Move more easily through your world! Access your natural coordination, build confidence, and connect the dots between thought and action using the ideas of Integrative Alexander Technique.
Hey Vertebrate!
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Hi Reader! How's your November going so far? Here in the PNW, the time change feels dramatic. Dark came early last night. One of our kittens, Maurice, is all-black except for one white whisker. He’s hard to photograph. He absorbs light very, very well. When we’re looking for him, we have to remember to scan for nothing. It’s counter-intuitive to look for an absence. When clients first start working with me, “nothing” can play a pretty big role. Let’s say they’ve been holding tension by scrunching up their shoulders. If they’ve been using this inefficient movement pattern for a long time, their system might not be broadcasting a signal from that area. What do they notice? Nothing. ¯\(ツ)/¯ I imagine their system giving its own shrug, saying, well, if you insist on keeping that up, I’ll save on signal reporting resources this year. Here’s the thing, though. The savings don’t last. An inefficient movement pattern in one area takes its toll elsewhere. A rogue pain, an inability to do something you want to do, fuzzy thinking – all can be related to a holding pattern somewhere in the body. In last month's newsletter, I asked, what’s working well? This month, my data-gathering question is: Where is there nothing? Where do you not notice? Invite movement there and see what happens. And… No news can also be good news. As happened for a client just last week, when things are going really well, when there’s no friction in the system, when you're moving in harmony with your own personal design, your system might also have nothing to report. Freedom can feel like nothing at all. Read on for final Lab dates of the year, a community shoutout, and the latest blog, where I explore navigating role shifts easily. Here for you, Crispin PS - What questions do you have about Integrative Alexander Technique? I’d love to answer you directly, and to use your question to shape future blog posts. Hit reply and ask away!
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Hey Vertebrate!
Move more easily through your world! Access your natural coordination, build confidence, and connect the dots between thought and action using the ideas of Integrative Alexander Technique.
Hi Reader! In another installment of “Crispin stretches a metaphor to describe Integrative Alexander Technique”... Are you familiar with the economics terms “leading and lagging indicators”? Leading indicators are things like “building permits filed.” This is something a builder can do on purpose that sets up what’s going to happen next. Buildings will get built. Lagging indicators are things like “new construction sold.” This is a result the builder would like to have happen but can’t...
Hi Reader! Do you like to be told what to do? Many of my clients are independent, creative, think-outside-the-box kinds of people. Not a crowd that loves being bossed around. My own independent disposition is why Integrative Alexander Technique (IAT) really clicked when it showed up in my life in the early 90s. First off, it was something I could learn to use for myself, so I wasn't dependent on my (incredible, amazing, kind, wise) teacher. I was able to avoid injury and stay pretty healthy,...
Hi Reader! Do you know the phrase, “People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones?” As a child, this was very serious instruction. My family lived in a house with large windows. On some level I knew the phrase included a teaching metaphor, but also, with a child's understanding, I thought the lesson was meant especially for us. We had to be very polite or our windows would break. It can be easy to take metaphors literally, because that's how metaphors work. This = that. Sometimes,...