Humans are so accustomed to the stress and tension that we carry it with us throughout our day that, unless we are in pain, we rarely notice it. Yet, it has a powerful impact on our health and on every goal we set out to accomplish.

The potential of the human body is compromised by the stresses and strains of modern life. The potential for strength, poise and fluent movement is very great. As we grow up we gradually develop habits to states of mind that produce slouching, holding our breath, not using our legs when we bend, holding a pen or using a computer with excessive tensions. We do not realize that we have the capacity to do all these things without as much stress or tension. In today’s workplace more people are off work due to back pain than any other complaint. RSI is becoming more common and the number of people suffer from stress-related illnesses is on the rise. Many therapies and relaxation techniques are available to undo the damage. People are even working out in the gym to keep fit. But unless we become aware of how we misuse our bodies in daily life nothing will change and problems will recur.

The aim of the Alexander Technique is to learn how to let go of our habits and tensions so that we can think and move more freely, conserve our energy and manage the stresses and strains of daily life.

The Alexander Technique helps you use the correct amount of effort for a particular activity. You will have more energy for all activities as a result. You will be able to function with greater ease, freedom and control.

The teacher guides the student through a series of simple movements during a lesson. The student will become more aware of them self, learns to observe and change habits that interfere with optimum functioning. Part of each lesson takes place on a padded table with the student dressed in comfortable clothing. The student reclines and the teacher gently realigns the student’s spine. This is how the teacher teaches the student to adjust posture that interferes with fluid and easy movement.

The Alexander Technique in New York offers a series of weekly lessons taught over a period of several months, which is recommended in the beginning. Lessons are always individually taught and geared to the particular needs of that individual.

It can take time to understand the concept the primary control. The name, primary control, refers to the relationship between the head, neck, and the remainder of the body that allows us to stand and move gracefully. Like a snake when it slithers along, the head and neck lead as the body follows. In relation to the back and the remainder of the body, too many humans have a dysfunctional tension and disturbance in the head and neck. Primary control promotes the experience of graceful movement that would otherwise be lost.

The Primary Control is not a posture. As we move throughout the day, this dynamic relationship is constantly changing. The challenge in learning the Alexander Technique is not so much to activate the Primary Control, but to avail ourselves of this relationship during our life, whether we are playing the piano or teaching or sitting at a computer–right while we are living, doing whatever we are doing.

You achieve this by inhibiting your habitual reaction to any stimulus. By this, we refer to your ability to intercept any habitual response to any stimulus. For instance, when playing the piano, a pianist who always misses a particular note in a piece does so in a particular way - a habitual way of playing that note.

The Alexander Technique student detects the habitual response through an increased awareness which is present before the note is missed. The student “inhibits” their usual response to that section of the music and directs themselves in the fashion they have learned from the Alexander teacher, i.e., neck free, head forward and up, etc. This aids their ability to elicit the Primary Control, which allows new insight into their dilemma. All of this can happen so fast that the inhibitory process is actually renewed again and again with no beats lost. Inhibition is crucial to the learning of this technique. We continually respond to stimuli from a familiar, habitual frame of reference.

So that we can recognize our habits and perhaps replace them with unknown and unfamiliar responses. We are required to have true inhibition so that we can be constantly open and attentive to ourselves.

What people who study the Alexander Technique in New York have is not fewer “bad habits” but a way of recognizing their habits and a way of addressing them. Its teachings give you a particular freedom from habit and tension, which leads to a feeling of movement potential rather than one of weight and fatigue. Descriptions of the results of the work are always insufficient. The experience of a hands-on lesson is difficult to describe. One can only experience.

Performing artists is one occupational group that has studied the Alexander Technique extensively. Performing artists are extremely aware of the potential for serious injury as a result of repetitious work. The work demands of actors/actresses/dancers require hours of daily practice and rehearsal as well as maintaining performance schedules. The drive or desire to perform at peak levels of skill, performers want to extend their careers as long as possible. RSIs (Relative Strength and Index) represent a serious threat to their livelihood and career longevity. It is for these reasons that the Alexander Technique is found in the curriculum of most performing arts schools.

The Alexander Technique of New York is studied in groups as well as in private lessons. Students are taught how to observe themselves in a new way and bring a higher level of awareness to routine activities. The Alexander Technique does not involve a prescription to do certain exercises or to practice new positions, which sometimes surprises students. They quickly learn that exercises or positions will not teach them anything fundamentally new. But teach them to observe themselves in a new way and experience the physical benefits that come from a more refined understanding of all the elements of everyday tasks such as sitting, standing, walking and working.

In an Alexander lesson, students by experience about the physical changes through the gentle guidance of the teacher’s hands. These changes are a direct result of reduction of static work demands and force. As students study the Technique, they notice that they feel more comfortable performing everyday tasks because they have learned how to lower static work and applied force within their bodies.

Students of the Alexander Technique in Brooklyn report increased self-confidence as they learn to exert a constructive influence over the repetitive injury process; they discover that they do not have to be unwitting victims of RSIs. With an increased sense of self-reliance and fresh outlook on how to protect their body from injury that contributes to less anxiety, the more resilient they become and better prepared to handle the work challenges safely.

As early as the 18th century, doctors noticed that workers whose jobs required them to maintain certain body positions for long periods of time developed musculoskeletal problems. At the beginning of the 20th century, F. Matthias Alexander developed what is now called the Alexander Technique in Brooklyn that can help with many musculoskeletal problems. In the last 20 years, research has clearly established the connection between certain job tasks and repetitive stress injuries or RSIs.

The two elements involved here are called static work and force. Static work refers to it the musculoskeletal effort required to hold a certain position. Force refers to the amount of tension our muscles generate. This increase of force is due to the increase in muscular tension necessary to support your head in a tilted position.

Ergonomics is the study of human capabilities in relationship to work demands. Ergonomists have attempted to define postures that minimize unnecessary static work and reduce the forces acting on the body. All of us could significantly reduce our risk of injury if we could adhere to the ergonomic principles.

1. All work activities should permit the worker to adopt several different, but equally healthy and safe postures.
2. Where muscular force has to be exerted it should be done by the largest appropriate muscle groups available.
3. Work activities should be performed with the joints at about mid-point of their range of movement. This applies particularly to the head, trunk and upper limbs.

But, for this to occur one would have to know how their joints and muscles function and be able to change their posture to a healthier one at will. No one develops this sort of highly refined sensory awareness without special training.

One training program that cultivates these skills is the Alexander Technique of New York, which enables its students to put ergonomic principles into practice, and thus helps them reduce their risk of developing an RSI.

The Alexander Technique is not new. It was developed in the early 20th century before ergonomics became a recognized science. It has been applied throughout this century by people from all walks of life. The Technique is an educational method which shows people how they are misusing their bodies and how their everyday habits of work can be harmful. It also teaches people how to avoid work habits which create excessive amounts of static work and how to reduce the amount of unnecessary muscular force they are applying to their bodies.

Valma Scott was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease over 10 years ago. She is 76 years of age and married to child hood sweetheart, Jim for 60 years. They have 6 children including 2 sets of twins and now 17 grandchildren.

Val worked with and Alexander technique New York teacher A. few years ago. They wanted to share their journey with the Alexander Technique and hope their experience will inspire other people with Parkinson’s disease to explore the Technique for themselves. Jim found the English Alexander Technique and Parkinson’s disease study on the Internet and with Val decided to investigate the Technique. Val’s wellbeing and quality of life was their main concern.

A typical day for Val is confinement to a wheel chair unable to stand, dependent on Jims support. She is hoisted by crane from bed to chair. Val had both knees replaced over 30 years ago and bears horrific scars and no kneecaps. Riding a bike and walking until a few years ago, her knees finally were so painful she ground to a stop. Further surgery is impossible because of the nervous disability bought about with the Parkinson symptoms. In one sense Val’s problem with her knees is unrelated to Parkinson’s disease, but in another it is entirely relevant to the issues she faces. When people have additional problems to their Parkinson’s symptoms these are still part of the ‘whole person’s’ experience of daily life.

When Val first started taking her lessons she had bladder and bowel problems, a collapsed head and neck, difficulty speaking and swallowing, fear of falling, tremors, poor circulation in her feet and she couldn’t stand.

When she started with the Alexander Technique NYC teacher she received lessons on a weekly basis was short breaks of two or three weeks during the holidays. The work involved mainly table work, which was extended to more free work on the floor and on a chair over a period of months.

After almost one year Val was able to sit unsupported, tie her own shoes, crawl (pull herself up into crawling), swallow without using a straw, talked easily, stand easily with good balance and support, no more bowel or bladder problems, increased self-esteem and reduced or discontinued most of her Parkinson’s medications. But the most wonderful thing of all is she can now hold her own great grandchild!

Val still continues to work with her teacher. The experience for Val is equally if not more important as she has said herself that her day-to-day life experience and well-being has improved.

Feeling stressed out? If you are like most people, you probably are coping with stress and need to learn how to relieve stress. What can you do about stress? First realize that knowing how to relieve stress is extremely important to your health and well-being, and then begin to focus on reducing the stress in your life before stress takes hold of you.

Most of us are rarely in tranquil environments, or even get a chance to notice the beauty around us. Remember the old saying, “stop and smell the roses?”

Our lifestyles are so high-speed, we rarely get a chance to stop and do anything other than mind-race about our “to-do” list, or worry about the things we didn’t get done. When was the last time you took a moment to gaze at the ocean and just watch and listen to the waves hit the shore? It can be a wonderfully mesmerizing and stress relieving experience. How about watching flowers glistening in the sun, or the leaves on a tree blowing in the wind? These moments are natural stress relievers. When you allow yourself to soak in and appreciate these peaceful moments, you can experience instant stress relief and tranquility.

But because our lifestyles or so high-speed we don’t always have that line for these moments. The Alexander Technique can show you new ways to relieve the stress. This is a learned method to improve postural and movement dysfunction. It engages the mind and body to reduce physical misuse in daily activities. In a series of one-on-one lessons with a certified teacher, a student of the Alexander Technique of New York develops the skills to execute any action with minimized strain and maximized balance. The result is optimal functional mobility, decreased pain, and a greater sense of well being.