For Parents that want to give their children more possibilites to live a dynamic life!
I would now like to share this story about a very special child that I have been working on over the past four months in Edmonton, AB, Canada. This little girl was diagnosed with:
Nystagmus...wobbly eyes due to brain development.
Lissencephaly(smooth brain)...Miller-Dieker Syndrome(rare genetic disorder).
West Syndrome & Infantile Spasms-seizure disorders.
Global Development Delay.
Swallowing issues-high risk for aspiration/pneumonia.
I don’t always understand or even know what these diagnosis mean as I am not a doctor, but I do know that when I first met this child, she would lay on the table like a piece of paper and not even really move or be aware anything around her. With this work, we engage the whole body or the whole person. What is she capable of doing? Where does she move easily and without effort? It is alway "I wonder". As we started doing the lessons with her, I noticed that she did put her right index finger in her mouth. That was a way for me to introduce to her in language, "are you counting your teeth"? Amazing how quickly she learned to associate the language with the "action", one of the first parts of bringing awareness of who she is in her body. Her legs were wide apart and not touching and her arms and hands were not very interested in touching herself, other then her index finger in her mouth.
She had a very "wobbley head" with they very, very slow movements, done with great attention, differentiation and with many variations I started to move her pelvis. Very, very gently to see how the cavity of her pelvis to her head was connected. Did moving her pelvis cause any movement in her head? If not, how far up her spine did the movement transfer? In which directions? What would make a difference in her life?
Her eyes were very focused on looking up toward her forhead. Seems like looking down and around were something she was able to do at this time. She was introduced to some neurological movemetns such as interlacing her fingers, touching her feet with her hands, touching her right foot to her left foot and as many different variations as I could think of.
Because of this way of moving her, over the 28 lesson she received, she quickly became more aware, started to move and discover her hands, her feet, and her legs. She has everything hard-wired in her brain, she just needs some movements she may have missed while in the uterus. With this she is now rolling over, able to turn her head on the side while on her stomach. Her eyes and look up, down, sideways and all directions. Her legs are staight under her!
She is doing some neurological things such as interlacing her fingers, able to touch her right side, touches her toes with her hands. Laughs and smiles frequently.
The steps to get her to this point have been done with great care and love. Not only did she have the opportunity to change but there was a shift done by the whole family. She is such a lucky girl to have the parents she has! They really embraced and supported the process by doing everything at home that would encourage and give enthusiasm to her and keep her learning inbetween sessions. Her older brother is also in on the action now!! This family noticed and honoured all the small changes, all the small miracles!
This is the part of noticing small miracles by holding your goals loosely. I had worked with one young boy only 8 sessions. I noticed many, many small changes in the child. I saw him 2 or 3 x per day for 4 days. On the third day he changed so much, when I mentioned to "soften" his legs, he did. Most of the time his legs were very spastic. He has such a wonderful learning brain! I was amazed with these changes.
The sad part for me was on the 4th day lesson 7 and 8 the young man was stiff and lost everything gained in the previous days. I could not figure out what had happened, until the end of the last lesson. Mom asked if I would really make any changes in her son. She didn’t notice anything. This is not a fault with her, but it put so much pressure on her son to perform in a way that he was not able to do at this time. It was a great way to learn a lesson in educating the parents to "see" and become enthusiastic on the small changes and hold their goals loosely.
I am just so thankful for the opportunity working with these very special children. The trust, enthusiasm and leaning that we as a community in Edmonton are creating one child at a time, one family at a time! Let's keep the momentum growing and see where we can take this work and knowledge out into the world.
Karen Toth
www.stretchyourlife.com
519-743-5375
Karen has been blessed to follow her heart in life and in her career. She took a 3 - 3/4 year training with Anat Baniel. Anat had studied directly under Moshe Feldenkrais in Israel, San Fransisco and followed and helped train others all over the world. Anat studied with Moshe for the last 15 years of his life.
Anat has written a book "Move into Life, The Nine Essentials for Lifelong Vitality". It is a book Karen highly recommend everyone read! This is a way to put what we do into language most people can understand. Here are the 9 essentials:
Movement with attention - our brains are organized through movement
The learning switch - everything in life becomes an opportunity and miracles
Subtlety - turns stimulations into new information
Variation - create a greater variety of possibilities in the way you think, feel and move
Slow - slow gets the brains attention
Enthusiasm - energy that lifts and inspires you
Flexible Goals - gives your brain opportunities to discover new ways to fulfil you dreams
Imagination and Dreams - leaving current limitations and leading to your authentic life path
Awareness - living in the present and being fully alive
To purchase this book Move into Life: The Nine Essentials for Lifelong Vitality
For more information on this method check www.anatbanielmethod.com/
Next training begins March 2011 check this site for more info http://www.anatbanieltraining.com/
Currently Karen is studying with Mia Segal and her daughter, Leora Gaster! Mia was Moshe's first assistant. Mia and her family were visited daily by Moshe and were there first hand as he devised his method. Mia even helping him create the method. Leora has be very blessed to live a life that was so full of possibilities and variations. Their approach is very different, it brings the simpleness of the method as well as letting the brain figure out how to do the organic learning. Mia and Leora have a wonderful way of sharing the Feldenkrais Method .
Karen has also had the honour of studying with Yvon Joly from Montreal Canada. He is so delightful to be taught by and she noticed how much she was able to remember and learn. He has a playful, yet powerful technique from his many years of following Moshe back to Israel after his cerifying training.
