Somatic Movement Therapies

A Form of Gentle Movements for Improved Health and Wellbeing

Sep 14, 2008

These Movement Therapies help children and adults improve the way their bodies work and move incorporating education and touch by the practitioner or teacher.

Multiple modalities fall into the description of Somatic Movement Education and Therapy. Some of the modalities are practiced alone, others are combined with different forms of Complementary and Alternative Medicines (CAM).

Alexander Technique

The Alexander Technique falls into the category of education. The client is fully clothed and allows the instructor to gently critique his posture – from the way he sits, stands, lies down, and performs basic tasks. This therapy is very popular amongst musicians, actors and other performers who have repetitive movements during their performance. For example, a singer could benefit from lessons in the Alexander Technique to improve her performance by taking away strain and using less energy on stage.

For more information on the Alexander Technique contact the main office of the Alexander Technique International (ATI) at 1692 Massachusetts Avenue, 3rd Floor, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.

BodyTalk

One of the newer forms of Somatic Education and Therapies, BodyTalk was developed in the 1990s by a chiropractor and acupuncturist, Dr. John Veltheim. BodyTalk incorporates tapping, breathing techniques and what is called ‘focusing,’ in a session. Practitioners may be trained in other Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) modalities and incorporate BodyTalk techniques into other sessions or use BodyTalk alone.

For more information on BodyTalk contact the International BodyTalk Association (IBA) at 2750 Stickney Point Road, Suite 203, Sarasota, Florida 34231, USA.

Feldenkrais Method

Similar in theory to the Alexander Technique, The Feldenkrais Method also is based on education, or reeducation on movement. The founder, Russian born Moshe Feldenkrais, believed that all of the movements practiced by adults were learned in the first years of life. He believed that these movements only account for five percent of all possible movements. Feldenkrais teachers undergo a rigorous seven to eight hundred hours of training prior to gaining certification in this modality.

Rolfing® Structural Integration

A combination of bodywork and movement education, Rolfing® uses three key ingredients in a session:

Typically Rolfing® will take a ten series visit, divided into three units to address the connective tissue, the core and the integration. Rolfing® has inspired other forms of Structural Integration, such as Hellerwork®.

For more information on Rolfing® and other forms of Structural Integration contact the International Association of Structural Integrators at P.O. Box 8664, Missoula, Montana, 59807 USA or by phone at 877-843-4274.

Trager Approach

In this modality the practitioner will enter a meditative state, referred to as the “hook up,” where the practitioner will act as a channel for the client. The Trager Approach uses more contact between the client and practitioner than some of the other Somatic Movement modalities, such as the Alexander Technique. It is not a massage though, the practitioner is merely there to help the client free up areas of tension so that her body can be more flexible, move freely and feel light.

For more information on the Trager Approach contact the Trager International office at P.O. Box 3246, Courtenay, British Columbia, Canada V9N 5N4 or call 250-337-5556.

The copyright of the article Somatic Movement Therapies in Massage Techniques is owned by Amy Kreydin. Permission to republish Somatic Movement Therapies in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.