00:00 Welcome to the Show
00:42 Meet Sharalee Hoelscher
02:58 Michael’s Rolfing Journey
04:03 What Rolfing Really Is
08:32 Gravity as Therapist
12:38 Posture Shapes Psyche
15:29 Gliding and the Midline
22:16 Connective Tissue Explained
27:11 Feeling Fascia in Motion
29:55 Embryology and Forming Life
34:28 Bringing It Back to Practice
34:58 Gravity Heals Through Movement
35:36 Embryology Movement Creates Form
38:11 Unfolding and Unfurling Force Fields
43:07 Adult Body Homeostasis And Posture
45:27 Walking Experiments With Gravity
48:22 Beyond The Machine Model
52:58 Awareness Styles And Learning
57:24 Movement Paths And Feldenkrais
01:03:22 Final Thanks

I'm thrilled to have Sharalee on the show today. I've went through a Rolfing series with her and was fortunate to work with her prior to her retiring this year. Her depth of knowledge and commitment to the true origins of Ida Rolf's work truly impressed me and I have continued to reap benefits from my work with her.

A little more about this episode:

In this episode, Dr. Michael DeMaria welcomes retired Rolfer and craniosacral therapist Sharalee Hoelscher for a profound exploration of Rolfing’s deeper mystery — how movement shapes the self. Together they trace the lineage of Ida Rolf’s work, connecting gravity, fascia, and structural integration to emotional and spiritual transformation.

Sharalee shares insights from decades of practice, explaining how connective tissue acts as a continuous inner skin that organizes the body’s parts, and how gravity itself becomes the therapist when the body finds balance around its midline. They discuss embryology, ontogenesis, and Erich Blechschmidt’s revolutionary idea that movement precedes structure, revealing how this principle continues throughout life as we evolve through new gestures and forms.

Listeners will discover how posture shapes psyche, how trauma transforms through alignment, and how practices like Feldenkrais, yoga, Pilates, dance, and Rolf Movement help sustain the body’s living intelligence.

Keywords: Rolfing, Structural Integration, Fascia, Gravity as Therapist, Embryology, Movement Therapy, Somatic Healing, Trauma Transformation, Feldenkrais, Craniosacral Therapy, Ida Rolf, Body Alignment, Ontogenesis, Somatic Awareness, Sharalee Hoelscher, Michael DeMaria

Sharalee's Listing on Rolf.org: https://mms.rolf.org/members/directory/ROLF_profile.php?mid=1245928883

Michael's website: https://michaeldemaria.com/

0:00 Welcome to the Show
00:36 Meet Andrew Ecker
02:03 Ancestry and Roots
03:49 Life Assignment and Loss
04:58 Gritty Healing Work
06:46 Host Tribute and Sacred Seven
09:05 Opening Prayer
13:19 Relational Spirituality Defined
14:00 From Religion to Red Road
18:22 Trauma Addiction and Liberation
27:15 Energy and Emotional Density
28:56 Drumming in Memory Care
33:00 Displacement and Manifestation
35:29 Trauma Informed Sound Medicine
39:06 Spirituality Over Substances
39:35 Turning Pain Into Practice
40:40 Healthcare Pushback And Support
42:15 Scaling Drum Circle Impact
43:27 Energy Work With Clinicians
45:38 Gong Moment Breakthrough
47:31 Why Research Lags
50:34 Funding A Drumming Study
51:35 Connection Replaces Addiction
53:30 March Retreat Details
54:35 Congo Square And Inclusion
57:22 Transformation Story And Invite
01:00:23 Sacred Seven And Grounding
01:01:49 Blessing And Closing Prayer

The Other Side of Things Podcast

A Soulversation with Andrew Ecker
Recovery • Sacred 7 • Drumming Sounds • Rhythm as Medicine • Living a Prayed Life

In this deeply personal and powerful conversation, I sit down with healer, recovery guide, and founder of Drumming Sounds, Andrew Ecker.

Andrew shares his journey through addiction and recovery, revealing the deeper spiritual hunger beneath substance use and the sacred discipline that reshaped his life. We explore sobriety not as abstinence alone, but as initiation — as an ordeal that strips away illusion and invites us into prayer, service, and presence.

We also dive into Andrew’s Sacred 7 practice, a relational prayer rooted in the seven directions, and how rhythm and intentional drumming restore connection to ancestors, land, body, and spirit.

Andrew introduces his ancestry and lived experience with generational incarceration, substance use disorder, and family loss, and describes bringing drumming into memory care, psychiatric units, prisons, and treatment centers as an evidence-based, trauma-informed practice that emphasizes permission, empathy, and connection. The conversation focuses on “relational spirituality,” learning intimacy and boundaries with mental health experiences, and using drumming, breathwork, guided imagery, and sound medicine to displace “energies of sickness” and support healing. Andrew calls for more research funding for group drumming, shares outcomes from clinical and bereavement contexts, and promotes a March 13–16 retreat-style drumming training in Scottsdale plus his book Sacred Seven and coaching.

Andrew closes our conversation with a spoken prayer — a reminder that healing is not something we do alone, but something we remember together.

If this conversation moves you, consider subscribing and sharing it with someone who may need to hear it.

Andrew's Resources and Links:

Drumming Sounds
https://drummingsounds.com

Sacred 7 Community & Training
https://thesacredseven.com/

Andrew’s Book – The Sacred 7: A Path to Finding the Wholeness of Self-Identity
https://www.amazon.com/Sacred-path-finding-wholeness-self-identity/dp/1090133642?ref_=ast_author_dp

The Sacred 7 explores relational spirituality, identity, and healing rooted in earth-based traditions and community practice.

Michael's resources and links:

Official Website
https://michaelbrantdemaria.com

Books
https://michaeldemaria.com/books/

Music & Albums
https://michaelbrantdemaria.com/music

Films
https://michaeldemaria.com/ontos-films/

YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/@MichaelBrantDeMaria

00:00 Introduction to The Other Side of Things
00:40 Welcoming the Guest: Rebecca Wild Bear
01:31 Rebecca's Background and Work
03:27 The Importance of Wilderness Therapy
06:29 Challenges of Modern Culture and Soul Work
11:56 Writing and Living Wild Yoga
16:45 Personal Stories and Vulnerabilities
30:03 The Concept of Wild Yoga
35:19 Embracing Vulnerability
35:52 The Never-Ending Journey of Healing
37:13 Love Warrior vs. Heart Warrior
38:02 The Power of Love and Ferocity
44:07 Feral Female Ferocity
50:04 The Role of Anger and Boundaries
01:02:32 The Journey of Braveheart
01:05:18 Final Thoughts and Contact Information

✨ The Other Side of Things Podcast | Guest: Rebecca Wildbear ✨

In this episode, I’m joined by my dear friend of over a decade, Rebecca Wildbear—author of Wild Yoga: A Practice of Initiation, Veneration, and Advocacy for the Earth. It was such a joy to finally sit down and reconnect with her for this conversation.

Rebecca is a nature-based soul guide, vision fast guide with Animas Valley Institute, and former wilderness therapy facilitator with Open Sky. Her life’s work is devoted to helping people listen deeply to the mysteries of the Earth, their dreams, and their souls.

Together we explore how Rebecca’s approach to wild yoga—a blend of yoga, deep imagination, and nature connection—offers a paradigm shift in how we understand human development, especially through the lens of nature-based soul initiation. Drawing on our shared apprenticeship with Bill Plotkin and the Animas Valley Institute, we discuss:

🌿 How wild yoga is different from traditional yoga
🌿 The role of wilderness in soul initiation and human maturation
🌿 Alternative ways of looking at what is often called “mental illness,” addiction, or psychosis
🌿 How nature can guide healing, wholeness, and purpose
🌿 Why adults who never felt at home in mainstream culture may still find their soul initiation later in life

Rebecca’s book Wild Yoga is both a practice and an invitation—a call to live in deeper conversation with the Earth and with the soul’s longing.

🔗 Learn more about Rebecca Wildbear and her work: https://www.rebeccawildbear.com
📖 Get Wild Yoga: https://www.amazon.com/Wild-Yoga-Practice-Initiation-Veneration/dp/160868797X

If you enjoy this conversation, please like, share, and subscribe for more soulful dialogues on The Other Side of Things.

Michael's website: www.michaeldemaria.com