I was lucky enough to be accepted to Simmons College, where they fed my hunger for Freudian and all versions of psychological theory that introduced me to a variety of ways to understand the human psyche and “why we do what we do.”  I made my way as a psychotherapist, and for seven years, tried to help people understand themselves better so they could change what ailed them.  Being young, I hadn’t had a whole lot of worldly experience.  My clients taught me about  resilience, about suffering, struggle, and about the creative (but not necessarily healthy) adaptations to dealing with life when it gets hard to bear.  I grew up a lot, discovered a bit more about myself, and gathered stories.

I moved to Vermont and applied to writing school.  After receiving an MFA from Emerson College, I moved to Los Angeles with my then-husband, a cellist, so he could work in the film scoring industry.  What a cool world!  (I’ve written about that, too.)  Meanwhile, I worked as an administrator and learned that I’m pretty well organized.  So, obviously, I started a dog walking business.  It was, in many ways, the best job ever. I was outdoors walking in the hills and canyons of Los Angeles with some unforgettable canine personalities whom I remember with love to this day. A few years in, somewhere between picking up the Dalmatian and dropping off the pit bull mix, it occurred to me that I had interests and leanings outside of my love for dogs and nature.  It was time to learn a new skill.

So I went to massage school.  This might seem like a funny choice for someone who was a bit germ-phobic, but I realized, within seconds, that I loved it.  I couldn’t learn fast enough. Anatomy and how different bodies felt  under my hands. Every once in awhile I heard someone mention “Structural Integration.”  I just loved the sound of the words themselves.  During deep tissue massage training, my teacher introduced me to “fascia,” with its elastic and far-reaching properties.  My hip had been bugging me for a long time, but after receiving work from a fellow student on my rib cage, my hip pain went away…temporarily.  I was astounded.  “Welcome to the world of fascia,” my teacher said.

I went to the Guild for Structural Integration in 2008, then to the Rolf Institute for Structural Integration (now called the Dr. Ida Rolf Institute) in Boulder, CO in 2011.  I completed my Advanced Rolfing training with Ida P. Rolf’s phenomenal students, Jan H. Sultan and Lael Keene in 2014.  I continued to gobble up every opportunity to learn more and further my understanding of how people are put together, the nature of easy movement, and how to make pain go away.  Harkening back to those quirky musicians, I now feel prepared to address my clients in all their wonderful, resilient, and fascinating aspects.

The rest is….the present.  After living in Los Angeles for 18 years, my husband and I divorced in 2014 and I moved back to Milwaukee, my roots, Lake Michigan, and…honest to god weather. I love it all. Home.

Thanks for visiting!

RESUME

Certification Training:

The Rolf Institute of Structural Integration,™ Certified Advanced Rolfer™, 2014.

The Rolf Institute of Structural Integration, Certified Rolfer, 2011.

The Guild for Structural Integration, Certified Practitioner of the Rolf Method of Structural Integration, 2008.

Massage School of Santa Monica, Certified Deep Tissue Massage Therapist, 2008.

Institute for Psycho Structural Balancing, Certified Massage Therapist, 2006.

 

Continuing Education:

The foot and Ankle: Workshop with Ron Murry, D.O., Certified Advanced Rolfer, New York, 2015.

Joint Restriction in Structural Integration: Pelvic Lumbar Region, with John De Mahy, R.N. Certified Advanced Rolfer, San Diego, CA, 2013

Sensory-Motor Imagery Training with Monica Canducci, Certified Advanced Rolfer, Boulder, CO, 2013

Perceptive Core Stability Movement Curriculum with Kevin Frank, Certified Advanced Rolfer, Santa Cruz, CA, 2013

Breathing & Walking: Embodiment and Intervention Movement Curriculum with Mary Bond, Certified Advanced Rolfer, Salt Lake City, 2012

Sunday Sessions with Jan Sultan, Certified Advanced Rolfer, Monthly Sessions on the Recipe, Manhattan Beach, CA, 2012

Visceral Manipulation, Elizabeth Gaggini, Las Vegas, NV, January, 2012

Visceral Manipulation I, Barral Institute, Costa Mesa, CA, September, 2011

Aston Patterning Movement Education, Aston Techniques I & II, with Judith Aston.  January, 2010.

Guild for Structural Integration, Liz Stewart, 4-day workshop, Salt Lake City, Dec, 2009.

Liz Gaggini, Certified Advanced Rolfer, Biomechanics for the Pelvic Girdle, Las Vegas, 2009.

Somanautics Workshop, Six-Day Intensive Dissection Workshop with Gil Hedly, Ph.D., San Francisco, 2009.

Guild for Structural Integration, Six-Day Workshop, Post-Ten Series,” with Jeff Linn, Certified Advanced Rolfer, Salt Lake City, UT, December, 2008.

Sharon Wheeler Hancoff, Certified Advanced Rolfer, 3-day workshop, “Working With Scar Tissue,” Phoenix, AZ, October, 2008.

National Holistic Institute,  “Biomechanics of the Feet and Lower Legs,” with Mary Bond, Certified Advanced Rolfer, M.A., December, 2008.

National Holistic Institute, “Biomechanics of the Thoracic and Lumbar Spine,” with Mary Bond, MA, Advanced Rolfer, December,  2008.

Institute for Psycho Structural Balancing, Structural Integration, “Whiplash” with Bruce Schonfeld, Certified Advanced Rolfer, 2008.

Somanautics Workshop, Six-Day Intensive Dissection Workshop with Gil Hedly, Ph.D., San Francisco, 2007.The Upledger Institute, Certification for Cranial Sacral Therapy I, Esalen Institute, 2007.

Massage School of Santa Monica, Deep Tissue Structural Bodywork with Garnet Dupuis, 100 hours, 2007.

Touch Therapy Institute, PNF (proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation) for Head, Neck and TMJ with Maria Furlano, L.M.T., 2006.

Institute for Psycho Structural Balancing, Structural Integration, Postural Analysis with Bruce Schonfeld, Certified Advanced Rolfer, 2006.

ASSOCIATIONS:

The Rolf Institute of Structural Integration, Since July, 2011.

The Guild for Structural Integration, Since July, 2008.
International Association of Structural Integrators, Since July, 2008

Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals, Since 2006.