Alexander Technique is an educational process which assists with retraining the body’s habitual, cumulative patterns and physical behaviours in terms of posture and movement. It provides you with a set of tools for self-development, and a skill to help you combat many types of pain.
Once you know the technique, you can apply it to all areas of your life, including career, sports and leisure.
This simple and practical method results in improvements in overall health and wellbeing, including more energy, better balance and greater focus, concentration and confidence.
The therapy itself consists of a series of highly individualised, gentle, guided 1:1 sessions, or small group workshops and classes. The therapist assesses your posture and current range of movement, highlighting any discrepancies and long-standing postural habits which might be causing you pain, stress, tension or discomfort.
You will learn to recognise your patterns, and together with your teacher, work to adjust and correct your posture and movement for daily activities such as sitting, standing, bending, general movement and any activities which are part of your general lifestyle.
By re-establishing your natural stance and balance in all you do, your body will automatically function more efficiently, which has a direct impact on your physical, mental and emotional health.
Frederick Matthias Alexander (1869 – 1955) started developing his technique in the 1890s, in order to help himself regain his vocal strength, after he lost his voice during a public speaking address.
As a Shakespearean orator, he was not ready to give up his passion, so started to experiment and observe himself in multiple mirrors, coming to the conclusion that the displacement of his head, tight neck muscles and shortened stature when preparing to speak were disrupting his correct stance, therefore affecting his breathing and his voice.
He realised that poor posture habits have a direct correlation on our overall health, our voice and confidence, and the Alexander Technique was born gaining the endorsement of many of his influential peers, who had experienced the benefits of the technique for themselves.
Today, Alexander Technique is recommended by osteopathic and medical clinics to address numerous health issues and is widely used in the performing arts sector by musicians, dancers and actors, and also by sports professionals.
