The Alexander Technique
We are all beautifully designed to meet the force of gravity with ease and buoyancy. We have extraordinary capacities for subtle balance and responsiveness. Why, then, are back pain, stress related illnesses, and a sense of being burdened a part of so many people’s lives? Clearly, we have somehow come to interfere with the natural coordination that is meant to support us in our activities.
In the absence of this support, compensatory tension and stress have become part of our habitual patterns of movement and response. These patterns are to a large extent unconscious, yet they have a powerful impact on our general well being. In certain cases they are even responsible for pain.
The aim of the Alexander Technique lesson is to restore postural reflexes that establish healthy alignment and easeful, well-coordinated movement. It is not a therapy and does not promise cures. Instead it teaches a process of conscious engagement with the fundamental mechanisms of balance. Because it addresses the coordination of all our movement it can have profound and far reaching effects. Students breathe more deeply, reduce their general level of tension, and feel relaxed and poised for action.