The MELT Method (Myofascial Elongation Length Technique) is a form of hands-off bodywork founded by manual therapist Sue Hitzmann, that simulates hands-on bodywork techniques using a rubber roller (similar to a foam roller) and balls of different sizes and densities in order to provide gentle compression and sensory feedback to different parts of the body. The MELT Method draws from practices including CranioSacral Therapy, Neuromuscular Therapy, Reflexology, Lymphatic Drainage, Structural Integration/Rolfing and current peer-reviewed studies on fascial research.

The MELT method can be used for a variety of reasons such as: 

· to help disrupt chronic/cyclical pain patterns 

· to help heal from injury and decrease the risk of repetitive stress injuries

· to identify “pre-pain signals/sensations” that your body is communicating before pain or injury occur

· to help prepare for surgery and recover from surgery

· to reduce the effects of accumulated tension and stress

· to aid with sleep and digestion

· to recuperate from exercise, exertion, and/or the inevitable stressors of daily life

· to deepen a sense of embodiment and increase proprioception

· to expand literacy of one’s own physiological processes

MELT techniques are guided by an instructor but performed by the client, so the client is generally more actively involved than they would be when receiving bodywork from a practitioner. While the MELT Method is not intended to provide the same experience as or replace other forms of therapeutic bodywork, it can be a great supplement to and help lengthen the effects of hands-on bodywork. It puts the client in the “driver’s seat” so that over time, the client can notice correlations between their own physical sensations that may lead to imbalance, pain, or dis-ease, and have tools to help bring more balance, ease, and embodied presence into their daily navigation of own their physicality. The MELT Method can also be used by those for whom commuting to see a hands-on bodyworker is prohibitive due pain or limited mobility. The techniques can be adapted to suit those with various physical abilities and can incrementally and safely increase range of motion.

I am a Level 1 instructor of the MELT Method, certified in 2021, and I have taught dance, movement, and somatics for the past six+ years. My work as a MELT instructor is informed by my experience as a hyper-mobile dancer and choreographer and my experience navigating and healing from repetitive spinal injuries and subsequent periods of severely limited mobility and chronic/cyclical pain. In addition to my study of MELT, my teaching practice is informed by a multiplicity of movement lineages including: functional anatomy, Bartenieff Fundamentals, trauma-informed somatics, movement pedagogy, improvisational dance forms, Modern and postmodern dance forms, Afro-Caribbean Diasporic dance forms, and Flamenco. My ongoing study of hyper-mobility with Hyp-Access (Audre Wirtanen and L. Tuthall), a duo of hyper-mobile educators who offer education and care-consulting to hyper-mobile people, informs my work with hyper-mobile clients and dancers. I am deeply grateful to organizing spaces I’ve been a part of including Artists Co-Creating Real Equity, European Dissent (both affiliated with the People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond), Resource Generation, and Creating New Futures for their ongoing collective practices that affirm the interconnectedness of physical, personal, collective, systemic, and land-based healing. I am a new member of Bodies for Bodies, a collective of queer and trans bodyworkers who organize collective sliding scale and free offerings for queer and trans clients based in Brooklyn, NY.

While I am excited to work with whomever feels like they could benefit from this practice, my particular areas of interest and inquiry are:

· Hyper-mobility

· Chronic/cyclical pain

· Healing from and preventing dance-related injuries

· Offering restorative, proprioceptive, and embodiment tools for performers, organizers, and caregivers.

· Using the MELT Method as one way in to begin to unfurl and work with potential physical manifestations of personal/collective/ancestral trauma.

During our session, we will go over your intake form and discuss any particular goals  and/or questions you may have. You do not need to have a particular goal in mind. We will begin with techniques that can help locate parts of your body that may benefit from some attention/focus and rehydration during our session. I will teach you some ways to increase fluid flow to those specific areas, though all of the MELT techniques create subtle changes throughout the whole body, so we do not have to have a particular local focus. The hope is that you will walk away with techniques that you can repeat on your own time when you need them most, so after guiding you through techniques, we will spend some time reviewing and answering any questions you have. It can be helpful to have a notebook and writing utensil to record any insights that come up as we move through the techniques together. With your permission, I will also take some notes during our session which I will share with you after. 

*While MELT is a hands-off form of bodywork, there are moments when in working one on one, giving cues through touch can help some people access a new movement pattern. I will always ask for your consent before giving a hands on cue. There is no greater benefit to having hands on than hands off, they are just different approaches. Please trust your own instincts in the moment as to whether or not you want a hands on assist/touch cue- you will always be the one who knows best. 

I am committed to offering this modality to anyone who feels it is a good fit for them, so no one will be turned away for lack of funds (NOTA). I ask that all new clients book a 90 minute Introductory Session for your first session, as I believe this is the amount of time needed in order to honor our first time working together within this modality, to review your intake form and day of needs thoroughly, and to engage this practice responsibly and with care. Once we have had one session together, if you decide to book another, it's up to you if you would like to follow up with a 60 minute or a 90 minute session.

90 minute Introductory or Returning Session//Sliding Scale: $60-85

60 minute Returning Session//Sliding Scale: $45-70

*More info on navigating the sliding scale will be added soon, but if you need help figuring out your sliding scale rate, please be in touch.

Do you have any questions about the process? Please email me with any questions.