Testimonials & Experiencies
Testimonial about my 8-week Sounder Sleep course
Feldenkrais and SSS student with the SFC SQM Association of Madrid
Why did you sign up for the course?
I had trouble sleeping and saw on the Feldenkrais website that this technique could help with falling asleep and waking up at night without being able to go back to sleep. Coincidentally, I saw a TV report (on channel 2) about this technique, featuring people who did not respond to medication but improved significantly after starting this practice. When online courses were offered—since I couldn’t attend in person—I signed up without hesitation. I needed to break the cycle of not being able to fall asleep, to overcome the feeling of helplessness that made me even more alert. And later, if I woke up, I needed a way to get back into the sleep rhythm or at least remain calm.
What did Aimará’s course give you?
Many solutions to tackle sleep problems, which I apply depending on how I feel. The certainty that there is always an option that will work for me, as my sleep challenges are not always the same. This has been a major discovery that I can also use in daily life to handle stress or difficult situations—including physical pain. For example, staying calm in the dentist’s chair, getting a medical test, or managing a day of debilitating pain.
It’s wonderful to have learned to use these skills in any position: lying down, sitting, standing, or moving. In my opinion, it multiplies the benefits.
Would you recommend working with Aimará?
I highly recommend it. It has helped me tremendously. She has the ability to adapt the practices to each person’s specific issues. Illness affects everyone differently, and having multiple ways to apply the sleep strategies gives me peace of mind. My attitude towards bedtime has changed—going to bed is no longer a "necessary evil."
She also taught me not to judge my body, to accept its current state, and to find ways to improve. Even small changes lead to more changes. She explains everything very clearly. I’m very happy and grateful for her dedication.
I would only add that personal effort and consistency are necessary—it’s important to make it a habit.
I have taken back control of my life.
…I realized there were things I could learn to connect with this body that, in some way, had “failed” me.
For years, my husband and I have been seriously reading about advances in brain neuroplasticity. Despite our enthusiasm, neuroplasticity had not changed our lives—until my husband convinced me to try the Feldenkrais Method with Aimará after reading Norman Doidge’s second book, The Brain’s Way of Healing. He contacted her by email.
I am a 64-year-old woman, very thin, with walking and movement difficulties that finally received a diagnosis this year: chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP), which affects my peripheral nervous system. It is supposedly an autoimmune condition, but my neurologist here and a neurologist friend in the U.S. still do not agree on that. The disease progressed slowly until I became entirely dependent on my husband to go outside. Bus rides were difficult, and the subway was a nightmare—like entering a maze blindfolded. All my symptoms are well-documented. A recent electromyogram confirmed sensory and motor damage in my lower limbs, especially below the knees.
I have also suffered from asthma for many years, which was why my husband initially contacted Aimará. I thought asthma was just a minor detail in my dependent life, but since I had low back pain, I figured a massage wouldn’t hurt. I told Aimará this, and she began working on my right side very gently.
It’s hard to describe what a session feels like without sounding like someone who follows a new guru every year—but nothing could be further from who I am. While I don’t attribute all knowledge to Western medicine and have explored various alternative therapies, I am skeptical enough to stay objective. So rather than listing all the sensations my body experienced as it “woke up,” I’d rather focus on my shift in perception regarding my illness.
Since learning the name of my disease (CIDP) and understanding it is a rare condition, I had resigned myself to the role of a “patient” who would rely on medicine to “cure” or at least slow down the deterioration. The person who left that first session with Aimará was different. My lower back pain was gone, but more importantly, I understood that I could learn to connect with this body that, in some way, had “failed” me.
After four private sessions, I no longer see myself as just a patient—I feel I can actively influence my recovery. I now have a relationship of cooperation with my body. I go out alone in my neighborhood and even take the bus by myself. I walk with confidence, even if I sometimes lean to one side.
Nobody knows what triggers the autoimmune response, but my newfound harmony with my body may have reversed it. In February, I had no sensation when someone pricked the soles of my feet with a sharp object; now I do. I also consciously move my toes in bed and reexamine movements that were once automatic.
From the beginning, Aimará told me she hopes her clients eventually become independent. I never imagined how meaningful that word would become. I’m no longer dependent—I feel in control of my life. Aimará will always have our gratitude, just like that brilliant Ukrainian, Moshe Feldenkrais.
Multiple Sclerosis and the Feldenkrais Method
The Feldenkrais Method helps you become aware of how you move, sharpens your senses, and promotes new brain connections. You learn to re-educate your body, expand personal change, and improve your health. You move with less effort and greater efficiency, gaining better control, stability, and balance.
Through this practice, you develop a stronger sense of “I can.” This is especially crucial for those with neurodegenerative diseases like Multiple Sclerosis, which can limit both physical and mental abilities.