Working with clients who have undergone surgery

When we first meet a client as a Rolfer we gather a little picture of your embodied history. One of our questions is whether you have been through a surgery in which you received general anaesthetic.

Why do we ask? Because general anaesthetic means some incredible surgeries and repairs of our bodies can happen, but also even though we are ‘unconscious’ some parts of us are still aware. Mostly we wake and recover fully. But at times those parts of us that are still aware have become worried in a way that they don’t let go of. This can express itself as sleep disturbance, pain, night sweats, disturbed dreams, anxiety, pain.

So we ask whether you’ve received general anaesthetic so we can be aware that as we gently work with your embodied layers with touch, we might meet a layer that is worried in this way. Physically this is usually a part that is very still, or hardened.
And working with the physical expression of this experience you had can be a useful way to recover fully from your surgery experience.

I’ve got personal experience of this work, having had some layers interrupted myself during surgery. So I’m particularly sensitive to it with my clients.