Alexander Technique San Francisco Bay Area, Silicon Valley

Scientific research shows that Alexander Technique is an effective method of relieving back pain.

**2008 British Medical Journal study found that “lessons in the Alexander technique fromregistered teachers have long term benefits for patients withchronic back pain.”

**Physical Therapy journal  reported a case study where “the client was tested monthly for 4 months before AT lessons and for 3 months after lessons. Before lessons, she consistently had laterally asymmetric automatic postural responses to translations. After AT lessons the magnitude and asymmetry of her responses and balance improved and her low back pain decreased.”

**International Society for Posture and Gait Research  reported that “testing over several months prior to lessons revealed consistent abnormalities (large lateral asymmetries) in standing spinal curvature, automatic postural responses and balance. After lessons, these abnormalities were largely absent, balance improved and the subject’s pain was greatly reduced. These improvements suggest that, in some cases, back pain can be caused or perpetuated by poor motor control, and that methods in proprioceptive awareness and education, like the Alexander Technique, can be effective in improving motor control and reducing back pain.”

For additional information:

  1. Who can Dominique help?
  2. What are the benefits of learning the Alexander Technique?
  3. Why Not Simply Exercise?
  4. How Does the Alexander Technique Work?
  5. Who was F.M. Alexander?
  6. Why Do We Need the Alexander Technique?
  7. Is It Like a Massage?

1. Who can Dominique help?

- People who are physically uncomfortable due to stress, poor postural habits or injuries.
- People who wish to regain a sense of ease, flexibility, muscle tone, strength, and poise. Performing artists, musicians, actors and dancers who want to ensure unrestricted movement and breathing and increase their range of expression.
- Athletes who want to improve coordination, timing and efficiency.
- Yoga practitioners and students of meditation keen to improve their alignment from the inside out. With the technique, they carry effortless alignment and a new level of awareness and calmness into their daily life.
- Surgeons, dentists, and doctors whose profession involves a high level of physical precision and sustained focus.
- Public speakers and business executives eager to enhance their presentation skills, improve their vocal projection and increase their stamina.

2. What are the benefits of learning the Alexander Technique?

IMPROVED BODY AWARENESS: The Alexander Technique heightens your awareness to your body, allowing you to change hindering habitual patterns.

POSTURE: With the technique, you learn to sit, stand and move with natural poise and body alignment. It is possible to manage your level of alertness during meetings and to reduce your level of fatigue during traveling.

CHRONIC PAIN REDUCTION: As you gain a better understanding of your own habits, you start moving in a way that is healthier for your entire body.

SELF PRESENTATION: Communication is 90% body language! You can add a natural authority to your presence. As you learn to move in ways that decrease the strain on your body, you start to feel more comfortable. That newfound comfort gives you a more confident and easy-going presence which is reflected in both one-on-one interactions and group presentations.

OVERALL FITNESS: You can learn to reduce the impact of cardiovascular exercise, sports, and weight training on the joints (especially knees), neck and back.

RESILIENCE: At the end of a long day (or whenever you are tired), practicing the technique instantly re-energizes you and gives you the ability to uplift yourself. You return to a state of ease and alertness and will have initiated that change on your own.

TENSION AND STRESS REDUCTION: Most of us are not aware of just how much excess tension we put into everything we do. Contrary to popular belief, relaxation is not the best solution for stress. Most people ‘relax’ by making their bodies heavy, collapsing and putting undue pressure on the spine and legs. The technique offers you a new solution to managing stress and pain in the healthiest way possible.

3. Why Not Simply Exercise?

Exercising is great for cardiovascular health, but it cannot correct postural and alignment problems without any conscious attempt to change your habitual movement patterns. Your body’s patterns can be difficult to identify on your own; they are hard-wired into your brain and body, and exercise can sometimes reinforce rather than correct them. Even with someone (like a coach) is telling you what you are doing wrong, it can still be hard to initiate an actual shift. This is where sessions with Dominique can prove so useful- her hands-on approach gives you the experience your coach is trying to describe with words. You actually feel the change and gradually, you are able to reproduce on your own. This will help you prevent injuries and enhance your performance

4. How Does the Alexander Technique Work?

The Alexander Technique gets to the root cause of your discomfort by honing in on postural habits and working to correct that which is otherwise hard-wired into the brain and feels unchangeable. With careful precision of words and touch, Dominique speaks to us on many levels in apparently simple ways – addressing conscious awareness, the memory in the muscles and the source of habit in the unconscious mind. It is a subtle, but practical, hands-on approach. A pivotal discovery by Alexander is that when misuse is prevented – or interrupted – the body reverts to its natural design and moves the way it was originally intended. Subsequently, the breath expands, spreading through the entire body. This combination of natural responses explains why people feel so much better in such a short time with Alexander Technique lessons. Most people are amazed at how powerfully they this subtle technique is… It is truly life changing!

5. Who was F.M. Alexander?

F.M. Alexander was born in Australia in 1869. He taught his technique in Australia, England and the United States until his death in 1955 at the age of 86. While attempting to solve the vocal problems that were ruining his career as a Shakespearean recitalist, he discovered that the relationship of the head, neck and back is essential to avoiding unnecessary tension and maintaining a healthy posture. Ten years of careful self-observation led to the discoveries that became the cornerstone of the Alexander Technique. Not only did he correct his vocal problems, he also became known as “The Breathing man”.

6. Why Do We Need the Alexander Technique?

When we look at very young children, we can easily see an alertness and poise that allows them to sit, stand, move and even fall without any strain at all. This is one of the reasons that it is always such a pleasure to watch them at play. Yet rarely do we see the same natural poise in adults. Most of us have unconsciously developed habits to hold our stress and strain in our bodies and these habits override our instinctive coordination and natural functions – breathing, balance, relaxation, and flexibility. Instead, we gradually become disconnected from any awareness to our bodies at all… until we start to feel pain which keeps us from doing everything we might want to do. Is there a solution? Yes, and it is surprisingly simple. It is possible and even natural to integrate the various systems of the body so that it can function seamlessly as a whole, just like it does when we are happy and rested. The secret to all this lies in the relationship between the head, neck and back. FM Alexander discovered that when we unconsciously interfere with this crucial relationship, as most everyone does, then we create distortion and strain throughout the entire organism and, without realizing it, we repeatedly misuse our bodies. Years and years of misuse may result in specific symptoms, such as headache, backache or stiffness. We don’t realize how out of touch we are with our bodies until we begin to experience pain or discomfort. What we do not realize is the enormous handicap of being so out of touch with ourselves. The body and the mind are one unit; the lack of physical poise and hindered breathing affect our energy level, state of mind, ability to cope with life and the potential to fully enjoy it.

7. Is It Like a Massage?

Sessions are educative as well as regenerative. Through the course of the session, you release tension and bring your body into a more relaxed state and there is also some restorative work done while lying on a table. But, an Alexander Technique session is not like a massage. The aim of the sessions is to teach you through experience to change the way you carry and use your body so that you accumulate less tension during your daily life and learn to release the existing tensions you have. You learn to allow the experience of natural posture to spring forth.