Recently, we had a meeting with Elizabeth, a friend whom I mentioned in another chapter. She’s an artist and specializes in Alexander technique, She’s very knowledgeable and has helped me a lot since my rehab started. Elizabeth, Eric, and I met on Zoom because she’d seen a video of my walking, and it had occurred to her that I could benefit by strengthening my pelvic muscles. That’s why she wanted to show us a special pillow to exercise these muscles and she thought Zoom would be a good way for us to see it.
When we met, Eric wanted Elizabeth to see the latest video of my walking, and she instantly agreed. So, I got to watch it as well. It was a real eye-opener. I had the opportunity to see myself walking instead of just experiencing it. I could concentrate on every minute detail.
And as I was watching myself, I discovered something I hadn’t noticed before: what Id done to recover my balance; I’d brought my torso forward, and I’d done it with my gluts.
When I watched myself making this movement, I suddenly conjured an old memory – it was a memory of one of the dance classes I’d attended in my early thirties. I vaguely recalled using my gluts to bring my torso forward. And along with it came my dance teacher’s advice to use my glut muscles to move my torso forward and to jump upward.
This was an old memory that had stayed buried in my mind and that I’d never retrieved. It was part of the store of procedural memories – the muscle memories that are the result of oft-repeated movements, in this case, during a dance class in my youth. As the neurologist friend of my friend had told me, in the process of re-learning to walk, I would disinter buried procedural memories that would aid me in my rehab process. I felt a mixture of happiness and relief; I would finally walk with a cane, step by step.
When we met, Eric wanted Elizabeth to see the latest video of my walking, and she instantly agreed. So, I got to watch it as well. It was a real eye-opener. I had the opportunity to see myself walking instead of just experiencing it. I could concentrate on every minute detail.
And as I was watching myself, I discovered something I hadn’t noticed before: what Id done to recover my balance; I’d brought my torso forward, and I’d done it with my gluts.
When I watched myself making this movement, I suddenly conjured an old memory – it was a memory of one of the dance classes I’d attended in my early thirties. I vaguely recalled using my gluts to bring my torso forward. And along with it came my dance teacher’s advice to use my glut muscles to move my torso forward and to jump upward.
This was an old memory that had stayed buried in my mind and that I’d never retrieved. It was part of the store of procedural memories – the muscle memories that are the result of oft-repeated movements, in this case, during a dance class in my youth. As the neurologist friend of my friend had told me, in the process of re-learning to walk, I would disinter buried procedural memories that would aid me in my rehab process. I felt a mixture of happiness and relief; I would finally walk with a cane, step by step.
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