Individual Functional Synthesis Lessons
Functional Synthesis (FS) lessons are an opportunity for practitioners to help you or your child, known as the student, learn about their physical body, as well as their habitual and rigid patterns in thought and movement. Together, we explore variations in a calm and supportive setting.
FS lessons are called a lesson instead of a treatment because the practitioner, known as the teacher, is not trying to "fix" a problem, but rather aiming to help the student "learn" how to organize their movement in a more efficient manner. Teachers work with the intention of a student being an active participant in their improvement. This includes working with a student not just physically but also connecting with them emotionally and cognitively. The intention is the same in all lessons, regardless of the age of the student, but the delivery will vary.
Lessons for Adults
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.
Lessons for Children
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.
