I am director of the School for Experiential Education and, with my wife Teresa, offer postgraduate courses in 10 countries worldwide. I began studying Shiatsu in 1973 and was one of a small group of pioneers who started teaching courses in Europe in the late 1970’s. In 1980 I co-founded the Shiatsu Society in the UK.
My original career was in theoretical physics but in the late ‘70s my life changed and I started working with people rather than ideas. I studied Chinese Medicine with Ted Kapchuck, Body-Mind Centering with Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen and Wolfson Voicework as the core of a drama therapy course.
Although I have been inspired by several wonderful teachers, my major influencers were the children with cerebral palsy that I worked with in the 1980’s. They taught me to work with a person’s abilities rather than focusing on curing their problems. This transforms a person from a passive victim needing treatment to an empowered explorer being assisted in their self-development by the therapist.
My observation of infant movement development also provided an explanation of meridians that was consistent with tradition but also satisfying to my scientific mind. Out of this work grew a complete style of bodywork which I call Movement Shiatsu and a practice system called Inner Qigong.
They both focus on helping people to be aware of their bodies through movement and guided explorations. The hands-on work of the therapist acts as a guide to their self-exploration rather than a passive treatment. I find this work to be especially relevant to working with disability, chronic conditions, trauma and old age.