The Feldenkrais Method®
The Anat Baniel Method® for Children
The Embodied Life™
Special needs work in children & adults
psychotherapy & counselling
Creative Arts psychoTherapies
LGBTQI+ psychotherapy, counselling & advocacy for youth & adults
Bernadette Kenny, M.A. Creative Psychotherapy (Humanistic & Integrative Modality).
Certified Practitioner: The Feldenkrais Method®, Anat Baniel Method® for Children & The Embodied Life™.
Tara Healing Arts, The Burren, Co. Clare, Ireland. Mobile: 0831233559. Email: tarahealingartscentre@gmail.com
Welcome to Tara Healing Arts. We are dedicated to the reintegration of the mind & body for children & adults. We invite the human body to once again become the immensely powerful ally it has always been to the human heart & mind. Often the body holds the key to re-educating the brain, assisting it to release limiting, habituated movements & thoughts (somatic education). Often through the search for relief & resolution of physical & mental challenges we expand awareness of ourselves & the world around us. Brain plasticity (neuroplasticity) refers to the brain’s ability to change, or rewire itself & adapt at any age. We work within this realm of potential change & transformation, or to put it another way, we can profoundly change our minds. As we change our minds, we change our bodies too. The circle is complete. Tara Healing Arts endeavours to support these aspects of the human experience.
“Awareness through movement leads to knowledge of oneself & previous undiscovered resources in oneself. So, do not avoid errors, but rather use them as alternatives for what you might feel as right & their roles may soon be interchangeable.” —Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais, from his book “The Illusive Obvious,” 1981.
By using gentle, specifically designed body movements that work in unison with human curiosity & imagination, the brain is offered new choices moving beyond old, habitual patterns of movement. This mindful, nonjudgmental relearning or "rewiring" brings renewed suppleness, strength & balance in the body, regardless of present ability. The literal physical experience of moving beyond old habits of movement can create a state of mind that opens to new possibilities & beginnings in all aspects of life—physical, intellectual, emotional & spiritual. In other words, the Method becomes the individual’s core grounding that can be used as a template or guide for personal expansion & transformation.
Because the lessons work gently in parallel & analogous to how the brain & body work together naturally, the Method can be used by anyone of any age or ability for any purpose: special needs & brain injury in children & adults, stroke, chronic pain, trauma, back & sports injuries & repetitive injury syndrome. It's used by dancers, actors, musicians, athletes, people in wheelchairs, seniors, yoga practitioners, in meditation or for simple relaxation at home.
The Method has two forms: group & individual sessions. The group sessions, known as Awareness Through Movement (ATM), features a teacher who verbally guides the group through a series of gentle movements—suitable for all abilities—while sitting, standing or lying down. The individual session, known as Functional Integration (FI) is where the practitioner guides one through movements mainly using gentle touch & manipulation. This is done while fully clothed on a special table designed by Feldenkrais. The emphasis in the Method is on education & learning how to learn rather than a practitioner/patient relationship or model.
Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais earned his engineering degree from the École Spéciale des Travaux Publics in Paris, & later his Doctorate in Physics at the University of Paris, where Madame Marie Curie was one of his teachers. He became principle assistant to Frederic Joliet-Curie. From 1950 until his death in 1984, Feldenkrais lived in Tel Aviv & devoted himself to research in biomechanics & neurophysiology. As a teenager, Feldenkrais severely tore the ligaments in his knee. He re-injured the knee while earning a black belt in Judo & numerous surgeons told him that surgical procedures were necessary to repair the knee. Instead of surgery, Feldenkrais began to investigate & study himself & how he moved through the world using his scientific training & observations. In addition, Feldenkrais' wife was a paediatrician who provided Feldenkrais with the opportunity to observe infants & how they move & learn in the very beginnings of life. Soon Feldenkrais taught himself to walk freely again. His investigations resulted in the formulation of a unique synthesis of science & aesthetics known as The Feldenkrais Method.
Anat Baniel, founder of the Anat Baniel Method®, is the author of two highly acclaimed books: "Move Into Life: NeuroMovement® for Lifelong Vitality" & "Kids Beyond Limits". Baniel was trained as a clinical psychologist & dancer & was a close professional associate of Dr. Feldenkrais for over a decade. Through her many years of experience working as a trainer, teacher & private practitioner, Baniel evolved her original training into a new NeuroMovement Method® that combines the teachings of Dr. Feldenkrais with her own understanding & techniques to help others & train future practitioners to help their clients in amazing ways. The Anat Baniel Method® is endorsed by Norman Doidge MD, author of "The Brain That Changes Itself" & Michael Merzenich MD, world-renowned neuroscientist & brain plasticity expert (see TED Talk “Growing Evidence of Brain Plasticity,” by Neuroscientist Michael Merzenich MD, TED2004, Feb. 2004).
The Embodied Life™ refers to an approach to human transformation developed by Russell Delman. These programs are an integration of the teachings of Moshe Feldenkrais, Zen-based meditation & Guided Inquiry (Focusing.org).
Bernadette Kenny
Bernadette Kenny is the founder of Tara Healing Arts. She holds a MA in Creative Psychotherapy and is a certified practitioner in The Feldenkrais Method® (Delman & Quastel, Marin, California 1999), The Anat Baniel Method® for Children & The Embodied Life™. Bernadette holds a specialist qualification in movement, drama & dance from the Laban Art of Movement Centre, London. Bernadette is a psychotherapist with experience in trauma, disenfranchised communities, addiction, mediation, crisis work, LGBTQI+ youth & adults, creative arts psychotherapies, & special needs work in adults & children. Bernadette has been a committed activist & advocate for social justice for 40 years in London, California & Ireland. This depth & diversity of experience anchors & inspires the dynamic approach Bernadette brings to her work.
Tara Healing Arts