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Old 08-21-2013, 06:19 AM   #2
Mary Eastland
 
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Dojo: Berkshire Hills Aikido
Join Date: Aug 2002
Posts: 1,476
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Re: Teaching injured or elderly students? Is Aikido for everyone?

Hey Saud:

We had 1 student named Jean that started Aikido when she was 69. She trained until she was in her late 70s. She went at her own pace and was a good example to me about taking care of myself. When the rest of the class started back rolls, it sometimes took Jean the whole time to get down to the mat for 1. Yet she did her one...it was very important to her.

I encourage people to radically take care of themselves. I believe part of learning Aikido is being able to speak up about injuries. Getting on the mat when you have an injury and training with a regular class takes a lot of courage and patience. I work hard at supporting people who are accepting themselves as they are and training with the body and mind they have for that moment.

If you never have had an injury you might not understand the need to train though one...just because we get older and sometimes more sore does not stop our desire to further our understanding of Aikido.

This can be a time for you to work on patience and acceptance. The line is where the student and teacher agree upon. I had one student who wanted to train in a neck brace because he had just had his vertebrae in his neck fused. I would not let him on the mat. Good luck.

Mary Eastland

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