Guild Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner(R) and Anat Baniel Method for Children Practioner(sm)

Special Needs Kids

Free children's clinic 3X a year,

Next clinic 9-22-07, 9am to 5pm.

freechildrensclinic.org

Anat Baniel Method for Vitality and Anti-Aging(sm)

See my web page: josiedavenport.com for Gestalt and Bodywork.

Or visit the Florida School of Massage where I work:
floridaschoolofmassage.com

Josie Davenport, LMT LCSW

MA3599 SW5130

Background:

Josie Davenport, LMT LCSW

MA3599 SW5130

Two-year degree in Music; Degrees in Health Education and Clinical Social Work.

Florida Licensed Massage Therapist since 1980,

Instructor in Injury Evaluation and Treatment early 90's.

Instructor in Communication Skills 1990 to 2000.

Co-author of the book; Korb, Korb, Davenport & Martin; iContact: A Gestalt Guide to Skilled Communication; Gestalt Press, 2007.

License in Clinical Social Work specializing in body-mind awareness, Gestalt therapy, transitions and trauma recovery.

1993-1997 4-year Feldenkrais Practitioner Training® with Anat Baniel

1999 20-day Masters Intensive on Infants and Children with Anat Baniel

2002 27-day Feldenkrais Training® with Mia Segal in Europe

2003 Anat Baniel Method for Children℠

2004 Anat Baniel Method for Anti-aging℠

2006 Assistant New York Masters Intensive Anat Baniel Method for Children℠

2007-(2009) Assistant Anat Baniel Method Practitioner's Training℠

Specialties:

Cerebral Palsy. Children with neurological, developmental or learning challenges.

High achieving performers (adults and children) - dancers, musicians & artists.

Anti-aging.

See: josiedavenport.com

freechildrensclinic.org

As a practitioner of the Feldenkrais Method® and the Anat Baniel Method for Children℠, I have had the joy of discovering the miraculous world of "turning the learning switch on" in children with learning disabilities. Children who are born with constraints on their movement are not able to do the myriad random movements that healthy babies do. This random exploration of movement is an important part of the child's internalized self-image. It is as though the child is painting an image of their 3-D possibilities of movement into their nervous system. In this exploration of the world there are no mistakes, only information. This is the beginning of self-referencing - of knowing their boundaries and preferences and of experiencing the world directly.

Using the Anat Baniel Method℠, I create pleasurable ways for children to explore vectors of movement that were previously either unavailable or uncomfortable. This method is not massage and it is not therapy even though the effect is very therapeutic and pleasant. This method is all about learning, about exploring many options in movement, movement being the language of the brain. I help the child create movement choices that are volitional, while at the same time the child can stay in the happy process of curiosity and exploration rather than goal orientation or performing for external approval.

Days and hours of work are flexible.

Parents often bring their children a distance and stay in hotels while their children receive multiple lessons.

When I work with children who live several hours away, they usually do one of two things. They drive up in the morning and receive one lesson with a break, then another lesson in the early afternoon (1 or 2 pm) and drive home the same day. Or, they have two lessons on the first day, spend the night and have again two lessons before driving back. Hotels in Gainesville, Florida are usually 1/2 to 1/3 the price of accommodations in South Florida! I often work with families who are traveling like that on the weekend. When people travel for lessons, sometimes they prefer to have several lessons for the child every two to three weeks.

I charge $60 per lesson, the lessons are approximately 1/2 hour.

An educational method derived from the Feldenkrais® method, the Anat Baniel Method for Childrensm expands on the work of Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais. Children who have disabilities learn to explore many variations of movement. Even small changes in movement learning enhance global changes in children's functional abilities.

The Anat Baniel Method for Children(sm) expands on the work of Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais. As a certified Feldenkrais® practitioner and Anat Baniel Method for Children? practitioner, I provide learning experiences for each child which activate and enhance their own natural curiosity giving them opportunities for development beyond their previous limitations. Using gentle innovative techniques to access the brain's ability to learn movement, thought, and feelings, infants and children often progress beyond medical expectations.

Children who have been helped by the Anat Baniel Method(sm) include:

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Cerebral Palsy

Brachial Plexus Injury

Downs Syndrome

Fragile X

Multiple Sclerosis

Periventricular Leukomalacia

Premature Birth

Stroke

Autism

Cerebral Atrophy

Failure to Thrive

What changes are seen when children receive lessons from a practitioner trained in the Anat Baniel Method for Children℠? This method provides children with experiences that give them an opportunity to upgrade their nervous systems. Anat Baniel Method for Children℠ practitioners seek to wake up children's awareness of feeling what they are doing.

Many parents report that the first changes they see include:

Improved mood

Better sleep

Greater comfort

Increased alertness and awareness of their

surroundings

As children "wake up" to themselves, their experiences in and outside of the lessons should provide a variety of information that their brain organizes. Functional changes that have been seen as children continue the work include:

More effortless movements

Better balance

Improved ability to move; crawl, walk,

run, jump, reach

Greater problem solving skills

Improved speech

See: anatbanielmethod.com

Anat Baniel Method for Vitality and Anti-Aging℠- One of the necessities of being youthful is having a brain that continues learning. Since the brain is involved with movement for most of our waking hours, movement informs the brain and "is the language of the brain". Therefore, we use movement to keep the body and the brain supple and responsive. There are certain movements that are present in youth that adults relinquish with aging. Lessons are structured to enhance the learning processes in the areas that are essential to health and vitality.

Anat Baniel Method for Vitality & Anti-aging sessions may address:

(based on the work of Moshe Feldenkrais)

Relief from stress

Movement & flexibility

Balance

Recovery & Improvement from

Surgery

Stroke

Injuries

Learning to improve motor skills

What do the sessions look like?

For this type of session wear loose and comfortable clothing. I may ask you to move or move you passively. You should feel comfortable at all times. The intention of the lesson is to inform your nervous system about ease in movement in many combinations. The results can range from an overall feeling of well-being to a precise improvement of motor control. In this way people have regained skills that have been lost through injury, aging or stroke (for example) often with reduced pain, stress and reduced tendency for re-injury.

See: anatbanielmethod.com