“The power of pausing lies in its ability to enhance decision-making and problem solving skills. When we take time to pause and reflect, we allow our minds to step back from the immediate pressures and gain a broader perspective.”
~Sheila Tucker
We are all creatures of habit and that’s not a bad thing. It allows us to quickly complete routine tasks without much effort. There is, however, a drawback. You only have one way of doing things. When it does not work, you get stuck in a behavior, feeling or actions that creates problems.
Let’s explore how pausing creates space between stimulus and reaction. I’m driving to my class. Unexpectedly, traffic becomes backuped for miles. I used to get very angry and curse all the idiots on the road. It would ruin my day. Fortunately, I learned the power of the pause from The Feldenkrais Method®.
Now when stuck in traffic, I hit the pause button. Once I start holding my breath and jaw, I take a long slow breath and pause. As the tension fades, I realize my choices: go into road rage, put on relaxing music or find an alternative route. A pause can turn a major eruption into a minor hiccup.
There are an abundance of opportunities to pause during Feldenkrais lessons. Pausing in between movements creates a unique experience instead of mindless repetitions. The pause enables you to answer such important questions as:
How do you initiate the movement?
What is the last part of you to let go when the movement is finished?
What else can let go?
Most movements in Awareness Through Movement classes have two distinct parts. One is moving away from the starting position and the other is returning to the starting position. Pausing between these two parts will help you find the answers to these questions:
How do I know I reached my limit?
What tells me when to stop?
What can I soften or do to go a little farther?
Because you're the boss, you may pause at any time. It may be to ask a question, have instructions repeated or find a more comfortable starting position. If a movement is painful, pause and make it smaller, or just use your imagination.
The pause is a powerful tool to break the stimulus-habit cycle. Instead of locking into automatic reactions, you create space for new choices or options. One powerful pause may be to try one of S3NSE's group classes or individual “hands on” lessons. www.s3nse.org
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