The Alexander Technique For Dummies is a slight put-down. ‘Calculus For Dummies’, ‘Biology For Dummies’, ‘Basket Weaving For Dummies’ , ”The Alexander Technique For Dummies’ are all slight put-downs. I realize these titles actually mean for beginners, but ‘For Dummies’ is a derogatory term. The only ‘For Dummies’ book I can think of that would not a put down and would, in fact, be uplifting and inspirational would be ‘Ventriloquism For Dummies’…

“It’s not what you do, it’s how you do it. The Alexander Technique is the how of how you do anything.” Those phrases have been spoken countless times by Alexander Technique teachers at Alexander Technique lessons. The Alexander Technique is the how of everything you do. It’s how you sit at the computer, more than just that you’re sitting at the computer, that might lead to bad posture, neck pain, back pain, or shoulder pain. As an Alexander Technique teacher I help people sit at the computer, stand, and walk, with more ease and less tension. This results in improved posture, pain relief, and an overall sense of well-being.
There is also another angle, however, regarding how you use the Alexander Technique; it’s what you don’t do…

Do Alexander Technique Teachers Accept insurance?
This question comes up quite frequently with people inquiring about lessons in the Alexander Technique. And why not. One way or the other we pay quite a lot for health insurance. Most health insurance companies here in New York State will not pay for Alexander Technique lessons…

If you have back pain or neck pain, health insurance companies will cover doctors who might prescribe painkillers or muscle relaxers, and then refer you to physical therapists. If that doesn’t work the next stop is surgery. While physical therapists can be great for some problems, they are not always the answer.

Can The Alexander Technique help with Chronic Back Pain Management?
Can the Alexander Technique help with chronic back pain management is a question I often hear as an Alexander Technique teacher. Can the Alexander Technique help with chronic back pain management, can the Alexander Technique help with chronic neck pain management, can the Alexander Technique help with chronic low back pain management? My very short answer is yes.
The Alexander Technique teaches you a way…

The Alexander Technique, or the Alexander Method, is a system used to help a person’s overall functioning. It was designed, or created by F.M. Alexander (1869-1955) who was an actor having vocal problems. …

Asking a prospective teacher ‘how many Alexander Technique lessons will I need?’ is a fair question. However, if you ask that to a piano teacher, she might answer: “to do what?” Playing chopsticks is one thing; playing a concerto is another. People ask Alexander Technique teachers that question all the time…

Alexander Technique instructors have to coach during Alexander Technique lessons. It is not enough to know and be able to teach Alexander Technique principles; you want to know both how to apply them yourself and show students how to apply them. In addition, encouragement is vital because the student may be changing lifetime habits. This takes energy and dedication from the student, and an empathetic…

The Alexander Technique has a unique way of addressing body/mind unity. Although this forward was written significantly before detailed brain imagery and the advances of neuroscience and embodied neuroscience, much of what Aldous Huxley writes here, and what F.M. Alexander wrote, has been shown to be accurate. “Bodily states affect mental states.” The Alexander Technique, at a minimum, works with one’s bodily states. The Alexander Technique liberates one from “the systematic oppression of his bad habits…

…I just did it amping up the principles of the Alexander Technique. I used the principles of the Alexander Technique by letting go of the extra, un-needed tension in my neck, allowing my head to rotate forward, and up. My head led my spine into length and I thought upwards as I went down to the kitchen bags, but just by bending my knees and letting my hip joints move backwards.
I don’t know if I made the process more fun, but the Alexander Technique (or, the Alexandra Technique) changed it. The first thing I noticed was that I was noticing…

…the Alexander Method, however, works differently. Though with Alexander Technique lessons back pain relief is sometimes quickly and dramatically gained, Alexander’s simple method gets more to the root of the back pain. And the root of the problem, quite often, is us. Back pain (and neck pain) is exacerbated by compressing our spines all day and all night long. We slump at out computers (like now?)…