I like to listen to podcasts when I’m relaxing. One especially, Brain Science with Dr. Ginger Campbell always has new (and not so new) ideas in neuroscience. Moshe Feldenkrais is often called the Father of Neuroscience. He was one of the first scientists to observe how we think through movement, how we use our brains in action. His ability to observe thinking in our actions was and still is quite cutting edge in learning.
It’s only now that scientists are starting to openly talk about how experiments by definition miss out so much of the bigger picture. It’s difficult to measure different parameters at the same time. But that’s how we live, that’s part of being human. Our actions include so many aspects: thinking, sensing and emoting. Emotion as a verb, still an underused one!
Humans embody complexity. We like to break things down into easy simple ideas. But actually, that’s not always useful. Take shoulder pain for example.
I see many clients one to one, who come in with shoulder pain. And they think that because the shoulder hurts, that’s where the solution should be. But that thinking is wrong. Isolating parts of yourselves, separating without adding back into the whole doesn’t help us.
It would be like only ever looking at a painting close up. You might see the texture and brushstrokes, but never the whole idea of the artist.
The same with us. You might find it easier to think of the shoulder on its own, but it’s not true. The shoulder relies on the ability of the ribs underneath to support. Which in turn relies on the ability of the spine to move, and the pelvis to tilt, and roll for its support. And then for the legs to be able to support in turn. To be free to move and act, we need the head to be resting on top of a movable spine.
The skeleton of the shoulder-blade might not be skeletally attached to the neck, but the muscles and the rest of the fascia are. And then the upper limb. It is connected directly to the shoulder. So how we use the hands and fingers affects the tonus of the shoulder, and vice versa.
Let’s talk more about fascia- it’s like a sleeping bag around the skeleton. It’s continuous. The muscles names might be separate, but act together in groups. So what you do with the hip can help the shoulder. Along with what you do with the head, neck, arms, hands, fingers, legs, toes. And we haven’t even mentioned the organs.
The bigger picture might feel a little more daunting. It’s a lot to think about. If we only segment, we miss out. The rest of you is where we can find resources most haven’t even considered. Just because they don’t have the same name.
You might be wondering how to start learning about this? That bit’s quite easy actually. Come to a Feldenkrais lesson. And then come to some more, so you can build self-knowledge cumulatively over time. Its a Kinaesthetic practice. An experiential one. Isolating and integrating pieces of yourself into the whole. Cognitively improving your movement and self image, one lesson at a time.
Friday’s lesson is one of my favourites, so if you’ve been coming for over a year, it’s possible you’ve done it before. But unlike other practices we do do different lessons most of the time. So it can feel like seeing an old friend. There’s time to notice what feels different this time around.
If you come along, you’ll learn more about the connections of your shoulders to the rest of you. If you’re moving more easily, for most of you, you’ll feel calmer, more restful, possibly even happier. (Although I can’t guarantee that one!) but come and find out for yourself. It really is a learning method to experience, not only read about.
How to include more of ourselves in the practice room, on stage, or simply in our daily lives.
Come and discover more of yourself in this week’s session
the Feldenkrais Method with Emma Alter 