Frequently Asked Questions

01

What is Brain Plasticity?

This refers to the human brain's ability to change and adapt throughout life. As recent as 20 years ago, it was still widely believed that our brains developed early in childhood and remained relatively unchanged throughout adulthood. We now know that the brain is capable of rewiring and remapping connections as a result of experiences. This is extremely important in understanding memory, behaviour, learning, and healthy development.


02

What is NeuroMovement®?

It is a therapeutic approach that provides your brain with new but clear information that stimulates its natural plasticity. By introducing slow, subtle movement and easy-to-follow concepts, your brain has the opportunity to perceive slight differences to reorganize movement and form new neural connections and patterns. This new sensory and motor information can help you discover easier ways to move and override inefficient movement and thought patterns. 

03

What Benefits Does The Anat Baniel Method® NeuroMovement® Provide?

Once your brain is able to differentiate and integrate new patterns through NeuroMovement®, your posture and movement become more healthy and fluid, your physical flexibility, strength, coordination, and energy increase, and you no longer waste unnecessary effort to do things like stand, walk, dance, and exercise. You can also experience improved memory, sensory and emotional awareness, and mental clarity.

04

What Makes The Anat Baniel Method® NeuroMovement® Different?

One of the many ways that the Anat Baniel Method® NeuroMovement® differs from other therapies is that we work with the brain and the body as one. For example, when working with a client who has spasticity in the arm as a result of a stroke, we begin treatment by focusing on connecting with the brain and not "treating" the arm. By re-establishing neuro pathways in the brain, improved mobility and function of the arm become possible.

05

What can you expect during a Child Lesson?

A lesson involves a practitioner using gentle touch and movement to allow a child to connect with themselves and join the process of exploring their own body and movement habits. Depending on the age and nature of your child's condition the lesson may resemble play more than anything else, but it could also be quite similar to a quieter adult lesson. The practitioner will continuously assess your child's organization, tendencies and habits and will constantly provide information to their nervous system for alternative possibilities.


A lesson is always based around meeting your child where they are.

06

What Can You Expect During An Adult Lesson?

During an adult lesson, you, the student will be asked to lie on the table, sit in a chair or possibly stand.

In this lesson there will be little to no talking. You will be instructed not to resist any movement, and not to help the movement but instead to think of the lesson as a conversation. The practitioner will guide you through slow and gentle movements to explore which parts of yourself are being engaged, while at the same time bringing awareness to areas that could participate more or less. Attention is key, as the practitioner guides you physically through different movements, you will be asked to feel:

  • What is participating
  • Where you feel restricted
  • If there is anything you could do to decrease the resistance
  • If you are physically helping
  • If you could do less 

By paying attention to these new and different movements, new neural pathways are formed and old inactive pathways are awoken. These pathways all come to life and become available for your brain to pull from when needed in future activities and movements.

07

How Long is a Session?

Lessons for children are approximately 30-45 minutes in length. This time range depends greatly on the age and mood of the child. Adult lessons are 45 minutes long.

08

What is the Frequency of Treatments?

This is dependent upon a variety of factors, individual to you or your child, and should be discussed with your practitioner.

After the first few lessons an appropriate schedule becomes more apparent. Often an “intensive” block (6-10 lessons) given over 3 to 5 days, provides substantial information to the system and due to the frequency, what is being learned becomes familiar which is essential in changing learning patterns.


These intensives often provide a leap in progress and is often a recommended schedule for children. On the other hand, one or two lessons a week may be enough for someone with a nagging injury.


09

What is Conscious Parenting?

Conscious Parenting weaves together aspects of western psychology and eastern philosophy in a way that profoundly affects the way we view parenting and childhood. It invites us to step into awareness of our patterns and deconstruct much of the unconscious conditioning we took on as a child forming our ideas about what parenting should look like and what our child should be doing. When we practice awareness and gain understanding of our own triggers and conditioning, we are able to parent from a place of centeredness, clarity, and presence, consequently clearing the space for our children to be who they are meant to be and be guided by their own internal compass.


Conscious parenting is engaging in the process of unbecoming everything that we thought we were supposed to be as a parent and instead, see our children as our greatest teacher, mirroring back to us where we have our own healing to do. It is about learning how to step into the present moment, becoming aware of our triggers and conditioning so we can connect with ourself and our child and know whether to let go, allow, or hold a boundary. It is a process of continual evolution, personal growth, and extreme self care so that we can step into the beauty of our true unique self in order that our children can step into theirs. It is about seeing the unique light in each of our children and allowing them to write their own script rather than expecting them to follow ours or anyone else’s. It is about learning to live without knowing the answers, embracing curiosity, and finding joy in our wholeness, to experience life fully.


10

What is Collaborative Problem Solving?

At its core, CPS is rooted in the belief that children do well when they can and not just when they want to. They lack skill, not will. Underneath all challenging behavior is lagging skill, specifically related to frustration tolerance, cognitive flexibility, and problem solving. 


When parents identify their true concern and engage with their child, understanding that their child is having a hard time rather than giving them a hard time, amazing things can happen. When a child sits down to engage with their parent and knows they are not in trouble, but that their parent wants to better understand and work with them to address a concern, the child drops their guard. When they are not in fear of getting in trouble, and believe that they are a partner in the process, they are more willing to open and gain confidence in order to learn new skills.


Parent and child figure out what is getting in the way of that child succeeding and can work collaboratively to solve a problem. Inherent within this process, is learning skills in frustration tolerance, cognitive flexibility, and problem solving, along with building empathy.

11

Who Does it Serve?


CPS serves not only the child and the parent, but it also deeply strengthens the relationship between parent and child. 

12

Why is it Important?

Provides parents a fresh perspective on challenging behavior and creates a collaborative approach to working with their child rather than imposing control through rewards or punishment.


CPS provides a child an opportunity to be seen and heard, understand themselves, see the parent as support, and gain the skills to reduce the challenging behavior, all resulting in a greater sense of self-worth.


13

Can CPS be Used for Differently-Abled Children?


Absolutely! Most children over the age of three, whether verbal or non-verbal, can engage in CPS. It will look different, but when we think outside the box and use communication that works for each individual, the same skills can be taught and the relationship strengthened.


“Having a parent who listens creates a child who believes he or she has a voice that matters in this world.” -Rachel Mary Stafford


The Anat Baniel Method® NeuroMovement® is the only form of therapy that treats the brain and the body as one

For a worldwide listing of certified NeuroMovement® professionals serving Children with Special Needs, please visit www.NeuroConnect.world

For more information about the Anat Baniel Method® NeuroMovement®, please visit www.anatbanielmethod.com

For a worldwide listing of certified NeuroMovement® professionals serving Children with Special Needs, please visit www.NeuroConnect.world

For more information about the Anat Baniel Method® NeuroMovement®, please visit www.anatbanielmethod.com