Almost three years ago, my life changed for the positive when I was introduced to the Wellness Station and the methodology that influences our practice. I had barely heard of the Feldenkrais Method® at this point as a PT student, and certainly had no idea how to implement its principles into my own life or into therapeutic care. This was a pivotal moment in my life in which the end of my academic journey and the start of my career was just around the corner. I knew that I wanted to bring some new ideas into the therapeutic space, as my experience with traditional physical therapy left me searching for deeper meaning. Beginning to blend my learnings of the traditional therapy model with my study and practice of yoga was extremely helpful, but I knew I had much more to learn.
Following an auspicious introduction to the Wellness Station team, I began to open my mind and body to the greater possibilities that are achievable through a Feldenkrais approach. I began to receive mentorship, attended Feldenkrais movement classes, participated in my own body explorations at home, and improved my knowledge through reading various books on the topic. Through this journey, I have achieved personal growth and a refinement in motor skills, which are gifts that keep on giving.
Below I will reflect on some of the key takeaways of my journey that have helped me feel better in my body and motivated me to share these tools with the world.
Keenly aware of more body parts and connections between
A key part of the Feldenkrais Method is to become more aware of our body in a non-judgmental way. With a background in anatomy as well as yoga, Feldenkrais helped to deepen my self awareness to a greater level of precision. Using the spine as an example, I used to be only generally aware of my spine, more as a series of “chunks”: my low back, mid/upper back, and my neck. Through slow, controlled movements with a keen attentiveness, I have been able to expand my sensorimotor skills to be aware of specific parts of my spine, and how to move and adjust my position to feel more comfortable in these various areas. Key lessons that helped to build this ability have been the pelvic clock, as well as piano keys and spine like a chain. This idea of each vertebrae being like a piano key can allow us to move with the precision of a skilled piano player- flowing up and down the scales with ease, rather than being limited to mashing many keys all at once. These practices allow us to feel “flow” and connections between various body areas, as the spine is our center, our core, the foundation for our head, and the bridge between our upper and lower body.
Moved away from strain and over-efforting
Many of us have a tendency to put in too much effort, which can contribute to strain and tension. In fact, we all have inefficient movement patterns, which is just part of the human experience. These neuromuscular inefficiencies may present themselves during exercise, daily tasks, occupational duties, and more. For me, this tendency may have related in some part to perfectionism and competitiveness, as well as a reflection of the overall psyche of our society: do more, work hard, no pain no gain. Certainly it manifested into the way I exercised and practiced yoga to some extent. The Feldenkrais Method teaches us to do just enough, and no more. To become aware of unnecessary effort and tension, and find ways to move without our typical patterns of strain. By practicing movement in this way, I became aware of some of my habits that may have been less than helpful. Fitting myself into a tight yoga shape that didn’t feel good, but doing it because I felt like I should be able to. Overtraining because more is always better. Judging and being hard on myself when I felt like I wasn’t achieving something perfectly. My journey with Feldenkrais has not erased all of these habits, but it has done wonders to help me become more aware of them, and has allowed me to be able to make the conscious decision to be more kind to myself and my body. This has actually done wonders for my yoga and other fitness practices. By finding ways to unlock my emergency brake (unnecessary tension), work with my body instead of on my body, as well as a refined sense of awareness and biomechanics, I have been able to find new growth in terms of the physicality of my movement practices. Better ability to move into difficult shapes with ease, strengthen my body in three dimensions, walk and run with a sense of flow, all while respecting the limits of my body in the moment.
Expansion of therapeutic toolset
One of the most important characteristics of an effective physical therapist is to walk the walk. These practices are part of my life not only for myself but also for my clients. Even though I am not currently a certified Feldenkrais practitioner, my experience with the method greatly influences my therapeutic style to provide clients with a unique approach to therapy. By practicing what I preach, I am able to share an integrative person-centered therapy that can be very helpful for those who are looking for an alternative option. While every person is very different, the tools obtained from mindful awareness practices can be applied to any person. We all have tissues, and our tissues all want attention!
At the Wellness Station, the therapist and client work together as “body detectives”, discovering neuromuscular inefficiencies that may be contributing to pain and movement challenges.
Based on these findings, lessons that are unique to each individual are taught with improved comfort, biomechanical efficiency, and fitness as the outcomes. To learn more about how Feldenkrais can be applied into physical therapy, read our Feldenkrais Method White Paper.
Written by Jacob Tyson, DPT - Physical Therapist, Yoga Instructor and The Wellness Station Team