A New Perspective: Creating a New Normal

A New Perspective: Creating a New Normal

The Feldenkrais Method® often clarifies that our usual way of doing things is shaped by hard-wired habits and patterns that play out unconsciously. Pausing to recognize and compare things is the best way to improve something.  Now, what if you redefined your normal rather than falling back into your old habits?  We all know this experience.  The closest and most remarkable effect was when, in 2020, the world was shocked by another pandemic.  It certainly wasn’t the first in Earth’s existence, while for our personal experience, it was the first, and we’re still living through it.

During the lockdown, in a very brief period, remarkable improvements were observed and documented: our skies were clear of smoke, pollution, and toxins, and even Los Angeles’ smog lifted.  Coyotes were seen walking across the Golden Gate Bridge.  There was so much improvement in our world, and, sadly, after a year of the pandemic, almost everyone, though not all, returned to their pre-pandemic lifestyle habits.  All the environmental improvements were destroyed as we returned to the usual way of living. What did we take away from this?  For many, it seems as if we didn’t learn to appreciate the good that came from the bad: working from home, no rush-hour road rage, a quieter, calmer place to pause and rethink how to move forward, caring about community and neighbors, quality time with family, simpler lifestyles…

We need to look back to learn from the past and imagine what’s possible, moving toward a better future rather than continually repeating old habits.  It is possible to shift and change so that a new normal, with improved options and possibilities, awakens.

This is when the HOW comes into the equation, and why I bring Feldenkrais and somatic learning to the fore.  Many people come to Feldenkrais after they’ve tried everything else to fix their problem, and that’s the problem.  If we actually realized that anxieties that overwhelm our feelings of freedom often are focused on self: relationships, financial concerns, health challenges, pandemics, and presidencies, legacies too often are more about the individual and not the good of the community.  From this place, we can dream of what would create the best for all, not just a few.  Whether through the Feldenkrais Method: Awareness Through Movement (ATM)® or Functional Integration (FI)®, we also learned to work virtually, which created another benefit for the mainstream.

We create these elegant movement patterns first through developmental processes; from there, the difficulty and different threads develop, but only after the initial processes are refined do we organize ourselves in a smooth, elegant, and efficient way.  Now think about how a child learns. Can you witness as well as remember what it was like when you were this young?

“Babies and toddlers are unself-conscious when they dance.  They’re spontaneous, present, unconcerned with who’s watching them.  This approach ‘brings us back to our own intelligent bodies, our own basic understanding of what it is to be alive’… Babies don’t perform movement – they discover it.” – New York Times

Feldenkrais practitioners remind us to return to these days of innocence as babies and toddlers, where we were learning something for the first time.  Come back to yourself to find this place of ease, free of judgment.  It’s playful and joyful, which helps each of us rewire more potent habits to find our new normal.  While we’re not children anymore, what if you allowed yourself to play this way so you could begin to learn for yourself what is really possible?

“Life is not knowing, making a change, taking the moment and making the best of it.”- Gilda Radner

I invite you to join me whether for ATM, FI or virtual sessions to awaken what’s possible that maybe at the moment you don’t think is possible.  Reach out any time, as I’m known for quick responses to any inquiries.

I hope I’ve earned the privilege of your time and attention and wish you all the very best as we are now in the midst of holidays.  Be safe, think of others and how we can support those in need.

Warmest,

Peggi