Continuation of articles from front page:

Jeff Maitland:
you will often hear people say, 'my back went out'. What happens when your back goes out is not that it goes anywhere but that joints (facets) in the spine get restricted or fixed." "JOSPT (the Journal of Orthopedic and Sports Physical Therapy)1, recently cited that patients with chronic low back pain may respond better and sustain longer improvements when treated with alternative treatment protocols like Rolfing®," says John Cottingham, Certified Advanced Rolfer, an expert in the Rolfing approach to low back pain and co-author of the JOSPT study. "Rolfing structural integration, an original and scientifically validated system of bodywork, combines hands-on manipulation with movement education." Rolfing bodywork can speed up injury recovery by:
-reducing pain, stiffness and muscle tension
-improving movement and circulation around the joint
-attending to both the injury and secondary (ie., hip or neck) pain that may develop from favoring the injury
-identify bad habits that create tense lower backs, hunched shoulders, or turned in ankles
-learn correct posture and movements to replace old habits
-learn from the knowledge of what your own body does, instead of guessing what's healthy for your back

Dr Jim Montgomery:
Rolfing is an established leader in the field of alternative medicine and somatics
education. Research reports that the public is spending over $14 billion in alternative
medicine. Insurance companies, hospitals and medical schools are taking notice and
preparing to change the way they do business. "Based on peer reviewed scientific studies,
as many as 60 million adults in the United States are using alternative medicine therapies
in conjunction with conventional medical treatments for various health related conditions.
" (Journal of the American Medical Assoc., May ‘98).
Fifty years ago, Dr. Ida Rolf, a biochemist at Rockefeller University, recognized that the
traditional approach in medicine was effective, but some cases of unsolved health
problems were not being solved by established treatments/ existing medical practices, so
she applied her knowledge of the human tissue and discovered the fundamental Rolfing
principles of connective tissue release and structural integration. This led her to formulate
and perfect, after years of research, experience and use by her clients, the first structural
integration techniques. Rolf specifically designed both Rolfing® and Rolfing Movement
instruction -- a system that re-educates the body's movement patterns -- as wholistic
approaches to healing.

Siana Goodwin
"One hand surgery costs Starkey about $35,000," says Miller. Rolfing, which costs about $800 per client,
has saved Starkey thousands of dollars. Marianne Dalton, a data entry worker at
Starkey, was one of the first Rolfing clients in the program. "She had undergone
carpal tunnel surgery on her right hand and was scheduled for surgery on the left
hand," reports the Associated Press.. "After a series of Rolfing sessions, Dalton
said, her doctor reclassified surgery on her left hand as optional."

It works.
Please don't expect any manual therapy to substitute for needed medical intervention.
Truly holistic medicine means that the most effective, conservative interventions possible are all considered.