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THE FELDENKRAIS IOURNAL NO. 6
WTNTER 1991
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The Feldenkrais Iournai is published fwice yearly by the Feldenkrais Guilcl@
for its members. lnquiries regarding this pubiication should be directed to:
The Feldenkrais Guild@, P.O. Boxr3e85, Overland park, Kansas 662tz32BE
USA. Phone 9r3-492-0955. Material for publication can be sent directly to the
editor, Elizabeth Beringer, at: 715 Cornell Ave., Albany, CA 947o6 USA
Additional copies of this Iournal are available through the Guild office lor $6
to Guild members and $ro to non-members, (includes postage and handling)
Bulk rate fees are available on request.
The theme for the Spring rggr issue of the Journal is theoretical models. The
deadline for submissions to that issue is already past. if you have an article
to submit to the Spring rggr issue please contact Larry Goldfarb immediately.
The fall rggr Journal wili have a general theme, and the deadline for submitting
articies is May r.
Subscriptions to rhe lournal are no\r availabie. These are designed for people
lr,ho are not currentlv receir.ing the Jourr.ral through their Guild. A thr-ee
lournal sr-rbscription is sz5 for \. -herican residents and s35 for overseas
subscriptions. -{ frr-e issue subscription is s-lo s5o respectiveh'. please send
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Feldenkrais@, The Feldenkrais Guild@, The Feldenkrais Method@,
Functional Integration@, and Awareness Through Movement@, are
registered servicemarks of the Feidenkrais Guild@.
Editor: Elizabeth Beringer
Co-Editor: Larry Goldfarb
Editorial Board: Jack Heggie, Paul Rubin, Arl1,n Zones
Design: Margery Cantor
Copy editing and prooflng: Maura Daiy, Iim Hauer, Diana Ross
Back Issues:
#r
Journal General Issue (xerox copy)
#z
Iournal Martial Arts
#3
Iournal Special Interest Groups
#4
Iournal Emotions
#5
Journal TheArts
Ail back issues are available through the Feldenkrais Guild office.
Price to Guild members is s6, non-mernbers is sro per copy.
I
The Feldenkrais Iournal
t
number 6
Thble of Contents
3 A Letter from the Editor
5 Letters to the Editor
6
In Memory of Thomas Hanna Ph.D., 1928-1990:
The Man and his Stepping Stones Michael foyce
I "But do you thinkyou can help me?" Alan Questel
fB The Tailcoat Chloe Scott
14 life
Tourette's Sl.ndrome; in the midst of a Linda Delman
fB Take
The Chances I Ianet Tobacman
20 ANon-Specific Treatment Moshe Feldenkrais
26 MyLeftHip... GabyYaron
28 A Story of Recovery in Two Voices Elizabeth Beringer & Marguret Bartusek
35 Interviewwith Benjamin Zemach David Zemach-Bersin
38 Paradoxes RuthAlon
39 Pleasure FrankWildman
4l A Letter from Ioan Nancy Denenberg
43 Emily's new Crutches Larry Goldfarb
49 Bringing Moshe to the Public at Large:
Method
Two new books using exercises based on the Feldenkrais Carl Ginsburg
52 Bringing Feldenkrais into the Living of your Life:
A review of Ruth Alon's new book Mindful Spontaneity Carl Ginsburg
54 Contributors
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ll li Guild. Al1 rights revert to the authors
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WTNTER r99r THE FELDENKRAIS ]oURNAI No. 6
Dear Colleagues,
Welcome to the sixth issue of the Feldenkrais Iournal. I am particularly
pleasedwith this issue. The subject is "stories," andwe havebeen able to
include awide sampling of 'tales from the trade:'Chloe submitted a short
and humorous anecdote from her practice; Larry did a cybernetic analysis
of a Feldenkrais'conversation;' Linda Delman submitted drawings with
her piece; and Nancy Denenberg and I included the student's voice in our
stories. Some of the studies cover a very short period, such as Frank
Wildman's, where he rvrites about one demonstration lesson, or Gaby's,
about one workshop. Other stories go over a number of years including
the studyof Moshe's that NlarkReese submittedwhich covers almost aten
year period. I am very happy with the variety and I hope you find the tales
as fasinating to read as did those of us who put the Iournal together.
I decided not to ask for'case studies'because I suspected itwould limit
the type of material people would feel comfortable submitting. At the
same time, I had in mind the writings ofA.R. Luria and Oliver Sacks and
their efforts to redefine and revive, albeit in a medical context, the art of
writing a case studl', and their criticisms of this form as it has come to be
used in the medical u.orld. The following is a quote from Oliver Sacks'
bestselling book of neurological'case studies,' The Man Who Mistook Hts
Wtfe for a Hat:
"Studies, yes; rvhv stories, or cases? Hippocrates introduced the his-
torical conception of disease,.... Hippocratesthus introduced the case
history, a description, or depiction, of the natural history of disease-
precisely expressed by the oldword'pathography.' Such histories are
a form of natural history-but they tell us nothing about the individual
andhis history; theyconveynothingoftheperson, andtheexperience
ofthe person as he faces, and struggles to survive his disease. There is
no'subject' in a narrow case history; modern case histories allude to
the subject in a cursoryphrase ('atrisomic albino female of zr'),which
couldas eas -ilyapplyto arat as ahumanbeing. To restorethehuman
subject atthe centre-the suffering, afflicted, fighting, humansubject
-we must deepen a case study to a narrative or tale: only then do we
have a'who' as rvell as a'what', a real person, a patient, in relation to
disease-in relation to the physical."
Sacks goes on to sayhowthe art ofwriting "richlyhuman clinical tales"
was well-practiced at the end of the nineteenth century and has declined
since then "with the advent of an impersonal neurological science." As
Feldenkrais teachers we are not writing from a medical perspective,
however I thinkit is interesting to note that the kind of writingwe are
doing here has a tradition and a history, and that there are parallel de-
bates going on in other fields about describing clinical experience.
Perhaps the biggest issue we have to contend with when we write about
our work is the gap between our non-verbal experience and the act of
expressing that experience in language. Everyone who speaks or writes
about the work has to confront this dilemma in some fashion. We have
very few examples of Moshe writing about his daily practi ce. In The Case of
3
I
THE FELDENKRAIS ]OURNAL NO. 6 WTNTER r99r
Nora,which is to mymind in manyways the most important of Moshe's
books, Moshe actually spends very little time describing the hands-on
workhe does with Nora. Most of the bookis spent talking about Moshe's
thinking regarding the case and describing experiments u.ith her writing
or perception. I would venture to say that these kinds of experiments are
easier to describe than the complex, sensory give and take that goes on
moment to moment in most functional integration lessons. There are
examples of this kind of description in The Case of Nora, such as on page
36 when he describes rolling her head, but they are few and far betrveen.
The act of describingwhatwe do in functional integration is, I feel, a
domain we are just beginning to enter as a profession. We do not have
many examples to follow, inside our profession, nor can we really borrorv
the forms from other disciplines, although I'm sure we can learn from
them. In manyways I feel that our hands-onworkis best described in a
poetic language. This feeling parallels what Oliver Sacks talks about: horr
to tell a story so that the person stays at the center and so that the n ords do
justice to our interactions and silent experience. The articles in this
Iournal, each in their own way, address these questions and invite us
further into a conversation in which we can all participate.
The next issue, Spring rg9r, will be organized by Larry Goldfarb who has
become a co-editor of the fournal. The subject is theoretical models. If
you are interested in submitting something please contact him immedi-
ately-the deadline is already past. As always, articles on any subject will
be considered. The following issue, Fall rggr, will be a general issue. I am
particularly interested in receiving more cases along with articles on any
other subject!The deadline for thatissue is Mayr, rg9r. Nextyearwill be
the finst year that we publish two issues!
I would like to thank Larry Goldfarb, Iack Heggie, Paul Rubin and Arllrr
Zones for their invaluable help in putting this issue together.
Sincerelv,
il/ry
Elizabeth Beringer
Editor
4
WTNTER r99r TIIE FELDENKRAIS IoURNAI No. 6
Dear Elizabeth,
I am impressed byyour thought provoking idea regarding trainings
being "private" experiences (your editor's letter in Journai No. S-The
Arts). During our training in the summer of rg75 I arranged a meeting
after class one day to discuss "feelings." I was quite inexperienced at /iL
Lettersto the editor
facilitating groups however and we did not meet again. In retrospect,
I wanted to discuss with other students my "experience" during the
training. No one else seemed as interested as I, and perhaps thev had
other avenues of sharing. I think written and spoken essays and discus-
sions need to be part of all trainings and I'm delighted that you wrote
on this idea!
The Feldenkrais Iournal is an excellent and exciting method of com-
munication. I can read how Feldenkrais teachers are developing and
evolving. \.Vtren Moshe told us to put our own fingerprints on the work,
I think this is what he meant: take the basic method and science and use
it to optimize your life.
Norma Leistiko
Santa Rosa, California
P.S. Jack Heggie's X-Ray fingers reall-v TOUCHED an important pointl
4t
Dear Elizabeth
I really appreciated vour cornment about peopie goir-rg througl-r prir-ate
journeys r,vhile in the training situation. Sometinres it feels like n-e're ali
parallel proccessing in hermeticalll, sealed compartments. Iluch has
happened to me in relation to the face off benveen mv present \r,ork and
Feldenkrais. Especially the issue of context in manv forms has emerged
and I promise that I will write something about it. We really all should
become more of a context for each other I agree, so I guess I'11 try to
begin somehow.
The magazine was very nicely produced and I read it cover to cover for
the first time.
Eveline Pos
Toronto, Canada
i&
Dear Elizabeth,
Thank you so much for the Journal. It is a forum I both enjoy and trust -
a haven from the politics, egos and conflicts that often seem to arise in
the Feldenkrais community.
It is like one of those deep breaths that escape when some moventent
feels right and elegant. The Iournal reflects the curiosity and pleasure
that is the joy of our work. There are surprises. It's good. There are
insights. It's good. There is learning. It's good. Thanks.
ShelleyDuke,
Toronto, Canada
I
THE FELDENKRAIS IOURNAL NO. 6 \1-r\TER l99l
In
Memory
of
Thomas HAnna, Ph.D.,
tgzS-tggo:
Thomas Hanna had a personal philosophy of life: Enjoy all the little
The man, things in life, create \vavs to make your daily tasks pleasing; learn to
and love life moment bv moment. He lived that philosophywith elegant
simplicitv.
his stepping stones Her,r,asgood atit. Herras aglou,withthe joyandloveof living. It
radiated to a1l those around him. Thomas Hanna explored livingr,r'ith
by enthusiasm, and a practiced inteliigence. His explorations of life lvere
Michael loyce M.S., D.C. both professional and personal. He u,as an intellectual, an athlete, a
u-riter, a philosopher, a teacher, entrepreneur, gourmet cook, musi-
cian, and -+9er fan.
He generouslr-shared the lruit of his personal explorations and crea-
tivitr . He entertained in his kitchen for hours, preparing a gourmet
meal u hile alternatir-rg philosophical discussionswith culinary criti -
ques on the taste of different chiles, or making quince preserves.
\lusic \vas a source of r-itaiitr- in his life each day, both listening to
others and creating it himseif in song and p1a-vinghis guitar. He drew
people in n ith his music; spontaneous 1r'rics to and about a child, songs
that touched the emotions, music vou became apartofmaking. With
Tomyou engaged music andyou engaged life.
Tom had an appreciation and reverence lor movement of the body
and for the joy and life-giving qualities he erperienced. After earning
his Ph.D. in the Philosophy of Religion at the University of Chicago, his
continued personal search led to yoga. \\-hi1e Chairman of the Philoso-
phy Department at the University of Florida, he also taught yoga
classes. These classes became so popular the Unir,ersity gave him the
football playing field to accommodate the hur-rdreds of participants.
He began each daywith movement on the floor olhis Iiving room.
This was central to his creative process, rvl-rich included movement,
insight, reflection, research, writing and speaking.
He was best known among Feldenkrais practitioners as a rvriter and
the publish er of Somatlcsmagazine, but he also plar ed a lead role in the
emergence of Moshe Feldenkrais and his Israeli assistants into public
vier,v in the United States. As president of the Hun-ranistic Psr-chologr-
Institute he organized and sponsored the first formal Feldenkrais
training program in the U.S., and recruited manr- of the o rigir-rai fiftv-
sixAmerican practitioners, including himseil.
A truiy gentle and sensitive man of great intellect and integrity, a man
of dignitywithoutpresumption, Tom Hanna u-as a genius as a commu-
nicator. Tom was also intensely curious.
It was his great curiosity that formed the roots of his proliflc writing,
and the fertile soil of the common ground of friendships extending
around the globe with practitioners, psychologists, physicians, aca-
demics, performers, and lay people. He maintained ongoing dialogues,
seeking and sharing information for years.
Through dialogue, research ofprofessional literature, review of
thorough client records, and insight into his personal and practical
experience, Tom developed an extraordinary understanding of
Feldenkrais'work and the underlying mechanisms unique to its effec-
tiveness. This became his primary field of study: the art and science of
6
WTNTER r99r THE FEI,DENI(RAIS IOURNAL NO. 6
the interpellation process of awareness, biological function, and
environment. He termed this the fleld of "somatics," stemmingfrom
the Greekword "soma," meaning the exper- ience of the livingbodl,
within itself, i.e. the first person, self sensing, self aware perceptive
experience of living beings rvho can change themselves, as experienced
fromthe inside.
This is aviewdifferent from the third person, physiologicalvien'
institutionalized in the primary health care and education professions
of our society. Tom Hanna consideredthis thirdpersonviewto be
deceptive, incomplete, and to ignore a fundamental truth about human
beings. ForTom, medicine's abilityto help humanbeings was insuffic-
ient because its view of the human being is insufficient. It was his belief
that the somatic viert point must be added to the "scientiflc" objective
bodilyviewpoint if \l,e are to understand human beings, andwhat
happens to us over the course of our lives.
By defining the fleld of so matics, and clearly stating its differnce from
third person-based professions, Tom delineatedthe scope of endeavor
of somatic professions. His lifer,r,ork produced a number of stepping
stones to the establishment of this profession.
During the earlv rgTos tl-rrough to his death on ]uly 29, rggo, Thomas
Hanna helped launch the flrst,\n-rerican Professional Feldenkrais
Training, served on the founding board of the Feldenkrais Guild, and
established Sornatics magazine, amajorr-oice inthe fleld. He made
manymajor contributions to our bodr"of kr-ron-ledge. He u-as a master of
his art, and eminentlr-successful in his practice. He rras a potr-erful force
for the practicai effectiveness, integritr-, progress, recognition and
ascent of the somatic profession.
His book Somatics.(Addison-Wesler', igBB) detailed his practical
techniques and the associated neurological functions, and reflected
both a summary of his view of the somatic fleld and his approach to the
professional training of thirty eight students during the last months of
his life.
Tom Hanna's contribution to humanitywill continue through the
hearts, minds, and hands of others. We mournthe loss of aflne manwho
gave so vitally to the creation of a somatic profession, and we are grateful
for his stepping stones that remain.
Thomas Hanna Memorial Scholarship Fund
Sonoma State UniversityAcademic Foundation
Sonoma State Universitv
Sonoma, CA gs+26
7
THE FELDENKRAIS JOURNAT NO. 6 \1-TNTER 1991
"BUT
Shortly after I had given a lecture about the Feldenkrais Method a
DO YOU young woman asked me to speak to her mother. Freda R. was seated,
THINK hiding her right hand, She had suffered a stroke in rgB6. She wanted to
knou, if I could help her. We talked about learning, what happens
YOU u,hen someone has a stroke, and what might be expected from the kind
of u'ork I do. No matterwhat I said she asked again and again, "But do
CAN
r,ou think you can help me?"
HELP ME?" In all honesty, I was not that interested in r,r,,orking rvith Freda. She
irritated me. She didn't listen to me and everything she said came out
by as a rvhine. I mention this only because lt hen I did begin to u ork rr ith
Alan S. Questel her, I found in her someone who I could never have irnagined beneath
that exterior. She was an intelligent, sensitir.e indir-idua1 r,t ith a desire
to learn and a deep sense of integrity. It has been a great lessorl to me
about what is possible, and what I can learn about mv own judgment.
Freda R. was a 56 year old, divorced mother ol four neariy gro\vn
daughters. She lost the use of her right hand after her stoke, could not
bear weight on her right leg, and had rvhat she referred to as almost no
sensation on the right side of her mourh. I began r,vorking r,vith her in
March rg88, and saw her twice a rveek for about eight months a 1,s21,
until April r99o.
Freda's entire right side n as relatir-e1r lifeless. Her ribs barelv mor-ed
and she had no sense of lr,here her pelr-is u'as. Her arm was pulled tight
up against her torso, her hand \\-as spasticaliy contracted and could
only be pried oper-r n'ith great effort. \\Ihenever she was sat, she uncolr-
sciousl\. tried to pu1l her fingers open u.ith the other hand. She onlr'
u,anted to knorr'"So rvhat's going to be rtith this hand?" Her self-in-rage
rer-oh-ed almost entirelr'around "this hand" and what it couldn't do.
\\-1-ren Freda rr alked, u-ith t1-re help of a cane, she dragged her right leg.
She cor-r1dn't fler her foot, u-hich she kept in a plastic brace, and rvas
unable to straigl-rten her knee. To her, the whole leg felt like a piece of
dead n'ood. She had diftculty maintaining her balance and fell ser erarl
times a month.
Initiallr- I introduced some rotation in Freda's torso. I rvorked rr-itl-i
her on her sides, orienting her to the movements in her ribs and slorvir
extending her attention to what was happening in her shoulders and
pelvis. After each lesson she felt small changes: her Ieg felt more alir-e
rvith nerr,, although often unidentiflable sensations. No rnatter rr hat 1
did u,ith Freda, she r,rranted to know when her hand rvould u-ork again.
Although her concern was understandable, it minimized nerv develop -
ments in her abilities. I felt that working with her hand u,ould not be
effective until her shoulder began to free up a bit. Out of frr-istratior-r
with her preoccupation with her hand, I flnally spent almost an entire
lesson on Freda's hand. I can't say there was arl)' impror-ement. \\-hen
she stood up and started walking around she said "N,Iv arm feels better,
and it's funny, my leg is different too, but what's going to be rvith mr,
mouth?"
B
