Feldenkrais Alexandria and Arlington, Moshe Feldenkrais Virginia relief from pain, stress ATM


Maureen McHugh, Feldenkrais Practitioner Wellness in Motion Consulting Services, LLC Group Classes and Individual Sessions in the Feldenkrais Method of Somatic Education Alexandria and Arlington, Virginia USA 703-751-2111	To make an online appointment for an Individual Session, please click on this button:

Hi, my name is Maureen McHugh. I am a Feldenkrais Practitioner and teach the Feldenkrais Method. Thank you for visiting my site.

Are you looking for help with something that is going on in your body? For instance, do you have pain? Or, do you have a feeling of restriction in what you like to do? Or what you have to do? This is the problem side of life.

Then there is also the opportunity side. Are you looking to develop in a certain way? A new dimension somehow?

“Yes” means that what follows will most likely be useful and interesting to you.

Spring 2013
Group Classes	Essay
This Spring I am offering 3 group classes per week. Two are on Tuesday evening and one on Thursday in the early afternoon. The Tuesday evening classes are at 5:10 and 7:20; the Thursday at 1 pm. We begin on Tuesday, April 16 and Thursday, April 18. In the week before these classes begin, I offer an Intro class. The Intro class is April 9 at 7:20 pm. These are all through Arlington Parks & Recreation. Besides providing the space, they also handle registration. Phone registration: 703 228 4747 Online registration: ArlCo Online Registration Please follow this link for full schedule details: Spring 2013 Group Class Schedule	How does the Feldenkrais Method work? Many people get very definite benefits. And yet there is no stretching, strengthening or aerobic conditioning. We work instead by expanding the sense of self: making it broader and more complete. "Regaining comfort and ease through a more complete experience of self"

How to participate

You can take Individual Sessions or Group Classes, or both.
If you cannot travel, I may be able to come to you.

Away dates

The office is closed for Spring Break on Friday and Saturday, March 29 and 30. I look forward to being back at work on Tuesday, April 2.

Individual Sessions
Location	What happens	Making an appointment
Individual Sessions take place in my office in the Landmark section of Alexandria.	You remain dressed while I guide you through touch and verbal instruction.	To make an appointment, you can book online, telephone or send me an email.
		You can see my openings and book online
		by clicking on this button:
		or by following this link: maureen-mchugh-feldenkrais-practitioner.genbook.com
Maureen McHugh, GCFP Landmark Tower 101 S. Whiting Street #306 Alexandria, VA 22304	We may work on my table, on a chair, on a mat on the floor, or at my ballet barre. We can also Skype: maureen.mchugh173 Individual sessions last 50 minutes and cost $110. If you wish to book a longer session, I also offer 75 minutes for $165.	Or you can telephone: 703 751 2111 or Send me an email

Group Classes
Location and Registration		What happens
Group Classes take place in south Arlington at the Barcroft Sport & Fitness Center. You register through Arlington County.		You will explore interesting movements while, most commonly, lying on the floor. Part of the time, though, you will work in other positions, such as standing, sitting, kneeling or walking. Each class lasts an hour. The process is gentle, explorative and self-reflective -- "What's it like in this moment to do this?"

Home Health
Home Health. If you are unable to travel and live within a half hour's drive of Alexandria, VA and we can match schedules, I will come to you. For a 50 minute session, I charge twice the rate of an in-office Individual Session, $220.

Who can benefit?
Who can benefit	Everybody. People in pain. People who want to explore something new. People who want to avoid surgery. People who want to improve their quality of life. People who want to have more self-confidence. Athletes. Musicians. Artists. Runners. Walkers. Singers. Pianists. Violin players.
What conditions can it help with?	Pain and limitations of all types. Back pain, neck pain, wrist and hand pain, knee pain, ankle and foot pain; all the pains in the muscles and joints. Poor posture. Lack of balance. Tendency to Fall. Scoliosis. Needing to become more flexible. Thoracic outlet syndrome, brachial plexus syndrome, carpal tunnel syndrome, repetitive stress injury, herniated disk. Spinal cord injury, ankylosing spondylitis, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, recovery from stroke, Cerebral Palsy
It helps improve	Awareness of self. Coordination. Relaxation. Efficiency of movement. Ease of movement. Balance. Breathing. Posture. Flexibility. Strength.
It helps develop	Mind-body connection. Adaptability of mind and body. Biological optimism.
For some examples	Success Stories Who Can Benefit Case Studies. My reviews on Google Maps (follow link and then type my name)

About the Feldenkrais Method
What is the Feldenkrais Method?	The Feldenkrais Method is a way for you to explore, in depth, how you move. It has two forms, individual and group. The overall aim is very broad: to help you increase your awareness of yourself, and especially of how you move, so that you can accomplish the goals that are important to you. The teaching follows several themes. You explore coordination of movement. You learn more about anatomy. You review some concepts of physics. You explore what it means to relax. And, on a wider level, which can get really interesting, you learn more about you -- about how you express yourself through your physicality.
For whom is the Feldenkrais Method good?	The Feldenkrais Method is good for everyone. But if you are like most people who seek it out, three things are true: 1) You are in pain, or feel restrictions in movement. 2) You have already tried more familiar approaches, and you have received some benefit, but not all the benefit that you believe is possible. 3) You are willing to trying something new.

Food for thought
Here are two quotes from Moshe Feldenkrais, the founder of the Feldenkrais Method. In case you are wondering how to pronounce his last name, it rhymes with "rice".
"In poor posture the muscles are doing a part of the job of the bones."
"An action becomes easy to perform and the movement becomes light when the huge muscles of the center of the body do the bulk of the work and the limbs only direct the bones to the destination of the effort."
Moshe Feldenkrais. Awareness through Movement. Page 68, page 91.

Wellness in Motion

Feeling well when you move and naturally expressing the vitality of your life in movement.

Some readings
1 May 2013	A reporter for the JewishJournal.com reports on his first, very positive experience with a Feldenkrais group class. "Week of Wisdom, Wellness"
Spring 2013 Essay	"Regaining comfort and ease through a more complete experience of self"
Winter 2013 Essay	"The Luxury of Looking Inward"
Fall 2012 Essay	"What happens -- when you knock a spoon off the counter? It's a question of dexterity."
Spring 2012 Essay	"Where the spine can surrender"
Winter 2012 Essay	"Raising your arm"
Fall 2011 Essay	"Can Feldenkrais help me with my balance?"

One of my stories has been published.	11/1/2010. I am happy to report that one of my essays was selected to be included in the Fall 2010 issue of SenseAbility, the quarterly newsletter of our national organization. Here it is as a separate article on our national web site: "Making Space for the Unfamiliar" And here is the whole issue: SenseAbility Fall 2010
Marek Wyszynski	One of my colleagues, Marek Wyszynski, PT, GCFP, has written a paper that has just been published in The Pain Practitioner, the quarterly magazine of the American Academy of Pain Management, based in California. "The Feldenkrais Method for People with Chronic Pain" is a brief, clear, warm-hearted overview of the Feldenkrais Method as applied to relieving pain. You will find it through the above link on pages 56 - 61. Congratulations, Marek.
	One of my colleagues in New Zealand, Cindy Allison, has written a 32 page booklet about how the Feldenkrais Method is helping people recover from Spinal Cord Injury (SCI). Her booklet is clear, thorough and inspiring. Improving Sensory Motor Function after a Spinal Cord Injury
Paper on balance	In July 2009 I wrote a paper on the Mechanics of balance. In seven pages, with many pictures, I show how I look at movement and balance. The fundamental idea is that there are three axes of rotation. We move within these circles. In any gesture, to be in balance the circles have to counterbalance each other.
	The web site of Andrew Weil, MD has a nice overview article on Feldenkrais: Weil on Feldenkrais

How the Feldenkrais Method is new

1) Recently created. It was created in the past century by Moshe Feldenkrais. He lived from 1904 - 1984 and was a pioneer in thought, action and education. (His last name rhymes with "rice".)

2) Only slowly becoming known. The Method is hard to explain and, so, does not lend itself well to advertising. Instead, it grows by word of mouth.

3) Training, rather than treatment. It is not a treatment method, where the professional is active and the client passive, but a training method, where the responsibility for progress is shared.

4) A systems view. It takes a whole-person, systems-level approach. In particular, it is based on a deep understanding of how the body parts coordinate to create a whole action.

5) A search for progressive improvement. Progress comes about by progressively refining how you move.

6) A vista that always enlarges. For many people, participation in the Method is a way to first recover from discomfort and then progress to higher levels of functioning.

7) The big power is awareness. The Method demonstrates that cultivating awareness is the high road to growth.

About Moshe Feldenkrais
The Feldenkrais Method^® has strong scientific roots. Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais, originator of the work, studied human movement and development using his knowledge in mechanical and electrical engineering. He received his doctorate in physics. It was a severe knee injury that inspired him to understand more about human movement and neurophysiology. He studied other disciplines: biology, anthropology, cybernetics, systems and learning theory to develop his understanding of the relationship between body and mind. In addition to his involvement with science he was a master in Judo. He was a passionate human being who used all that he knew to develop a unique way of knowing and working with people. Finally, he talked about his work as a way for people to actualize their potential, put their intentions into action and live their dreams. Moshe Feldenkrais lived from 1904-1984 and made an inspiring contribution to the study of human consciousness.
	"Without learning to know ourselves as intimately as we possibly can, we limit our choice. Life is not very sweet without freedom of choice." -Moshe Feldenkrais