The Alexander Technique

The Alexander Technique

By Lilah Brand, M.S., P.T.

The Alexander Technique is a method of self-awareness as one goes through activities of daily living. This technique helps one to let go of tensions that may be responsible for aches and pains that effect our musculoskeletal and neurological systems. It is a re-education in which you learn how to use your body appropriately, avoiding stresses on bones, joints and internal organs. You learn to become proactive in your life rather than reacting habitually to a given situation.

The basic tenet is that when the neck muscles are not overworked, the head is poised at the top of the spine. This balance ignites the body’s anti-gravity response. This response is an oppositional force in the torso that easily guides us upward and invites the spine to lengthen instead of compressing when we move.

Frederick Mathias Alexander was an Australian born in 1869. His profession as an actor required him to recite. In doing so he began to have a problem with hoarseness and sought medical attention. Doctors and voice coaches could not remedy his problem. Upon self-observation he noticed that he pulled his head back and down and that his entire spine was compressed. He realized that his body was in a pattern of misuse that involved his entire body and not just one area. His entire body affected the way any one area of it functioned. He realized the key was to look at the whole instead of the part.

The pillars of the technique include three concepts. The first is the head-neck-torso unit. By correcting the way these body parts are used, faulty habits may diminish or disappear. Secondly, mental instructions or directions are simply instructions used to guide the body. Lastly, inhibition is the conscious stopping of a habitual response.

The Alexander Technique has been useful in helping people with a variety of physical dysfunctions. It has been applied to people who have sustained traumatic injuries, people with neck, back and hip dysfunctions, repetitive stress injuries, neurological and respiratory dysfunction, posture and balance disorders, and pain management. Patients or students can attain a more upright posture with less muscular tension in the neck, back and shoulders.

Physical therapists may integrate ideas from the Alexander Technique while treating their patients. Using verbal and tactile cues to treat dysfunction in rehabilitation is done every day; giving patients cues in a different way may help to enhance the rehabilitation process. Training to become an Alexander teacher is a three year / 1600 hour process.

For more information contact:

The North American Society of teachers for the Alexander Technique

(NASTAT) 1 800-473-0620.

The complete guide to the Alexander Technique at:

alexandertechnique.com