My Friend Stacy Barrows, Feldenkrais and her incredible Smartroller
A few months back I gave a lecture at the IDEA conference in San Diego. The audience of health-care practitioners was unlike any I had ever spoken to with their enthusiasm and friendliness.
A woman named Stacy Barrows came up afterward and introduced herself. She also happened to be from Los Angeles and told me she was a Feldenkrais physical therapist (PT) in private practice.
In case you have not heard of Feldenkrais, it is a type of PT that uses the brain, and body to help retrain the nervous system to find new pathways around area of injury in the body to restore balance.
Feldenkrais is frequently used to ease stress and tension in the body, as well as assist those with orthopedic problems in bones and joints to correct poor posture or habits that may be causing pain.
Stacy took a step beyond this method and developed a special foam roller based on the Feldenkrais method. I use my foam roller every day, a few times a day so this peaked my curiosity that she had developed a special roller, called a Smartroller.
Since my biking accident the foam roller has been a safety net for me in terms of keeping my muscles healthy and flexible so I decided to try a session with Stacy and use the Smartroller.
I was blown away. Not only did I start to walk better with one session (an issue since my accident) but my whole body felt more relaxed, in balance and at peace. Her gentle touch relaxed my nervous system and using the Smartroller brought tranquility in my system.
If you live in the Los Angeles area and have a new or old injury I highly recommend a consult with Stacy. If you geographically undesirable you can order the Smartroller from her as well as a book she wrote that teaches you how to use it and exercises to do based on your needs.
