of the front body.
Session Six
Session six focuses on lengthening the posterior legs, hips and lumbar spine to help support the sacrum and pelvis. This emphasis on the back body provides support and fluidity of movement.
Session Seven
The seventh hour focuses on releasing tension of the neck, shoulders, face, and cranium in order to balance the head on top of the spine. This is the culmination of the core sessions, which aims to create a sense of ease through the central axis of the body.
Integration
Session Eight
In the final sessions, the focus shifts to integrating the two parts of the body — the upper and lower. This session usually focuses on the hips, legs and feet as they connect into the core from below.
Session Nine
Session nine integrates the other half of the body that wasn’t addressed in session eight. The focus is usually on the upper half — the torso, shoulder girdle, neck and head as they connect into the core from above.
Session Ten
This session addresses overall integration and balance through all of the joints of the body as they relate to the central axis. The work covers most all areas of the body, reestablishing information from all of the previous sessions.
“Some individuals may perceive their losing fight with gravity as a sharp pain in their back, others as the unflattering contour of their body, others as constant fatigue, yet others as an unrelentingly threatening environment. Those over forty may call it old age. And yet all these signals may be pointing to a single problem so prominent in their own structure, as well as others, that it has been ignored: they are off balance, they are at war with gravity.”
— Ida P. Rolf, Ph.D.