Reciprocal Inhibition is a term used to describe how muscles “talk to one another”. Muscles work together to move joints, usually with an agonist (the driver), an antagonist (the passenger) and sometimes some synergists (backseat drivers) helping out. When the agonist (let’s say the hamstrings) contracts to bend your knee, this sends neurological messages to the antagonist (the quadriceps) to eccentrically lengthen (we often sloppily say “let go” or “switch off” but it’s more complex than that). This is how muscles communicate to one another to move joints in a coordinated way. It’s important to note that a muscle is never switched off, or deactivated - think instead of it like a coordinated tug-of-war where when one muscle starts winning, the other has to choose to let go, and vice versa. 

Whether it be a physical training modality such as Pilates or more treatment-based modalities such as Myotherapy, Functional Neurology or Somatic Movement Therapy, touch plays an important role in initiating, enhancing and supporting movement. Throughout this blog I aim to highlight how movement and touch intersect in the Movementality studio and how I use them as a Somatic Movement Therapist to facilitate the greatest learning and embodiment experiences for my clients.

Pain is a complicated beast. Recently, Rob posted a blog about pain, delving into the differences between pain and nociception and detailing how we work with both in the Movementality studio, from a physical and physiological perspective. As a Somatic Movement Therapist, as well as working with the physical and physiological components, I must also consider the psychological component of pain, and in particular, the relationship between emotion, pain and movement.

Having spent the last 2 years completing my Somatic Movement Therapy training, I have had the opportunity to work with some incredible clients as they bravely unpack the chronic pain or dysfunction they experience. Not all, but many of these journeys have ultimately boiled down to unresolved trauma held within their bodies. Being able to observe and hear real time feedback from these clients about what they feel, sense, imagine and kinesthetically experience, has fueled a passion in me to try and better understand what constitutes trauma. I am especially interested in how it manifests in the body and how to best guide someone through that experience so they can regain their power and confidence.

At the beginning of 2019, Ash decided she wanted actively progress her studies in movement therapy, undertaking a course called Advanced Clinical Training in Somatics and Dance Movement Therapy. Now, in 2020, on behalf of Movementality, Ash is pleased to now offer Somatic Movement Therapy (“SMT”) as a service. But what exactly is SMT? This is a question I hear frequently, so I’d like to take the time to break down the term SMT, what it means, and how my journey brought me into this incredible practice for embodied healing.