Institute for integrative bodywork & movement Therapy

Training and Professional Development Courses

Based on the principles of Body-Mind Centering®, Authentic Movement and Somatic Psychology

Under the direction of Linda Hartley MA

Background to the IBMT approach

The IBMT Workshop Programme and Professional Development courses are intended for those working, or training to work in the fields of movement, dance, and the arts therapies; bodywork; psychotherapy and counselling; health, education, and the caring professions. Courses involve both theoretical and experiential components, with a strong emphasis on the embodiment of taught material. In the field of Somatic Movement Therapy, ‘Soma’ has been defined as ‘the body experienced from within’ (Thomas Hanna), and it is to this aim that we will address our explorations.

This work is based on an understanding that what we need for our healing and growth lies within us, and is revealed as we become aware of and learn to follow our unconscious inner process. It seeks to empower the individual to participate creatively in the healing journey by developing trust in his or her inner knowledge and intuition, and acquiring skills with which to access the hidden wisdom of the body and mind. In our primarily mental and verbal culture, bringing awareness to the subtleties of body experience can be a powerful way to access these lost or hidden messages.

CPD and Training Modules are designed both to support personal growth, and to develop skills with which to facilitate the unfolding of process through the body. This involves a three-fold approach:

                 ~ the awakening of awareness in the body and the learning of methods

to facilitate the integration of mind and body in movement

~ the practice of witnessing through touch, through moving, and through seeing another move, cultivating an attitude of non-judgmental acceptance and compassion towards self and others

                 ~ methods to support the exploration and integration of personal

material which may emerge in bodywork and movement practice

Body-Mind CenteringR (originated by Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen - USA) study and practice forms the basis of our approach to somatic movement education. This approach offers a way to gently come back home to the body, to re-experience the integration of sensation, feeling, mind and spirit that is ours by nature. We learn to awaken awareness in the body through focused touch, breath, guided imagery, movement and vocal expression, allowing the innate cellular intelligence of the bodymind to guide our explorations; we learn to trust again the body and the knowledge that it carries.

Through focused touch and sensitively guided movement, areas of tension and blockage can be released, and the core of inner support and strength experienced. As habitual patterns in the body change or become more flexible, the mind also changes, allowing for greater openness, choice and spontaneity of being and perceiving.

The Discipline of Authentic Movement (as developed by Janet Adler – USA) is also taught through workshops and retreats, and forms an integral part of our approach to somatic practice. It seeks to cultivate a safe space in which personal movement from the unconscious can be explored and integrated. In this discipline we seek to develop the ‘internal witness’, a place of clear seeing and compassionate, non-judgmental acceptance within us, so essential to any work with others.

Studies in Somatic Psychology address themes such as embryology and the embodiment of spirit; the development of the sense of self; the influence of birth on the development of the will and personality patterns; the body-mind-feeling connection and the field of psychoneuroimmunology; the relationship between emotional and neurological development; basic counselling skills and inner body dialogue; assessment and application.

 

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