Flow – Practitioner Q & A: André ‘Loppa’ Laubner, Germany.

We see the flow of life, like a river – as one great flowing journey. The essential flow of life is achieved when we understand the concept of being in flow and can integrate it into everything we do.

As part of a regular series, we are asking Pantarei practitioners from around the world, to share with us some insights into their life, their work and what flow means to them.

Q. Tell us about yourself and what you do

My name is Andre but many know me as Loppa. I work as a somatic coach in a center for somatic learning in Berlin, Germany. I’m a licensed personal trainer, massage therapist, pain specialist (Liebscher and Bracht) and a Practitioner of the Pantarei Approach. I also work using nutritional advice and herbal remedies.

Along with my deep interest in the mind-body connection and holistic healing, two of my biggest passions are music and traveling. I spent 10 years traveling the world with my guitar and working in many different professions;as a shepherd in Switzerland, a dishwasher in Spain, on boats in Tenerife, picking grapes in France and working in kitchens, bars and cafés. I’ve been a clown in India for street kids, a bodyworker in Turkey and a dive instructor in Mallorca.

This of course meant I also lived in many different situations. I lived in caves on the beach in the Canary Islands for a year, India for a few years, I hitch-hiked all over Europe, and I lived in a monastery with monks. I have lived like a king and I have lived on the streets; I lived in people’s living rooms, and gardens; I lived in squats and in temples; I’ve lived in the jungle, the mountains, the forests, the beaches and cities.

Q. What touches you about Pantarei Approach?

The Pantarei Approach for me is such a journey – from both a personal and a professional point of view – and learning it has been a life changing experience. What touches me about the approach is that it is not only about understanding yourself, but it is about the experience. For a long time I knew how I wanted to react in certain situations, I mentally understood many things about myself, but it didn’t change how I felt, or how I could express myself in my life.

I remember one session that I had in the professional training course, because it was a personal milestone, where I really felt connected with all there is. There was no layer of separation between myself and the world. I could feel everything myself – the room, the people in it and the atmosphere – without judging it. I cried with joy at the feeling of that connection for 40 minutes. My body was shaking with such intensity. It was a deeply spiritual moment both physically and mentally for me – a real life changer. I would never have thought that an experience like this could happen simply by using words and touch.

I have had many more of these experiences with the Pantarei Approach, with similar intensity, ever since. I feel enabled to tap into this experience in my daily life. Even while I’m writing this, my body and soul remembers this experience and I’ve got tears of joy in my eyes. I found many answers to my questions, feeling the answers in myself and in my body. The sessions allowed me to take a bird’s eye view on my own life and be deeply engaged at the same time. I was able to relive past experiences that felt buried under thick layers, allowing me not only to understand them, but to experience that they are no longer in control in the present in my life.

Q. What does being in flow mean to you?

To me it means being in ‘thrive mode’ instead of ‘survive mode’. It is a state were the inner self is no longer in contradiction – where I drink in the experience, instead of analysing it. Being in flow is the sense of oneness and wholeness. It is to feel fully present with all my senses and with all of my being. There is no longer a want or a need to change, or to do. It is enough to feel curious with whatever there is – to experience the moment as if it would be the very first moment. To feel fully engaged without censoring the experience. It can be the smile of a child, a loving word from a friend, the gentle touch of a lover, a song, or just a certain look in someone’s eye. To me being in flow is a state where I fully emerge with the moment and it is open.

Q. How have you seen flow in action in your life?

It almost feels like I’ve had many different lives in this one life.One of the things I love about traveling is that it’s constantly forcing me to be spontaneous and improvise and conquer my fears. New situations, new people and cultures, different climates and environments are the centre of being in flow and leave little space for routinized patterns and boredom. I love the unknown of the adventure and to know that I don’t know what is next.

They say you can’t buy happiness but you can buy a plane ticket. After years of non-stop traveling, at the age of 25 I decided to take a little time to ground myself and stay in Berlin. I had struggles with depression, panic attacks, insomnia, obesity and addiction. It was a pretty dark time. First I searched for help in classic medicine, but the medication would make things worse. So I decided to help myself and look for other possibilities to make this life the most beautiful experience.

Looking back now, this horrible time has flowed into one of the most life changing and rewarding events of my life and in a way it changed the entire direction and purpose of my life. In my new direction I wanted to learn as much as possible in healing, understanding the mind and body myself, and others and how we connect. I have travelled this way ever since and I now wish to stay a student for ever – learning how to be better all the time. My depression, panic attacks and insomnia are long gone and I have learned so much on my travels – from books and from people, from courses and the world and all those rich experiences I have had.

Through the Pantarei Approach, I now feel that all this knowledge and my experiences can finally come together – they feel embodied and integrated. It is hard to describe but somehow it feels to me that I finally got the update of who I am now.Because of my own history and struggles I now want to share my experiences and findings with other people, helping them to connect to their inner strength and wisdom. My aim is to blend the old western philosophy with the western science based approaches. Not only to understand who they really are, but to embody it and to feel it, for a richer human experience. The Pantarei Approach gives me a beautiful umbrella to unify all that I learnt and gives me the ability to teach others in a empathic and transforming way.

By André ‘Loppa’ Laubner

You can contact Loppa by email or learn more about him, here on his Facebook Page.