Without the Alexander Technique
Texting and teeth brushing. What do these things have in common? They involve lifting our hands up to get things closer to our eyes, or teeth.
Without the Alexander Technique we mostly bring our eyes and teeth down, and the way we bring them down is by poking our neck forward and down.
Early on in Alexander Technique lessons it comes as a shock to people when they realize that the simple acts of texting, typing, brushing (or putting on make-up, shaving, combing hair, putting on glasses, eating, and on and on), compresses the spine. Spinal compression for these everyday actions is both unnecessary and damaging. Then why do we do it? For a combination of reasons including imitation, laziness, boredom, or fatigue. This may result from being unmindful, inattentive, unobservant and unaware. With repetition, it becomes a habit. It becomes how we do everthing; We start any motion with spinal compression.
The Alexander Technique and End-Gaining. Who’s on first?
End-gaining is doing something without regards to how you do it, and it’s the how that makes the Alexander Technique unique. With the Alexander Technique, what, when, where, and why, take a back seat to How. How is in the driver’s seat, while who and what ride in the passenger seats. To mis-quote Abbot and Costello: “Who is in the driver’s seat? No, How”. And the Alexander Technique helps how.
The Alexander Technique helps how?
To mis-quote the philosophy of Olivia Newton John: “Let’s get practical.”
When texting, or using a tablet, instead of bringing your neck down, bring the phone or tablet up, and:
Let it be as high or low as you want.
Use your eyes to look down at it.
Rotate your head forward by lowering your nose, and let the crown of your head go up.
Practice looking down by letting go of any tension in your neck, and then let your head tilt forward and go up.
Then, just lift your fingertips up gently holding the phone with the minimum tension needed.
Let your shoulders be out of the picture, and continue to leave your neck alone.
Don’t compress your spine to brush your teeth.
Brushing your teeth is very similar to texting or reading, how-wise. We still habitually, needlessly, harmfully compress our spine for no good reason.
If you bring your teeth down to your toothbrush, even slightly, you’re actually compressing your spine.
Instead of lowering your teeth by shortening your neck, move the toothbrush all the way up to your teeth.
Leave you neck alone as you text, brush your teeth, use the computer, read a book, talk, drive, and eat.
And the Alexander Technique helps how?
Exactly.
Comments always welcome.
Mark Josefsberg-Alexander Technique NYC
(917) 709-4648
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