Massage Your Feet at Home

by SharonHartnett | May 13, 2013 | Massage, Structural Integration, thought for the day

How Can You Massage Your Feet?

One of the concerns expressed by some clients who get massage, structural integration and craniosacral therapy is that after a few days, their bodies start to go back into the old habit of movement.

My observation, especially after working with the fascia for so long, is that people continue to change after the session. Once the fasica has been touched or manipulated in any way, it changes the rest of the continuous web of connective tissue that envelopes the body. After a 10 series of SI, the body has been taken into new places from different angles and various degrees of depth to bring the body back into structural integrity. The body is then in a work of process for many months while the body learns to integrate in a new way.

However, during sessions, while the work in my personal opinion, can be life altering, not everything can be “fixed”. Often clients do come in wanting to feel great after a session or two with strong expectations. While Massage and Bodywork can do wonders, it does take time create the habits that result in your personal posture. So, it is helpful to think that it takes time and also personal responsibility to shift imbalances into correction. The body will shift and remold if you receive good work and re-educate the physical with new movement.

What I would like to recommend today is to take a look at your feet. If you are walking around on the earth with stiff feet, how are you going to create positive change in the rest of your body. We are so accustomed to wearing shoes for running, walking, playing that we have forgotten how to feel the natural movement of the naked foot on the ground. In order to find balance in your body, explore your foot and how it rests on the ground. Listen to the stiff areas and become mindful of how you relate as a whole to your feet.

Once you have a good idea of how your feet feel and move, look for ways to improve mobility, range of motion and flexibility. An easy thing to do is to stand on one foot and build strength in the line of your leg. Personally, I like to practice foot relationship on a body roller that is cut in half. They are relatively inexpensive, easy to play on, and only a few minutes each day can make a profound change in how you walk.

Free your feet!

Each morning, start your day by placing your foot on this roller and explore with different positions to release foot tension. Notice how the alignment in your whole body starts to shift as your heels come down or your arch begins to relax. You might feel so much better than you feel like your feet have been massaged for an hour:) There are also good sport classes such as gyrotonics and tai chi that will help you reconnect to the feet better as well!

When you visit your favorite Massage Therapist or bodyworker, she will have a much easier time getting into the foot and the more relaxed tissues of the leg.

Massage is a great way to awaken and open the body, but taking personal responsibility on a daily basis for physical change exponentially impacts the body in a healthy way. This foot exercise is an easy way to begin self-care for your posture.

If you have any further questions, call Sharon Hartnett LMT for a free 15 minute phone consult.

Warmly,

Sharon Hartnett LMT

740 966-5153

For a ball roller, look at:

Massage for Mothers Day in Columbus

by SharonHartnett | May 8, 2013 | Craniosacral Therapy, Massage

Looking for the Perfect Mothers Day Gift? How about a Craniosacral Therapy Massage (CST)?

What? You have never heard of Craniosacral Therapy?

Well, if you have not experienced a CST Session then you don’t know on what you are missing out!

Craniosacral Therapy is a light touch form of bodywork that listens to the Craniosacral System that surrounds the brain and the spinal cord and applies gentle techniques to balance and nourish the whole body. CST can be helpful for deep relaxation, renewed energy, ADHD, learning disabilities, fibromyalgia, MS and so many different afflictions that slow people down.

Craniosacral Therapy for Mothers Day

Mother’s Day is coming around the corner and now is the perfect opportunity to try something new and feel the benefits of this deep form of relaxation and rebalancing.

For a Cranosacral Therapy Massage or Energy Healing appointment Call: Telephone: (614) 372-6598

$10.00 off for anyone who calls before Mothers Day 2013!

For more on Craniosacral Therapy, www.upledger.com

A Massage for the Body Helps Clear the Mind

by SharonHartnett | May 8, 2013 | Massage

Massage…

When you have a massaged relaxed body, it is easier to be happy and find inner joy Within. At Lighten Up Therapies, our intention is to help you to Lighten Up the Body, Mind & Soul Connection.

The body is the doorway to transformation in many ways. Craniosacral Therapy and Structural Integration Massage support increased vitality, opened awareness, and deeper feeling of ease and joy.

Interconnection

We are all human beings sharing in the human experience. The more that we acknowledge what is and learn to accept each other as we are, the more peace can permeate life here on earth.

Taking care of the human body, relationships and seeing the light in each other is the pathway to evolution of the Human Spirit.

Sharon Hartnett LMT

Sister site:

www.integrativesoulandbodywork.com

Holistic Massage Awakens the Life Within

by SharonHartnett | May 4, 2013 | Massage, Massage License in Ohio: 33.007505-H-K

The Holistic Massage Approach…

When I work with clients, I don’t like to focus on only one muscle to relieve pain. I prefer to look at the person as a whole being. As with the tree below, if the leaves don’t look healthy, one has to look to the soil, the environment, or any cause that might contribute to disease or impairment. For the tree’s health, one must examine the trunk and the branches as well to determine how best to treat the whole organism. Similarly with the human body, when groups of muscles are sore, weak or in pain, that is a signal that a whole body approach to healing is needed for longterm health. The pain may be relieved after a session, but would most likely show up again without a holistic understanding and treatment of the dysfunction.

Listening to the body and following its cues is very helping in resolving many health issues. The body’s wisdom is constantly revealing what needs to happen in order to heal most efficiently. If followed and treated with skill, many pain conditions can improve dramatically. When you are looking for real pain relief, allow yourself at least a few sessions to correct misalignment and imbalances that have been contributed to a pain pattern. It takes time to disorganize and create habitual disorder and it takes time to self-correct.

: Massage in Columbus

Working with Structural Integration and Craniosacral Therapy, the therapist is trained to work closely with the signals that communicate what kind of massage therapy is best suited to enhance functional integrity. At Lighten Up Therapies, we want you to feel more alive and active in your life. We trust that your your body is an intelligent aspect of you that has much to offer through dialogue in bringing you into wellbeing.

Sharon Hartnett LMT

Massage in Columbus and Grounding

by SharonHartnett | Apr 14, 2013 | Massage, thought for the day

Often people will speak about grounding and yet there is no great definition for what that means.

How do you interpret “Grounding”? Is it a thought? Is it a feeling or a sensation?

Embodiment

At Lighten Up Therapies, the interpretation that we take of grounding is that of “feeling alive in ones body”.

How does one feel vital and strong?

Mindfulness is key to revitalization and restoration. Have you ever had a massage and the simple act of being rubbed and touched left you feeling more connected and relaxed. Yet at the same time…more energy is being transmitted up and down the body and throughout the cells and tissues. Touch reminds the body of new movements and opens up the fascia to enhance flow.The transportation of nutrients being delivered and the removal of waste keeps the body nourished and maintained. The nervous system is recharged and the muscles feel deeply relaxed. Many different levels of our anatomy and physiology are positively affected through ongoing massage.

During a massage session, many clients will fall asleep and that can be wonderful. At the same time, there is also a good opportunity to learn to maintain the benefits by bringing attention to what is organically showing up during the session instead. When clients resource differently with attention, new choices may be made that will actually help the body shift in more efficient movement.

Either way, take some time out of your day to find your grounding. If massage isn’t an option, try walking in nature with inward awareness. Breath in the air and notice how it moves through you and supports you. Pay attention to how your feet hit the ground and feel your alignment in relationship to gravity. There are many ways to nourish with mindful awareness. Find your unique technique to help you feel enlivened and fulfilled.

Sharon Hartnett LMT

Find a Structural Integration Therapist in Columbus

by SharonHartnett | Mar 29, 2013 | Structural Integration, craniosacral, Craniosacral Therapy, grounding, healthy, Massage, move effortlessly

Looking to find a Massage Therapist for Structural Integration (SI) in Columbus, Ohio?

You have come to the right place. Sharon Hartnett LMT has over 17+ years doing Structural Integration Therapy. In the late 1990’s she found a local Rolfer in Mclean, Virginia who introduced her to the 10 series. She fell in love with the positive postural changes and increased movement in her body that she decided to study Structural Integration herself. She has been providing SI sessions with clients ever since.

Relieve Chronic Pain and Find Better Posture

Learn how Structural Integration Developed

Dr. Ida P. Rolf, a pioneering biochemist began to develop Rolfing in the 1930s after suffering from spinal arthritis. The direction of her work was focused on the role of fascia and unwinding tension patterns around muscles and joints in order to release pain and discomfort. While working in the 1960’s teaching her fascial work at the Esalen Institute in California, the term “Rolfing” was coined. Her original thinking and experience of manipulating the connective tissue brought students from around the world. She taught these practitioners how to support the body to function efficiently so that the force of gravity could flow through and support both the form and functioning. Soon later, the Rolf Institute was found. And as with most great work, different schools have branched out, extending the original work with same intention and yet with individualize perspectives.

Why Structural Integration Therapy?

Structural Integration is a system of bodywork that will encourage the body back into alignment and structural integrity. Clients walk away feeling more freedom in their movement, a sense of lightness, greater flexibility, relief from chronic pain and more energized. The Structural Integration model views the person as a whole that is self-regulation and self-organizing. Between sessions, clients are given exercises to help them continue their work out into the world. the body knows where it needs to go in order to find maximum motion. It just needs to be re-edcuated how to do that so it can relate more optimally in fluidity. After 10 sessions, clients take time to allow the work to continue and integrate with better posture.

Is Structural Integration Uncomfortable?

When you go to visit any type of bodyworker and therapist, it is a good idea to communicate your needs right from the start. The therapist has tools and experience working with clients, but ultimately the client benefits the most by expressing what his/her level of tolerance to pressure. Each person is unique in how they like to be touched. What Sharon does is ask, “If you can feel the sensations and feelings that arise during the session without having to tighten or react, than allow yourself to do that. However, if anything hurts or feels like it is too deep, please say “stop” or “lighten up”. The client’s wishes are always respected. With this said, often the fascia has historically tightened up in areas of the body around dysfunctional patterns. There are time when that tissue is lengthened it will be uncomfortable. Most clients though are so happy with the results and reconnection to their body’s that they return over and over with relief and commitment to themselves.

Sharon Hartnett CST-D

Worthington, Ohio|Serving the Columbus Area

614 653-8111

To find out more about Structural Integration or Craniosacral Therapy, check out my main page.

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