feldenkrais method – relieve pain, improve physical skill, increase awareness, feel energised
I trained as a professional contemporary dancer and went to a Feldenkrais class to improve my own physical skills and overcome a physical injury. I became immediately intrigued by it.
People usually come to the Feldenkrais Method because they have injuries, pain, physical restriction, feel stressed, and exhausted, or they want to improve their physical performance – as dancers, athletes, sports people, musicians, actors etc.
Reality: Many people live with physical pain. Many people put up with it. Lots of people want to improve their performance in some aspect(s) of their lives. Many people with try all sorts of things to improve, currently Feldenkrais is often a last resort, it often works!
Important: The body has a remarkable and natural capacity to learn the best way of doing something, whatever your age! This is inbuilt in the technology of being human Most people don’t know this and sometimes we need a little help. This method enables the learning to take place. the nervous system is built for rewiring and constant learning.
If you have pain in walking, sitting, running, bending, turning, exercising, or any other action, or you wish to improve your playing as a musician, your skills as an actor, your sports ability, Feldenkrais could help you. If your pain is slight, it might disappear, it also might deteriorate. Pain is a sign that something isn’t functioning properly and needs attention. ( We could say this applies to emotional and mental pain also, but lets not go there today).
The sessions are relaxing, invigorating, mostly done lying on a couch, (sometimes in sitting or other positions). The client is fully clothed and your comfort is essential. The nervous system learns through physical ease, comfort, exploration, lightness and relaxation.
The method is taught through group classes called ATM’s (ATM) and one to one’s called Functional Integration (FI).