Hellerwork Has Changed My Life

Elle Magazine By:Maggie Alderson

Not that I want to overstate my case or anything, but Hellerwork has changed my life.

The nagging aches and pains that I had started to accept as an inevitable part of growing older, having a sedentary job and not doing enough exercise have gone. Most amazing to me, the chronic and worsening wrist pain caused by using a computer keyboard every day has been majorly lessened. This is particularly comforting, as when I sought advice about it from my GP he suggested that I change my occupation. (I suggested he change his.)

But despite this miracle cure, my practitioner Roger Golten asserts that he is not Mr. Fixit. The point of Hellerwork is not to clear up a stiff shoulder, or a pain in the neck, but to work on the body as an integrated system, so that it all works together with ease - a state of affairs most of us leave behind with Tonka toys. "I don't set out to "fix" people as that robs them of the chance to grow" says Golten, "The sessions make people more aware of the poor structure that makes them lopsided and stooped and of the bad postural habits that cause pain and stiffness. Hellerwork puts you more in touch with your body and with yourself."

The initial Heller programme consists of a structured eleven session series and requires a fairly high degree of commitment - in money, time and intention. While designed by it's founder Joseph Heller, who was originally a leading Rolfer, to be less painful than its parent technique, there is no escaping the fact that it really bloody hurts. This, combined with the fact that you are semi-naked and will be poked, pressed and generally pummeled in places normally on limits only to lovers and bikini-line waxers (not to mention the extraordinary finger up the nose session) demands a high degree of trust between the practitioner and the client.

Each physical area worked on has a corresponding emotional issue, which is discussed. Some manipulations certainly made me feel far more vulnerable than the mere physical content would suggest ( like having a finger in my armpit while the arm is gently stretched) and I experienced spontaneous "releases" (okay I blubbed) which were more fundamental than mere reactions to exquisite pain.

Through all this you build up a very close relationship with the practitioner, which is rewarding in itself. I felt very safe with Roger and I will miss his bionic fingers. "I don't judge people" he says, "I never analyse them or compare them - people judge themselves enough. I want to have my clients decide they are okay and to be able to show themselves compassion. Only then are they able to change."

Change I certainly have. Golten describes the main benefit of Hellerwork as an "effortless improvement in posture, which brings with it more energy and vitality and a shift in body awareness" This exactly describes my experience. I am not constantly pulling my stomach in and pulling my shoulders back guardsman-style, but every now and then throughout the day I realise that I am standing tall, sitting up straight and looking the world in the eye.

Thanks, Rog.