Alexander technique

Definition

The Alexander technique is a somatic method for improving physical and mental functioning. Excessive tension, which Frederick Alexander, the originator, recognized as both physical and mental, restricts movement and creates pressure in the joints, the spine, the breathing mechanism, and other organs. The goal of the technique is to restore freedom and expression to the body and clear thinking to the mind.

Description

Frederick Matthias Alexander was born in 1869 in Tasmania, Australia. He became an actor and Shakespearean reciter, and early in his career he began to suffer from strain on his vocal chords. He sought medical attention for chronic hoarseness, but after treatment with a recommended prescription and extensive periods of rest, his problem persisted.

Alexander realized that his hoarseness began about an hour into a dramatic performance and reasoned that it was something he did in the process of reciting that caused him to lose his voice. Returning to his medical doctor, Alexander told him of his observation. When the doctor admitted that he didn't know what Alexander was doing to injure his vocal chords, Alexander decided to try and find out for himself.

Thus began a decade of self-observation and discovery. Using as many as three mirrors to observe himself in the act of reciting, normal speaking, and later standing, walking, and sitting, Alexander managed to improve his coordination and to overcome his vocal problems. One of his most startling discoveries was that in order to change the way he used his body he had to change the way he was thinking, redirecting his thoughts in such a way that he did not produce unnecessary tension when he attempted speech or movement. After making this discovery at the end of the nineteenth century, Alexander became a pioneer in body-mind medicine.

At first, performers and dancers sought guidance from Alexander to overcome physical complaints and to improve the expression and spontaneity of their performances. Soon a great number of people sought help from his teaching for a variety of physical and mental disorders.

The Alexander technique is primarily taught oneon-one in private lessons. Introductory workshops or workshops for special applications of the technique (e.g., workshops for musicians) are also common. Private lessons range from a half-hour to an hour in length, and are taught in a series. The number of lessons varies according to the severity of the student's difficulties with coordination or to the extent of the student's interest in pursuing the improvements made possible by continued study. The cost of lessons ranges from $40-80 per hour. Insurance coverage is not widely available, but discounts are available for participants in some complementary care insurance plans. Pre-tax Flexible Spending Accounts for health care cover Alexander technique lessons if they are prescribed by a physician.

In lessons teachers guide students through simple movements (while students are dressed in comfortable clothing) and use their hands to help students identify and stop destructive patterns of tension. Tensing arises from mental processes as well as physical, so discussions of personal reactions or behavior are likely to arise in the course of a lesson.

The technique helps students move with ease and improved coordination. At the beginning of a movement (the lessons are a series of movements), most people pull back their heads, raise their shoulders toward their ears, over-arch their lower backs, tighten their legs, and otherwise produce excessive tension in their bodies. Alexander referred to this as misuse of the body.

At any point in a movement, proper use can be established. If the neck muscles are not over-tensed, the head will carry slightly forward of the spine, simply because it is heavier in the front. When the head is out of balance in the forward direction, it sets off a series of stretch reflexes in the extensor muscles of the back. It is skillful use of these reflexes, along with reflex activity in the feet and legs, the arms and hands, the breathing mechanism, and other parts of the body, that lessons in the technique aim to develop.

Alexander found that optimal functioning of the body was very hard to maintain, even for the short period of time it took to complete a single movement. People, especially adults, have very strong tension habits associated with movement. Chronic misuse of the muscles is common. It may be caused by slouching in front of televisions or video monitors, too much sitting or driving and too little walking, or by tension associated with past traumas and injuries. Stiffening the neck after a whiplash injury or favoring a broken or sprained leg long after it has healed are examples of habitual tension caused by injury.

The first thing a teacher of the Alexander technique does is to increase a student's sensory awareness of this excessive habitual tension, particularly that in the neck and spine. Next the student is taught to inhibit the tension. If the student prepares to sit down, for example, he will tense his muscles in his habitual way. If he is asked to put aside the intention to sit and instead to free his neck and allow less constriction in his muscles, he can begin to change his tense habitual response to sitting.

By leaving the head resting on the spine in its natural free balance, by keeping eyes open and focused, not held in a tense stare, by allowing the shoulders to release, the knees to unlock and the back to lengthen and widen, a student greatly reduces strain. In Alexander lessons students learn to direct themselves this way in activity and become skilled in fluid, coordinated movement.

— Sandra Bain Cushman

Frederick Matthias Alexander (1869-1955) was an Australian actor and Shakespearean reciter who suffered persistent loss of voice during performance. Although the treatments prescribed by his doctor, combined with rest, succeeded in restoring his voice, this was only a temporary solution. The problem returned as soon as he went back on the stage. Alexander put it to his doctor that the cause must lie in the way he was using his voice, in something that he was doing. Although the doctor agreed, he couldn't say what was wrong. Alexander decided, therefore, to find out for himself.

Over a period of years, beginning in about 1892, Alexander made careful observations of himself and experimented with the way in which he spoke. He did this with nothing more elaborate than a simple arrangement of mirrors. He discovered a pattern of habits which were putting a strain on his larynx and which were responsible for his vocal problems. Through his efforts to change his habits and restore his voice to its proper functioning, he discovered a great deal about human co-ordination and created the method which is taught today as the Alexander Technique.

The particular habits which were the source of Alexander's problem included the tendency to pull his head back and down upon his spine, depress his larynx, and gasp in air through the mouth. These habits were not difficult to discover, though he had not noticed them before. What was really difficult however, was to change them. His repeated failures forced him to reconsider some common and basic assumptions about how the human organism works.

One such assumption was the idea that specific habits can be dealt with separately. Alexander discovered, to the contrary, that specific habits are inseparable from the whole. The way he used his head, neck, larynx, and his breathing were all tied up with everything else he was doing. He found that the solution was to change the way he co-ordinated his action as a whole. When he improved the quality of his co-ordination, the specific habits improved as a consequence. This illustrates the principle of psycho-physical unity, which is central to the Alexander Technique. The individual always acts as a whole, which includes all mental and physical processes.

Alexander also had to reconsider his reliance on the sense of feeling. For he saw that at critical moments he was not doing what he felt he was doing. Even though he felt he was speaking without pulling back his head, the mirror showed otherwise. He had discovered unreliable sensory appreciation. He learned that to change his habits he had to rely on reasoning, for the sense of feeling only enables the repetition of familiar, habitual actions. It could not guide him into a new experience. In the Alexander Technique, you maintain a series of thoughts to direct your co-ordination, rather than relying on the sense of feeling.

The Alexander Technique is a method you can use to change your habitual patterns of co-ordination. It is a skill which you can apply in any circumstance. The first step is inhibition, which is the refusal to act immediately. The second step is direction, which involves thinking of the optimum pattern of co-ordination. This optimum pattern consists of a certain relationship between head, neck, back, and limbs, which is referred to as the primary control. The third step is to make a conscious choice, whether to go ahead with the original intention, do nothing at all, or do something different. These procedures must be unpacked and expanded with the help of a teacher in order for them to be accurately understood.

The improvements in Alexander's voice, and in his health in general, were striking. He was soon in great demand to teach his technique to other actors and singers. As they learned to correct their habits of co-ordination on a general basis, they too experienced greater control in performance and an improvement in functioning in all areas. Poor co-ordination and the chronic strain it entails is associated with problems as diverse as backache, migraine, arthritis, digestive disturbances, circulatory disturbances, breathing disorders, acne, eczema, insomnia, anxiety, neurosis, and depression. When he saw that improvements in co-ordination led to corresponding improvements in health, that use determines functioning, Alexander realized that he had discovered something more important than vocal development, and gave up the stage to devote himself to teaching full time. In 1904 Alexander came to London, armed with letters of introduction from prominent Sydney doctors and specialists who urged him to seek wider recognition. Later he also took his technique to the U. S. Between 1914 and 1924 he spent half of his time there and half of his time in London.

The Alexander Technique is fundamentally educative, in that people learn to improve the way in which they use themselves in any activity. They learn a skill which gives them greater control over themselves. Yet, as Alexander discovered with his first pupils, it is very difficult for people to put this into practice with only a verbal explanation. He evolved a way of putting his hands on people to guide them away from their fixed habits and into a better co-ordination. This use of the hands is often misunderstood. It is not therapeutic, but is instructive for the student who is learning to put the technique into practice. Alexander also discovered that individual attention was of utmost importance. Lessons in the Alexander Technique are given on a one to one basis.

The Alexander Technique is often grouped with alternative therapies. However, it is neither a therapy, nor is it alternative. It is founded on the same scientific process of investigation as any orthodox practice. It is based on the evidence, not yet fully appreciated by modern medicine, that our psycho-physical habits in the daily activities of life play a significant part in determining our state of health and performance.

The Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique in London, and affiliated societies in other countries, oversee and certify the training of teachers, who must undergo a 3-year practical training programme. Teachers are increasingly accepted in scientific and medical circles, for even though the technique represents an approach to human problems which is new and challenging, it does not conflict with any established anatomical or physiological principles. When Nikolaas Timbergen won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1973 he devoted a portion of his oration to praise the value of Alexander's technique, and to confirm its scientific standing.

— Tasha Miller, David Langstroth

Bibliography

• Alexander, F. M. (1985 [1932]). The use of the self. Gollancz, London.
• Barlow, W. (1973). The Alexander Principle. Gollancz, London

See also mind-body interaction; movement, control of.

A technique that corrects established defects of posture, particularly those related to the back when lying, sitting, standing, or walking. According to its deviser, the Australian therapist F.M. Alexander, the technique promotes relaxation and can help eliminate aches, pains, and other disorders associated with muscle tension and poor posture.

Definition

The Alexander technique is a somatic method for improving physical and mental functioning. Excessive tension, which Frederick Alexander, the originator, recognized as both physical and mental, restricts movement and creates pressure in the joints, the spine, the breathing mechanism, and other organs. The goal of the technique is to restore freedom and expression to the body and clear thinking to the mind.

Origins

Frederick Matthias Alexander was born in 1869 in Tasmania, Australia. He became an actor and Shakespearean reciter, and early in his career he began to suffer from strain on his vocal chords. He sought medical attention for chronic hoarseness, but after treatment with a recommended prescription and extensive periods of rest, his problem persisted.

Alexander realized that his hoarseness began about an hour into a dramatic performance and reasoned that it was something he did in the process of reciting that caused him to lose his voice. Returning to his medical doctor, Alexander told him of his observation. When the doctor admitted that he didn't know what Alexander was doing to injure his vocal chords, Alexander decided to try and find out for himself.

Thus began a decade of self-observation and discovery. Using as many as three mirrors to observe himself in the act of reciting, normal speaking, and later standing, walking, and sitting, Alexander managed to improve his coordination and to overcome his vocal problems. One of his most startling discoveries was that in order to change the way he used his body he had to change the way he was thinking, redirecting his thoughts in such a way that he did not produce unnecessary tension when he attempted speech or movement. After making this discovery at the end of the nineteenth century, Alexander became a pioneer in body-mind medicine.

At first, performers and dancers sought guidance from Alexander to overcome physical complaints and to improve the expression and spontaneity of their performances. Soon a great number of people sought help from his teaching for a variety of physical and mental disorders.

Benefits

Because the Alexander technique helps students improve overall functioning, both mental and physical, it offers a wide range of benefits. Nikolaas Tinbergen, in his 1973 Nobel lecture, hailed the "striking improvements in such diverse things as high blood pressure, breathing, depth of sleep, overall cheerfulness and mental alertness, resilience against outside pressures, and the refined skill of playing a musical instrument." He went on to quote a list of other conditions helped by the Alexander technique: "rheumatism, including various forms of arthritis, then respiratory troubles, and even potentially lethal asthma; following in their wake, circulation defects, which may lead to high blood pressure and also to some dangerous heart conditions; gastrointestinal disorders of many types, various gynecological conditions, sexual failures, migraines and depressive states."

Literature in the 1980s and 1990s went on to include improvements in back pain, chronic pain, postural problems, repetitive strain injury, benefits during pregnancy and childbirth, help in applying physical therapy and rehabilitative exercises, improvements in strain caused by computer use, improvements in the posture and performance of school children, and improvements in vocal and dramatic performance among the benefits offered by the technique.

Description

The Alexander technique is primarily taught one-onone in private lessons. Introductory workshops or workshops for special applications of the technique (e.g., workshops for musicians) are also common. Private lessons range from a half-hour to an hour in length, and are taught in a series. The number of lessons varies according to the severity of the student's difficulties with coordination or to the extent of the student's interest in pursuing the improvements made possible by continued study. The cost of lessons ranges from $40-80 per hour. Insurance coverage is not widely available, but discounts are available for participants in some complementary care insurance plans. Pre-tax Flexible Spending Accounts for health care cover Alexander technique lessons if they are prescribed by a physician.

In lessons teachers guide students through simple movements (while students are dressed in comfortable clothing) and use their hands to help students identify and stop destructive patterns of tension. Tensing arises from mental processes as well as physical, so discussions of personal reactions or behavior are likely to arise in the course of a lesson.

The technique helps students move with ease and improved coordination. At the beginning of a movement (the lessons are a series of movements), most people pull back their heads, raise their shoulders toward their ears, over-arch their lower backs, tighten their legs, and otherwise produce excessive tension in their bodies. Alexander referred to this as misuse of the body.

At any point in a movement, proper use can be established. If the neck muscles are not over-tensed, the head will carry slightly forward of the spine, simply because it is heavier in the front. When the head is out of balance in the forward direction, it sets off a series of stretch reflexes in the extensor muscles of the back. It is skillful use of these reflexes, along with reflex activity in the feet and legs, the arms and hands, the breathing mechanism, and other parts of the body, that lessons in the technique aim to develop.

Alexander found that optimal functioning of the body was very hard to maintain, even for the short period of time it took to complete a single movement. People, especially adults, have very strong tension habits associated with movement. Chronic misuse of the muscles is common. It may be caused by slouching in front of televisions or video monitors, too much sitting or driving and too little walking, or by tension associated with past traumas and injuries. Stiffening the neck after a whiplash injury or favoring a broken or sprained leg long after it has healed are examples of habitual tension caused by injury.

The first thing a teacher of the Alexander technique does is to increase a student's sensory awareness of this excessive habitual tension, particularly that in the neck and spine. Next the student is taught to inhibit the tension. If the student prepares to sit down, for example, he will tense his muscles in his habitual way. If he is asked to put aside the intention to sit and instead to free his neck and allow less constriction in his muscles, he can begin to change his tense habitual response to sitting.

By leaving the head resting on the spine in its natural free balance, by keeping eyes open and focused, not held in a tense stare, by allowing the shoulders to release, the knees to unlock and the back to lengthen and widen, a student greatly reduces strain. In Alexander lessons students learn to direct themselves this way in activity and become skilled in fluid, coordinated movement.

Precautions

Side Effects

The focus of the Alexander technique is educational. Teachers use their hands simply to gently guide students in movement. Therefore, both contraindications and potential physiological side effects are kept to a minimum. No forceful treatment of soft tissue or bony structure is attempted, so damage to tissues, even in the case of errors in teaching, is unlikely.

As students' sensory awareness develops in the course of Alexander lessons, they become more acutely aware of chronic tension patterns. As students learn to release excessive tension in their muscles and to sustain this release in daily activity, they may experience tightness or soreness in the connective tissue. This is caused by the connective tissue adapting to the lengthened and released muscles and the expanded range of movement in the joints.

Occasionally students may get light-headed during a lesson as contracted muscles release and effect the circulatory or respiratory functioning.

Forceful contraction of muscles and rigid postures often indicate suppression of emotion. As muscles release during or after an Alexander lesson, students may experience strong surges of emotion or sudden changes in mood. In some cases, somatic memories surface, bringing to consciousness past injury or trauma. This can cause extreme anxiety, and referrals may be made by the teacher for counseling.

Research & General Acceptance

Alexander became well known among the intellectual, artistic, and medical communities in London, England during the first half of the twentieth century. Among Alexander's supporters were John Dewey, Aldous Huxley, Bernard Shaw, and renowned scientists Raymond Dart, G.E. Coghill, Charles Sherrington, and Nikolaas Tinbergen.

Researchers continue to study the effects and applications of the technique in the fields of education, preventive medicine, and rehabilitation. The Alexander technique has proven an effective treatment for reducing stress, for improving posture and performance in school-children, for relieving chronic pain, and for improving psychological functioning. The technique has been found to be as effective as beta-blocker medications in controlling stress responses in professional musicians, to enhance respiratory function in normal adults, and to mediate the effects of scoliosis in adolescents and adults.

Training & Certification

Before his death in 1955, F.M. Alexander formed the Society for Teachers of the Alexander Technique (STAT) in London, England. The Society is responsible for upholding the standards for teachers of the technique. In the late 1980s, due to rapid growth of the Alexander teaching profession, STAT authorized replication of its certification body in many countries worldwide.

The American Society for the Alexander Technique (AmSAT) oversees the profession in the United States. Teachers are board certified according STAT standards. They must receive 1600 hours of training over three years at an AmSAT approved training program. Alexander Technique International (ATI), a second organization for teachers in the United States, has varied standards for teacher certification.

Resources

Books

Caplan, Deborah. Back Trouble - A new approach to prevention and recovery based on the Alexander Technique. Triad Communications: 1987.

Dimon, Theodore. THE UNDIVIDED SELF: Alexander Technique and the Control of Stress. North Atlantic Books: 1999.

Jones, Frank Pierce. Freedom To Change - The Development and Science of the Alexander Technique. Mouritz: 1997, imported (First published 1976 as Body Awareness in Action.)

Periodicals

Stern, Judith C. "The Alexander Technique: An Approach to Pain Control." Lifeline (Summer 1992).

Tinbergen, Nikolaas. "Ethology and Stress Diseases." England Science 185 (1974):20-27.

Organizations

American Society for the Alexander Technique, 401 East Market Street (P.O. Box 835) Charlottesville, VA 22902 USA. (800) 473-0620; or (804) 295-2840. Fax: 804-295-3947. alexandertec@earthlink.net.

Alexander Technique International, 1692 Massachusetts Ave., 3rd Floor, Cambridge, MA 02138 USA. (888) 321-0856. Fax: 617-497-2615. ati@ati-net.com.

Other

Alexander Technique Resource Guide. (includes list of teachers) AmSAT Books, (800) 473-0620 or (804) 295-2840.

Nielsen, Michael. "A Study of Stress Amongst Professional Musicians." STAT Books London, 1994.

Reiser, Samuel. "Stress Reduction and Optimal Psychological Functioning." Lecture given at Sixth International Montreaus Congress on Stress, 1994.

[Article by: Sandra Bain Cushman]

A technique that corrects established defects of posture, particularly with regard to the back when lying, sitting, standing, or walking. According to its deviser, the Australian therapist F. M. Alexander, the technique promotes relaxation, and can help eliminate aches, pains, and other disorders associated with muscle tension and poor posture.

This article contains weasel words, vague phrasing that often accompanies biased or unverifiable information. Such statements should be clarified or removed. (December 2009)

Alternative medical systems

Acupuncture • Anthroposophic medicine • Ayurveda • Chiropractic • Herbalism • Homeopathy • Naturopathy • Osteopathy • Traditional medicine (Chinese • Tibetan)
NCCAM classifications
Whole medical systems • Mind-body interventions • Biologically based therapies • Manipulative therapy • Energy therapies
See also
Alternative medicine • Glossary • People
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The Alexander technique is an alternative medicine and educational discipline focusing on bodily coordination, including psychological principles of awareness. It is applied for purposes of recovering freedom of movement, in the mastery of performing arts, and for general self-improvement affecting poise, impulse control and attention.

The Technique takes its name from F. Matthias Alexander, who, in the 1890s,^[1] developed its principles as a personal tool to alleviate his breathing problems and hoarseness and hence enable him to pursue a career as a Shakespearean actor.

Teachers use demonstration, explanation, and repeated examination of what spontaneously occurs in the student. Light hand contact is also used to detect the student's unnecessary physical and mental stresses. Hands-on suggestions are offered in the context of everyday actions such as sitting, standing, walking, using the hands, and speaking. Assistance with sports, hobbies, or the performing arts may be requested by students as further topics of personal interest.^[2]

Contents 1 History 2 The Technique 2.1 Basic premises 2.2 Disadvantages 2.3 Benefits 2.4 Influences since Alexander's work 3 Teaching 4 Scientific evidence 5 See also 6 References 7 Notes

History

Alexander was a Shakespearean orator who developed problems which resulted in losing his voice. After doctors informed him they could find no physical cause, he carefully observed himself in multiple mirrors. His use of the empirical scientific method of reasoning revealed that he was needlessly stiffening his whole body in preparation to recite or speak. Further, Alexander observed that many individuals experiencing breathing and voice problems commonly tightened the musculature of the upper torso, especially the neck, prior to phonation in anticipation of the act of voicing. He suggested that this habitual pattern of dropping the head backwards and downwards in relationship to the spine needlessly disrupted efficient overall body alignment. After innovating new substitution strategies that included sharpening his ability to choose that new response, he found that his old pattern of voice loss ceased entirely. His new process also allowed the discovery of additional improvements towards his original intention to become a better orator.

Alexander came to believe that his work could be applied to improve longevity and human evolution in general. He developed the quality of his "work" (termed Alexander Technique after his death) so as to make his process of experimentation and self-training repeatable. He recorded his experiences in four books. He also trained educators of his Technique while living in London from 1931 until his death in 1955. Teacher training classes were interrupted during the wartime period between 1941 and 1943, which Alexander spent teaching pupils with his brother Albert Redden Alexander (1874–1947) in Massachusetts, USA.

The Technique

Basic premises

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) defines the Alexander technique as an education/guidance practice to "improve posture and movement, and to use muscles efficiently."^[3]

The Alexander Technique is considered to be primarily an educational process to be practiced by the student, rather than a curative treatment or therapy. Generally, it does not consist of routine exercises, but is meant to be applied in any moment when quality improvements are desired during action. For this reason, F.M. Alexander preferred not to recommend exercises for his students to perform, and most Alexander teachers follow this intent. Alexander's approach was to emphasize the use of freedom to choose beyond conditioning in every action.

The exceptions are two prescriptive forms or exercises intended to be done in separate but brief practice times. A procedure recommended to all students is lying semi-supine as a means for effective rest, releasing muscular tension and as an opportunity to use the conscious mental "Directions" Alexander devised. The other procedure is termed a "Whispered Ah," used to subtract unnecessary effort from the use of the voice.

Freedom, efficiency and patience are the prescribed values. Proscribed are unnecessary effort, self-limiting habits as well as mistaken assumptions. Students are led to change their previous habitual and largely automatic routines that are interpreted by the teacher to currently or eventually be physically limiting and structurally inefficient. The Alexander teacher provides verbal coaching while monitoring, guiding and preventing unnecessary habits at their source with specialized hands-on assistance to show what is meant. This specialized assistance requires Alexander teachers to demonstrate on themselves the improved physical coordination they are communicating to the student.^[4]

Alexander developed his own terminology to talk about his methods, outlined in his four books. These terms were created to describe the sometimes paradoxical experience of learning and substituting new improvements.

"Sensory Appreciation"

F. M. Alexander insisted on the need for strategic reasoning and "Constructive Conscious Control" because kinesthetic sensory awareness is a relative sense, not a truthful indicator of fact. The current postural attitude is sensed internally as a normal state of affairs, however inefficient. Alexander's term, "debauched sensory appreciation" describes how the repetition of a circumstance encourages habit design as a person adapts to circumstances or builds skills. Once trained and forgotten, completed habits may be activated without feedback sensations that these habits are in effect, just by thinking about them.^[5] Short-sighted habits that have become harmful over time, such as restriction of breathing or other poor postural attitudes that limit freedom of movement & shorten stature, will stop after learning to perceive and prevent them.

"End-Gaining"

Another example is the term "end-gaining", which means to focus on a goal so as to lose sight of the "means-whereby" of how the goal could be more appropriately achieved. According to Alexander teachers, "end-gaining" increases the likelihood of selecting older or multiple conflicting coping strategies with the potential for needless cumulative, ongoing self-injury. End-gaining actions are usually carried out because a more imperative priority justifies it, which is usually impatience or frustration.

"Inhibition"

In the Alexander Technique lexicon, the principle of "inhibition" is considered by teachers to be the most prominent. F.M. Alexander's selection of this word pre-dates the modern meaning of the word originated by Sigmund Freud. Inhibition describes a moment of conscious awareness of a choice to interrupt, stop or entirely prevent an unnecessary habitual "misuse." As unnecessary habits are prevented or interrupted, a freer capacity and range of motion resumes, experienced by the student as a state of "non-doing."

"Primary Control"

This innate coordination that emerges is also described more specifically as "Primary Control". This is a key head, neck and spinal relationship. The body's responses are determined by the qualities of head and eye movement at the inception of head motion. What expands the qualities of further response is a very subtle nod forward to counteract backward startle pattern, coupled with an upward movement of the head away from the body that lengthens the spine. Students learn to include their whole body toward their intention of purposeful motion.

"Directions"

To continue to select and reinforce the often less dominant "good use," it is recommended to repeatedly suggest, by thinking to oneself, a tailored series of "orders" (also termed Directions.) "Giving Directions" is the term for thinking and projecting an anatomically corrected map of how one's body is designed to be used effortlessly. "Directing" is suggestively thought, rather than willfully accomplished. This is because when freedom is the objective, the appropriate responses cannot be anticipated but can be observed and chosen in the moment.

"Psycho-physical Unity"

Global concepts such as "Psycho-physical Unity" and "Use" describe how thinking strategies and attention work together during preparation for action. They connote the general sequence of how intention joins together with execution to directly affect the perception of events and the outcome of intended results. ^[6]

Disadvantages

In the United Kingdom, there is some coverage of the costs for Alexander lessons through the Complementary and Alternative Practitioners Directory. Otherwise, individuals must pay for their Alexander Technique education out of pocket. Those who are used to getting instant results may complain at a commitment of twenty to forty private lessons, which is the duration most Alexander teachers recommend that is required to gain proficiency. Private lessons usually cost in a similar range to private music lessons.

Inexpensive classes are rarely available. Workshops do exist, but usually do not last long enough to fulfill educational requirements for most students, who must then attend additional private lessons if they want to gain proficiency. Outside of the United Kingdom there is little or no insurance coverage, and the Technique's effectiveness is also not yet recognized.

Practicing the Alexander Technique cannot directly affect structural deformities once they occur (such as arthritis or other bone problems), or other diseases, (such as Parkinson's, etc.) In these cases, the Alexander Technique can only mitigate how the person copes with these difficulties.

The learning process often demands giving up "favored" ways of thinking and acting. This challenge can result in unanticipated and illogical defensiveness and apparently willful resistance. If a student must halt lessons at an awkward stage, this can leave them without practical solutions for the "bad" habits they have just learned to sense.

Benefits

The Alexander Technique is used remedially to regain freedom of movement. It is used to undo the establishment of nuisance habits by performers, and it's used as a self awareness discipline and a self-help tool to change specific habits.

These first application areas include alleviating pain and weakness as a result of poor posture or repetitive physical demands, improving pain management for chronic disabilities, and rehabilitation following surgery or injury where compensatory habits that were designed to avoid former pain need to be revised after healing. The Alexander technique has been shown to be an effective treatment for chronic or recurrent back pain in a randomized study published Aug. 19, 2008.^[7]

As an example among performance art applications, the Technique is used and taught by classically trained singers and vocal coaches. Its advocates claim that it allows for the proper alignment of all aspects of the vocal cords and tract through consciously increased air flow. With this increase of breathing capacity, singers are said to be better able to exercise proper vocal technique and tone. Because the Technique has allegedly been used to improve breathing and stamina in general, advocates of the technique claim that athletes, people with asthma, tuberculosis, and panic attacks have also found benefits.

Along the application of self-help, proponents of the Technique suggest that it can help performers manage stage fright, become more spontaneous, and to increase skill repertoire. It is suggested that A.T. can be an adjunct to psychotherapy for people with disabilities, Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, panic attacks, stuttering, and chronic pain because using its principles can improve stress management abilities.^[8][9][10]

Influences since Alexander's work

The English novelist Aldous Huxley was strongly influenced by F. M. Alexander and the Technique so much so that he included him as a character in the pacifist theme novel Eyeless in Gaza published in 1936.^[11]

The American philosopher and educator John Dewey was very favorably impressed by F. M. Alexander and the Technique. In 1923, Dewey wrote the introduction to Alexander's magnum opus Constructive Conscious Control of the Individual.^[12][13] Since Alexander's work in the field came at the turn of the century, his ideas influenced many originators in the field of mind-body improvement. Fritz Perls, who originated Gestalt Therapy, credited Alexander as an inspiration for his psychological work.^[14] The Feldenkrais Method and the Mitzvah Technique were both influenced by the Alexander Technique, in the form of study previous to the originators founding their own disciplines. The Alexander Technique is one of the three healing arts that formed the foundation of Nia Technique. John Appleton, Alexander Technique teacher, has originated a variation which uses visualization techniques called Posture release imagery. David Gorman, formerly working as an Alexander Technique teacher trainer, originated a variation called LearningMethods using the systematic exploration of experience to understand the psychological root of problematic habits and change them.

Teaching

Alexander taught his technique to pupils for thirty years before creating a school to train other teachers to pass on his work. Today, the UK Society of Teachers of The Alexander Technique and its worldwide affiliates certify Alexander Technique teachers after successfully completing a three-year, 1600-hour curriculum from teaching lineage traced to Alexander.^[15][16]

The technique is most commonly taught in a series of twenty to forty private lessons which may last from thirty minutes to an hour. Its principles have also been adapted to be taught in groups, often using short individual lessons demonstrated in turn which act as examples to the class.^[2]

Scientific evidence

In 1999, Dennis ran a controlled study of the effect of Alexander Technique on the "Functional Reach" (associated with balance) of women older than 65. He observed a significant improvement in performance after 8 sessions, but this improvement was not maintained in a one-month follow-up.^[17] Further, in 2004 Maher concluded that "Physical treatments, such as ... Alexander technique ... are either of unknown value or ineffective and so should not be considered" when treating lower back pain with an evidence-based approach.^[18] (Note that Alexander Technique teachers recommend more than three times or more as many lessons than 8 to retain educational benefits.) Finally, in 2002, Stalibrass et al. published the results of a significant controlled study into the effectiveness of the technique in treating Parkinson's disease. Four different measures were used to assess the change in severity of the disease. By all four measures, Alexander Technique was better than no treatment, to a statistically significant degree (both P-values < 0.04). However, when compared to a control group given massage sessions, Alexander technique was only significantly better by two of the measures. The other two measures gave statistically insignificant improvements (P-values of approximately 0.1 and 0.6). This appears to lend some weight to the effectiveness of the Technique, but more studies and data are required.^[19]

While there is an abundance of anecdotes which suggest that Alexander Technique instruction contributes to improved vocal quality and vocal health (including its apparent success in treating the vocal health issues of its creator, F.M. Alexander), only two studies of AT use with voice were found,^[20][21] neither of which was published in peer-reviewed journals. In both, there was an apparent attempt to measure the effects of Alexander's work on voice and to analyze some data; however, neither methodology nor statistics were provided to lend scientific credence to the interpreted results (e.g., representative sampling, control groups or blind testing) or acoustic measurements (i.e., microphone type, microphone placement, microphone directionality, recording environment, recording media – all of which could affect the spectral characteristics of the recording). Thus, while both studies may report actual effects, one cannot have confidence that they demonstrate anything more than possibly placebo improvements without the inclusion of carefully designed methodologies, legitimate metrics or statistical analysis. With regard to the claims made for reducing the need for medication in patients with asthma, (in 1999,) Dennis concluded that additional "robust, well-designed randomized controlled trials are needed."^[22]

A 2008 randomised controlled trial published in the British Medical Journal found marked improvement in addressing back pain with this technique. Those receiving 24 lessons had 3 days of back pain in a four week period, 18 days less than the control median of 21 days. The cohort receiving 6 lessons had a reduction of ten days in days-of-pain reported. Outcomes were also measured by Roland disability scores, a measure of the number of activities impaired by pain, with a control baseline of 8.1. 24 lessons reduced this by 4.14 points, while six lessons combined with exercise produced a reduction of 2.98.^[7] A subsequent analysis and comparative study of the economic implications concluded that "a series of six lessons in Alexander technique combined with an exercise prescription seems the most effective and cost effective option for the treatment of back pain in primary care."^[23]

See also

• Feldenkrais Method
• Mitzvah Technique
• Posture release imagery

References

• Alexander's four books are all in many editions and reprints. These are the first editions:^[24]
  • Alexander, F. Matthias (1910). Man's Supreme Inheritance. London: Methuen. 
  • Alexander, F. Matthias (1923). Constructive Conscious Control of the Individual. New York: E.P. Dutton & Co. 
  • Alexander, F. Matthias (1932). The Use of the Self. New York: Dutton. 
  • Alexander, F. Matthias (1941). The Universal Constant in Living. New York: Dutton. 

• Alexander, F. Matthias (1932). The Use of the Self (1985 ed.). London: Orion Books Ltd. ISBN 0752843915. 
• Brennan, Richard (May 1997). The Alexander Technique Manual. London: Connections UK. ISBN 1-85906-163-x. 
• Jones, Frank Pierce (May 1997). Freedom to Change; The Development and Science of the Alexander Technique. London: Mouritz. ISBN 0-9525574-7-9. 
• Jones, Frank Pierce (1999). ed. Theodore Dimon, Richard Brown. ed. Collected Writings on the Alexander Technique. Massachusetts: Alexander Technique Archives. ISBN ATBOOKS058. 

Notes

1. ^ Rootberg, Ruth (September 2007). "Voice and Gender and other contemporary issues in professional voice and speech training". Voice and Speech Review, Voice and Speech Trainers Association, Inc, Cincinnati, OH 35: 164–170. doi:10.1016/S0030-5898(03)00088-9. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Arnold, Joan; Hope Gillerman (1997). "Frequently Asked Questions". American Society for the Alexander Technique. http://www.alexandertech.org/misc/faq.html. Retrieved 2007-05-02. 
3. ^ "Manipulative and Body-Based Practices: An Overview". U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health. Updated March 2007. http://nccam.nih.gov/health/whatiscam/manipulative/D238.pdf. Retrieved 2009-04-18. 
4. ^ Improvement in Automatic Postural Coordination Following Alexander Technique Lessons in a Person With Low Back Pain - W Cacciatore et al. 85 (6): 565 - Physical Therapy
5. ^ Body_Learning - An_Introduction to the Alexander Technique, Macmillan, 1996 ISBN_0805042067, quote p. 74, an article in New Scientist by Professor John Basmajian entitled "Conscious Control of Single Nerve Cells"
6. ^ McEvenue, Kelly (2002). The Actor and the Alexander Technique (1st Palgrave Macmillan ed.). New York: Macmillan. pp. 14. ISBN 0312295154. http://books.google.com/books?id=ixvTPRlcSMoC. 
7. ^ ^{a b} Paul Little et al.,Randomised controlled trial of Alexander technique (AT) lessons, exercise, and massage (ATEAM) for chronic and recurrent back pain, British Medical Journal, August 19, 2008.
8. ^ The Definitive Guide to The Alexander Technique provided by STAT - The Society of Teachers of The Alexander Technique
9. ^ Aronson, AE (1990). Clinical Voice Disorders: An Interdisciplinary Approach,. 
10. ^ Vigeland, C (December 2000). "The Answer to a Stress Test". Sports Illustrated Golf Plus 35: 57. doi:10.1016/S0030-5898(03)00088-9. 
11. ^ Aldous Huxley, Eyeless in Gaza, Harper and Brothers, 1936
12. ^ F. M. Alexander, Constructive Conscious Control of the Individual, E. P. Dutton & Co., 1923, ISBN 0-913111-11-2
13. ^ John Dewey vs. the Alexander Technique
14. ^ http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/112411834/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0 A note on the influence of F. M. Alexander on the development of gestalt therapy by Roger Tengwall, School of Social Sciences, University of California, Irvine
15. ^ "The Definitive Guide to The Alexander Technique provided by STAT - The Society of Teachers of The Alexander Technique". The Society of Teachers of The Alexander Technique. 2007. http://www.stat.org.uk/pages/teachertraining.htm. Retrieved 2009-04-19. 
16. ^ "Professional Training in the AlexanderTechnique A Guide to AmSAT Teacher Training". The American Society for the Alexander Technique. 2006. http://www.alexandertech.org/training/TrainBroch.pdf. Retrieved 2009-04-19. 
17. ^ Dennis, RJ (1999). "Functional reach improvement in normal older women after Alexander Technique instruction". Journals of Gerontology Series a : Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences 54 (1): M8–11. doi:10.1016/S0030-5898(03)00088-9. PMID 10026656. http://biomed.gerontologyjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/54/1/M8. 
18. ^ Maher, CG (January 2004). "Effective physical treatment for chronic low back pain". The Orthopaedic clinics of North America 35 (1): 57–64. doi:10.1016/S0030-5898(03)00088-9. ISSN 0030-5898. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=15062718&dopt=medline. Retrieved 2007-05-01. 
19. ^ Stallibrass, C; P Sissons, C Chalmers (July 2002). "Randomised Controlled Trial of the Alexander Technique for Idiopathic Parkinson's Disease" (PDF). Clinical Rehabilitation 16 (7): 695–708. doi:10.1191/0269215502cr544oa. PMID 12428818. http://www.londonalexander.co.uk/CR544%5B1%5D.pdf. Retrieved 2007-05-01. 
20. ^ Jones, FP (1987). Body Awareness in Action: A Study of the Alexander Technique. 
21. ^ Harris, C; S Pehrson (1993). "Using the Alexander Technique in Voice Therapy". Speech and Language Therapy in Practice 2 (3): 565–78. doi:10.1016/S0030-5898(03)00088-9. 
22. ^ Dennis, J (2000). "Alexander technique for chronic asthma". Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (2). doi:10.1002/14651858.CD000995. http://www.cochrane.org/reviews/en/ab000995.html. 
23. ^ Sandra Hollinghurst et al.,Randomised controlled trial of Alexander technique lessons, exercise, and massage (ATEAM) for chronic and recurrent back pain: economic evaluation,British Medical Journal, 11 December 2008.
24. ^ Mouritz: F.M. Alexander Bibliography

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