The 24th issue of the Feldenkrais Journal arrived today and one of the articles, The Heart of Our Work, written by Marty Weiner (1943-2011) has a point worth re-sharing.
Marty’s is retelling of a story of Moshe when he was asked by a woman if he could do anything for the arthritis she had in her shoulder. Moshe asked her, “Who told you, you had arthritis?” She replied her doctor had and Moshe told her to go back to her doctor for help.
I bet your wondering why Moshe would say this or if you think you have the answer continue reading and find out what else Marty shares about this Moshe story.
Moshe continued to say, “Go back to your doctor, he is the one that gave you arthritis, maybe he can take it away.”
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As a facilitator of developing listening skills, I was pleased to hear these two quotes in the following video Dialogue at Washington High:
“Listening is one of the great acts of LOVE.”
“An enemy is someone whose story you have not heard.” Gene Knudsen-Hoffman
An exercise of listening the students take part in, after the guest speakers in this video, is similar to one I urge in my groups. To witness the connection in the students,who are from different backgrounds and to hear their surprise at the outcome, verifies to me our need to begin to develop the, ” art of listening. ”
In the tools for learning I encourage, what I call three parts of the dialogue;
the inner story we tell ourselves (that no hears but us)
expressing to another
receiving expression from another
In this clip I enjoyed hearing their interpretation for dialogue, as they refer to it. They mention it is not the following:
it is not discussion or ideas back and forth, as this isn’t listening
it is not social conversation
it is not debate with a winner or loser
What they suggest is that it is a win/win for each person and from this comes new ideas, new ways of thinking where everyone benefits. The practice is simply listening. The exercise is to listen to each other without interruption for 15 minutes and then switch and listen to the other.
This is the basic skill I focus upon in my sessions and we work towards learning how to build upon this so that we can develop it into our everyday experience of interaction. Witnessing and hearing the sharing of the students experiences confirms the value of this technique.
Empathy from cultivating awareness from the inside out
The intent of this article is in the context of how communication and movement can support the decrease of anxiety, stress & fear.
InTouch Communication: Values & Empathy integration in communication for transforming disconnection into connection
Find out more on how integrating the arts of movement, communication and space compliment your experience and encompasses a holistic approach to wellness.
Feldenkrais® Practitioner since 2007, Value-Based Communication & Empathy Coach since 2004, Art of Placement since 2000, Founder of Greater Victoria Peace & Intercultural Celebrations since 2010 & Greater Victoria Labyrinths since 2012, #yyj Peace Week Calendar Founder – 2014 & 2015
tight neck, neck muscle cramps, and neck muscle strains can cause jaw pain
problems with the jaw can cause neck pain
There are many reasons why jaw, shoulder and neck muscles and nerves one can antagonize the other:
The jaw muscles are controlled primary by the trigeminal nerve (C5) – Pressure on this nerve through the spine, muscle cramps, or inflammation can lead to poor functioning of the jaw.
Abnormal posture. The major muscles that hold up the head are in the neck and jaw. These are assisted by smaller muscles at the top of the spine. Fatigue of these smaller muscles places greater strain on the neck and jaw causing the neck to hyper-extend. The cause of most neck and jaw pain is the trapeze muscle which extends from the head to the shoulders.
Stress also causes the muscles in the neck to tighten, which can lead to many types of neck pain and jaw pain itself.
Fibromyalgia – Head together with the neck positioning creates chronic fatigue and immune dysfunction.
Whiplash – the disc in the jaw joint being pushed out-of-place, leading to severe neck pain and jaw pain.
Temporamandibular Joint Syndrome – Nerve inflammation and structural abnormalities. Headache, shoulder pain, right-sided or left neck pain.
Nerves connect the muscles of the face, jaw and neck to the cervical spine. If these muscles are tense pain can be felt in the face, neck and ears.
Thoracic Outlet Syndrome – shoulder, jaw, and neck pain with sinus infections on one side. Compression of neurovascular structures may lead to tense muscles and referred pain throughout the head and neck.
Muscular and Nerve Issues – Temporamandibular Jaw problems and anterior repositioning
Nodes, Salivary Glands, and Dental Problems and Lymph Glands – grinding teeth abscess, infection
Jaw and neck pain can be both acute and chronic and result from trauma or slowly with structural issues
WHY FELDENKRAIS?
Support healthy jaw function and break free from pain by cultivating awareness and experiencing:
Primary Movements of the Jaw
Shoulder, Neck and Jaw Connections
Head and Jaw Integration
Eyes and Jaw Integration
Cheek and Tongue Integration
Empathy from cultivating awareness from the inside out
The intent of this article is in the context of how communication and movement can support the decrease of anxiety, stress & fear.
InTouch Communication: Values & Empathy integration in communication for transforming disconnection into connection
Find out more on how integrating the arts of movement, communication and space compliment your experience and encompasses a holistic approach to wellness.
Feldenkrais® Practitioner since 2007, Value-Based Communication & Empathy Coach since 2004, Art of Placement since 2000, Founder of Greater Victoria Peace & Intercultural Celebrations since 2010 & Greater Victoria Labyrinths since 2012, #yyj Peace Week Calendar Founder – 2014 & 2015
includes emotional, behavioral, perceptual and possibly body memory
no sense of recollection (time) present when memories recalled
conscious attention is not required for encoding
does not involve the hippo-campus
Hippo-campus – Explicit Memory:
requires conscious attention
includes semantic(factual) and episodic(autobiographical) memory
develops during the second year of life and beyond
sense of recollection present when recalled
if autobiographical, a sense of self and time and present
if autobiographical, also involves the prefrontal cortex
Prefrontal Cortex
regulation of body systems
attuning to others
balancing emotions
modulating fear
responding flexibly
exhibiting insight and empathy
paying attention to the body’s wisdom
morality
When we are triggered beyond our window of tolerance our pre-frontal cortex function stops and we are left in responses of fight or flight. If our reactions shifts into freeze, our brain response has moved from the area of the amygdala and into the hippo-campus with no sense of time and into helplessness.
I have come to understand empathy is an effective tool to balance out the responses of hippo-campus and amygdala. Empathy allows one to recover and calms ones prefrontal cortex. As empathy develops it increases connections back and forth between our right and left brains therefore increasing ones windows of tolerance. I have also heard that empathy may have a direct link in the amygdala’s ability to accelerate the vagus nerve.
This goes beyond simply a reaction and includes the activation of our parasympathetic system through the vagus nerve. See diagram below to get an idea of the areas that become aroused as when we are stimulated.
These reactions includes our motor control. As we surpass our window of tolerance we begin to lose our fine motor control. We begin to lose our ability for tracking, to focus and mind-fully integrate. This involves our ability for self connection, to feel safe, grounded and to be present in the now.
There are theories to suggest the Amygdala is the accelerator through the 3 channels of the vagus nerve that controls our fight, flight and freeze experience and the quickest tool to connect to the Amygdala is through empathy.
Find out more on how integrating the arts of movement, communication and space compliment your experience and encompasses a holistic approach to wellness.
distancing, moral superiority, logic, sarcasm, denying, educating, judgments, blame, comparison, addictions, compulsions, mild derogatory self-talk, withholding privileges or resources, letting go of agreements, fantasizing about other partners, other lives, rigidity
Right Hemisphere Reactions
fight or flight
gossip, criticism of others behind their back, clinging, retelling our story, mild confusion, medium levels of derogatory self-talk, verbal attacks, asking for reassurance, chaos
freeze
shock, paralyzed
Find out more on how integrating the arts of movement, communication and space compliment your experience and encompasses a holistic approach to wellness.
by Renee Lindstrom, founder, Inside Awareness Center for Integrative Somatic Learning
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Empathy can transform reactions at the core conception that forms a cognitive perspective. An example of a shift is a change in feelings of shame, anxiety, or irritation into feelings of understanding, patience and regret.
Responses to outside stimulus are based upon left- brain or right-brain dominance
When the brain is triggered beyond windows of tolerance, the response is fight, flight and freeze
Some of the physical, mental and emotional experiences when going beyond our windows of tolerance could be:
discomfort, distraction, confusion
Some cognitive reactions when we’ve gone beyond our limits of tolerance could be:
denying responsibility, advising, diagnosing, educating, making demands and moral judgments, blaming and comparing
overwhelmed, mortification, terror, dissociation, numbing, going into a trance, leaving your body, going deeply into confusion, being unable to feel your body, shame, not caring what happens to you
Feldenkrais®, Feldenkrais Method®, Awareness Through Movement®, and Functional Integration®, are registered service marks of the Feldenkrais Guild® of North
by Renee LIndstrom, Founder of Inside Awareness Center of Integrative Somatic Learning
Qualities of Left and Right Hemispheres
Universally accepted qualities of the right and left Brain Hemispheres
The theory of the mind’s function suggests that the two different sides of the brain control two different “modes” of thinking. It also suggests that each of us prefers one mode over the other.
Listen to Dr. Doidge’s short introduction to the Brain’s plasticity. He shares the value of the Feldenkrais Method of Somatic Education in supporting shifting the brain’s behaviour for enhancing functional abilities, physically, mentally and emotionally.
Find out more on how integrating the arts of movement, communication and space compliment your experience and encompasses a holistic approach to wellness.
Feldenkrais®, Feldenkrais Method®, Awareness Through Movement®, and Functional Integration®, are registered service marks of the Feldenkrais Guild® of North
Inside Awareness Center for Integrative Somatic Learning 