Feldenkrais Method: A technique to relieve pain and tension and improve flexibility

The Feldenkrais Method offers a unique approach to improving physical well-being by focusing on how we move through life. Developed by Dr. Moshé Feldenkrais, this technique harnesses the brain's neuroplasticity, enabling individuals to relearn more organic and functional movement patterns. Susana Born, an internationally certified Feldenkrais Method teacher, describes it as a way to "relearn a more organic and functional way to move in life, using the neuroplasticity of the brain and its capacity to create new neural pathways." She likens it to how children learn, emphasizing movement and attention to achieve comfortable, simple, and creative ways of living.

Born's personal journey with the method highlights its transformative power. She found it to be her calling, turning a practice into a passion that significantly changed her life. The method encourages rediscovering an innate capacity for "elegant and efficient movement" through mindful attention to motion and gentle exercises, ultimately aiming for a better quality of life and overall well-being.

The origins of the Feldenkrais Method are rooted in its founder's struggle with a chronic knee injury. Moshé Feldenkrais, a physicist, engineer, mathematician, and judo black belt, first injured his knee playing soccer and later sustained another injury while working as a scientist during World War II. At the time, he was already a judo instructor and was pursuing a doctorate in science under Nobel laureate Frédéric Joliot-Curie. This led him to apply his knowledge from physics, engineering, and martial arts to an intensive study of his own movement habits.

After achieving positive results in his self-treatment, Feldenkrais began exploring his methods with a small group of colleagues, including notable figures like scientist John Desmond Bernal and Nobel Peace Prize winner John Boyd-Orr. Following his service as head of electronic engineering for the Israeli army, Feldenkrais dedicated his life to teaching self-awareness through movement lessons. His work established a series of exercises and techniques focused on awareness and mindfulness in motion, designed to enhance movement efficiency and reduce pain. The method includes "Awareness Through Movement," which involves performing simple, slow, and effortless movements, often mimicking the primary movements of infants, and "Functional Integration," where a practitioner works with a student through gentle touch.