Integrative Restorative Session
This unique integrative wellness experience designed by Tania Clarke (Move Deeply Wellness) combines sound healing, somatic movement, restorative yoga and Thai massage techniques to help you get grounded in your body, relieve tension, and settle your mind. Tania will guide you through a customized flow to suit your preferences. The general structure for a session can flow like this, and you will work together to create your ideal experience. Everything is optional and you can choose to spend more time with some elements or remove one entirely.
- Discussing goals, setting intention for the session
- Guided centering meditation, breathing and body awareness scan
- Use of crystal bowls or chimes to bring focus to the present moment
- Guided somatic movement flow to release stuck tension throughout the body and strengthen the brain-muscle connection
- Relaxing Thai Massage to further relax muscles (acupressure, working energy lines, gentle assisted stretches)
- Assisted Restorative Yoga Poses to integrate the practice and stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system
- Closing sound healing and guided body scan to seal the practice.
Learn more about the specific practices included in this integrative session below:
What is Somatic Movement?
Clinical Somatic Movement is a safe and gentle practice appropriate for any fitness level. The slow, deliberate nature of the exercises allows your nervous system to connect more effectively with your muscles. This “resets” the muscles and allows them to return to a more relaxed state. It is effective for reducing the physical effects of day-to-day work, and can ease symptoms from past injuries and chronic tension.
Somatic exercise methods help you create a daily practice that allows you to relieve pain and tension, prevent injuries and degeneration, and improve posture and movement at any age. This practice can help alleviate common, painful conditions such as:
- back pain
- neck pain
- joint pain
- bursitis
- spinal disc problems
- sciatica
- scoliosis
- Lordosis (sway-back)
- Kyphosis (rounded upper spine)
- TMJ
- plantar fasciitis
- and many more
Somatic movement aims to ease tension, focus the mind, and guide you through sensing your muscles to deepen your connection with your own biomechanics.
The Ancient Healing Art of Thai Massage
The goal of Thai Massage is not only to treat the external physical body, but to also consider the energy flow within the body. The aim is to restore the whole person to a state of balance through assisted movement, acupressure, massage principles. The practice helps bring relief to tight, aching muscles while improving the feeling of overall wellness. A session flows through deep static and rhythmic pressures as the body is stretched, gently compressed, moved, and rocked in various positions that increase circulation and range of motion. You remain fully clothed and there is always an open line of communication to ensure you are comfortable and enjoying the process. Tania’s intention as a Thai Massage practitioner is to help you feel energized yet relaxed.
How does Restorative Yoga benefit the practice?
Restorative Yoga practiced in combination with movement and bodywork can help you to connect more deeply with your body and release tension through problem areas while bringing awareness to where you may be gripping and holding. Assisted Restorative Yoga in this session means you are fully supported by props, which Tania will bring to you and remove as needed. In some poses such as Supported Child’s Pose, Tania can offer an assisted stretch with guided breathing prompts to help you get the most out of the pose. In addition to these benefits, Restorative Yoga stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system which can in turn improve sleep, reduce cortisol levels and encourage a relaxed state of mind.
Sound healing for focus and grounding.
Tania grew up with music and has experimented with many instruments over the years. She loves integrating sound and music in her work whenever possible. Sound healing tools such as crystal bowls slow down the brain waves and can therefore create a sense of deep connection, and groundedness in the body and mind. Opening and closing this integrative practice with sound healing is designed to help you be present in the moment and strengthen the mind-body connection.
About Tania
Tania’s personal journey through years of chronic shoulder pain brought her to restorative movement education. She is dedicated to helping her clients tune into their bodies and unravel their persistent tension and pain, through gentle, methodical movement and the healing touch of Thai Massage.
Tania is a Level 2 Certified Somatic Exercise Instructor and Level 2 Thai Massage Practitioner trained in the Traditional Northern style. She has also trained as a yoga, fitness and Pilates instructor and is always experimenting with movement. She believes a diverse movement and healing practice is one of the best routes to a long, happy life, and is here to help others find their own passion for movement.
