This article is from page 35 of the 2007-12-04 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 35 JPG
A THERAPY that promotes the prin- ciples of relaxation is now available in Clare with Mountshannon man Wolfgang Wiesmann at the helm. Originally from Germany, Wolf- gang moved to Clare a number of years ago and Mountshannon be- came his new home. After working for various organisations and groups like the Council for the Blind, the Brothers of Charity, St Anne’s School
in Ennis and the Steiner school, he branched out into the relatively new field of therapy autogenic training.
The core of autogenic training is a training course during which clients learn a series of simple exercises in body awareness and relaxation de- signed to switch off the stress-related ‘fight and flight’ system of the body and switch on the ‘rest, relaxation and recreation’ system.
Autogenic training has been used by people of all walks of life to en-
hance healing, performance and creativity.
It has been taught to international sports men and women to enhance performance, to airline pilots and crew to combat jet lag and fatigue, and in the business environment to optimise performance and concen- tration and reduce stress. It has even been used to help astronauts make the necessary environmental adjust- ments in space travel.
Wolfgang teaches autogenic train-
ing and emotional freedom tech- niques at his office at Bank Place in /Syaebay
‘“Autogenic training comes from re- laxation without exercise,’ explained Wolfgang. “It is particularly helpful for people who might not be able to exercise, like people who might be disabled or in wheelchairs.”
He continued, “For physical health your mind needs to be relaxed fully. It is used a lot in England where it 1s a fully recognized therapy.”