Feldenkrais Lesson of the Month #35 (8/00)

Freeing the Arms and Hands

By Rich Frye

For safety and best results, read these instructions before doing
lessons!
Themes:
Reducing habitual tension in hands, wrists, arms, and shoulders;
combating carpal tunnel syndrome; opening the heart to embrace new
possibilities; improving creativity
Works with:
Arms, wrists, shoulders, neck, back, and upper spine.

1. Begin in an ordinary position, say, sitting at a desk, kitchen

table, or computer...notice the feelings and sensations in your dominant
hand...manipulate an object in space in your customary way, like a spoon,
or pencil, or computer mouse...notice the feelings in your fingers, palm,
wrist, elbow, shoulder, and neck...notice the quality of the
movements...then let it go, and lie down on your back on the floor...and
check in with yourself through your contact against the floor...notice in
particular the feelings and sensations in your arms, shoulders, and
hands.
2. Lie on your back with legs either extended or bent with feet standing
about shoulder width apart (you can change them at any time for
comfort)...then, beginning with your right arm palm down close to your
side, slowly roll your arm so the palm faces up, and slide the arm out to
the side a little on the floor...then roll the arm palm down, and slide
the hand back to the side...repeat it many times, softly, languidly,
gradually making it bigger each time, until you are hand is a little
above the shoulder on the floor before you rotate it palm down and slide
it back to the side...then let it go and rest...notice the differences
between your right and left sides on the floor.

3. Bring your awareness to your right hand...rotate the arm so the hand
is resting in a neutral position on the floor...then, beginning with a
microscopic movement and gradually making it bigger, bend and straighten
your right index finger several times...notice which joints move
easily...do it many times, very slowly and softly...and let it go and
rest.

4. Same position...touch the tip of your right index finger to the tip of
your thumb and slowly rub them around each other several times, as it
rolling a tiny grain of sand...feel all the minute sensations from the
movement...and then softly open and close the distance between tip of the
thumb and the tip of the finger?they get a littlle farther apart and come
back together?find the trajectory that feels best?GO VERY SLOWLY...you
feel movement in your wrist and in the fleshy part of your thumb as the
movement gets bigger...notice if you hold your breath or tense other
parts of your body...gradually it becomes like stretching an imaginary
thread from the tip of the thumb to tip of finger...find the most
comfortable trajectory?let your arm and wrist move in any way that gives
more freedom to the movement...and let it go and rest.

5. Shift your awareness to the middle finger of your right hand, and
repeat all the movements from #4 with the middle finger instead of the
index finger...go slowly, don't rush...this is about minute
sensitivity...and rest.
6. Repeat #4, this time with the ring (third) finger of the right hand.

7. Same movements as #4, this time with little finger of right

hand...then rest on your back, and compare the sensations in the right
and left hands and arms.

8. Lie on your back with your feet standing, about shoulder width
apart...touch the tips of all the fingers and the thumb of the right hand
together, as if holding a fine thread, and explore a movement of pulling
the imaginary thread a few inches in the easiest direction...you might be
sliding the hand on the floor, or lifting the hand and wrist into the air
a little...just pull a few inches in the easiest direction...then your
hand opens like a parachute and floats back to rest...do it several
times...gradually let your elbow bend with the movement of the hand and
wrist?so your elbow moves in space relative to your shoulder each
time?let your breath resonate softly with the movement...it is like a
jellyfish softly undulating, floating open, and floating closed...do it
many times, letting your breath and entire self be involved...explore it
for a full minute or two, as if it were a natural part of
breathing...then let it go and rest...compare the two sides of your body,
and notice the differences.

9. Repeat #2 through #8 on the left side.

10. Lie on your back with your arms near your sides, and legs
extended...turn your right hand so it is in contact with your right
thigh, and slowly slide the hand up over the thigh...slowly explore the
sensations of moving the hand across your pubic bone to your left hip,
then slide it back across to your right hip...feel your body with your
hand and your hand with your body...then slide the hand to your lower
belly on the left, and across to your waist on the right...go slowly back
and forth across your body, moving slowly upward...to solar plexus...to
chest...shoulders...eventually bring the hand to your face and
sensitively explore the shapes and textures around your face and head and
hair...which is warmer, your face or your hand?...let your hand rest on
your lower jaw and gently stretch the skin downward over your lower jaw a
few times....stretching the skin a little and letting it go...and then
relaxing your jaw and allowing it to open each time you pull the skin
downward...and let it go and rest.

11. Lie on back, right foot standing, left leg extended...beginning as in

#10, gently slide right hand from floor near right leg, across pelvis to
left side...up along left side of body and over head...lift right hip
away from floor as arm come up over the head, and lower arm to floor
overhead...lifting hip allows you to stretch gently and reach upward with
more comfort as the arm comes to the floor overhead...then lower the hip
and slide the arm on the floor to the side...notice where it is most
comfortable to rotate the arm palm down...repeat it many times...your
hand traces a circle each time...and let it go and rest.

12. Repeat # 10 and #11 on the other side.

13. Both feet standing, arms on floor near sides...draw both hands across
body and upward along opposite sides to the shoulders, as in taking off a
sweater...as hands approach shoulders, lift pelvis away from the floor
(makes it easier to lower arms to the floor overhead)...drop arms to
floor , and extend them overhead...then lower the pelvis and slide the
arms back to the sides...repeat the cycle many times...your weight rolls
up toward your shoulders as you lift your pelvis from the floor and lower
the arms overhead...you rotate the arms palm down as they slide down to
your sides...and let it all go, stretch out your legs and rest...notice
the changes in your arms, hands, shoulders, and back.

14. Repeat the ordinary movements from #1 with spoon, pencil, or

mouse...notice the improvements in your sensitivity and comfort.

1. This lesson involves directing the flow of air into your lungs
separately, so that more of the airflow enters particular areas of the
lungs. Before first working with this lesson it is extremely helpful to
read Chapter 3, Self Image, and, if possible do either, if not both, of
the lessons in that chapter. Although this is a seated lesson, part of
it can be done lying on the floor. The full lesson is written for the
seated version in the expectation that you can lie down flat on the floor
with your feet up (down when at rest), and adapt the first two modules.

Sit forward on your chair with both feet firmly on the ground. Notice
how tall you feel and how easy it is to breathe. Take slow full breaths
for about a minute or so. At least 15 breaths. Notice where the air
flows in easily, and where you sense that you are tight. Also check. and
see, if there are any areas, chest, belly, side, or back that you do not
feel participating in your breathing. Pause, and sit comfortably for a
minute; let your breathing come and go normally without paying any
particular attention to it.

2. Again take slow full breaths only now concentrate on drawing air into
the right lung. Take at least 20 breaths with this intent. As you
continue to concentrate on the right lung, let your awareness move
around. First sense the general movement of the right lung. Then see
where it feels easiest to breathe. Now notice where you sense you have
difficulty. Go back to where it is easy and concentrate on those areas,
letting them expand gently with each breath. After at least twenty
breaths, when you lose interest in following the breath, let go of this
concentration and breathe normally. Pause like this for a minute and
notice the sensation in your two feet.

3. Once more take slow full breaths, this time concentrating on drawing
air into the left lung. Again, take at least 20 breaths as you examine
how your left lung is working. Can you tell that your left lung is
smaller than your right lung? For all but the rare individual who has a
reversed heart and lung (about .01% The Left Handed Gene, Steven Dickman,
Discover, 08, 01, 1996) the right lung has three lobes while the left has
two in order to make room for the heart. And while the upper and lower
left lobes are somewhat bigger than those of the right the middle lobe
makes the right lung noticeably larger. After at least twenty breaths
when you lose interest in following the breath, let go of this
concentration and breathe normally. Pause like this for a minute.

4. Again take slow full breaths. Only this time alternate between
concentrating on the left and right lung every two breaths. Take at
least 20 breaths, five full sequences, as you sense the differences
between your two lungs. Notice the difference in the way your two lungs
fill. Does this difference (if you notice one) change as you continue
alternating? What do you notice in your shoulders as you continue to
breathe in this fashion? Pause.
Breathe normally. Notice how tall you feel now. How easy is it to
breathe now?

This is the end of this module. It is a logical place to stop if you

cannot do the lesson in one sitting. Resume at step 5.

5. Taking slow full breaths concentrate on filling the lower lobe of

your left lung.
Take at least twenty breaths. At first, concentrate on filling this area
as completely as possible. When you sense you have completed the filling
process then begin to notice where the lung expands well and where you
feel blocked. Leave the areas where you feel blocked and concentrate
on increasing the quality of ease where you sense you breathe well. You
may notice that the area of ease expands when you do this, but just allow
this to happen, do not force anything. Pause for a moment and compare
the sense of weight in your feet.

6. Now as you take slow full breaths concentrate on filling the upper
lobe of your left lung. Take at least twenty breaths. At first get a
general sense of how this area fills. Then take at least four breaths to
notice the interaction of the shoulder with the movement of the breath.
How well does your shoulder blade slide over your ribs? Next notice the
movement of the collarbone and sternum (breast bone) while you take
several more breaths. Then focus on the way your lung moves out to the
side. Now notice how the back beneath your shoulder blade moves with the
breath. And then return to your general sense of the upper lobe of your
left lung. May be this has changed, maybe not- just notice. Pause for
a moment. Compare the way your two sides feel. How much weight is on
your left sit bone versus the right? Does one side feel as though it is
shorter than the other?

7. Again take slow full breathes only now concentrate of filling the
lower lobes of your right lung with slow full breathes. Take at least
20 breathes. Can you tell that this lung area is larger than the lower
lobe of the left? Spend a while making this a gentle, soft movement,
noting what moves without force. Then compare the ease with which the
front and back open without trying to change anything. Pause for a
moment and see if your weight sits differently.

8. Return to taking slow full breaths, this time concentrating on the

upper right lung. Take at least twenty breaths. At first get a general
sense of the movement, then concentrate on the relationship between the
right ear and the right shoulder. After a few breaths like this,
notice how well your chest expands as you concentrate on the shoulder and
ear. Then switch your concentration to the expansion of the chest.
After several breaths concentrating on your chest see how your right
shoulder moves. Pause and rest. Did the shift in focus change what
happened where you focused? Did it change the other area? Ponder the
implications of this phenomenon.

Breathe normally. How tall do you feel now? How easy is it to breathe
now?
 This is the end of this module. It is a logical place to stop if you
cannot do the lesson in one sitting. Resume at step 9.

.
9. Sitting forward in the chair take slow full breathes and sense how
the air goes into your back. Take at least twenty breathes like this.
At first sit up straight. Then round your back ( "slouch" a little).
Finally return to sitting straight. Slouching closes down the ribs in
front some and opens them up in back. So you likely found it easier to
sense the air flow in the back when you were in the rounded position.
Both because we face forward and focus our attention there and because of
back's structure most of the lung expansion is forward. So it is easy to
forget about the expansion behind us. This is why we often find it
difficult to concentrate on the backward airflow. Pause and rest a
moment.

10. Again take slow breaths. Only this time alternate between
concentrating on the back of the left and right lung every two breaths.
You may play with rounding and straightening the back as you do this.
Take at least twenty breathes. Can you sense the relationship of the
shoulders to the ribs behind? Pause and rest a moment. What does your
breathing feel like now?

11. Interlace your fingers and place your hands on top of your head. In
this position take slow full breathes. Take at least ten breathes. Note
where this feels freer in your breath and where it is more restricted.
Pause and rest briefly in this position

Again take slow full breaths. Now alternate your awareness from your
left to your right lung every second breath. Take at least twelve
breaths. How much movement do you feel in front? How much behind? Are
you fingers tensed? If so what happens when you relax them? Pause, put
your hands down, and rest.

12. Put your hands on the chair behind you. In this position take slow
full breathes. Take at least ten breathes. How well are you able to
breath like this? Pause and rest briefly in this position.

Again take slow full breaths. Now alternate your awareness from your
left to your right lung every second breath. Take at least twelve
breaths. Pause and rest. What does this position do to the movement in
front and back? What have you noticed about the interplay between
breathing and shoulder tension?

Put your hands back into the position they were initially. Now take
several slow full breaths. Compare what this feels like now to when you
began.

END OF LESSON
Increase sensitivity in your hands and fingers
By feldy
Posted February 7, 2012 In Mindful Movement Tips
0
0

We use our hands a lot during the day, especially our fingers for typing
and texting and as a result more and more people are experiencing tension
and pain in their wrists and fingers. Take a few minutes several times a
day to move away from your computer or smart phone.

In Feldenkrais practice we strive to sense all parts of our body,

sometimes in its entirety and sometimes as components. We explore the
effects of freedom of movement or of strain in one area on the rest of
our self. If we overwork our fingers and hands, the rest of our body, and
mind, will be less able to sense, move, act and think.

Try these small sequences to increase the sensitivity in your hands:

Sit comfortably on a chair, your feet uncrossed and on the floor.

Place your hands gently in your lap. Close your eyes.
Notice your breath and feel how your body responds to each inhalation
and exhalation. Shift your attention from your breathing to your right
hand and then back to your breathing. Then pay attention to your left
hand. What do you notice about each hand and fingers and wrists? What
else comes to your attention?
Keep your eyes closed and gently and loosely interlace your fingers,
feeling the connection between the fingers of both your hands.
Slowly and easily slide your fingers closer together, letting each
finger slide along its companion on the other hand. Feel the side of each
finger. Then draw the hands apart but keep them loosely interlaced.
Repeat sliding your fingers together and apart. What do you notice about
each hand including the fingers, palms, and knuckles?
What does the rest of your body feel like when you move your hands
together and apart?
Slowly release the hands and rest them on your lap for a few moments.
Then interlace them the other way e.g. if your right thumb was
closest to your body switch to have your left thumb closer. Repeat the
slow sliding of the hands together and apart.Increase sensitivity in your
hands and fingers

Freeing Your Fingers

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Whether you spend your days at the computer or suffer from stiffness in
your hands and fingers, the following lesson can help make the movements
of your fingers more fluid and comfortable. You may also notice easier
movement in your wrists, arms and shoulders as well as quicker and easier
typing.

TO BEGIN

This Lesson is to be done sitting.

Sit in an upright position with the soles of your feet on the floor, your
feet and knees about as far apart as your hips are wide, and your ankles
directly under your knees.

Notice the distance between your shoulders and your ears. Is it the same
left and right?

Place the palm of your RIGHT hand on your RIGHT thigh.

DO

1. Beginning with your index finger, gently press the entire finger into
your thigh. Allow the palm of your hand to remain flat as you press.

2. Hold in this position for a slow count of three.

3. Release.

4. Repeat 3 -4 times.

5. Repeat Steps 1 4 with each finger, ending with the thumb.

6. Repeats Steps 1 -4, pressing your entire hand into your thigh.

7. Rest. Notice the difference between your left and right shoulders? Is
there a difference? Which feels lower, easier?

8. Repeat the Lesson with your LEFT hand.

NOTICE

As you press, you might notice how each finger creates a sensation in a
different part of your back and ribcage.
You might also notice how pressing with your finger(s) affects your arm
and shoulder.
Are you breathing? Can you do this in such a way that you can breathe
easily as you press and release?
Wiggle your fingers and notice how they feel after you finish one side
and again after you complete this lesson.
Are there changes in your shoulders and arms as well?
Awareness Exercises
Feldenkrais Exercise Class

Feldenkrais Exercise Class

Lessons can be designed for the musician and his/her precise needs. Areas
of interest for a flautist often encompass the breath and diaphragm, use
of the back, neck, arms and hands, balance over the feet, and easy
turning. Qualities that are also enhanced in every lesson include ease
and comfort, tone (muscle tone and musical tone), sensory awareness, and
reduction of unnecessary effort.

Lessons can either be in the form of an individual lesson or in a class.

During an individual lesson the practitioner senses what is occurring in
a musicians subjective somatic experience and introduces new
possibilities. During a class participants are verbally led through a
series of uncommon movement sequences, usually done lying down or
sitting. Classes are process orientated and are designed to explore
awareness of the body and its natural ability to find comfort, ease and
elegance.

Example Lesson

This is a movement exploration which illustrates some of the concepts

described. You will need a firm chair or bench where your feet can be on
the floor. You can use an imaginary flute, or actually use your flute for
the movement parts.

1) Sit on a chair with your eyes closed. How do you balance a little
forward or backward or perhaps more on one hip joint?
Hold your flute in the air close to your lips. As you continue the
movement to the lips, do you (in the minute beginnings of the action)
bring the flute to your lips or do you bring your lips to the flute? Of
course you do both gestures at the same time, but one initiates a moment
before the other. You can only sense this if you do it in slow motion.
How does it feel in your back, fingers, tongue, arms, neck, and your
breath?

1a) Lie on your back and rest.

2a) Return to sit on a chair. Take the flute to the opposite side (your
left) and begin the same awareness exercise (as above), however this time
do the opposite of what you did on your habitual side (e.g. if you
brought your lips to the flute, bring the flute to your lips). This may
feel very unnatural. Do the very beginnings of this movement for 5
repetitions. Go slowly and rest in between each movement. Can you reduce
the amount of effort you are using by half? Continue to do 15 20
repetitions until it becomes more natural. Observe how it feels in your
back, fingers, tongue, the back of your neck and breath. Can you do this
with breathing that is effortless?

2b) Return to doing the original pattern of either bringing your lips to
the flute or the flute to your lips (on this non habitual side). Observe
how it feels in your back, fingers, tongue, neck and breath. Where is
there tension? How is this different from the other and from the habitual
side? Lie on your back and rest.

3) Return to sit on a chair. Go back to holding the flute on the

traditional side and return to step 1. What do you do now? Is it
different from the beginning? Is the movement of the flute to the lips
and the lips to the flute more simultaneous? Go slowly enough so that you
do not hold your breath; much in the same mode as nodding off to sleep.
Do 10 repetitions. Does it take less effort in the head and neck? Do you
have a sense of how the torso can do some of the work and make it easier
(reduce tension) for the head and arms and the breath? How is your
balance while sitting different from the beginning?