“Most of us believe that there’s some rock bottom place that doesn’t move. In the last 50 years we’ve learned that there’s no such thing as a static substance anywhere in this world. To the contrary, by the very fact of living, an individual is in constant motion. The great challenge is to make that movement efficient, smooth, comfortable, full of peace, and not turbulent, unbalanced, and distorted.”
Informed by the work of Thomas Hannah, Feldenkrais, and Yoga Therapy, SomaYoga is a mind/body practice that invites us to slow down and pay attention to what is happening INSIDE the body, and with conscious awareness, re-educate neuromuscular pathways to support improved alignment and range of motion.
If you've been practicing conscious dance this may sound familiar. You may notice the common ground of internal sensing and body awareness while following the "just right" movement for your own body. You may also perceive, however, an additional focus on re-educating the system toward greater ease by tracking movement patterns and consciously engaging the mind toward increased range of motion and freedom.
Thomas Hanna believed this was the missing link to body based practices - that although we could relax tension and invite greater fluidity into the body, new patterns would not “stick” unless we engaged the mind to get cortical! By sensing, feeling, and moving consciously, we become empowered to choose greater freedom and integration throughout our entire Soma.
Through my own body and in working with clients one-on-one, I have witnessed how overuse, strain, or trauma can cause parts of our body/mind to go unconscious. I have also witnessed the power of somatics to awaken sensate awareness, along with motor control, to release tension, move with greater freedom, and live with hope, grace, honesty, and integrity.
SomaYoga and conscious dance are not means to an end, but means to living well! I hope you will come and experience the practice of SomaYoga for yourself!
Love,
Teresa