I was a very sickly child. An asthmatic highly susceptible to every cold and flu, to changes in weather, exciting holidays, emotional hardship and my favorite refuge – nature. My breath, such a vital function was under constant siege. By middle school I learned lessons that might take a healthier, less challenged person a lifetime. These lessons became sensitivities that made me socially timid but acutely observant. At nine years old, my favorite aunt passed away with cancer and I watched the entire process since my mother was her primary care family member. I learned that there were many issues surrounding this manifestation of cancer. I began to realize that aside from the physical there might also be mental, emotional, relationship and spiritual components of the disease. Even a child could see it was clearly not a simple issue. But those other factors seemed to be forsaken or at least understated in the eyes of medical professionals. I began to realize that my own state was also brought on by a multitude of things, then there was a tipping point – which seemed to manifest as asthma. Asthma was such a wonderful thing for me to observe because most people around me didn’t have the same kind of hidden underlying disease. The idea of a predisposed chronic state, one that lay mostly dormant was not theoretical knowledge for me. I could seem to be one of the healthiest kids at one moment and then become bed-ridden and life-threatened the next. Because of this most people around me seemed to disregard the severity of my state. I knew its internal workings and how it presented itself to the world externally. I chose to turn inward.
The emergency room and visits to my asthma specialist were frequent as you can imagine. I was on epinephrine shots like a hard-laq alcoholic. I was embarrassed amongst my peers because I constantly carried an inhaler in my pocket in case of an emergency. And I was prescribed what I used to call “elephant pills” because they were bigger than all the pills my grandmother took combined. The pills were the worse, they continuously pumped me with chemicals that I can literally still taste to this day. The benefit of taking the drugs was that I experienced the good and the bad of them first hand. My conclusion was that they didn’t make me better, for years my asthma kept me at the ER or waiting at the pharmacy line. Medical authority said, “keep on takin’ ‘em.”
I’d put all that seriousness aside and wild out as a teen. Brazilian jiu-jitsu eventually became my love which lead to a shoulder injury. I was complaining about the limited range of motion in the locker room and a friend offered some spot work. I left in gratitude, but more in a state of amazement – Rob restored my range of motion, there was no more pain. All in what seemed like thirty seconds of work. I went away jaw dropped and later contacted him. I made it clear that I knew what he did wasn’t massage, it was something different, something efficient and something that actually lengthened and rearranged displaced muscle and tissue. I begged to follow him around and learn the method he professed. He was adamant that the pre-requisite was that I undergo the basic process of his type of work which meant ten sessions.
I didn’t know what to expect but where ever he worked things just “felt right.” Sometimes there was pain, which seized as soon as he let go. The pain translated into lightness and freedom of movement. I experienced so many unexpected results. I’d never heard of the work he did, so I couldn’t imagine the results. It brought me deeper into myself, I yearned to develop a quieter spiritual side to life. My chronic back pain disappeared along with some shoulder pain. I gained height and confidence. One thing that was evident was the increase in breath capacity. At that point I switched from studying acupuncture to Structural Integration. The Guild for Structural Integration was located in Colorado and I decided I should consult my asthma doctor since I’d be there for about a year. When the nurse measured my breathing she looked back at my previous scores and was amazed! She asked me what I had been doing and I hadn’t attributed that to Structural Integration but that’s the only thing I was doing different. Thinking back I was also healthier through the winter. Ironically, when I saw my doctor he prescribed more medication than ever before and said nothing about my breath test. Subjectively, I felt the best ever. That’s the beginning of my career in alternative medicine.
I have been in private practice since graduating from the Guild for Structural Integration in 1998. In 2006 after four years of school I’ve incorporated Homeopathy. Homeopathy has helped me to gain a deeper sense of the human condition and has given me the tools to address deeper more constitutional imbalances. I believe the two modalities are different sides of the same coin. The primary principle shared between Homeopathy and Structural Integration is organization. There is a science and there is a method based on that science, when the body becomes organized then spontaneously, the body can heal itself. My best efforts are with you!
Education:
Emergency Medical Technician I 1996
Structural Integration
The Guild for Structural Integration Boulder, Co.
Auditing Phase under Emmett Hutchins 1997
Additional Auditing Phase under Peter Melchior 1997
Advanced Anatomy under Jody Miller 1997
Weekend Course with Dorothy Nolte 1997
Energy Medicine with Jim Oschman 1997
Practitioning Phase under Neal Powers 1998
3 Day Seminar with Neal Powers 2007
Other Tutorial Classes in Structural Integration Including Private Mentoring Sessions from 2000-current with: Jim Price, Andy Crow, Ed Maupin and others.
The Guild for Structural Integration is dedicated to teaching the original work of Dr. Ida Rolf. I had the opportunity to learn from her first two appointed teachers, Peter and Emmett as well as brief sessions with a few others who were her direct students and were also known to safeguard Dr. Rolf’s original teachings. I completed the practitioner phase in San Francisco under the guidance of Neal Powers who in my experience is a wonderful balance of the seemingly polar opposite approaches of Peter and Emmett along with his own insights. I can honestly say that the people I’ve met at the Guild have been a wonderful asset in my life. The Guild’s teachings were clear, and precise. I continually gain deeper insight into the work from the teachings and wisdoms provided by the Guild.
Homeopathy
Institute for Classical Homoeopathy San Francisco, CA
Four Year Academic Program Completed in 2006
Henny Heudens-Mast
Five Day Seminar 2007
Among the gems of the Bay Area lies the Institute of Classical Homeopathy. The school upholds an integrity for the science of homeopathy and a high-respect for the classic texts and illustrious scholars of classical homeopathy. Anyone would be awe struck if they would take the time to read homeopathic philosophy. The spirits of Hahnemann and Kent reside in this school. After spending four years with the resident teachers namely Laurel Harris DVM it is no wonder how homeopathy has produced such amazing scholarship and cures. The ICH is another school with sincere heart for the work which allows individuals to develop a broad and deep understanding for the breadth of homeopathic information. However, the true effectiveness of the ICH lies in the ability of the teachers to develop students into effective homeopaths who remain in a state of homeopathy, objective and without prejudice sincerely seeking to cure.
About MedicinEvolution
MedicinEvolution exclusively incorporates the effective and unparalleled treatments of homeopathic medicine and deep tissue bodywork known as Rolfing* Structural Integration in the San Francisco Bay Area. The fundamental principle of MedicinEvolution is to create organization or order in the human being. When the individual is organized, according to a priority (of symptoms) that the body deems important, then, spontaneously the body begins to heal itself. The mission of MedicinEvolution is to provide a holistic approach towards the prevention of chronic degenerative diseases, to bring about holistic healing and general well-being, and to reduce the suffering of our fellow human beings so that their higher potential can be achieved.
For years, people have agonized under the regime of allopathic medicine, and were either relegated to an extremely limited choice of treatments, harmful over-the-counter medicines or restricted to pharmaceutical drugs. However, we grew tired that patients sometimes suffered from not being informed about what was available and effective when there were so many gentle and safe innovative therapies and integrative medicines conveniently accessible. Finally some complimentary and alternative medicines have been instituted within standardized medicine such as chiropractic and acupuncture. We no longer wanted to see the suppression of symptoms and the compromised immune systems that jeopardized people’s health, happiness and potential. Moreover, we wanted to provide alternative treatments that made sense, have a sound historical track record, and that were guided by principles. Alternative medicine changed our lives; therefore, we wanted to be catalysts to help change the lives of others. With all that in mind we created MedicinEvolution.
Our initial intention behind the research and use of complementary and alternative medicines was more for self-treatment than anything else. In time, however, we realized three things: first, a paradigm shift was occurring in the realm of health and medicine within all age groups; second, the ability to access information and read about the success of other people with similar stories would make alternative medicine a huge part of the changing global mindset, therefore, many self-prescribers would appear who would have the potential of placing their own health in jeopardy if a professional in the field was not consulted; third, that we wanted to provide a sincere and genuine service exceptionally helpful and nearly harmless to people and the earth.
Hundreds of patients later, and a website to receive the many testimonials from excited people of all ages for providing an alternative route to healing on the “road less traveled,” we are honored to present to you MedicinEvolution online for your pleasure and information needs. We hope MedicinEvolution will enable you to live up to your higher potential unhindered by symptoms large or small as well as give you what you need to live a happier more fruitful life. Through holistic healing you will begin to understand and notice the dimension, depth, and relationships between you and your environment with greater acuity. So, take a deep breath and feel free to browse as much as you like. Feel at ease while the world is changing for we are working diligently to provide a stress free bridge for you to traverse over the ravine between the chaos that is disease and the ordered state of health. Enjoy your time at the online home of MedicinEvolution.
*Rolfing is a service trademark of the Rolf Institute, therefore only people trained by the Rolf Institute can legally call themselves Rolfers.