WHERE DID HELLERWORK COME FROM?
Joseph Heller (1940), a former aerospace engineer for NASA, developed Hellerwork, a system of structural integration patterned after Rolfing.
During this period, he trained for six years with Dr. Ida P. Rolf (1896-1979), the founder of Rolfing, and became a certified Rolfer in 1972. After Heller developed his own system of bodywork, he founded Hellerwork in 1979 and established a training facility in Mt. Shasta, California, where he continues his work.
Hellerwork is based largely on the principles of Rolfing, in which the body’s connective tissue is manipulated or massaged to realign and balance the body’s structure. Because Heller believes that physical realignment is insufficient, however, he expanded his system to include movement education and verbal dialogue as well as deep tissue massage.