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I enrolled in the program planning to use the Feldenkrais work to improve the athletic ability of my riding students. However, in the first week of the program, I realized the potential for horses.
I had been a successful teacher and trainer in the horse world for more than 20 years at that time. In the 1960s, I founded and directed an internationally recognized nine-month residential school for riding instructors and trainers. Furthermore, I co-authored a syndicated column in major equine magazines, as well as the first book on equine massage and physical therapy in 1965.
However, studying the Feldenkrais Method for humans, I began to consider the equine nervous system in terms of behaviour and health. After 33 years of being almost daily with horses, I began to see with fresh eyes.
Introducing a new idea to the world of horses was not an unusual experience. My first husband and I founded the Pacific Coast Equestrian School and Research Center for clinical studies of horses in the early 1960’s. By 1975, a key moment in the history of Tellington TTouch, I introduced the then-revolutionary concept. Horses who are resistant and unmanageable usually react to pain, fear or stress. As a result, this laid the foundation for the further development of the method.
Integrating the theory of working with the nervous system of horses became a milestone in the history of Tellington TTouch. I began to develop new ways of teaching a horse to learn without force. By 1978 I had created the system of educating and healing horses known as the Tellington Equine Awareness Method or TEAM.
From 1977 to 1983 I honed my skills with the Feldenkrais method to work with many people (as well as horses) in the U.S. and Germany. Meanwhile, I continued to refine my approach with horses. I taught them gentle movements of Feldenkrais’s “Awareness Through Movement” and “Functional Integration”. It relieved pain, improved their athletic and performance abilities, and enhanced their quality of life. The Origin of the History of Tellington TTouch – TTouch is BirthedI “officially” birthed Tellington TTouch on a warm July day in 1983 in Delaware. It was where I had been teaching a weekend clinic sponsored by veterinarians at the Delaware Equine Clinic. On an evening following the clinic, I was asked to work on a very sore mare who belonged to one of the veterinarians from the clinic. Initially, the mare resisted touch extremely. This mare objected to being groomed or saddled fiercely. By pinning her ears, flashing her teeth and often threatening to kick when touched. I had been asked to look at this mare to see if there was a way to help her with the Feldenkrais Method. When I placed my hands gently on her shoulder and began the slow, almost imperceptible movements of “Functional Integration”™, the mare became very quiet and accepting of my hands on her body. The owner of the mare expressed amazement at how her normally cantankerous horse seemed to enjoy the movements that were so gentle as to be barely visible. Within minutes the mare began to lower her head. Her eyes softened, her head lowered, and after a few minutes, she took a deep breath and relaxed. Her owner, Wendy, asked me in a surprised voice, “What are you doing to affect my mare this way? Are you using energy? Or what? What’s your secret?”
That moment was an epiphany for me. Therefore, it marked a turning point in my approach. One of these rare “aha” moments that shift one’s path, as though into another dimension. One of the drawbacks to the Feldenkrais Method for horse people was the years it takes to become proficient. I had been teaching simple non-habitual movements, which are the mark of the Feldenkrais Method, with great success. However, in that prophetic moment when I saw the effects on this mare, with such simple instructions, I had the realization that there was something special in the circular movements that anyone could learn easily. From that day on I began experimenting with a variety of circular movements. Consequently, what has emerged over the two ensuing decades in the Tellington TTouch is an easily learned method of 20-plus hand positions. They are combined with varying tempos and pressures that anyone can learn. The TTouches cross the species barrier and have spread around the globe for use in the world of humans as well as all animals. From the bodywork techniques came many groundwork and leading exercises to help encourage the release of tension and the development of healthy posture. Trust Your IntuitionI created TTouch because I trusted my intuition. As a result, it became a key aspect of the method’s development. Trusting our intuition is one of the keys to being an effective practitioner of TTouch. We talk about intuition in our classes but what is it really? My dictionary defines intuition as “The act or faculty of knowing without the use of rational process: immediate cognition; a sense of something not evident or deductible; a capacity for guessing accurately.” However, I recently discovered a definition by Judee Gee, author of the book “Intuition” that describes, for me, the importance of acknowledging and developing the intuitive thought process. She writes, “Intuition is the manifestation of divine consciousness within you. The messages it sends are essential to your emotional, physical and spiritual health. Receiving and understanding these truths will change your life and help you find your true path.” My awareness of intuition was awakened when I was 22 years old from an Astrological Reading I ordered. It included information that I would develop a new type of communication that would spread around the world! At the time I thought it must have something to do with videos because they seemed to be a type of future communication. Little did I know it was to be the communication of TTouch! The advice in the Astrological Reading was to develop my intuition because it would be a major factor in my life’s work. I’ve since discovered I am not alone. For example, Dr. Jonas Salk, polio vaccine inventor, said, “It is always with excitement that I wake up in the morning wondering what my intuition will toss up to me, like gifts from the sea. I work with it and rely on it. It is my partner.” I’ve read many books on the subject of intuition over the years. I became aware of the concept of the left and right hemispheres of the brain concerning logical and intuitive thinking. Today the concept of developing both intuition and logic is often referred to as Whole Brain Learning. Whole Brain LearningI believe an activation of intuitive and logical thinking processes occurs every time we TTouch a person or animal. Why? Because intuition has to do with visualization and movement, and left-brain logic has to do with numbers and logical thought processes. Every time we “imagine” the face of a clock as we push the skin from 6 o’clock once around and stop at 9 o’clock, imagining the face of the clock activates the intuitive part of the brain, as does the movement involved in pushing the skin in the circle. The logical process is activated by thinking of the numbers 6, 9, 12 and 3 as we pass those portions of our imaginary clock. As we imagine our hand position in a “Tiger TTouch” or “Bear Paw”, intuitive thinking is activated. With the act of holding the hand in a specific position and pushing the skin in one-and-a-quarter circles, we have the numbers and the logical sequence that activates the logical process. I believe this theory of activation of both modalities – logical and intuitive – explains why so many adults report a life-changing effect from using TTouch, and why many children enrolled in TTouch classes in their school programs have demonstrated improved levels of concentration, emotional balance and enhanced learning skills in a few TTouch sessions. I also believe this Whole Brain concept is one of the most important contributions to the Tellington TTouch. Frequently, I have been apologetic and often felt inferior over the years because TTouch was an intuitive discovery. Twenty years ago, many left-brained folks discounted my intention of activating cellular function. As well as the body’s ability to heal itself by communicating with cells. In my initial search in 1969 for a definition of intuition, I was encouraged by the description of “unlearned knowledge” in “Essays of a Modern Mystic” by Lewis. I’ve often felt encouraged by the knowledge that Albert Einstein received his revolutionary information in his dreams. This acceptance marks another step in the evolving history of Tellington TTouch, thanks to my friend, Dr. Cecilia Wendler. She is an associate professor of research ethics at the University of Wisconsin Eau Clair. Dr. Wendler has assured me that intuitive knowledge is a recognized source of new information in modern science. I was immensely relieved when I heard this. Now I have accepted the uniqueness of the work thanks to the very fact that it came intuitively. How does TTouch work and why is the method useful for humans too?At its core, the purpose of the history of Tellington TTouch is to enhance the body, mind, and spirit of animals and their people. It consists of circular TTouches and lifts, done all over the body. It’s with the intent of awakening the function of the cells and the body’s ability to heal itself.
Throughout the history of Tellington TTouch, we’ve seen positive results. Even when we don’t fully understand why it works, it’s extremely effective in reducing pain and fear. The results proved very positive in hospitals and for individuals working on themselves. The history of Tellington TTouch continues to grow as it is now included in the curriculum at the University of Minnesota for a minor degree in Complementary Healing Modalities. Through their Center for Spirituality and Healing, it’s being considered for research at a pain center in Milwaukee. Countless people over the past 20 years have reported a heightened sense of well-being, significant reduction of stress, and relief from pain and depression. Another consistent result seems to be a heightened ability to focus and concentrate, both in children and adults. My theory is that the reason for these changes is a result of activation of both hemispheres of the brain. The two studies supported the work. The effects of TTouch were examined at the Biofeedback Institute of Boulder, Colorado. Anna Wise carried out the studies in 1984 and 1985. Researchers conducted these studies with a ‘Mind Mirror’ that measures all four brain waves. Beta, alpha, theta and delta were all studied in both the left and right hemispheres. (For more detail, read “The High Performance Mind” by Anna Wise or check out her website here.) The results showed something very interesting. The person receiving TTouch, as well as the person applying TTouch, had this “whole brain” activation. Often it was in a specific pattern coined “the Awakened Mind State” by British researcher, Maxwell Cade. A pivotal year in the history of Tellington TTouch was 1983 when I became aware of its value for people. So that horse owners would understand why their horses seemed to love the work so much, I began to teach TTouch to the riders. Reports of reduced pain, increased mobility and a deep sense of well-being often happened in the 30-minute sessions when I had clinic participants standing up and TTouch their neighbors. That was further inspiration for teaching the work to people. |
Pushing the skin in a circle was not related to the Feldenkrais Method, but I learned many years ago to trust my intuition, so I watched quietly as Wendy followed my minimal instructions. To my surprise, the mare became quiet and accepting of the light circles as she had been for the Feldenkrais movements. Without thinking I responded with the prophetic words, “Don’t worry about what I’m doing. Just place your hand lightly on the shoulder and push the skin in a circle.”
