Bettina's Journey with the Ilan Lev Method
I am on a recovery journey from a heavy burn-out, deeply fatigued with chronic muscular imbalances and pain...due to this condition feeling immobile and restricted.
I absolutely enjoyed the Ilan Lev Method (ILM) treatments with Dorry!
Dorry’s way of treating with ILM is like a treat. Her contact is secure and caring and there is a heartfelt connection. There was a lightness in all her movements; spontaneous and intuitive, conveying a source of deeply-grounded knowledge. It seemed that she wasn’t following any intentional direction and still every direction we took made sense and seemed to have a meaning. Even though I am not a dancer at all, the treatment felt like being in a dance where Dorry takes the lead and invites you into new spaces while being very attentive to whatever question or movement might arise from within me…following it or taking a turn to listen. There was an exploration of positions and movements of body parts I have never been in and seemingly have never known before…without knowing how we got there…
ILM for me is being playfully-serious and seriously-playful. Its unbelievably creative, imaginative and resourceful.
What got me the most were the steady movement impulses coming in … like waves washing on shore where I would sink into rhythm with the waves … the varying pulses leading to spirals of movement we went into together…like a heartbeat, that gets under the skin … still a steady rhythm with ever ongoing variations, reminiscent of syncopation, generating a feeling of familiarity and safety as Dorry moved into a joined frequency with my body system that elicited surprise and curiosity.
It was like being exposed to the playlist of somebody else that surprises with the unbelievable resonance of unknown musical pieces of great artistry … with jazz-like improvisations alternating with seriously structured classical music … smoothly integrating with some sidekicks of hip-hop and funk … never boring … and driven by grounded rock solid beats and bass …
Dorry’s allowing presence always gave room for various smaller parts of mine to show up … lots of fun to find stubborn (defiant) teenagers on one side of the body, only to discover minutes later a super curious 9-month old blinking into the world boldly and courageous on the other. I know how my body can react to external impulses in a subconscious way of little shakes, spasms or larger movements … but in the ILM treatment with Dorry there was so much more … some kind of elegance and meaning and expression in these movements that were not initiated from conscious will.
It was astoundingly safe to stay with the turmoil of my emotional “kindergarden”, to welcome and attend together to whatever emerged and see it integrate into upcoming moves. Like being together in an interactive 3D-movie. Whenever it started getting thick I could almost count on her inviting me to consider yawning … a yawn, especially a big smiley one works wonders on whatever tension is rising up … be it physically, physiologically, emotionally or metaphorically… :)
After every session I felt invigorated and instilled with new knowledge about formerly unknown parts that live in my body or are my body … AND even more importantly … an idea of choices, new spaces and ways to be in my body!
I am writing this as of 6-weeks after my last appointment with Dorry … and there are still new options bubbling up clearly connected our ILM time together. It interestingly feels like my skeleton has found joy in exploring movement in the surrounding tissues.
I am not done yet and enjoy the idea of working together again :)
