You may be wondering, What is Feldenkrais?
Have you ever watched a baby learn how to crawl, sit, stand or walk? The Feldenkrais Method is based on the premise that we have all forgotten how to move with such natural ease and awareness. By paying close attention to the signals our bodies give us and gently exploring new ways of moving, we can rediscover the free, effortless sense of movement we had in the first few years of life. We can also undo many of the aches and pain that plague us as adults who have become literally too set in our ways.
The chief goal of the hands-on therapy called Feldenkrais Method is to help you become more aware of your posture and movement patterns. In addition, you can explore how you limit yourself, and enhance learning of new patterns. This approach doesn’t seek to treat specific medical conditions but instead helps you to respond differently to them. It’s said to do this by reeducating your neuromuscular system. It’s based on the theory that people over time develop patterns to compensate for pain or injury. These patterns can become obstacles to healing and optimal functioning. Subtle changes to these habits can improve flexibility, balance, breathing, and coordination easing tension, pain, and strain.
The program is offered in two forms.
In the first form, we guide you verbally through gentle movements, typically while lying on the floor or sitting in a chair. The second form uses hands on contact to address individual needs. To do this, your teacher might move your arms, legs, head, or trunk in ways that enhance your awareness of movement patterns. With both forms, your teacher may draw attention to elements such as your breathing, or the differences between the two sides of your body. Attention to these elements demonstrates how small differences in these aspects may change the quality of a movement and the ease or difficulty with which you accomplish it.
Because the movements are gentle and involve no pain or strain, most people can participate and possibly benefit from the Feldenkrais Method. People who use the Feldenkrais Method often notice changes in thought patterns when they change their movement patterns.
Feldenkrais Method is most often used for flexibility, coordination and balance; neck, back and joint pain relief; headache; neuromuscular disorders and physically rehabilitation. It’s also said to improve athletic performance and to help with circumventing creative “blocks”.
