Chapter List

• Introduction to Natural Healing for Women
• What Natural Healing Offers Women
• Acupressure
• Acupuncture
• Alexander Technique
• Aromatherapy
• Art Therapy
• Biofeedback
• Breath Work
• Chiropractic
• Cognitive Therapy
• Exercise
• Feldenkrais Method
• Food Therapy Part 1
• Food Therapy Part 2
• Hellerwork
• Herbal Medicine
• Homeopathy
• Hydrotherapy
• Imagery and Visualization
• Light Therapy
• Massage and Bodywork
• Meditation
• Music Therapy
• Naturopathy
• Osteopathy
• Reflexology
• Therapeutic Touch
• Traditional Chinese Medicine
• Vegetarian Diets
• Vision Training
• Vitamin and Mineral Therapy
• Yoga
• Allergies
• Bone Joint and Muscle Problems
• Breast Problems
• Diabetes
• Digestive Ailments
• Emotional Problems
• Headaches
• Heart Disease
• Infections
• Menopause
• Menstrual and Premenstrual Problems
• Overweight
• Pelvic Problems
• Pregnancy Problems
• Raynauds Syndrome
• Respiratory Problems
• Skin Problems
• Urinary Tract Problems
• Varicose Veins and Spider Veins
• Whole-Body Conditions
• Sources and Credits

Special Limited Time Offer! Order today and Save an Extra 15%! Use coupon code: LSAVE15

Alexander Technique

Alexander Technique

Finding the Perfect Posture

When your mother nagged you about "sitting up like a lady," you probably squared your shoulders for a second and then resumed slouching.

Who'd have thought Mom actually knew what she was talking about? As it turns out, good posture actually can affect your life--and your health.

Just ask Judith S., a 48-year-old who suffered severe, unexplained neck pain and headaches for months. "I was going crazy," says the New York City magazine editor. "It was just extremely uncomfortable."

When doctors couldn't figure out the root of her problem, Judith went to a teacher of the Alexander Technique--a movement-training program in which an instructor studies how you sit, stand, walk and bend in order to correct postural and tension-related mistakes and help you increase your awareness of how you might move more naturally.

The results were dramatic. "What the Alexander Technique did was teach me how to use my body more efficiently. I'd been holding my head, neck, back and legs wrong and was using more muscle tension than I needed," she notes. "I seldom have any pain or headaches now."

The technique was developed by F. M. Alexander, a Shakespearean actor from Australia who lost his voice due to overuse during the late 1800s. Studying himself in three-way mirrors, he discovered his tendency to tighten his neck, jut his jaw forward and hold his rib cage as he spoke, thereby cutting off breath support to his voice.

Alexander, who became known as the Breathing Man, began teaching his technique by the mid-1890s, a pursuit that took him to England.

Rather than concentrating on the old good-posture axiom of "chin up, shoulders pushed back and stomach in," the Alexander Technique helps you restore the effortless way of carrying yourself without compressing your spine, says Vivien Schapera, director of the training course at the Alexander Technique of Cincinnati.

"The hallmark of the Alexander Technique is if a movement takes effort, it's wrong. What's causing you to slouch is the excessive unconscious contraction of muscles--in the stomach, the back, the shoulders--throughout your body," she says. "The Alexander Technique shows you how to free up your body so that you stop pulling on your skeleton with your habitually tense muscles."

When your body parts are compressed and pulled in, you don't function at your utmost efficiency, says Judith Stern, physical therapist on the faculty at the American Center for the Alexander Technique in New York City. Whether it's the joints, blood vessels, digestive tract, stomach or heart, when you press down on an organ or body part, there isn't enough space for them to work as well, she says.

HEADING OFF TROUBLE

By taking stress off the body, the technique can help ease backaches, neck pains, joint problems, headaches, temporomandibular disorder, repetitive strain injury syndrome and voice strain. It can even be used to help with the swayback posture that pregnancy causes, to aid with childbirth and to lessen breathing woes caused by asthma.

Environmental factors, including fashion, can induce poor posture. For example, two-inch heels and three-pound purses make women especially vulnerable to fashion-induced bad posture, says Don Krim, chairman of the North American Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique and an instructor in Beverly Hills, California.

Many women often feel compelled to conform to certain body images. If you're a woman that is "too tall," especially as a teen, slouching can become the perfect camouflage. Similarly, younger large-breasted women may hunch their shoulders to hide their chests.

IT'S ALL ABOUT TECHNIQUE

An Alexander Technique instructor can teach you to be more fully aware of yourself when you're walking, standing, sitting and working. Your teacher will combine manual guidance and verbal instruction, and you will be able to apply what you learn in your lesson to your daily life. "The technique is virtually impossible to learn to do on your own," says Schapera.

The learning takes place in two ways, says Deborah Caplan, physical therapist and teacher of the Alexander Technique in New York City. "You learn as the principles are taught to you verbally by a teacher, and you learn on a kinesthetic level by the teacher gently guiding you with her hands into applying the correct use."

Usually, the teacher puts her hand near your head and spine while you sit, stand or move. This helps remind you to keep your head easefully balanced on your spine and helps you maintain a noncompressing posture, says Stern.

Practioners use mirrors to show you the difference between what you feel you're doing with your body and what you're really doing. It can be an eye-opening experience. For example, when your shoulder muscles relax, you might feel like you're slouching, but the mirror shows you standing effortlessly upright, says Schapera.

"The teacher guides you through everyday activities, such as sitting, bending, breathing and talking," Schapera says. "If you were a musician, for example, I would ask you to bring in your instrument so I could see what you do while you play."

You'll also learn what Alexander Technique teachers call constructive rest, says Stern. You lie down on your back on the floor or a table, knees bent and feet flat on the surface, and learn to release excess muscle tension in your body.

"Allow your neck to release so that your head balances delicately on top of your spine, then allow your torso to release in length and width," she says. "Then you allow your legs to release from your torso and allow your arms to release from your torso."

How many lessons will you need? While this varies from person to person, it usually takes at least 30 visits to make a lasting difference on your postural habits, says Krim, who recommends scheduling at least one lesson a week.

Poised for Success When you think of grace, you picture Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers flowing across the dance floor in a fluid, athletic whirl. Well, effortless poise might have come naturally to both of them, but many dancers and actors need a little help. That's why they're among the most common students of the Alexander Technique, says Don Krim, chairman of the North American Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique and an instructor in Beverly Hills, California. Today, it's still a vital part of education for any classically trained actor, with Kevin Kline and Kenneth Branagh as just a few of the stars who've had Alexander training, says Krim. What are the payoffs of studying the Alexander Technique? "It means good posture and coordination," says Judith Stern, physical therapist on the faculty at the American Center for the Alexander Technique in New York City. "The person moves gracefully and easefully, has natural balance and is poised." And who exemplifies natural grace and ease of movement? Krim mentions Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, Whitney Houston, Steffi Graf, Cary Grant, Denzel Washington and, of course, Fred Astaire. Stern puts Mikhail Baryshnikov, Arthur Ashe, Bjorn Borg and diver Greg Louganis on the list as well. "When you look at them it's so beautiful, and they make it look so easy," says Stern. "Michael Jordan is a perfect example. You watch him and you'd love to be able to move like that. It's a combination of reaching a goal yet staying perfectly free physically."

FREE YOUR BODY

As toddlers, most of us start out with picture-perfect posture, with our heads up and our limbs loose. But around age three we start looking up to our parents--both literally and figuratively, says Krim.

"We model our posture and movement from our parents," Krim says. "For example, a lot of people say lower-back pain runs in their family, and they just assume it's hereditary. But it could actually be from modeling their parents' movements and postural patterns."

People commonly walk with the head pulled back and down on the neck. This compresses the joints and disks of the neck and back disks and can lead to physical woes such as headaches, says Caplan. "The head weighs about 12 pounds, and the vertebrae at the top of the spine are very delicate," she says. "People should ask themselves, 'Could I have less tension in my neck and shoulders?' "

Bad posture also affects breathing, notes Stern. The diaphragm, the muscle separating the chest from the abdomen--has to move down in the torso to draw breath in. "If it's all compressed and crunched, there's no place for the diaphragm to go," Stern says. "When there's more room for the diaphragm to descend, breathing automatically gets fuller."

That's how the Alexander Technique can aid people with asthma, a condition of recurrent attacks of breathlessness and wheezing, by teaching them to take in a full amount of air with each breath, says Stern. "One thing that happens with asthma is that you panic and can't get breath. This helps to quiet the system rather than getting it all worked up," she says. "It doesn't take away asthma--it's a coping mechanism."

Like Lamaze, the Alexander Technique teaches you to work with pain during childbirth and stay calm. You learn not to pull in and contract all your muscles against the pain but to stay relaxed, Stern says. "Your habitual response to pain is to close down and to hold until the pain passes, but this technique is a way of counteracting that."

Pregnant women learn how to counteract their shift in balance, she says. They're taught how to stop the standard pregnancy swayback as well as how to lie down and stand differently, with the head leading and the spine following.

BALANCING YOUR BODY

Here are a few hints from top Alexander Technique instructors about how to put your posture into tip-top form.

Kick off your heels. High-heeled shoes are an enemy to good posture because of the way they slant the foot and throw the body out of alignment, notes Caplan. Flats with cushioned soles give the best support. "Walking in high heels jars the whole body," she says. "The foot is designed to absorb the shock of walking, but with heels the result is a tremendous amount of stress on the back."

Unlock those legs. Perhaps more than men, women commonly cross their legs and hold the inner thighs together, which can lead to back problems because of a twist it creates in the lower spine and pelvis, notes Krim. "They're often told to keep their legs together. But keeping your legs together as you move can distort the balance between the hip, knee and ankle joints, causing strain."

Getting Started Alexander Technique The Alexander Technique teaches you new posture and movement patterns, to reduce wear and tear on your body as you go about your everyday activities. Number of practitioners in the United States: Between 700 and 800. Qualifications to look for: Certification from a professional association or a teacher-training course. Certified teachers of the Alexander Technique typically undergo a minimum of 1,600 hours of specialized training over a period of approximately three years. Professional associations: Alexander Technique International, 1692 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138; American Center for the Alexander Technique, 129 East 67th Street, New York, NY 10023; North American Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique, 1-800-473-0620. To find a practitioner: Contact one of the professional associations listed above. Approximate cost: $45 to $60 for a 30- to 45-minute one-on-one session with an instructor.

Rather than pulling your knees together after you sit down, keep each knee lined up with your feet. If you wear miniskirts and want to maintain decorum in dress, you may have to trade in your miniskirts for long dresses and slacks in order to sit correctly.

Sit up tall. Many working women spend their days slouched behind a computer, says Caplan. For good sitting posture, it's most important to have a chair that supports the lower back--one that's not so deep or high that your feet can't rest comfortably on the floor. "Slouching undermines support of the spine and weakens the muscles, stretches the ligaments and strains the facet joints in the back of the spine and the disks," she says. "Plus, the shoulders slip forward and put strain on the neck."

Try to avoid sitting in peculiar positions. Tucking one leg under the other might give you a sense of support, for instance, but it actually causes the body to twist and contort, notes Schapera. It is ideal to sit with your feet apart and have them resting on an adjustable footrest or flat on the floor, which gives more support to the back.

Bend with care. When you reach down to pick something up, make sure that you're not just bending at the waist, says Stern. "You should be bending over so that the hips, knees and ankles are doing the work," she says. "When you bend at your waist, the spine has no hinge joints at that point. It's a real strain because the back muscles aren't designed for that kind of work."

Hold 'em high. Sitting at your computer typing all day won't be as big of a strain on your neck and back if you adjust your body, says Stern. "Your hands shouldn't be down too low. They should be up near chest level so that you don't have to keep dropping your head to see the screen or keyboard," she says. Your work area should be more like an architect's drawing board, which is nearer to chest level, Stern explains.

Stand up for yourself. Long hours of sitting without a break are sure to aggravate posture problems, notes Schapera. "All you need to do is stand up every 20 minutes or so and then sit back down again. Otherwise, your muscles get fatigued and have no choice but to tighten and collapse into themselves."

Do some heady running. Most people jog with their heads back and down, says Stern. The result is that you end up pulling your head back rather than keeping it aligned with your torso and legs. "Don't move your head in the opposite direction of your legs," says Stern. "Keep your head balanced and your spine lengthened."

Don't hold the phone. If you're on the phone all day--especially if you're typing while talking--you harm your body by pressing the receiver to your shoulder, says Stern. Use a headset to avoid spine compression and body contortion, she says.

Read at an angle. Want plenty of support while you're reading? Reclining chairs are best, says Schapera. If you're sitting at a table, rest your book at a slope in front of you rather than flat on the table. If you're sitting in a chair, put a pillow in your lap and place the book on that. Your arms won't tire, and you'll avoid the temptation to slump.

Cue yourself to remember. Post notes reminding yourself to be aware of your posture, Stern suggests. "You could stick a note on your computer that says, 'Think.' You'll start paying attention to how you're holding yourself: Are your legs relaxed? How are you breathing? Things like that," she says.

Ditch the bag-lady look. Hauling an enormous purse can throw your body out of alignment, so it's important to find a good balance, says Krim. Although backpack-style purses have straps going over both shoulders, they tend to make women contort their bodies differently. "I see people with backpacks who completely collapse forward or collapse backward until the backpack is digging into the lower back," he notes.

"Don't contort yourself to fit the bag. The key is to find a good balanced state--to carry the bag and not let the bag carry you," says Krim.

The Wrong Way to Sit Sitting with the body heavily slumped and the head pulled back into the neck puts tension on the ligaments and joints supporting the spine. Slouching also strains the neck and undermines breathing.
The Right Way to Sit To lengthen your spine and release tension in your neck, sit back in your chair with your feet flat on the ground. To breathe more fully, hold your head up.
The Wrong Way to Sit at a Computer Sitting with your hands too low on the keyboard and your computer screen at chest level forces you to continually look from your screen to your keyboard. When that happens, your shoulders tend to slouch, causing neck and back tension.
The Right Way to Sit at a Computer To keep your spine aligned, your torso lengthened and your neck and shoulders pain-free, raise your keyboard to chest level and keep your screen at eye level.
	The Wrong Way to Run Pulling your head back and down while running throws it out of alignment with your torso and legs, putting pressure on your back.
	The Right Way to Run To run with ease, hold your head upward, keep it balanced above your neck and lengthen your spine.
The Right Way to Read To support your back and arms and prevent discomfort as you read, rest your book on a sloped surface with your feet flat on the ground and lean forward at the hips.