About Sharon Wheeler’s ScarWork
Sharon Wheeler originally trained with Ida Rolf, the originator of Rolfing and Structural Integration. She developed her approach to working with scars and adhesions over many years, eventually starting to teach it when she realised that she had developed something ground-breaking.
ScarWork was introduced to the UK in 2014 and has grown rapidly. We now have several hundred therapists trained and they are working not only in their own clinics but as volunteers in hospitals; this has led to some hospitals, intrigued by the results, expressing interest in starting clinical trials.
About Sharon Wheeler
What is ScarWork?
Decades ago, the way of dealing with scars and adhesions was generally one of ‘knuckling’, i.e. breaking down the rigid, unresponsive tissues with the knuckles. Although some relief could be obtained in that way, it was painful. With ScarWork, we listen to the body’s pain alerts and adapt our pressure, techniques and angle of touch accordingly; it should feel good for the client. The touch is light, responsive and non-intrusive and has been known to help with a variety of scars, not just their appearance but their underlying effects on the body.
Adhesions stick structures together that would normally glide past each other; this can cause functionality problems and affect posture and energy level, among other symptoms. With ScarWork, our aim is to soften and change the scar tissue; the light touch approach has been shown by research to create changes at cellular level and this enables deep change in the tissues to take place.
The therapist will assess how the scars and adhesions are affecting your posture and gait, then work not just on the scar but on the surrounding area, keeping the rest of the client covered and warm.
Still amazed by how such a gentle technique can make such a huge difference! The tightness and discomfort I had been feeling for many months across my abdominal scar following Diep flap surgery, was suddenly eased after visiting the clinic for a few sessions.
An operation on my feet left me with little balance on my right foot due to the scars and reset my big toe so it didn’t touch the ground. The results of Scarwork have been extraordinary; after nearly 50 years this foot is flat and I have better balance in life all round.