Back Pain? Try the Alexander Technique

Posted January 29, 2008 at 12:00 PM by Denise Musumeci

Section: In The News, His Fitness, Alt. Therapies, His Health, Mental Health, Physical Health, Lifestyle Health

Do you suffer from back problems or have difficulty breathing normally? The source of you pain may lie with your posture. Over the course of a lifetime, many people pick up habits that affect their posture in a way where standing or sitting up straight is unnatural to them. Slouching becomes the natural stance, curving spines and causing pain in our backs and joints. F. Matthias Alexander came up with a solution over 100 years ago helps many people today improve their and overall feeling in their bodies.

The Alexander Technique places a great emphasis on releasing any unnecessary neck tension in order that the head balance lightly and freely on top of the spine. F. Matthias Alexander coined the phrase “primary control” to describe the relationship between the head and the neck.

For example, try the following.  Sit somewhere, place the palm of one of your hands on the back of your neck. (Let it rest there as if you were trying to leave an imprint.) Then decide to stand, while keeping your hand in place. You might stand quickly or slowly, in one movement or in stages; but pay close attention to what your hand is telling you is happening with your neck muscles. There will be a palpable degree of activity in your neck out of all proportion to what needs to be going on to keep the head supported, and way more than you would normally be aware of. If you run through this procedure often enough, you’ll gradually come to recognize unnecessary activity in your neck without needing verification from your hand. Learning to stand or sit - or do anything requiring a measure of effort - without tightening the neck unduly is the essense of how the Alexander Technique works.

Alexander first developed his technique as a method for vocal training in singers, but soon realized that a natural respiratory mechanism is the source of a vocal talent. Doctors have been using the Alexander technique to help people improve in other areas as well, such as lower back problems. Realizing that this breathing mechanism helped with other physical problems, Alexander knew that the body and mind are integrated, and are both psychophysical in nature. He soon developed his technique for psychophysical reeducation.

People are not born with unnatural coordination; they pick up habits from adults around them as babies. A one-year-old baby can sit upright with good posture very easily, but as they learn things from adults, they pick up the slouching, relaxed habits from their parents or other adults around them.

As they get older, slouching and unnatural posture feels perfectly normal and they lose their sense of good posture because sitting upright does not feel normal to them. This could ultimately alter how muscles grow, sense of balance, and motor skills. As the child ages and grows into an adult, they may experience unexplained back pain and find it more difficult to breathe, but do not feel like there is anything wrong with their posture.

By using the Alexander Technique, a child or adult can relearn proper posture and breathing mechanisms that will improve many areas of the body, including healthier breathing, more comfortable posture, improved movement, reduced back and joint pain, increased strength, and relief from excess tension. The Alexander Technique does not involve physical, spiritual, or medical therapy. The only thing it involves is training for the mind to change old habits for better ones.

The Alexander Technique will not teach you everything overnight. Those who want to reeducate themselves on their posture and breathing techniques need to take a series of lessons and constantly practice in order to successfully break old habits and settle into better ones. Alexander recommends that the student take at least thirty private lessons to successfully relearn new habits. Students should take a minimum of three lessons per week and read books that thoroughly explain how the Alexander Technique works.

The Alexander Technique is not designed to treat any specific symptoms of back pain, breathing problems, or arthritis. It is only used as an effort to improve overall health and reduce the stress on the body. It is also not meant for a passive learner, but a student with the discipline to apply their intelligence and energy into breaking bad habits so better ones will come naturally.

If you currently suffer from lower back problems, have trouble breathing properly, or have constant tension in your body, visit the Alexander Technique website or check out a book that maps out the Alexander Technique in great detail. It should not replace any physical therapy for a chronic condition, but it may help improve the way your body feels overall. Also, ask your doctor for more information about the technique to see if it is right for you.

Research sources and for more information: [mens fitness]; [alexandertechnique.com]; [life.uiuc.edu]; [alexandercenter.com]; [Alexander Technique Self Discovery]