Feldenkrais??

[mamakaren]

Hi everyone,

We are sort of in limbo right now, waiting for Martha's next x-ray to see if her scoliosis has progressed or not. It has been almost 3 months since it was first detected and at least to my eye she does not look any different. I know that means next to nothing, however.

My question is: has anyone heard of or tried Feldenkrais therapy? I work with a woman who is a Feldenkrais practitioner and she has offered to do "movement therapy" with Martha. I have looked at the Feldenkrais websites and I cannot really get a handle on what exactly Feldenkrais is. They do claim to help scoliosis, however I'm now sure how. It sounds harmless enough but I was wondering if any one else knows anything about Feldenkrais and scoliosis or what Feldenkrais actually is.

Thanks,

Karen

[jfkimberly]

It sounds like a form of yoga-type stretching to me. Depending on Martha's age and ability to tell you when something hurts, it doesn't sound harmful to me. Increased flexibility and muscle strength would surely be good for anybody.

As for relieving her scoliosis, the method probably couldn't have much of an affect on structural scoliosis (as seen in congenital cases), but perhaps it could offer some benefit in nonstructural cases. It seems theoretically similar to Sealy augmenting Deirdre's casting therapy with massage in hopes loosening muscles on the convex side of her curve to help her straighten out--and Deirdre seems to be our resident success story.