The Thompson Method of Bodywork

An illustrated manual for using physical movement and alignment to resolve chronic pain and tension and work with the emotions

• Includes 90 exercises to work with emotions through the body and support the neck, shoulders, lower back, feet, and overall posture as well as breathing and voice

• Explains how to listen to the body’s signals to discover our physical and emotional blindspots--the weaknesses and misalignments at the root of our discomfort

• Draws on Zen shiatsu, Rolfing, yoga, and Gestalt psychotherapy to explain how transformation of physical structure corrects imbalances in the unconscious mind

Developed by Cathy Thompson through her many years as a bodywork therapist, the Thompson Method incorporates Zen shiatsu, Rolfing, yoga, and Gestalt psychotherapy to heal pain in the physical body both through bodywork and by recognizing the emotional blockages that often underlie chronic pain, tension, and poor alignment. In this practical manual, Thompson and her protégé-daughter Tara Thompson Lewis provide a deep understanding of body mechanics and how to work with emotions through the body. They explore how to listen to the body’s signals to discover our physical and emotional blindspots--the weaknesses and misalignments at the root of our discomfort--and explain how transformation of your physical structure can correct imbalances in the unconscious mind caused by repressed memories and emotional traumas.

Offering illustrated instructions for 90 corrective alignment exercises, the authors show how to release body tensions, realign the body’s dynamic structure, work with the deep postural muscles, and support the neck, shoulders, lower back, and feet to strengthen the emotional and physical body as well as improve singing, dancing, yoga, and posture while sitting at the computer. They also explore breathing and bodywork practices to release the vocal mechanism and free the voice for more fluid and powerful self-expression.

By recognizing and releasing the deeper emotional triggers beneath our physical complaints, the Thompson Method allows you to resolve chronic pains, increase body awareness and free movement, and create the foundation for good health and well-being.

Cathy Thompson (1957-2008) was an innovative bodywork practitioner with a private practice in Manhattan for 30 years. She worked with many famous singers, actors, athletes, and dancers. She studied Ohashiatsu at the Ohashi Institute and Gestalt psychotherapy at the Gestalt Institute of New York. She also taught workshops and trained students in the Thompson Method. Tara Thompson Lewis studied the Thompson Method intensively with her mother and was a Brooke Scholar at Oxford University before taking over her mother’s private bodywork practice. She lives in New York City.

Foreword by Ohashi

Acknowledgments

Preface by Tara Thompson Lewis

Introduction

PART ONE
Cathy Thompson’s Philosophy of Bodywork

1 Kyo and Jitsu

2 Structural Health: Symmetry, Space, and Flow Correct the Position of Your Thighbones

3 Mind/Body Working with Emotions through the Body “Switching” to Relax

4 What Is Tension?

5 Injury and Trauma

6 Pain

7 About the Exercises in This Book Using Kyo and Jitsu to Increase Body Awareness Taking a Kinesthetic “Photograph”

PART TWO
Cathy Thompson’s Exercises

8 The Head and Neck
Neck and Head Alignment
Jaw Release
Correcting Head Tilt
Enhancing Side-to-Side Balance of the Head
Moving Your Skull over Your Neck
Strengthen Your Neck Flexors
Advanced Strengthening Exercise for the Neck Stretch for the Neck

9 Breathing
Feeling Your Breath in Your Top Rib
Releasing Stuck Intercostals
Finding the Quadratus Lumborum
Balance Yourself
Freeing the Diaphragm: Freeing the Breath
Diaphragm Opening
Advanced Diaphragm Technique
Equalizing Breathing Pattern
Releasing the Shoulders
Finding the Action of Transverse Abdominis in Exhalation
Breathing Exercise for Diaphragmatic Problems
Breathing through Water

10 The Voice
Strengthen the Latissimus Dorsi and Serratus Anterior Muscles
Relax the Larynx, Jaw, and Tongue
Exercise for Tongue Tension
Working in the Mouth to Release Vocal Tension
Soft Palate Release: Advanced
Breath Pattern for Breaks in the Voice (at any place)

11 The Shoulders
Shoulder Joint Exercise
Exercise for Shoulder Alignment
Reposition the Shoulder Joint
Rotator Cuff Muscle Exercise
Shoulder Stretch Series

12 The Spine and Deep Core Muscles
Exercise for Multifidus in the Back, Especially the Lower Back
Spiral Pathway Exercise No. 1: Transverse Abdominis Exercise I
Spiral Pathway Exercise No. 2: Transverse Abdominis Exercise II
Spiral Pathway Exercise No. 3: Outer Spiral Exercise
Spiral Pathway Exercise No. 4: Lower Back Exercise with Physio Ball Arm Raise Twist
Variation on the Horse Stance
Exercise for the Paraspinals
Exercise for the Sacroiliac Joint
Wall Hang Stretch
Stretching the Back and the Neck
Using the Neck Roll
Using Props with the Thoracic Spine
Using Props with the Sacrum
Using Props with the Mid-Lower Back

13 Psoas, Hips, and Pelvis
Psoas Stretches
Advanced Psoas Stretch
Three Modified Psoas Stretches
Psoas Strengthening Exercise
Psoas Exercise for Lower Back Pain
Correcting the High Hip
Correcting Pelvic Rotation and Spinal Movement
Exploring Your Relationship with Gravity
Working with Your Pelvic Floor

14 The Abdomen and Vital Organs
Plank Exercise on Toes or Tops of Feet
Rebalance the Navel Pulse
Exercises to Treat Acid Reflux
Release the Vagus Nerve

15 The Knees
Muscle Exercises to Help the Knees
Meniscus Strengthener
Calf Raise Exercise
Knee Stabilizer Exercise

16 The Feet
Exercise for Aligning the Feet
Foot Workout Ankle Circles
Exercise for the Arches of the Feet
Deep Stretches for the Top of the Foot
Runner’s Stretch
Stretch the Achilles Tendon and the Deeper Calf Muscles

17 Ball Exercises
Warm-Up Exercises for the Back and Neck
Basic Ball Exercises
Advanced Ball Exercises for the Neck and Shoulders
Advanced Ball Exercise for the Jaw
Advanced Ball Exercise for the Diaphragm
Advanced Ball Exercises for the Sternum
Advanced Ball Exercises for the Pelvis
Advanced Ball Exercise for the Knees
Advanced Ball Exercises for the Feet

18 Ergonomics

19 For Bodyworkers: How to Do This Work
Work the Outer Cranial Bones (Skull)
Work the Inner Cranial Structures
Work the Anterior Spine
Pulling Down the Stomach
Pulling Down the Transverse Colon
Pelvic Floor Work

AFTERWORD: Bodywork Is about the Mother by Tara Thompson Lewis

Bibliography

Index