*Words from Marisha* What Marisha’s practice looks like after breaking her elbow

One day In the fall of 2021, Marisha fell off her bike on her way to work and broke her elbow.

Six days and one very invasive surgery later, Marisha had gotten the best treatment available and was looking at a minimum of three months without the use of her right arm. What’s worse, no doctor gave her any indication that she would EVER have the full use of that arm again.

Marisha had a one-year-old. She had been starting to rebuild post-pregnancy AND post-pandemic, and now found herself unable to wash her own face, much less pick up her child.

So, she took things one day at a time. She had to learn to step back and let other people do things for her. Things like picking up her child, putting him in her arms so he could nurse, and then taking him back after.

She kept moving, in ways that she could.

“Instead of saying, ‘well sh**, I’m broken now,’ I stayed very committed to the idea that I’m broken now, but I’m still going to move. It’s not going to look the way it used to look, but I’m going to be really happy when it gets to the next place.’”

Sometimes that next place was a physical one - because, despite the fact that she had no promises whatsoever from her doctors, Marisha did, in fact, start to regain the use of her arm.

When she was finally able to touch her head again, that was a HUGE win. “I’m never going to do a handstand again, but I can wash my own hair. And I’m going to celebrate that.”

Sometimes that “next place” was an emotional one. Like last weekend, when Marisha got on the Reformer to do some armwork.

“Something I used to think of as a gentle move was incredibly painful,” she said. “I really felt, wow, there’s a long way for me to go. It was physically painful and so emotional… but I was WILLING to move the feelings through, and I celebrated THAT.”

Marisha approaches her work with her clients as a co-traveler - someone who is also on the healing path.

And she will be guiding a cohort of travelers through MOVEMENT MEDICINE: The 12-Week Chronic Pain Freedom Lab starting NEXT WEEK.

We’ve got a short application process to make sure it’s a great fit - we are committed to working with folks in ways that we KNOW we can help. So click here to apply - applications close on Monday!