Your body isn't broken, you just don't know how to use it

FAQ

What will I experience in a one-on-one session?

The Feldenkrais Method® is first off very gentle. We always move towards a more comfortable state of being. I will do an assessment of how you are functioning (e.g. sitting, standing and walking) and then we will go from there. You will lie down on the table fully clothed and I will move your legs, head, and arms around in very gentle movement patterns. Throughout the lesson I will be communicating with you to make sure that what I’m doing feels comfortable. I will also be asking you throughout the lesson how things feel and what you notice. At the end of the lesson you will come up to standing and walk around discovering new ways in how you move.

How long does it take before I’ll be free of discomfort?

It is hard to give a concrete time frame since everyone is different. However, in one session you will begin to notice subtle and sometimes dramatic differences in how your body moves. Usually, after 5 to 10 sessions a student is able to reach a point where they no longer need more lessons. It does depend on how long you have been in the patterns you are dealing with. The longer you have been in these patterns the longer it can take to get you out of them.

How does the Feldenkrais® Method work?

Feldenkrais® works because it is about learning. I don’t call people I work with clients – I call them students. Each hour of one on one time is a lesson. As a Feldenkrais® practitioner I’m not attempting to eliminate your pain but teach you how to function in a new and more comfortable way. By developing new movement patterns that are more efficient the pain will go away. Much of the pain that you experience in your body is due to inefficient and uncomfortable movement patterns. It may have been that at some point these patterns were necessary. For example, you may have hurt your right knee. In order for you to get around you had to lean differently on your left leg. This was necessary at the time but now your right knee is healed and you are still walking awkwardly on your left leg. As a result you may be experiencing discomfort in your left hip. In order to change the pain in your hip you need to relearn how to coordinate your left and right legs.

The Feldenkrais® Method also operates on a neurological level. In other words, much of the learning that happens is happening in the brain. The reason the movements we do are slow is that the brain learns best when you are doing something that is interesting to it. A really slow movement teaches the brain a lot more than a really fast movement. The brain also learns better when it is in a state of comfort. Each person wants to move to greater levels of comfort. Unfortunately, sometimes we have lost the ability to find comfort in our bodies after years of creating inefficient patterns of movement. By moving your body in slow comfortable movement patterns the neurological patterns that used to move like that are reignited and the more that happens the more likely the brain is going to start to adopt those patterns and let go of the ones that are causing pain in your body.

How much does Feldenkrais® cost?

I charge $85 per lesson. I can negotiate a discount for 10 or more sessions. Each lesson is about an hour to an hour and fifteen minutes.

Who benefits from this work?

I believe this work can benefit a lot of different people. People in obvious discomfort may have the more dramatic change in their feeling state. Each session can really reduce the state of discomfort one is experiencing. However, this work is good for anyone who is trying to move in a more comfortable way. Dancers, actors, star athletes and others have used the Feldenkrais® Method as a way to better hone their craft. It can also be helpful for people who are stuck emotionally and want to get a better sense of connection to their bodies. My own experience has led me to see that the Feldenkrais® Method is helpful in bringing me into a greater awareness of myself and it has allowed me to be much more connected to people around me.

Here is a list of benefits people I’ve worked with have communicated to me:

  • Feeling more connected to my body
  • Easier to move
  • Greater comfort in my daily activities
  • More grounded in my feet on the floor
  • Feeling more energy in my body
  • Loss of discomfort throughout my body
  • More aware of how I’m moving and holding my body
  • A sense of relaxation all over

What is the difference between this work and chiropractic and massage?

Chiropractors and massage therapists work primarily with the structure of the body. A massage therapist is working to release tension in the muscles. A chiropractor is working to change the alignment of the vertebrae, for example. What I’m primarily doing is teaching the student how to function differently. I work on teaching functionality and other practitioners work on adjusting structure. Although adjusting the structure is valuable it is important to also shift the function. If a person just shifts the structure but continues the same functional habits they will move the structure back to what it was originally. So, for example, if you have lower back pain a chiropractor can be extremely helpful in realigning the way your back needs to be. But the reason your back was out of alignment was due to the way in which you sit all day. Unless you learn how to sit differently you will need to go back to the chiropractor again and again.