When we think of self improvement we often think of increasing desirable qualities. If we go to the gym we probably want to get stronger, more fit, and increase stamina. In doing so our aim is to get healthier, to increase health and fitness. One may read to increase knowledge, practice music to become a better musician, and may go to church to gain a better sense of community in order to become a better person. Any of these things can be important contributions to a feeling of balance and well being but the fact is if they all stay on the same level, they do not lead to transformation.
From the Seed to the Tree
Discerning between simply increasing desirable attributes on the same level and actual transformation, a move to another level, can be difficult. One reason is that very few people even try to do so. At first glance they are the same, but what does transformation really mean? Imagine, if you will, at nut or a seed. Likewise imagine if it had some form of self awareness. To the nut or the seed, improvement and growth might be taken as becoming a bigger and better seed, a larger and healthier nut. How could the nut or seed fathom that to gain full actualization, they might sprout into a plant or a tree, which would put them into a whole new realm of being, a different cosmos as you will, just as the sperm and the ovum live in a different cosmos than we do, unimaginably different. Likewise, think about how ridiculous it would be if a baby just grows into a bigger and smarter baby, with the same dimensions only 6 foot tall. It sound ridiculous, but this is our typical world view when it revolves around self help. But how could the seed possibly know the tree?
A nut may lie dormant until the right conditions are present. Most nuts will probably become food for other creatures. This does not represent a failure, a waste of the nut's life as it lives out its potential on its own level. Just like us, it needs the right conditions to thrive and when those conditions are present it begins it's journey on the the path that will take it to a new level, a new cosmos if you will. But unlike the nut, we need more than just food, water, sunlight and good weather to begin our journey, there needs to be something more, but what? There needs to be a different kind of food, a greater nourishment that can only be taken in through the practice of self awareness through sensation and embodiment. Through practices like meditation, mindful movement, and somatic disciplines like Rolfing this journey might begin.
A Healing Crisis
When a seed or a nut begins to sprout, it will begin to change shape, its shell will crack, its form will begin to change. At the level of a seed, this may be a crises, decay, even death, but on another level this is simply the beginning of a journey of transformation. It is not uncommon in many healing disciplines to experience what is sometimes referred to as a healing crisis. Things might get worse before they get better, and because we rarely are able to see the big picture, we may think we are going downhill. Rolfers, in particular will warn of this, but people don't always take this warning seriously, because people often identify Rolfing with massage, and therefore think they are always supposed to feel better after each session, overlooking the fact that Rolfing is a transformative process, especially if they are doing a series. When we make real changes to a person's structure, you can usually count on new strain patterns arising, and sometimes with those new strain patterns, new pain and discomfort. This is something that needs to be understood if you want real change you don't get to be a well formed seed and a tree at the same time!
The Right Conditions
Rolfing can be life changing for some people at the right time and place. Just as the conditions must be right to grow into a tree, so must the conditions be right for Rolfing to have a life changing effect. It could be the Rolfer the client is seeing, but it also has to do with how open the individual is to change at that particular period of time. Even on a lesser level, Rolfing should be helpful as long as it is carefully conducted. Through myofascial manipulation and movement education, the client gains further sensory input and a deeper relationship with the body. If it leads to new strain temporarily, this is just part of the process, as long as it does not lead to injury. If the Rolfer does not force anything, the results should have some benefit one way or another. At the end of the day, transformation occurs primarily through embodiment , and embodiment develops as a result of taking in physical sensation consciously. This provides a nurturing effect that can allow the body and nervous system to grow, expand, adjust, and find balance and a new experience of the self.