I took part in the 30-day AEQ program for the upper part of the body because I had issues in my upper back. At first, I thought that my problems were the result of my sedentary lifestyle but then I experienced an “aha moment” which reminded me that I change my life in a completely new direction with willingness.

In the first week of the program, I was very excited about the slow and simple movements that I was doing consciously for the first time in my life. I could feel how can a movement that looked very unimportant positively affect the contraction in my back – I felt such incredible relaxedness in my back after many years. I was observing how can just one movement done slowly affect events in other parts of my back and how everything is interconnected. All I had to do is really focus on the exercises. They truly worked. They were lead with mastery and thoroughness – I knew exactly what I had to do and where to put my attention every step of the way. Every evening, when the time was meant only for me felt like quality use of time. I adapted my schedule and organized myself better to be able to participate in the program. I even removed some of my chores from my schedule because I noticed that they weren’t actually that important.

At first, I was a bit bothered by how direct Aleš was and how he was connecting back problems with emotional immaturity. I thought to myself that this must apply to other participant and not me – I was convinced I already dealt with immaturity and that I had my issues only due to sedentary lifestyle. The more time went on the more I was realizing that I was wrong and that somatic issue always show us a mirror of the issues that are deeper inside. Throughout the program more and more things came up from my past that I shoved under the rug because I either couldn’t handle them or because it felt more comfortable that way. The reconnection between my conscious and my subconscious opened a new, forgotten width, somatically and emotionally.

This program reminded me of the parts of me that respect themselves enough to be willing to sacrifice the destructive egoic habits and patterns and come back to the right path. The wrong path that I was on was a shortcut I thought would take me to my goals but I now see it would not.

After the program ended, I felt sadness. I took a break for a week and my sadness turned into apathy. After I started doing the exercises again, I felt the deep relaxedness come back which reminded me that learning is a fundamental part of life, that practice makes perfect and that AEQ creates miracles.

Tanja Jeromel