About Karen Swift
I am a Licensed Physical Therapist and movement teacher with 25 years of practical hands-on experience and training.
I have the following advanced education, training and credentials:
• Master of Science in Physical Therapy
• Bachelor of Arts in Kinesiology
• Guild Certified Feldenkrais® Practitioner
• Certified Hakomi Therapist™
• Certified Yoga Instructor
• Certified Qi Gong Instructor
• Certified Massage Therapist
• Bones for Life® Instructor
• Certified Sounder Sleep™ Instructor
Throughout my life, I have been dedicated to discovering the full expression of being alive. Through self-awareness and in-depth studies I continue to discover that my physical movement is a doorway to a better life. Creating choices in my movement creates choices in my life. When I expand my physical expression, I cultivate greater levels of wellness and fulfillment. With joy and skill, I engage my students in choosing a path of movement that expresses their presence, self–love and conscious action.
Karen Swift's Credentials
Physical Therapy
Master of Science Physical Therapy - University of Colorado Health Sciences 1991-1993 Ongoing Study
I received a Master’s of Science in Physical Therapy from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in 1993. Since then, I have been honing my physical therapy tools in manual therapies and movement science to enhance people’s movement capacities.
Kinesiology
Bachelor of Science In Kinesiology - University of Colorado at Boulder 1987-1991
Through completing this Bachelor’s degree in 1991 from the University of Colorado at Boulder, I was exposed to motor learning theory, exercise science and the biomechanics of human movement.
Feldenkrais®
Certified Feldenkrais® Practitioner, Santa Fe, NM 1994-1997 Ongoing Study
Feldenkrais is an extensive movement education system that emphasis altering the neuromuscular patterns of daily movement. Since becoming a Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner® in 1997, I have used this work as a foundation for guiding people to improve their movement.
Hakomi™
Certified Hakomi Therapist, Albuquerque, NM 2000-2002
In 2002, I became a certified Hakomi Practitioner. This mindfulness-based psychological therapy explores how emotional patterns and attitudes impact the physical body. Using present moment awareness, I am able to offer clients a deeper understanding of their limiting patterns of movement behavior.
Bones For Life™ Teacher Training Program Santa Fe, New Mexico 2010-Currently in training
Yoga Teacher Training, High Desert Yoga, Albuquerque, NM, 1994-1997
Certified Massage Therapist, Boulder School of Massage Therapy, Boulder, Colorado 1985-1986
Certified Qi Gong Instructor, Sheng Zhen Qi Gong, Albuquerque, New Mexico 2010
Certified Sounder Sleep™ Instructor, Albuquerque, New Mexico 2004
Karen Swift, The Beginning
Love’s Lead
It’s early morning, about four am. I awake to an unknown depth inside myself. The present darkness supports my yearning to connect. This is new, yet old. I slip onto the hardwood floor folding my legs for comfort. This small room was once a walk- in linen closet in an old mansion nested near the foothills of Pikes Peak. Now this is my sanctuary at seventeen years old. After four years of navigating roommates at this boarding school, I have earned a private room. There is just enough space for a single bed, a window and my yoga mat. One wall is lined with white cupboards and drawers, delighting my sense of order.
The quiet fosters an indwelling stillness. As I relax concerns of body and mind, a faint Loving Presence begins emerging. Gently I surrender the weight of my head resting my forehead on the ground. Following the lead of this indwelling Love, I am moved to stand. My body stretches upward as the geyser reaches beyond its pressured existence. My hands unite above my head. As water flowing my body folds forward. My arms and legs touch the firm earth, elongating my body into a wakeful state. Amidst this newness, there is an ancient longing to sense my Divine nature expressing through me. Gradually this longing fades as my attention is absorbed in sensations of stretching, lightness and pleasure. It is peaceful and yet isolated. I have lost my inner anchor. Humbly, I re-open to this Great Mystery. Subtly this quiet Love wafts back into my attention like a sweet fragrance arriving on a gentle breeze. My direction comes into focus. I am the juggler balancing body, mind and soul while I continually open to Love’s Mystery guiding this balancing act. This determination to move, breathe and live from my essential nature is now awake. Spontaneously, I celebrate my connectedness through consciously moving on this simple mat. Gradually the dark softens with the morning light and the bird’s early song draws me outward into this day.
Many Blessings, Karen