The Alexander technique is a method of helping you halt habitual ways of moving that cause tension and pain by targeting the habits wired into your brain, enabling you to move in a way that improves freedom and ease of movement. It is not a specific set of exercises, so no specific stretches or exercises must be performed, but learning the technique can help you perform your stretches, exercises and daily activities with improved efficiency while releasing tension from the body.
Sessions
The Alexander technique uses the student-teacher relationship to re-educate your body to be more mindful and aware of its movements and the habits that underlie these movements. The teacher might ask you to perform certain actions that might be seen as limiting by you, such as stretching, exercising or moving your body in any everyday activity, such as simply sitting down. The teacher uses touch and instruction to help you notice and bring awareness to the way you are performing that action so that you can release tension in that part of your body and remove the habitual way that you usually perform that action so that you can perform it more freely and easily.
Benefits
The Alexander technique, defined by dancer Glenna Batson as "the technique under all techniques," is famously used by actors, dancers and musicians as a way to enhance performance. The improved movement awareness might also help with muscular imbalances, chronic pain, performance difficulties, movement disorders and overuse injuries, according to an article in "Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics of North America," published in 2004. The technique can teach you a new way of moving, standing, sitting and stretching, enabling you to carry out your usual activities with less effort, energy and strain.
History
The originator of the Alexander technique was a man called F. Matthias Alexander. Born in Tasmania in 1869, Alexander was a successful actor who suddenly started having problems with his voice while performing. With no real answers from the medical community, Alexander embarked on a period of intense self-study and research during which time he discovered that the problem stemmed from the way he was thinking about and using his body. He discovered that certain principles affect the interaction of the mind with the body when it came to movement, and he used these principles to develop techniques that he went on to teach in the U.K. and USA until his death in 1955.
Considerations
Do not expect a series of stretches and exercises when you go to an Alexander technique teacher. If you have pain or discomfort associated with your stretching technique, which is caused by habitually performing your stretches in the wrong way, your Alexander technique teacher might be able to help you learn a new way of performing your stretches that enables you to move more freely and with less pain. It is also not a miracle cure for chronic pain associated with conditions such as arthritis. although it might help improve your range of motion while minimizing pain. The Alexander technique is not covered by most insurance policies and might require 30 to 40 sessions for the benefits to be seen.
References
- The Alexander Trust: History
- "Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics of North America: Alexander technique and Feldenkrais method"; Sanjiv Jain et al; 2004
- The Alexander technique: Dealing With Pervasive Habits
- The Alexander Technique: What is the Alexander Technique? What are the Benefits of Lessons or Classes?
- The Alexander Technique: The Alexander Technique
- The Alexander Technique: Its Role in Dance Training
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