Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniel Bienenfeld.
Daniel, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My journey to more than 40 years of service in professional practice, as a Hellerwork Structural Integration Practitioner and teacher began as a child who suffered from severe scoliosis (rotational curvatures of the spine). This condition caused me tremendous pain and pressure in my body, as well as great self-consciousness. I wore baggy clothes to hide my twisted body and avoided having people focus on me. Fortunately, I was directed to Rolfing- a bodywork process wherein a Rolfer helped me to realign my body, using very specific manual therapy which resulted in my spine straightening out and my pain disappearing! It was miraculous to say the least. It was a total and complete body/mind metamorphosis. I grew one and a half inches and my entire way of relating to the world was shifted forever. But within one year, my body started returning back to twisted pain.
Desperate to return to a quality life, I searched for more answers to solve my physical discomfort. I was referred to Joseph Heller (founder of Hellerwork), then the president of the Rolf Institute, who was an advanced Rolfer who was then the president of the Rolf Institute. I worked with Joseph and in a few sessions, he helped me restore myself to that amazing balance in my body. He worked differently than the Rolfer who I had worked with originally, as he included movement training- to teach me how to maintain the alignment, plus he worked with me Mentally and Emotionally to clear out the original patterns that created the twist and tension that haunted me through my life up till that point.
I was clear that this was the work I would be going into for my life’s work because I wanted to help others free themselves of pain and discomfort, and help them align their bodies and feel better about themselves. I wanted to make a difference and give to others the powerful experience of transformation that I had received. Aesthetically, people need to realize how much more beautiful or handsome they can be when their bodies are aligned with Gravity- the most powerful force in the universe.
As the years went by, I opened a practice and began teaching Hellerwork Structural Integration. I also had a vision of combining this modality with other alternative methods and co-founded the Los Angeles Healing Arts Center, which was one of the largest and most well respected multi-disciplinary healing arts centers in the nation. I also took this amazing work into industry where I provided ergonomic programs for companies like Johnson and Johnson, which saved them lots of money in injuries and absenteeism. When an individual knows how to move with ease and grace, their work becomes much safer. I currently practice and teach Hellerwork Structural Integration both here and internationally.
Has it been a smooth road?
Obstacles and challenges have been apparent with the work that I do being accepted by the culture. This culture is a mentally driven one, and even though we have a great exercise culture, people spend most of their day in their heads, sitting at a desk. It has gotten easier over the decades as our culture is now coming to terms with the fact that tension and stress affects us so profoundly, and it costs us tremendously, financially and energetically. Learning how to become present in the body while working and solving problems, and learning how to move in an aligned and fluid way is the gift that my work has been able to provide for those who engage in it. I feel that the culture is now open to alternative medicine and now is willing to experience embodiment for the first time since the industrial revolution (prior to this people were much more connected to their bodies). So the challenge over the years was to help people become aware that their body matters, and that learning to let go of stress and train themselves to release it was important…People are learning.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Daniel Bienenfeld Hellerwork Structural Integration – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
After working for many years in a large group practice, I now work by myself, but I understand the importance of working with other health professionals and regularly refer my clients to appropriate people to help them heal completely! It takes a village, as there is no one modality that does everything… Many clients need Hellerwork but also some chiropractic and perhaps acupuncture and psychotherapy, Pilates, yoga, vitamin therapy, neurofeedback, osteopathy, and so many other things.
My Modality, Hellerwork Structural Integration is Hellerwork Structural Integration, created by Joseph Heller, expands on Dr. Rolf’s method. In Hellerwork, we address the psycho-emotional aspect of the person and integrate the body, mind, and movement connection patterns in order to create complete and lasting change. What really distinguishes Hellerwork from the other forms of Structural Integration are the added components of Somatic Psychology, Active Therapeutic Dialogue, and Movement Education.
Movement Education in Hellerwork is integrated at every level and is the true context of this work. Our goal is to give our clients a “retraining” in the way that they move through their lives. This is presented on the physical, emotional and psychological levels.
By addressing the entire person and not just the body, pain and stiffness on all levels is reduced or eliminated, and fluidity, freedom, and ease takes its place. Even though all Structural Integration methods address the structure and function of the body, Hellerwork provides a deeper exploration into the psycho-emotive aspect of the person.
Somatic Psychology is the therapeutic dialogue process that occurs during sessions, which assists clients in releasing old patterns stored in the body, therefore allowing them to evolve to a level of increased personal awareness and authenticity in their lives.
From our perspective, the individual’s ability to move through life with ease makes all the difference in the way one lives, speaks and acts in the world.
There is a complex relationship between movement and self-expression, and simply put, the greater the ease of movement, the easier it is for people to express themselves verbally and emotionally. Movement is encouraged in Hellerwork Structural Integration and achieved on every level.
The first level is the freedom that is created in the physical body, as alignment is improved along with the release of chronic pain and holding patterns. The deeper levels of work are related to the inter-relatedness between the mind, the emotions, and the body.
Hellerwork addresses these levels by exploring their relationships and offers facilitation to clients. This process assists in clearing out old and dysfunctional patterns and creates new optimal perspectives and tools that inspire awareness, joy, and freedom. This is all facilitated from a state of unconditional love, which is an important component offered in our practitioner training.
Our heart-based approach is healing and transformative by nature because people grow more easily when they experience love and support.
A shift in the body is a shift in consciousness.
As a practitioner of this modality, I offer my clients very personal service that is custom to their situation. My strongest offering to my clients is an experience of change and shift that is very hard to find elsewhere. This offering allows personal evolution and an entirely new relationship with their body and their mind. In this day and age, there are few things people can do to correct patterns from the inside out, as our culture just wants to cover up the problem. Working from the inside out and the outside in is a sure way to create true integration.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love Los Angeles, as it allows so many of us to be ourselves. Even though we live in the film industry’s shadow, we have more creatives, eccentrics, and so many interesting people. Living here allows an ‘anything goes’ opportunity. This allows me to be who I am and people seem to be ok with this. What I don’t like so much about it is the problems that we don’t face, like the homeless and pollution, as well as the traffic. I hope that my work allows people to open their eyes and become more of the solution.
Contact Info:
- Address: 860 Via De La Paz suite F2
- Website: www.DanBienenfeld.com
- Phone: 310-459-2140
- Email: [email protected]
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
