The Feldenkrais Method® – Rewire, Grow and Improve.
At Shepherds’ Health we are always looking to develop our therapists in a wide range of treatment approaches in order to further our understanding of the body and correction of dysfunctional movement patterns which can lead to pain and poor performance.
The Feldenkrais Method® is an approach to movement and learning that helps you live in your body with greater ease. On its basic level, the Feldenkrais Method® improves your posture, breathing, coordination, flexibility and suppleness. This in turn should improve our general body comfort and alleviate pain both at rest and when performing physical tasks such as gardening, sports or just rising from a chair.
By introducing our clients to Feldenkrais, we can offer them a valuable tool in the form of exercise which will help them change the way they move and stop poor movement patterns leading to stress and tension. This will empower the client to control pain themselves at home and not become reliant on their therapist.
“Through awareness we can learn how to move with astonishing lightness and freedom”– Moshe Feldenkrais”
Further Reading:
The Feldenkrais Method was developed by Russian-born scientist Dr Moshe Feldenkrais (1904- 1984). Feldenkrais believed our physical limitations and discomfort often stem from unconscious habits of muscular holding developed through our lifetime, perhaps in times of injury or trauma. This becomes held as a pattern in our brains, which over time creates more stress and strain. Feldenkrais breaks this cycle, helping you recognise your individual habits of tension and discover ways to eliminate limitations and restrictions.
There is now a huge amount of scientific research in the field of neuro-plasticity – the human brain’s remarkable capacity to rewire itself, adapt and repair damaged areas. We can learn and re-learn, not just in childhood as was previously thought, but throughout life and even after injury, stroke, etc. This has revolutionised our understanding of how we can recover and rehabilitate. Moshe Feldenkrais was far ahead of his time in the development of this method which applies these principles of the brains ability to rewire itself, grow and improve.
For a brief and simple explanation of Neuroplasticity, check out this video from Sentis:
