If you suffer from
- Back, neck or shoulder pain
- Carpal tunnel syndrome or upper limb disorders
- Joint pain
- Headaches
- Performance anxiety
- Panic attacks
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If you are
- Stressed or anxious
- Lacking in vitality and general health
If you wish to improve your
- Posture
- Balance and co-ordination
- Breathing
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Then the Alexander Technique can help you!
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"Once Alexander had become aware of the misuse of his own body, he began to observe his fellow men, and he found that, at least in the modern western society, the majority of people stand, sit, and move in an equally defective manner." [1]
Prof. Nicholas Tinbergen, Nobel Laureate
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The originator of the Alexander Technique was an Australian, Frederick Matthias Alexander (1869-1955). He found that the manner in which we carry out our daily activities can have far reaching consequences regarding our general health and well-being, and more importantly he developed a method that can rectify this.
The Alexander Technique is a practical method that teaches people how to eliminate poor postural and movement habits. Alexander discovered that a certain dynamic alignment between the head, neck and spine is the key to maintaining proper posture, breath, and movement. He found that when this dynamic alignment is not being interfered with, the rest of the body will tend to right itself which will in the process alleviate many of the conditions that we suffer from as well as enhance our performance in the activities we undertake.
The Alexander Technique is learnt by undertaking a series of half-hourly one-to-one lessons. Lessons are not like Osteopathic, Chiropractic or Massage treatments where you are worked upon by a practitioner. You are not taught a set of stretches, postures, or movements that you might be in Yoga, Feldenkrais, Pilates, Tai Chi and Physiotherapy or at a fitness centre. You are not asked to perform a series of exercises for a set period each day but rather shown how to have a general awareness of yourself throughout all your day-to-day activities.
What you learn is a method of stopping and giving yourself directions before carrying out any act. These directions are to maintain a particular co-ordination of yourself throughout the act that will result in a free and efficient movement. The teacher will use their hands and verbal instructions to guide you in simple acts such as sitting, standing, walking, bending and speaking. The teacher is not primarily teaching you how to perform these acts correctly, but teaching you Alexander's method of stopping and giving yourself directions that can be applied to any act, whether it be cleaning your teeth, playing a musical instrument, typing on a keyboard or at your Pilates class. As the lessons progress you will become more and more able to apply this method in your daily life. The teacher's job is to put himself out of a job. That is to teach you enough so that you can go on learning by yourself.
[1] - From Nicholas Tinbergen's oration on receiving his Nobel Prize for Medicine/Physiology in 1973
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