What do you mean by transformation?

Our brain's neuroplasticity gives human beings an unmatched capacity to learn new skills for solving problems and changing our behavior. Neuroplasticity, or the creaton of neural networks in the brain, makes it possible for the infant to master standing, the gymnast to complete a round-off back handspring, and the child with cerebral palsy to walk.

Starting in-utero, our brain develops as a response to environmental stimuli affecting the manifestation of the information encoded into our DNA. After birth, this process continues into childhood, with a whole new level of environmental stimulation, form the tone of our mother's voice, and the quality of our relationships, to the types of toys and learning opportunities offered to us. This input to our sensory system, determines which of our neurons will fire together, creating neural networks which inform our habit life of thought, feeling, and behavior into adulthood.

Once we reach a certain level of proficiency in functioning in our given environment, we no longer absorb and retain sensory input at the same rate. In essence, our brain has created useful patterns upon which it can habitually rely to carry out day to day functioning. What if that functioning isn't ideal?

What if we loose the ability to walk because of a stroke or an accident? What if we have developmental delays that make it difficult to read or to walk? What if a history of trauma wired our brain to respond to crowded rooms as if we're in major danger? What if we want to play golf or the piano, but our body just doesn't get what our mind wants it to do?

The answer to all of these questions and the infinite number of related ones, is to create new neural connections in the brain which will strengthen over time, becoming the new operating system determining our functioning as the old patterns melts away from disuse.

There are so many healing modalities. Why should I choose an Art of Living Institute class?

Classes, private sessions, and retreats offered by the Art of Living Institute, offer the participant a playful learning environment designed to promote the creation of new neural connections in the brain that will improve both your physical mobility and the quality of your thought and feeling life. The brain's capacity to learn is triggered by novelty. It's capacity to retain information and abilities is determined by numerous factors but keys include the clarity of the sensory input, the level of anxiety in the nervous system, and the current configuration and complexity existing in the brain's neural networks. The effectiveness of our classes and private sessions lies in maintaining a relaxed, no-pressure environment, keeping the learning experiences novel and fun, and offering the nervous system a level of stimulation and input that it is ready to absorb. Because each individual is unique, some people need the customization of private sessions to maximize the rate of their learning.

What is "FELDENKRAIS^®"?

"FELDENKRAIS^®" refers to the last name of a physicist named Moshe Feldenkrais (1904-1984) who discovered that an amazing array of human functions could be improved by slowly introducing sensory input into the brain, through movement, in a way which enabled the brain to re-organize itself, building or rebuilding the neural connections it needed to improve movement and cognitive and emotional functioning. It's rather amazing to contemplate that the wholistic integration of our mind-body system means that intelligence can actually be improved by improving our movement. This area of understanding is currently at the cutting edge of brain research and still not fully understood. However, evidence points to the principle that neurons that fire at the same time wire together into networks. The timing of movement in FELDENKRAIS^® lessons features prominently, helping the person (and their brain) discover which part of the body to move in sequence to make movements more efficient, and thus easier. Also, a key principle in the FELDENKRAIS^® approach, which is becoming understood through technological breakthroughs in brain imaging, is the idea of "differentiation" within the brain. "Differentiation" means that as we engage in a new function such as walking, talking, or reading, the utilization of our body parts starts creating networks of neurons which fire together in conjunction with the new activity. Increased skill is represented in the brain by an increased number of neurons differentiating (becoming used) in an associated pattern. With practice and awareness, the brain will optimize the pattern for each function, wiring in connections that represent the intricacies of the action while releasing connections triggered by inital exertions, which through refinement become obsolete. Cultivating a FELDENKRAIS^®-like awareness to one's own movement, an ability to sense subtleties to which most people are oblivious, means participating in the process of expanding differentiation within the brain, creating new neural networks and through disuse, discarding less efficient patterns.

More on the potency of experiential learning

Cutting-edge scientists and scholars in the fields of physics, biology, and chemistry such as Dr. Bruce Lipton, Dr. Esther Thelan, Dr. Peter Levine, Dr. Candance Pert, and Dr. Jean Houston are providing powerful insights into the dynamic relationship between our minds and bodies. Their discoveries are demonstrating that what we call "the mind" does not reside in our brains alone, but in fact, exists as information exchanges in the form of chemical reactions throughout the body's organs and the nervous system. Our movements, then, arise not only as responses to directions from the brain, but their quality, diversity, and organization exist as bio-chemical reactions which actually shape the development of the brain itself. As a dynamic system, our movement life and our thought life are constantly interacting and influencing one another.

These ground-breaking discoveries in neurology and bio-chemistry are providing evidence to explain with ever greater clarity why the brilliant somatic teaching & learning strategies developed by Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais (1904-1984) as his FELDENKRAIS Method® are so effective. Dr. Feldenkrais realized that one of the easiest ways to cultivate new habits is to start experimenting with our bodily movements because this activity is concrete, engaging, and doesn't evoke anxiety. Though it's often hard to give up old habits, it doesn't have to be. When a learning opportunity is designed to help us discover an easier, more efficient, or more pleasurable option, we almost always adopt the new approach and it soon becomes a better habit.

Dr. Feldenkrais' approach to learning and improvement, which is taught by thousands of Guild Certified FELDENKRAIS Practitioners® around the globe, has demonstrated for years that we can "make the impossible possible, the possible easy, and the easy elegant." By offering students learning experiences which invite awareness of their kinesthetic, imaginal, and emotional perceptions, in addition to cognitive responses, the FELDENKRAIS Method® has enabled individuals to rapidly develop higher levels of awareness and ease in their daily lives. The ability to draw upon all of these faculties in each moment of challenge results in a higher functioning individual who more often experiences satisfaction and success with less effort and strain.

Join us to learn how to make your life easier & more satisfying!