Sparks is a new hub of ‘sustainability, creativity and education’ which has been set up in the old Marks & Spencer in Broadmead shopping centre, Bristol. Last Sunday, I had the opportunity to introduce the Alexander Technique to members of the public passing through this space, thanks to the brilliant support of Mila Plants. The …
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‘How do I keep it going between lessons?’
The Alexander Technique is about becoming conscious of our habitual reactions to things, and seeing instead whether we can encourage a set of responses that is kinder to us. You could say that, at any moment in time, we can either orient ourselves towards greater ease or towards greater tension. The choice is ours. What …
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Alexander Technique at Young Grittleton
In the summers of 2018 and 2019 I introduced the Alexander Technique to musicians on the Young Grittleton chamber music course at St Marys School, Calne. A Testimonial A brief overview of what I covered in the 2019 workshop is included below. But first, a testimonial from the course organiser: We were privileged to have …
Beds, mattresses and back pain
I’m sometimes asked for advice on beds, mattresses and pillows. My standard reply is that it can be beneficial to practise active rest immediately before sleeping and/ or first thing in the morning. The latter can seem counter-intuitive, but our habits of misuse persist through our sleeping hours, and a conscious unwinding of these patterns …
The Alexander Technique and happiness
Among psychologists there is a common distinction between two types of happiness: hedonia and eudaimonia. Roughly speaking, hedonic happiness involves immediate pleasure, enjoyment and satisfaction, along with the absence of pain or distress. On the other hand, eudaimonic happiness involves long-term aspects such as meaning, personal growth, excellence and authenticity. Both hedonia and eudaimonia can …
A definition of the Alexander Technique – for intermediate students
My teacher trainer and mentor Peter Ribeaux has been teaching the Alexander Technique for around 50 years. Around fifteen years ago he gave a definition of the Alexander Technique which I still return to for its no-nonsense clarity. The definition includes Alexander’s own terminology and so it is only suitable for intermediate students and not …
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Alexander Technique at City of London School for Girls
In November 2022, I presented a workshop for the sports and music scholars at City of London School for Girls, as part of their Aspiring Performers Wellbeing Programme. It was a great opportunity to introduce the benefits of the Alexander Technique in a fun and practical way, and I had some fantastic feedback. Below is …
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Excellent short intro to the Alexander Technique
There’s been a bit of a buzz this week about a new video introduction to the Alexander Technique, and it’s definitely worth the hype. It’s only ten minutes long and worth a watch!:- In my view, the following is what makes this video so great: it shows very clearly from the client’s perspective what it’s …
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Alexander Technique ‘Think Up’ app – updated
My colleague, Maaike, has updated her Alexander Technique app with some fantastic new audios. You can try out some of these audios for free via her website here. The four new audios (subscribers only) are described below: ‘Freeing up your shoulders – improve your body schema’ ‘Freeing up your arms – improve your body schema’ …
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Compared: Two successful treatments for back pain
Back pain is the number one cause of disability worldwide and in this blog I want to compare two solutions. First, a course of 24 Alexander Technique lessons. A Randomised Control Trial (RCT) published in 2008 showed that back pain sufferers reduced their pain levels from ‘every day’ down to only 3 in 28 days …
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