Don’t Just Do Something, Just Sit - Self Massage Session 1
Don’t Just Do Something, Just Sit - Self Massage 1
Be the quiet in the roil
Simple techniques to lift and open the chest
Sylvia Boorstein, American Buddhist Teacher and Laughter Master
Sylvia Boorstein, Buddhist teacher and writer is the inspiration for this series: Don’t Just Do Something, Just Sit. It is a short series for a busy, possibly stressful month. In this series, we will sit and practice some Feldenkrais approaches to self treatment.
The hands-on version of the Feldenkrais Method is called “Functional Integration,” a term that isn’t self-explanatory. The goal of all Feldenkrais work is to learn to use your body, understanding the way it functions (though some say the “functional” part is related to mathematics), and integrating that learning into your everyday life. The hands-on experience usually gets you to that goal sooner, as each lesson is a game of finding what makes things feel better by experiment and experience.
“When people ask, “What do you practice?” I respond, “I am trying to keep my mind clear and alert so that my heart can be open to respond with kindness and compassion to all parts of my life.” I’ve recently changed from teaching, “Mindfulness in Everyday Life” to saying, “Everyday Life IS Mindfulness Practice.” There is no situation in which paying careful kind attention would not be the most helpful response.”
The group sessions, Awareness Through Movement® lessons are especially effective for people who delight in self-discovery. Students meet the lessons where they are physically, mentally, emotionally.
This little series will combine the hands-on and group lesson approaches. It’s a hands-on-self study which, I hope, will bring a little calm and self-soothing in this upcoming month.
The first session is devoted to lifting the breastbone and opening the ribs. Be gentle with yourself and allow your fingertips to tenderly find the spaces between bones and help expand them. Of course the breath will be involved. We will be sitting on a chair, upright in gravity, as thats we spend most of our days.
Science Nerd Candy Bowl:
Clavicle (collarbone) the Upper Limb Bone Anatomy for Artists - Anatomy for Sculptors (6:54) Begins with an anatomy lecture and goes into practical applications for drawing the upper body
Clavicle Bone: Introduction, Anatomy, Function, Injuries and Treatment - Medical Centric - up to 2:31, good anatomy lesson; goes into injuries from there
Chest mobility and whole body connection in the supine position on the skeleton model | BONEMAN.pro (0:58) visual on how the ribs move
Ribcage Movement During Respiration - Will Lawson (0:45) just the facts
Animation - Rib Cage - YouTube shorts - how the organs ‘breath’ under the ribs
Set Up for Seated Lesson:
Sit on an armless, stable chair so that your hips and knees are level and your feet are firmly connected to the floor. Chairs with wheels are less helpful. You can ‘raise the floor’ by putting something stable under your feet, or raise the chair by sitting on a rolled blanket or towel. Nothing too squishy.
You can also do this lesson supine with the appropriate support for head and legs as needed.
How you might feel after this lesson: Quieted, Relaxed and open chest, Full breath, Grounded, Kind to yourself, Able to use hands to release chest
If you have a Wednesday 9:30 am or 6:30 pm class registration, keep using it. If you were registered for the 12:00 pm Wednesday session, you’ll need to register. Registered, paid students receive the lesson recording link on Thursday. $40/month; $15/single lesson. PayPal or Venmo to jackisue@aol.com. Or check to Jacki Katzman, PO Box 116, Bethlehem, NH 03574
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