Ruth Young has been doing bodywork for more than twenty years. Her interest in healing was first sparked when she suffered from a pulled arch in her foot and was unable to walk. A massage therapist worked on it and released the pain in less than ten minutes. “Wow!” thought Young, “I want to learn how to do that.” So she did.
She graduated from the KMI School for Structural Integration in 2003, and has been studying Activated Isolated Stretching (AIS) since 2008. Young’s pursuit of AIS arose when she heard about the results it achieves in helping paralyzed people walk. AIS also has positive effects on those afflicted with Parkinson’s disease and other neurological conditions. “Adding this aspect to alignment and pain relief opens up a whole new world of possibilities,” says Young.
The breadth and depth of Young’s experience means that many of her clients’ chronic pain issues from migraines to pain in the back, knees, hips, feet, neck and shoulders are relieved. This is Young’s ultimate satisfaction and reward. “I love the exploration and research aspect of treating pain, and then integrating the different modalities of my learning to get optimal results for my clients.”
Young has worked on clients ranging in age from a year and a half to almost eighty, including tri-athletes, and physically challenged individuals. Her extensive bodywork experience has made her believe in the intelligence within a person’s body. Says Young, “The truth is, many of our body structures contradict the so-called textbook cases. As a result, my goal is to always be increasing my knowledge and ability to picture what the inside of the body is doing, so that I can effectively treat the wide variety of my client’s needs.”
With Young in the role of facilitator, each individual becomes his or her own healer. “It’s all teamwork,” she says. “By incorporating stretches and exercises during the postural alignment process, the client and I work together to bring about healing. I teach clients exactly what is going on in their bodies to help them with work, daily living or recreational challenges.”
Young is a certified Structural Integration and AIS Practitioner, as well as a licensed Massage Therapist with a clinic in Salt Lake City, Utah.
