The Feldenkrais Method®: Get Stability and Pain Relief Doing TMJ and Pelvis Work

Class This Week: 

As I have taught and studied Dr. Feldenkrais' work during the last 10 years, I sometimes encounter lessons which surprise me and remind me of his amazing understanding of the intricate relationships between the nervous system, brain and body. In Awareness Through Movement® class yesterday I had such an experience. The lesson was a jaw -- TMJ (temporomandibular joint) and pelvis-knee lesson, with an amazing surprise. The lesson also has a huge impact on balance! 

We worked deeply and quietly with the eyes, jaw and pelvis, and coordinated taking the knees right and left. In the middle of class we got up and walked a bit to sense what had changed on the side we had just worked on -- and the experience was phenomenal. The entire right side had stabilized and organized in a way that was exponentially beyond what it seemed we had done. BALANCE was profoundly affected, meaning the work went deep into the organization of body via the work with eyes and jaw, the nervous system.

There are more than 2000 Feldenkrais® Awareness Through Movement® lessons, each meticulously designed to address particular areas of the body and function, using self-awareness during non-habitual, mindful movement. Of these, about 750 were developed by Dr. Feldenkrais himself. The balance are extensions or variations developed by his small group of students, early students who worked and trained directly with Dr. Feldenkrais, and others who completed the 1000+ hr Feldenkrais professional training after Feldenkrais' death in 1984.

Dr. Feldenkrais was literally a movement genius, motivated and inspired by his own debilitating injuries, and informed by his deep knowledge of judo, yoga, and athletics generally. Add to that mix his lifelong study of how humans learn, combined with his training in physics and engineering, and the result is a body of movement lessons and work unlike any other. I hope you will join us soon and experience this work for yourself. 

Winter weather is keeping a lot of people home, but if you have trouble with balance, pain or movement in spine, back, hips or legs, I hope you can join us. Remaining classes are Thurs and Sat. We do the same lesson all week long, our week beginning on Tuesday and ending on Saturday.

Please contact me for more information at renofeldenkrais.blogspot.com and use the contact form at the top right of this page. I look forward to hearing from you! Best wishes and stay warm! 

Best wishes and stay warm!

Carole 

The Feldenkrais Method®: Convergence of Movement, Pain Reduction and Self-Awareness

The Feldenkrais Method is distinguished from most other movement modalities (yoga, Pilates, T'ai Chi) by the fact that there is no 'form,' no ideal movement, no ultimate goal other than increasing our ability to sense and feel movement in our bodies, initially exploring existing movement habits, and eventually embarking instinctively and intelligently on a journey leading to more well-organized,  pain-free, aligned, effective movement.  People who use the Feldenkrais Method know this to be true.

The initial objective is to practice 
using sensation and attention to learn through self-sensing about your movement ease and movement limitations. This creates a baseline of knowledge from which to measure change, to bring about mindful movement improvement, at the level of the skeleton and the nervous system, i.e., the brain.

The shape, speed, size and trajectory of any movement or movement sequence that you do, whether in Awareness Through Movement® classes or Functional Integration®, is determined entirely by what feels comfortable to you in that moment. 

You may even choose to do the movement in your imagination, if the initial exploration of a movement feels unsafe,  uncomfortable or inaccessible or limited in any way. This is one of Dr. Feldenkrais's discoveries -- that doing movement by visualizing is a powerful force for improvement and is completely safe. Elite athletes and performers use the technique, going over and over a routine or sequence in their minds. Then suddenly range of movement improves, alignment and organization is better. Many things happen during visualization that we cannot measure, with or without technology. 

Moving mindfully, whether in reality or by visualizing, also helps to reduce pain and muscular stress, improves breathing, balance and allows the body to find itself in a way that is reminiscent of how we were as children, when we were free of the self-consciousness we are burdened by as adults. We become more free in ourselves.

In this relaxed, observant and open state, many parts of ourselves can become more responsive, vital and creative, more available to us. Our senses are more alert, our attention improved, our awareness of our surroundings is heightened. Life can become more vibrant and rich, more conscious.  Here is what painter, writer and philosopher William Segal wrote about attention and consciousness:  

“When one first begins to work with conscious attention one discovers that the subsystems of body, feelings, and mind function inefficiently and disharmoniously. Yet the simple awareness of misalignment may introduce an element capable of binding the disparate parts into an integrated whole. With sustained awareness comes a heightened sensitivity, openness, a quiet mind. Man’s structure becomes receptive to the advent of fresh, vivifying energies descending from a mysterious source. This creates a field, where higher energies can transform the lower.”

~ William Segal   (quote thanks to Ian Sanders)

Thanks for reading, 
Carole
Carole Bucher, BA, CGFP
Reno Feldenkrais Integrative Movement

What is Functional Integration®? Gentle skeletally-oriented, individual lessons, that create lasting change through the nervous system.

This charming short youtube film created by my equally charming and erudite French colleague, Stephanie Menase',  is completely unlike any other film about Feldenkrais Functional Integration (known also as FI). It is brilliant, educational and absorbing. 

 

And inspiring! During the very unusual and effective one-to-one process of Functional Integration, you get a clear taste of what the work is like, how it proceeds, relieves pain, organizes the body for effective movement and gives you an example of what your own experience in an individual Feldenkrais session might be like. 

The remarkable thing is that Stephanie is able to convey all of these subtleties with just her fingers and hands, using a tiny little stuffed Frenchman doll to represent her client. You will be amazed!

The gentleness of her movements and the refinement of her words perfectly conveys the sometimes magical possibilities that one encounters with the Feldenkrais Method. 

I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did! 
With best wishes for a happy, movement filled 2019!

Carole

Get ready for the New Year! 2019 Feldenkrais® classes start Jan 8, 10 and 12.

Happy New Year!
2019 could be a year in which calm, physical grounding and the ability to respond with intelligence from our hearts will be important. I invite you to explore these qualities in yourself as you learn to connect to yourself more deeply in Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement® classes. Using sensation and attention, we use non-habitual movement to study our existing patterns and habits of movement, as well as thinking, emotion. We reconnect our brains and bodies, reduce pain, rediscover ourselves, restore balance and joy, so that we can meet each day in a more mindful, active, and effective way.

Classes begin again next week on Tues, January 8.
The class schedule and cost are the same as last year. I've reposted them below. If you are interested in attending class for the first time, here's what to do:

• Email me for the important class hand info (How to get the most from a Feldenkrais class). 
• Come 15 mins early to meet with me when you come to your first class.  
• Bring a blanket or similar, a small towel, water and dress in warm layers in winter. 

We work on the same lesson from Tues-Sat., to give you the opportunity to do a class more than once, by far the most beneficial way to progress, though our busy schedules may challenge us.  If you can,  make a commitment to come to at least 3-5 classes in a row (one or more per week), to create a base from which your learning will ground itself and accelerate.

Dr. Feldenkrais designed lessons to be done at you own level, including, when necessary, visualizing or imagining doing certain movements that are difficult, and never doing anything that strains you or causes pain. If you do, this is not doing Feldenkrais. All of this information is addressed clearly in the class handout.

Movement is the vehicle for sensing and feeling what is easy for us and what is more challenging, then slowly going forward and improving from this place. There is no prescribed 'form' -- you seek your inner capacity, then gently undertake the individual, non-habitual movements from that mindful place, even if the lesson becomes more vigorous.

Please contact me (using the contact form on my website, upper right corner) if you have any questions about classes, the Feldenkrais Method, your situation, or my training.

2019 CLASS SCHEDULE
--TUESDAYs at Noon-1:30,  250 Bell St., park in the rear lot, enter through the back door.

--THURSDAYs at 5:00-6:30 pm,  Reno Buddhist Center, 820 Plumas, at Taylor. Enter on Taylor St.,  all the way to the back of the hallway, in the Hiroma Room.

--SATURDAYs at 10-11:30 am, 250 Bell St., park in front, enter through the front door.

COST:  $15 drop-in, 10-class card for $120, and a need-based sliding scale for those who need it. I don't take credit cards at this time.

I look forward to working together this year to bring a more meaningful connection with ourselves to life, enhancing our ability to move, think, act and be more effective in the world in ourselves and around us. If you have any questions, please contact me. Meanwhile know that with just a little commitment and curiosity, you have far more ability to improve your movement comfort, efficiency and wellbeing than you may imagine.

Best wishes and awesome movement!

Carole Bucher, BA, GCFP
Reno Feldenkrais Integrative Movement