Only three days after the horrifying attack on a Latin music night in a gay bar in Orlando, I've decided to write about the physical manifestations of grief, and some tools for working through it. Partially, this post is for myself and my own processing, since as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, this hit me very hard personally. I hope it offers you some reprieve too, whether from pain about Orlando or something else entirely.
Read moreA Story of Jaws and Panic Attacks
Today, a client brought up her panic attacks, which manifest physically as extreme tension through her upper chest, throat, and jaw. We started to do some work with her jaw, because the tension you carry in your jaw ripples down into your throat and upper chest, and a question came up. In response to asking her to gently open her mouth a little and hold it there, she asked, "Why is this so hard?!"
Read moreMini-Lesson: Eye Palming
If you ever feel overwhelmed, anxious, headache-y, overstimulated, panicky, generally too tired to function, can't fall asleep, or have just been staring at a screen for too long, this blog post is for you. Yes, YOU. We've all been there, and are all in need of useful tricks to bring ourselves back to the ground and reset. This one is my favorite.
Read moreYoga Spinal Twist: The Feldenkrais Version
As a yoga pose, Spinal Twist offers all sorts of benefits. From gaia.com, Spinal Twist "encourages movement and mobility in your spine and vertebrae; massages, stretches, and tones your internal organs; improves your digestion; stretches your chest, shoulders, lower back, hips, middle spine and your upper back; alleviates pain or stiffness in your lower back, spine and hips." As a movement in an Awareness Through Movement class or a Functional Integration lesson, even more benefits can be found from the same idea.
Read moreThe Psychological Impact of Posture
There was a great little article recently in the New York Times, "Your iPhone Is Ruining Your Posture - and Your Mood", that reminded me of a conversation I had with a new client a couple of months ago. Working together, we figured out that her lower back pain was coming from the hunch she held herself in, and a really important question came up while looking at how to come out of that hunch. "What are your thoughts and your approach on the emotional impact of not hunching?"
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