In my enthusiasm to spread the word of Feldenkrais to the general public, I have found myself in some very strange situations. My most frustrating (but eye-opening) experience occurred when I accepted an invitation to teach a class at a health care clinic for their patient appreciation day. The clinic was on the second floor of an office building, just above a beautiful atrium with an open staircase. The clinic didn’t have enough floor space to teach a class, but the owner and I decided that the large space at the top of the stairs would be perfect. I noticed that the acoustics were exceptional, which would make it easy for the participants to hear the lesson as I kept my voice soft and non-jarring to their nervous systems. Or so I thought. The day of the party was a clear and beautiful...

A funny thing happened on my way to becoming a Feldenkrais® practitioner; I stopped stretching. When I went to ballet class, instead of going through my habitual stretches, I would slowly roll around on the floor before class. My fellow dancers would give me strange looks and nudge each other. One actually laughed out loud. However, no one thought to ask me what I was doing, which was fine with me. I was simply enjoying the experience of finding myself in a visceral and organic way. When I stood up, I always felt refreshed, alert, and ready to start class. I even felt more flexible, which is weird, considering that I didn’t partake of all the goofy stretches I had done for over thirty-five years. However, if you think about it, it was even more strange that I would keep on doing them...

After 6 months of pole dancing, I am now officially a Level 3 Pole dancer. Not bad for a woman who decided to start pole dancing to celebrate her 58th birthday. At the rate I’m going, I may actually hit the professional level by the time I turn 60. There probably isn’t much of a demand for  60-year-old pole dancers, but it’s more about the journey than the end result. Once I graduated from Level 2, I got the OK to start taking Level 3 classes. I was ready to step up to the plate (or the pole) and start the next chapter in my pole dancing pursuit, but I was also really nervous. Especially since Level 3 is all about inversions. You know, where you hang upside down on the pole. I guess that explains my nerves. I walked into my first Level 3 class with a belly full of butterflies,...

My absolute favorite Feldenkrais® lesson is called “Movement in Opposition.” Or, “When Something Goes Forward, Something Goes Back.” It might sound intuitive, but it’s not, especially when it applies to a challenging or complicated movement pattern. This one single lesson helped me get rid of my chronic headaches, healed my low back pain, and made my ballet technique easy and almost effortless. But, my most satisfying application of this lesson was when I shared it with my adorable niece. She called me last month for a phone consultation regarding an onset of back pain she was having during volleyball practice. When she reported it to one of her coaches, she told my niece that it was common for girls to have back pain with volleyball, and it might go away if...

There are many reasons why The Feldenkrais Method® is so effective. However, the most significant reason is because Feldenkrais is a learning experience, not a treatment modality. The focus is on exploring and learning new patterns of movement through your own personal experience of movement lessons. Feldenkrais allows you to discover for yourself how to move more easily (and even effortlessly) without pain, stress and strain. The emphasis is on learning, but not in a cognitive or scholastic way. The learning that occurs during a Feldenkrais lesson is organic and visceral, and occurs at your own pace and time, while your nervous system integrates the information it receives from each lesson. In traditional therapies, the emphasis is placed on the practitioner to “correct, fix, or heal”...

Here we are, at the beginning of another New Year. Everything is new, fresh, and we get to start with a clean slate. Anything is possible in a New Year, including keeping our New Year’s Resolutions. However, the resolutions which sounded quite reasonable during the festivities and over-indulgences of the holidays are now staring us in the face. The let down after the holidays, the cold weather, demands of work, family, and the reality of time constraints might defeat us before we even get started. Before you feel overwhelmed or out of control, let some of the principles of Feldenkrais help you get started on your New Year’s Resolutions, and help you meet your goals with ease and grace. 1). Organize yourself. Put your goals down in writing to allow your nervous system to begin...

I celebrated my 58th birthday a few months ago. Since I am now living on the South Side of 50, and the big 6-0 is right around the corner, I decided it was time to start engaging in more age appropriate activities. So, I started pole dancing. When I took my first Level 1 class, my arms were so sore I couldn’t lift them over my head for four days. After the second class, my arms felt stronger, and they only hurt for three days, so I knew I was making progress. Indeed, I was making progress, and after only four classes, I was promoted to the next level. I was now officially a Level 2 pole dancer. Ha! How many middle-aged ladies can put that on their resumé? I was really excited to learn more advanced moves. At least, I was until I experienced my first Level 2 class. Our first exercise...

This beautiful video demonstrates the effortless and elegant movement of the skeleton in motion. moving from our skeleton and finding the connections and relationships through our structure is one of the basic principles of The Feldenkrais Method(R). Feldenkrais….it makes everything easier. You just have to try it to believe it!  

As a proud member of several different professional groups, I am fascinated by the rituals that develop among the troops. As a respiratory therapist, my colleagues and I started and ended each shift by passing around a tube of heavy duty hand cream to soothe our chapped hands. As a physical therapist, my co-workers and I would palpate each other during breaks. My dancer friends and I still prepare for class by comparing foot deformities. My fellow ninjas…well, I’m not sure about that one, because we’re either hiding, disappearing, or playing tricks on each other. In my Feldenkrais training we bonded through chocolate. Every day, new and different types of chocolate bars would appear on the lunch table. There was one common denominator; it was always dark chocolate. I watched...

I love coffee. I don’t think I have a true coffee addiction, since I only drink it it the morning. However, I sure do love my coffee. I love the sound of the beans grinding, and I love the smell of it brewing. I love pouring my first cup. And my second. And my third. I love the taste, the smell, the heat, and even the feel of my coffee mug in my hands. Face it, I love my coffee. But, during my second week of Feldenkrais Training, I decided to give up coffee. Like I said, I don’t have an addiction to coffee, and for some strange reason I started trying new things once I began my training. The day I gave up coffee was grey, cold, and snowing. Coffee would sure warm me up on such a cold morning, but I was full of determination instead of coffee. I had a cup of green tea instead,...