Landmarks of the red-hued kind are Sedona’s calling card. While inspired by them constantly, Pilates expert and wellness professional Hayley Healey focuses more on the landmarks inside each us, those that guide and shape our movement patterns, and the deep connection between the mind and the body.
If writing a self-improvement book were akin to penning one’s autobiographical path to maintaining wellness and taking the next step in a well-planned professional career, then first-time author Healey has achieved just that with “Re-Pattern: A neuromuscular re-patterning guide for healing and loving your mindful body, spirit & journey.”
“My calling is to create situations when people feel good in their bodies, more aligned and reconnected with their whole,” she said. “We work with a whole system, since our emotional, physical and spiritual states are all connected.”
Offering a science-based, real-world approach, Healey’s method starts with a structural alignment assessment prior to re-patterning work based on her trademarked Body Landmark Method, which focuses on critical postural keys. For example, the “three-diamond zip” is what she calls the “foundational core engagement that supports the function of all other body landmarks” as it connects the key core muscles to the pelvic floor and “sit muscles.” After this most essential landmark, re-patterning then focuses on proper breathing, proper spine angles, all the way to the nuances of how we use our extremities. There is no set timeframe, as every person must work on their own optimal schedule, she says.
“How do we unpattern and re-pattern? How do we change a neurological habit that has been ingrained? We find a better guide, a better mental and physical place for each person to be in,” Healey explained. “People’s stories and emotions also come up. They held themselves a certain way because of an event or emotion, and they begin to realign, have a paradigm shift, become empowered, take ownership of their body after having allowed disconnection to happen. When you start to connect with yourself, you are able to shine outward to the world and be a happier person.”
She also finds that by highlighting the common, epidemic posture issues humans face, clients realize they are not the only ones with this issue and become more compassionate with themselves and others.
“We are expected to just survive. We don’t listen to our pain. So, we go into a path of least resistance with compensations. Our body becomes a clouded place and we become disconnected.”
While the core of her work continues to be one-on-one studio sessions that include reformer work and light manipulation, the idea of the book is to give clients a framework and support system, but also to reach more people who can gain from her method.
“It’s really about what people do outside the studio,” she explained. “Daily postures and emotional stress are critical. I’m just a facilitator in this work and the book extends my ability to do so.”
Healey knows some of her studio clients will be surprised by the book’s autobiographical elements, especially the role her older brother Nick’s physical and related psychological challenges played in shaping her life and career. Faced with a lack of human growth hormone during critical childhood development, Nick developed obesity and depression related to experimental treatments, and ultimately, schizophrenia.
“My work is rooted in the fact that I saw how much pain he was in,” Healey said. “He had a lot of pain in his body and his mind. I developed my intuition young and have a lot of empathy.”
Healey says she is happy to lose studio clients who are successful; however, many still come in for maintenance visits and are adding the book to their tool kit.
Being based in Red Rock country, drawing inspiration and rejuvenation from the landscape, Healey says her work is not defined by Sedona, but augmented by its natural essence. With stunning vistas and opportunistic photos from her “backyard,” Healey makes good use of Sedona’s photogenic backdrop to create the sense of self-betterment inherently required to succeed.
The path that brought her here included moving on (at least for now) from a concept that was becoming key to her work: franchised studios. While in Oregon and working with partners, she had three studios up and running, a prototype of the franchise, and wanted to someday be a global entity. “But that dream wasn’t the path and you have to stay true to your path,” she said. “I needed to get this work out and help as many people as possible. I think masses. It is my calling. The book is designed for people to help themselves. My dream is to help anyone who wants to reconnect, realign and feel better in their bodies, be who they are supposed to be in the world.”
Located in the ever-evolving commercial plaza at the southern end of the Village of Oak Creek, The Collective, Healey’s studio is the new laboratory/studio for her healing method. Branding the operation as the Re|Pattern Center – including Hayley’s Movement Progressions and husband Shawn’s Dragon Koi business and individual coaching – and building on the book’s title, the studio is located at 7000 Hwy 179, Suite A-106. Their first retreat will take place in September and include all relevant methods the Healeys can offer people looking to be their best self. Visit campdragonkoi.com for more information. FBN
The book is available signed at the studio or at hayleyhealey.com, or unsigned at Amazon.com.
By Tom Vitron