Hello my friends!
Thanks so much for stopping by. Grab a cup of coffee and pull up a chair. I'd like to go back to the discussion that was the reason for this blog. What is this stuff, anyway? Why do we talk about the "Alexander Technique?"
Lately, it seems to me that it would be better go back to what Mr. Alexander used to say. He called it, "the Work."
If you've ever taken lessons and then tried to describe the Alexander Technique, you understand the challenge that this represents.
There’s the conventional description of how it helps people undo postural patterns that are often at the root of pain.
Then there are the deeper ramifications of the work. That's where this blog, Applied Alexander Technique®, comes into play for me.
F.M. (Alexander) said that we are psycho-physical beings.
If so, then perhaps we need an entirely new, synthesized language to begin to truly discuss this in holistic terms of the Self.
The aspect of this work that attracts me most deeply is that it is not only about body mechanics. The Alexander Technique is a skill to UNdo habit patterns that have put us wrong, over time. That is as true for habitual reactions to emotional stimuli as it is for physical patterns in how we move our bodies in daily life.
Physically, the premise is that the way we carry ourselves, affects how we function. Absolutely true! For instance, in dance, good posture in activity gives balance, ease, and poise. In terms of the how-it's-done, the Technique is incredibly gentle. Instead of pulling on some body part that is tight and off-center to make it go in the right direction, we UNdo the reason it's tight in the first place.
Once upon a time, we were born with bodies that worked and were balanced. We ran and played and walked upright because that is how children are born and grow.
That open, upright posture is still within us and it can be reawakened.
On an internal level, I also believe and sense that this work helps to open the flow of Chi and wake up our Consciousness.
That's where the real challenges lie...the development of human potential....that is truly, the Work.
Give me a call sometime!
Dana
