by jane on October 30, 2011
Yesterday I went, as I do every year, to the AGM and seminar day of the British Autogenic Society. I am a Founder Member (1984), having trained in 1982, and have worked closely with BAS for many years.
Yesterday we presented 5 of the 10 most recently qualified members with their Diplomas in Autogenic Training. Much congratulation and joy!
The afternoon presentation was two hours of inspiring knowledge from another old-standing member: Dr Brian Kaplan. He has been teaching AT since 1987 (not as long as me!) alongside his practice in Homoeopathy. He stated yesterday:
‘If I had my way, I would make it mandatory for every GP surgery to run an Autogenic Training course every evening for their patients’.
He had explained the horrifying statistic that 70 – 80% of patient complaints are stress symptoms, or symptoms exacerbated (made worse) by stress. At any given time this figure is never less than 50%.
He said, ‘OK. Everyone knows this, and yet nothing is done about it. NOTHING! Everyone in this room knows how sad and unnecessary that fact is. Doctors and the health service (and therefore the patients too) all wait for real trouble to manifest itself, when in fact patients could be given the tools to help themselves and prevent serious illness’.
Dr Kaplan’s theme was the danger of medical research being too objective. Measuring outcomes of a method like AT is possible – we do not need random control trials for a non-drug method when there is plenty of anecdotal evidence showing that patients know when they feel better, and the doctor realises they have significantly reduced their visits to the surgery.
However, we ended the day with laughter – the other much-ignored medicine for good health.
by jane on September 13, 2011
Two people have recently finished AT courses with me. There is a certain pattern: they thank me, I congratulate them. They have done the work / made the changes. I teach the method, they put it into practice and with any luck profound changes occur.
The first (I shall call her Debbie) worked in a small group over 9 sessions. She wrote recently:
‘No one could have explained to me the difference it would make on me and my outlook on life! Even if they had I would not in a million years have believed them! AT has changed the way I look at myself and also the way I deal with stress and stressful situations in my life, for this I will never be able to thank you enough.
‘I have tried meditation, yoga and various other “relaxation” methods before but never had the motivation to carry them on afterwards. AT is so easy to do and so easy to fit into your life (no matter how busy your life is!), I will always make time to fit Autogenics in now – I look forward to it every day.’
The second (Carol) also worked in a group, and writes:
‘I have two minds (one inquisitive, the other sceptical). So I thought hard about signing up to a course, make the step and give it a try. It’s a decision I do not have a glimmer of regret in making.
‘I have explored various methods of relaxation, as throughout my life I have suffered periods of depression and anxiety. I’ve never been able to maintain these (other methods) for longer than a month or two, mainly because of the impracticalities of whatever props, music, clothing, breathing techniques or ambience needed to “get into the zone”.
‘Autogenics has been different. I’ve found the simple and practical relaxation exercises easy to fit into my lifestyle. Your support and guidance through my journey has been invaluable. I have completed the course feeling a much happier, healthier, calmer, patient, less tired and stressed, more focused, revitalised and complete person – both within my personal life and how I engage with others in my work life.’
Thank you Debbie and Carol. No wonder I like my job!
