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    Daniel Bienenfeld - Healing with Hellerwork (#016)

    In this episode, Amanda Parker interviews Daniel Bienenfeld, a Hellerwork practitioner and teacher, who shares the principles of this unique bodywork modality and offers a powerful fascia activation technique for self-care. With wisdom and compassion, Daniel discusses the journey of healing through embodiment and guides listeners to experience the richness of living from a place of wholeness.

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  • "The body is where we feel life from. And we can't think life, we feel life. And if anyone is suffering from lack of energy, come back to your body."

    - Daniel Bienenfeld

  • Today's Guest

    DANIEL BIENENFELD

    Dan Bienenfeld is a world renowned Somatic Therapist and Hellerwork Structural Integration trainer and practitioner with over 45 years of experience. He is past president of the Hellerwork Practitioner’s Association, and a training director for Hellerwork International.

     

    Dan’s decades of experience in working with thousands of people has given him valuable insight into the healing arts and insight into the art of healing. He was co-founder of Los Angeles Healing arts Center, one of the nations’s largest multi specialty alternative medical centers.

     

    Dan has worked in developing Ergonomic programs for Fortune 500 companies such as Johnson and Johnson. He is an Author of Align for Life, Journey to Structural Integration and 9 ebooks, and is passionate with his private practice in Los Angeles and facilitates seminars internationally on Somatic Healing practices and Structural Integration.

     

    How to get in touch:

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  • Show Notes

    In this episode of Don't Step on the Bluebells, Amanda Parker interviews Dan Bienenfeld, a practitioner and teacher of Hellerwork structural integration. Dan explains that Hellerwork is a unique bodywork modality that works with the whole body to realign it with gravity, restoring space, function and ease of movement. While hands-on work from a trained practitioner is ideal, Dan also shares a powerful fascia activation self-care technique that anyone can use to awaken the body and release held patterns of physical and emotional pain.

     

    Dan's own journey with Hellerwork began as a teenager, when he witnessed the dramatic changes in a friend who went through the process. He knew clearly then that this was his path, and ended up being one of the first students of Joseph Heller, the creator of Hellerwork. His advice for someone starting to connect with their body is to begin scanning and noticing sensations throughout the day, while seeking support from experienced practitioners.

     

    The conversation touches on the nature of healing, which Dan distinguishes from fixing. True healing, he suggests, comes from having the courage to feel and listen to the messages of the body, bringing awareness, acknowledgment and space to areas of discomfort and stuckness. This is deep, ongoing work, but it is what allows us to experience the richness of life fully embodied. Dan's warm, down-to-earth wisdom invites listeners to begin that journey back to wholeness.

    Key Takeaways

    • Hellerwork is a type of structural integration bodywork that realigns the body with gravity. It works on the whole body, not just symptoms, to restore space, function and ease of movement.
    • While bodywork from a trained practitioner is ideal, there are self-care practices one can do, including yoga, Pilates, and a fascia activation technique Dan shares. This involves bringing awareness, breath, movement, tapping and more to awaken an area of the body.
    • The fascia activation technique can be used on areas of physical discomfort or emotional stuckness. Our issues are held in our tissues.
    • Our bodies hold emotional content and memories, not just physical tension. Bringing awareness and acknowledgment to areas of discomfort or stuckness is a key part of the healing process.
    • His advice for someone starting a journey of connecting with their body - start scanning and noticing sensations throughout the day. The more awareness you bring in, the more embodied you become. Getting support is valuable too.
    • Healing is not the same as fixing. Healing involves going into discomfort, giving it a voice, making space and forgiving yourself for holding on. Coming back to the experience of living from and feeling through the body makes life richer and more whole.
    • Committing to the journey of embodiment - feeling and listening to the messages of the body - allows us to experience the richness and wholeness of life more fully. This is a process of coming home to ourselves.
    • Modalities like Hellerwork, Rolfing, yoga and Pilates can be valuable tools in this process of embodiment, but the most important thing is our own intention and willingness to feel and be present with our whole being.
    • Daniel's own story demonstrates the powerful clarity and life-changing potential of following the call to your deepest knowing, even if it seems unconventional. His work is an invitation to that same courage and wholeness.
    • Dan knew clearly as a teenager that he wanted to do this work after seeing the changes in a friend who went through the process. He ended up being one of the first students of Joseph Heller, the creator of Hellerwork.

  • What We Talked About

    • What Hellerwork is and how it works with the whole body to realign it with gravity and restore ease of movement, rather than just focusing on symptoms.
    • The importance of fascia and how to awaken and enliven it through self-care techniques like the fascia activation exercise Daniel guides listeners through.
    • Daniel's personal journey with Hellerwork, from experiencing it as a teenager to becoming one of the first students of Joseph Heller, the creator of the modality.
    • Advice for people wanting to start connecting with their bodies, including scanning for sensations throughout the day and seeking support from experienced practitioners.
    • The nature of healing as distinct from fixing, and the role of embodied awareness, feeling, and listening to the body's messages in the healing journey.
    • The transformative potential of bodywork modalities like Hellerwork to help people experience the richness of living from a place of embodied wholeness.

    Guest Quotes

    • "In order to work and correct a shoulder problem, we're not just working on the shoulder, we're working on the whole body, the relationship between the shoulder and the rest of the body."
    • "When we don't move, nothing happens. I mean, Einstein even said, 'Nothing happens until something moves.'"
    • "The investment is worth it and it's very easy to do. It's just a commitment to, I want to free myself, I want to be here. And so I need to connect with my body because my body will feel what's happening. And there's no way to get around that. If you want to come back, you have to go through your body."
    • "Healing doesn't mean fixing. Like someone could have a, let's call it a shoulder injury, and they could have healing without it getting fixed. So, healing would represent going into the deeper layers of what's going on with that shoulder."
    • "I would just invite you to gift yourself with a session of structural integration at some point when the timing is right. Just to see and feel and just as a gift to yourself. And also just to come back. Come back to your body. Come back while you're doing everything else."
    • "It's pretty amazing when we do that, because even though it takes longer, you can actually make space so that the shoulder is comfortable again. If we're just working on this and loosening it, it doesn't often, sometimes you can get lucky and, you know, pains will go away, but it doesn't necessarily change the shoulder and the relationship with the rest of the body."
    • "We all have a body. We all have emotions that we've stuffed. We all have fear. The human experience is unique for each person, but it's also very much the same. We all have the same feelings. Getting to know ourselves so that we can actually have a richer life."
    • "No one ever heals until they let go of the victimization. It's impossible. So the healing starts when you allow yourself to forgive yourself for holding on to something your whole life."
    • "The body is where we feel life from. And we can't think life, we feel life. And if anyone is suffering from lack of energy, come back to your body."
    • "You're actually stimulating the emotional content that you're holding in that part of the body... When you allow an area to have its day in court or its exposure, or give it a voice, sometimes that's all something needs in order to let go."

  • Resources to Learn More

    • Website (Dan’s Work): www.embody365.com
    • Website: www.hellerwork.co 
    • If you are unable to find a Hellerwork practitioner in their area, Dan suggests looking up structural integration, as there are many good schools and practitioners in this broader field who can provide similar benefits

  • Terms & Tools to Dig Deeper

    • Fascia: The connective tissue that surrounds and supports muscles, organs, and other structures in the body. It plays a crucial role in movement, posture, and overall health.
    • Fascia Activation Technique (also called Fascia Integration Technique or Fascia Flow Technique): A self-care practice that involves bringing awareness, breath, movement, tapping, and other elements to awaken and enliven a specific area of the body or the whole body. This technique helps to release held patterns of physical and emotional pain.
    • Fascia Flow Technique: Another name for the Fascia Activation Technique (see above).
    • Fascia Integration Technique: Another name for the Fascia Activation Technique (see above).
    • Hellerwork: A type of structural integration bodywork that aims to realign the body with gravity. It works on the whole body, not just symptoms, to restore space, function, and ease of movement. Hellerwork was created by Joseph Heller.
    • Pilates: A low-impact exercise system that aims to strengthen muscles, improve posture, flexibility, and balance, and enhance overall health and well-being.
    • Rolfing (Structural Integration): A type of deep tissue bodywork that aims to realign the body's structure and improve posture, flexibility, and overall function. Rolfing and Hellerwork are similar in their approach and goals.
    • Yoga: A group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices that originated in ancient India, aiming to control and still the mind, and recognizing a detached witness-consciousness. Yoga can help improve flexibility, strength, balance, and relaxation.[Include any relevant terms or tools mentioned in the episode]

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