Hello, everyone! My name is Nancy Besser. Ever since I can remember, I envisioned having a fulfilling career focused on helping and serving other people. This desire has led me to many different paths throughout my life: I studied managerial economics as an undergraduate, psychology as a graduate, and opened a Pilates studio that specialized in Post-rehabilitative Conditioning, post-graduate. Based on this wide range of training, one infer that I am self-directed and self-motivated, and that each of my life experiences helped create who I am today. My background reveals an ability to thrive in multiple learning environments, as well as a sense of empathy for those struggling with physical or psychological discomfort. I have dedicated my life to furthering my education and knowledge base in order to better assist others.

Nearly a decade ago, I went through a life changing experience when I was a passenger in a serious car accident that left me with a separated AC joint in my right shoulder. Searing. That is the only word fitting to use to describe the pain I felt in my right shoulder. It was as though someone took a spear and permanently affixed it to my body via weaving it through each layer of muscle and tissue surrounding my shoulder in order that no part of the joint feel unscathed by the sharp, jagged edge of the weapon. Simply lifting my arm became an arduous task. I sought help from a respected physical therapist and began a slow and painful rehabilitation process. In the midst of my ongoing recovery, I managed to pursue my interest in psychology by completing a graduate studies degree at Golden Gate University.

After nearly a year of physical therapy treatment, I experienced some improvement but still had pain every day. I felt discouraged and frustrated with the instability of my shoulder joint and with not being able to participate in the activities I had enjoyed in the past. A friend suggested I visit a rehab Pilates practitioner to see if relief was possible. After only one session the pain lessened. Following a month of rehab Pilates sessions, my shoulder only hurt roughly 25 percent of the time and after six months the pain had disappeared altogether. Impressed beyond words with the change in my body, I declined acceptance into a doctorate program in neuropsychology and instead enrolled in an intensive Pilates instructor certification program. I chose the program offered by Turning Point Studios in Walnut Creek California because it focused on using Pilates as a form of physical therapy and rehabilitation.

Shortly after completion of the training curriculum I opened my own Pilates studio. The general consensus among my clients was that I excelled in customizing sessions to each individual’s need for overall body alignment and balance. Within a year I saw ten to twelve private clients daily and benefitted from word-of-mouth referrals from satisfied clients and local medical professionals. In my spare time, I studied kinesiology, anatomy and psychology texts for my own development as a teacher and student. My background in life coaching and psychology was very helpful when dealing with clients suffering from injuries, recovering from surgery, or even simply facing everyday stress. I showed them that sometimes a gentle approach is the best way to go about treating an injury.

The purpose of sessions with my clients was to help them feel empowered in their daily lives and activities. Often we collaborated to create new strategies for their patterns of movement. I helped clients discover that it was possible to without pain, even if it meant only moving a little bit at a time. My approach allowed them to regain range of motion and trust in their bodies. By using my psychology background and my training to understand muscular imbalances I could help my clients on multiple levels. For some clients, who had tried various approaches with minimal results, my approach buoyed their confidence and greatly increased their willingness to try new methods of rehabilitation. Due to my own experience with a debilitating injury, it was clear to my clients that I was just like them in my own way: I demonstrated that one could overcome a horrible injury by looking beyond perceived limitations.

As a rehab Pilates practitioner, I continue to further develop and refine the traits and skills I have acquired in both psychology and Pilates: patience, creativity, enthusiasm, attention to detail, and empathy. I love what I do; it is my passion. I am eager to explore new ways to help others who are frustrated and discouraged by their own limitations. I want to show them that they can achieve success in ways unique to their individual goals and activities. A successful teacher is one who possesses the ability to identify why a particular activity is important to each person and one who is willing to not judge any particular student’s path or progress. At this point in my life I want to understand how movement and activity offer healing to individuals on a deeper level.

My journey towards my personal “Balanced Place” is dynamic, and though the curve and elevation of the roads taken may change and evolve, the final destination of living without pain in a body that is balanced on all levels is firmly set deep within my mind as my only choice.