An Introduction to the Alexander Technique

How the Alexander Technique can help you.

The Alexander Technique takes its name from Frederick Matthias Alexander, who
first observed and formulated its principles between 1890 and 1900. He was a
Shakespearean orator who developed problems after losing his voice. After doctors
informed him there was no physical cause, he carefully observed himself in multiple
mirrors. This revealed that he was needlessly stiffening his whole body in
preparation to recite or speak. Alexander observed that many individuals
experiencing voice problems tightened the musculature of the upper torso, especially
the neck, prior to phonation in anticipation of the act of voicing; he suggested that
this pattern of tensing would rotate the head backwards and downwards in
relationship to the spine and disrupt efficient overall body alignment. Over the next
eight years, he attempted to change this habit, after which point, he found that his
pattern of voice loss had ceased. He believed this could be used to ease the
physical performance of any movement: sitting, standing, walking, using the hands
and speaking. He recorded his methods so as to make experimentation and training
repeatable. He also trained educators of his technique mainly while living in London,
UK from 1931 until his death in 1955.
The Alexander Technique is an intelligent way to solve body problems. Many
people are mystified by their own back pain, excess tension or lack of coordination.
We all have unconscious movement habits. Without realizing it, we put undue
pressure on ourselves. We use more force than we need to lift a teapot or a weight
bar. We slouch as we sit, unaware that our way of doing things gives our bodies a
certain look. We blame body problems on activities, carpal tunnel syndrome on
computer work, and tennis elbow on tennis. But often it is how we do something that
creates the problem, not the activity itself. We often see problems in our joints or
muscles as structural, unchangeable. But by using the Technique, we really can
make lasting changes in the way we walk, our degree of muscular tension or the
shape of our posture. We learn how dynamic and changeable the body really is. We
can improve our overall movement and achieve optimal health for both body and
mind. Young children have this natural poise. If you watch a toddler in action, you
will see an erect spine, free joints and a large head balancing easily on a little neck.
A healthy child walks and plays with perfect posture. But over the years, we lose that
flexibility.

An Alexander Technique teacher helps you see what in your movement style
contributes to your recurring difficulties. Analysing your whole movement pattern not
just your symptom the teacher alerts you to habits of compression in your
characteristic way of sitting, standing and walking. He or she then guides you with
words and a gentle, encouraging touch to move in a freer, more integrated way. The
Alexander Technique is usually learned from individual lessons with a teacher using
specialized hand contact and verbal instructions. The Technique is also taught in
groups, often using short individual lessons which in turn act as examples to the rest
of the class. The basic idea is that when the neck muscles do not overwork, the
head balances lightly at the top of spine. The relationship between the head and the
spine is of utmost importance. How we manage that relationship has ramifications
throughout the rest of the body. Our neuromuscular system is designed to work in
concert with gravity. Delicate poise of the head sparks the body's anti-gravity
response: a natural oppositional force in the torso that easily guides us upward and
invites the spine to lengthen, rather than compress, as we move. Instead of
slouching or holding ourselves in a rigid posture, we can learn to mobilize this
support system and use it wherever we go in the car, at the computer, in the gym.
Those who practice it often report that Alexander Technique gives them an
enhanced ability to clarify their thinking, gain objectivity about themselves and free
themselves from unintentional self-imposed limitations. It is curriculum in
performance schools of dance, acting, circus, music, voice and some athletic
training. Suitable for those starting at any fitness level, it is also used as remedial
movement education to complete recovery and provide pain management. It has
also been known to help performers with getting past the plateau effect performance
anxiety, getting beyond a supposed "lack of talent" and to sharpen discrimination
and descriptive ability. It has also helped people control unwanted reactions, phobias
and depression. Students often describe the immediate effect of a session as being
an unfamiliar feeling of lightness or expansion. During hands-on lessons, most pupils
report an immediate result of feeling less weighted down, despite their inability to
evoke or sustain this state by themselves. Other reported experiences include
altered perception of their voice or environment, noticing a change in self image, or
having temporary disorientations of where their body is located spatially.

Raine Hilton
www.goodvibesgirl.co.uk goodvibesgirl@live.com