Your questions, my answers

In four stages. First we talk about what brings you here, with nothing for you to prepare. Then we work out where things are stuck, with muscle testing when it is a kinesiology session. Then comes the work itself, through gentle movements. Finally we put words back around it, and you leave with one or two simple things to do again at home.

Not at all, and it is in fact very common. « I am not really sure why I am here, but something is wrong » is a perfectly good starting point. You have nothing to prepare, nothing to formulate in advance, no document to bring. We start from whatever is there on the day.

It depends on the session. For kinesiology and family constellations, you stay dressed from beginning to end. For Tuina massage, lymphatic drainage and maderotherapy I work under a sheet: only the area being worked is uncovered, the rest of the body stays covered. If you are shy about your body, tell me — I will pay all the more attention to it.

Allow an hour to an hour and a quarter for kinesiology, an hour and a half for Tuina massage and for lymphatic drainage, an hour for maderotherapy and for dry cupping. For family constellations, how long it takes depends on the format: we talk it through together before fixing the appointment. These timings are approximate — if needed, we take the time to welcome whatever needs to be welcomed.

That depends on you, and be wary of anyone who gives you a number over the phone. Some people come once, for one precise situation. Others find it useful to come back three to six times, two to four weeks apart. No package is sold in advance here: you decide each time.

No, never, and I am very clear about that. The sessions offered here are wellbeing support. They are not a diagnosis and they are not a treatment. I prescribe nothing and I give no opinion on anything prescribed by a doctor. If you are on any medication, carry on with it: what I offer comes alongside, never instead.

Yes, and you have every right to ask. I am trained in kinesiology by SYNAPKIN, in family constellations by TOTEM Formations, and in wellbeing massage by MAGIC HANDS. In a trade that is not regulated, training is the only objective marker you have: put that question to every practitioner you see, and change your mind if they bristle at it.

A wellbeing practice that questions the body rather than the mind. I apply light pressure to your arm — muscle testing — and use it as a pointer to steer the session. I then work with acupressure points, movement and breathing. You stay dressed, fully aware, and you can stop at any moment.

Two different trades, in spite of how close the French names are. The masseur-kinésithérapeute is a health professional: a state diploma, compulsory registration, procedures reimbursed on prescription. A kinesiologist carries out an unregulated wellbeing activity: no state diploma, no professional register, nothing reimbursed by the French health insurance, and no right whatsoever to make a diagnosis.

Very light pressure, from two fingers, on your outstretched forearm. You hold the position, I release, I start again. The muscle’s response acts as a pointer, not a verdict. It is painless, you stay fully aware from beginning to end, and you can stop whenever you want. A lot of people are surprised at how ordinary it feels physically.

No, and it is better said plainly. Using muscle testing to identify energetic, dietary or emotional issues is not validated by research. An absence of proof of effectiveness is not proof of ineffectiveness, but it does impose one simple rule: kinesiology diagnoses nothing, is not a treatment for anything, and never justifies stopping medical follow-up.

Yes, and it is ground I particularly like: I taught for twenty years before changing direction. With children I often work on primitive reflexes, those automatic movements present at birth. The session is done through play, on the floor, lasts around forty-five minutes, and the parent stays in the room if they wish. A medical check always comes first.

Yes. The massage is done with oil, on a couch, under a sheet: you are uncovered only on the area being worked, and the rest of the body stays covered at all times. Tuina works through pressure, kneading and stretching along precise pathways, and on acupressure points. Bring something to tidy your hair with if I work on the neck and shoulders.

No session is carried out where there is phlebitis or thrombosis, current or recent, an infection under way or a fever, unstabilised heart failure, or progressive cancer without your doctor’s explicit agreement. Add to that uncontrolled high blood pressure, severe kidney or liver failure, the first trimester of pregnancy, and any wound on the area. When in doubt, we move the appointment.

These are not two prices for the same thing. With a physiotherapist it is a medical procedure, on prescription, reimbursed, with bandaging and measurements — for lymphoedema or after surgery. Here it is wellbeing support, with no prescription and nothing reimbursed. If one leg swells on its own or does not go back down overnight, go and see your doctor, not me.

It varies a great deal from one person to the next, and nothing is measurable or guaranteed. People who come most often describe two to four days after a single session. Tiredness on the same evening happens sometimes, and passes overnight. If it comes with a fever or pain in the calf, it is not the session: call a doctor without waiting.

No, and nobody honest will tell you otherwise. Cellulite affects the great majority of women after puberty: it is a characteristic of fatty tissue, not an anomaly. There is no clinical trial showing that a massage with wooden tools reduces it lastingly. What people describe after a session is skin that feels smoother to the touch and a feeling of lightness, over a few days.

Redness, almost always, and it goes within a few hours. Real bruises, no: they would point to pressure that was too strong, or to a capillary fragility that needs taking into account. If you mark easily, say so at the start — the intensity adapts without any problem. Aching the next day, comparable to a sports session, happens sometimes and passes in a day or two.

It is the name given here to maderotherapy followed by manual lymphatic drainage within the same session. The logic is almost mechanical: the work with wood sets things moving, the drainage then accompanies them towards the collecting areas. If you already know drainage and found it a little too gentle, this combination is probably what you are looking for.

No. You need no dates, no names, no family tree already put together. Plenty of people arrive with a feeling and nothing else, and that is enough. What you are asked for is one question, a single one, put in one simple sentence. You never say more than you want to say, including in a group.

Never, under any circumstances. A constellation is not psychotherapy and I am neither a psychologist, nor a psychiatrist, nor a psychotherapist. In the case of depression, a recent bereavement, trauma, psychiatric care under way or dark thoughts, the priority is appropriate therapeutic support.

Yes, and it is in fact the best way to discover it. In a group you can come purely to stand for someone in another person’s constellation, without ever putting yourself at the centre or telling anything of your own story. Plenty of people start that way. Some never do more than that, and that is perfectly fine.

By phone only, on 06 98 70 03 47. I organise the constellations myself and I set the dates of the group sessions: we talk it through together, then we choose the format and the date that suit you. This session cannot be booked in the online diary.

No. In France, any incision of the skin is a medical act reserved for authorised health professionals; carrying it out without that title amounts to the illegal practice of medicine. I apply dry cups only, on intact skin, with no break in the skin at all — which belongs to wellbeing and is entirely lawful. Be extremely careful with anyone who offers you anything else.

Yes, red or purplish circles, which fade within three to seven days. It is not a bruise in the sense of a knock, but it does show. Bear it in mind if you have a wedding, a swimming pool or a photo session that week. The equipment used is single-use or sterilised, and you can ask to see it before we start.

Where there is anticoagulant medication, haemophilia or a clotting disorder, a pregnancy, severe anaemia or markedly low blood pressure. Add to that broken skin, eczema or psoriasis in an active phase on the area, cancer under treatment, kidney or liver failure, diabetes with fragile skin, a fever or an infection under way. Mention any medication beforehand, not halfway through.

The price depends on the session and on how long it lasts. Up-to-date prices are shown at the moment you choose a slot in the online diary, and you can also ask me directly on 06 98 70 03 47: I take the time to answer. Payment is made on the spot, in cash, by French cheque or by bank transfer.

Not by the French health insurance. Some private complementary insurers (mutuelles) do include an annual allowance for « médecines douces » which can cover kinesiology sessions, on presentation of an invoice — one is given to you on request. The amounts and the eligible disciplines vary a great deal from one contract to another: call your insurer before booking, it takes five minutes.

Online, through the practice diary, where available slots appear in real time. You can also call 06 98 70 03 47 if you would rather talk before fixing anything: I answer myself. Family constellations, on the other hand, are booked by phone only. End-of-day slots go quickly, so plan a little ahead. Mention any medication under way or a pregnancy before the session.

Yes, and even on Sundays. Au Fil de Soi, 4 place d’Ainay in Lyon (69002), is open on Wednesdays from 8 am to 8 pm, on Saturdays, and on Sundays from 10 am. I keep those weekend slots for people who are not free during the week. Sessions are by appointment only: use the online diary or call 06 98 70 03 47.

I am Besma Satouri, and I welcome you at the Cabinet Au Fil de Soi, 4 place d’Ainay, in Lyon (69002) — the Ainay district, on the Presqu’île, in the middle of Lyon. People also come to me from Bellecour, from the 1st arrondissement, from the Vieux Lyon in the 5th, from the 7th, the 6th and the 3rd, from Villeurbanne and from Sainte-Foy-lès-Lyon. By appointment only.

The simplest way is Métro Ampère — Victor Hugo, on line A: allow three minutes on foot to 4 place d’Ainay. Place Bellecour is seven minutes away, Gare de Lyon-Perrache eight, and the Basilique Saint-Martin d’Ainay stands on the square, directly opposite. By car you are in the middle of the Presqu’île: there is no reserved space outside the door, so coming by métro or on foot is almost always the quicker choice.