Friday, July 6 2007
TRAGER therapy was not something I'd ever heard of but Eva Wolfram at Pure Therapy at 25 Scarrots Lane persuaded me to give it a try.
Trager was developed by Milton Trager over a period of 65 years and it took off in 1970s' California. The treatment seeks to retrain our bodies in order to break patterns we may have adopted in response to problems we've had in the past. Often we may still retain pain and, even though the original cause may have been long gone, the discomfort will remain. Devotees include Jerry Hall who said it was, "...a huge physical release. And emotional. And mental."
Under a blanket, on her treatment couch, I was gradually persuaded to relax.
"Thank you for helping me, but you don't have to do this now," said Eva to my arm, which was refusing to go floppy. After a few more gentle suggestions my arm did indeed lose all resistance to her gentle touch and swung freely from my shoulder socket as she held the tips of my fingers, which was a very odd experience. It was as if the arm no longer belonged to me and this is part of the secret of this therapy - the idea is as you become freer in your body you also do in your mind.
All the very gentle yet firm movements were initiated by Eva and included pressing down firmly on my alternate shoulders, giving me the feeling of rolling in a lightly swelling sea. Other movements of my limbs made me feel as if I were full of water, which of course we all are, and that the fluid was moving in waves throughout my body.
Throughout this experience Eva was continually speaking to my body, or perhaps to my unconscious mind, in an effort to relax recalcitrant muscles. It was really quite strange, as if I were a third party to this strangely relaxed body I was inhabiting.
Afterwards I did indeed feel much more relaxed, I also felt firmer on my feet and more balanced and the headache I had gone in with had disappeared.
Eva is the only practitioner of Trager on the Island and she is having an awareness day for those who would like to try out this therapy on Saturday, July 7, from 11am till 5pm. Read other testimonies of her work at www.pure-therapy.com