The Rolfing process was developed over her lifetime by American biochemist Dr Ida Rolf (1896 -1979). It was her dissatisfaction with mainstream medicine and her personal search for answers to her own as well as her family and friends' health problems that led to her enquiries into the human form. She was strongly influenced by many health systems including Osteopathy, the Alexander technique, Yoga, Homeopathy and Chiropractic. Dr Rolf recognised that one of the core principles that most of these modalities share is that physiological functioning is enhanced by structural alignment. She expanded this concept to include the effects of gravity on the structural body and devoted her life to developing her own process of soft tissue manipulation and movement re-education to re-align the body's structure for optimal function.

Dr Rolf named her unique approach Structural Integration, however her early clients referred to her work as Rolfing and the name stuck! Today, almost 30 years after her death, Dr Rolf's legacy continues through the Rolf Institute of Structural Integration in Boulder, Colorado and its international arms in Australia, Brazil, Europe and Japan. In addition, many branches of Structural Integration have evolved each with a slightly differing slant on Dr Rolf's original teachings. These branches are represented by the International Association of Structural Integration (IASI), which continues to promote Structural Integration as a respected, professional identity in the field of healthcare.

Photos courtesy of the Rolf Institute of Structural Integration