Update: Asthma and the Alexander Technique - for adults and children!

I do not claim to have discovered any new method of breathing, but to understand the only true one – Nature’s
F. M. Alexander

Here are two an excellent blog posts about how the Alexander Technique can help the symptoms of Asthma (and breathing issues in general).

They've been written by Beret Arcaya, a New-York-based Alexander-Technique teacher (and incidentally the one who introduced me to the Alexander Technique in 1998!):

Asthma gives a feeling that you cannot inhale air. In reality, the sufferer cannot exhale. But it does not feel that way (unreliable kinesthesia).

For asthmatics, the ease of air in and air out which is normal for all creatures is totally disrupted. It is a horrible condition and can cause death. It feels as if you will suffocate as the airways in the lungs spasm preventing you from breathing and causing a panic and then more spasm and more fear.

»Click here to go to Beret's blog and read her first post concerning Asthma and the A.T.

Two days later Beret wrote a follow-up article that illustrates the dramatic effects the Alexander technique can have on young children with asthma:

Terry was about 9 months old, not yet walking (...), had presented with asthma from one month or less and had been rushed to the emergency room a few times. (... ) I noticed at once that this head/neck relationship was not as free as we’d expect in a child and then she told me about his condition.

(...) At first Terry was fussy and didn’t like his head and neck touched but gradually he quieted down and seemed to enjoy it. We noticed a change that day in the depth of his breathing (...) In less than 6 “lessons” he was able to take half the medicines and didn’t gasp for air or have the sudden onset attacks he had had before. By the time he was walking (...) the asthma was minimal.

(... )Terry is now 2 and a half. His asthma is nearly gone and his doctor is happy that he is “outgrowing it.” Terry and his parents are happier.

»Click here to read the entire article about The Primary Control and Asthma Conditions in Young Children

Both very recommended!

[via http://habitandchoice.com/blog/]

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Asthma and the Alexander Technique

I do not claim to have discovered any new method of breathing, but to understand the only true one – Nature’s
F. M. Alexander

Here is an excellent blog about how the Alexander Technique can help the symptoms of Asthma (and breathing issues in general).

It has been written by Beret Arcaya, a New-York-based Alexander-Technique teacher (and incidentally the one who introduced me to the Alexander Technique in 1998!):

Asthma gives a feeling that you cannot inhale air. In reality, the sufferer cannot exhale. But it does not feel that way (unreliable kinesthesia).

For asthmatics, the ease of air in and air out which is normal for all creatures is totally disrupted. It is a horrible condition and can cause death. It feels as if you will suffocate as the airways in the lungs spasm preventing you from breathing and causing a panic and then more spasm and more fear.

»Click here to go to Beret's blog and read the full post. Very recommended!

[via http://habitandchoice.com/blog/breathing-fitness-sports/asthma-management]

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Treating RSI with the Alexander Technique [ http://bit.ly/cRhmsE ] - RT @BodyLearning

Another most commom ailment in our society - RSI. The good news is: The Alexander-Technique can help!

What is RSI?

Repetitive strain injury (RSI) is an injury of the musculoskeletal and nervous systems that may be caused by repetitive tasks, forceful exertions, vibrations, mechanical compression (pressing against hard surfaces), or sustained or awkward positions. (»Wikipedia)

Read »the full article on treating RSI with the Alexander Technique

Here's an excerpt:

(...) But the main problem with trying to prevent RSI's is that the human body is very resilient and adaptable. An office worker can type all day with her wrists bent at an awkward angle. A mechanic doesn't notice that he is gripping a spanner too tightly or using more force than is necessary to undo a nut if that's the way he's always done it.

Most people give little thought to exactly how they perform routine actions and don't realize they are putting undue strain on a joint unless it causes pain. Because of this, poor postural habits can develop gradually over many months, or even years, until they seem normal and comfortable.

Teaching people to become more consciously aware of how they are using their bodies is the main aim of The Alexander Technique, which is why it is so useful in treating all types of RSI's. It is not a therapy, and doesn't involve any manipulation or exercises, but it helps people to rediscover their own natural posture.

[via »RT @BodyLearning]

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If you don't make mistakes, you're doing it wrong. If you don't correct those mistakes...

SCIENCE:
If you don't make mistakes, you're doing it wrong.
If you don't correct those mistakes, you're doing it really wrong.
If you can't accept that you're mistaken, you're not doing it at all.

The Alexander-Technique in three sentences - brilliant!

The above text is a statement about science and scientific principles. But why is this also a spot-on definition of Alexander-Technique?

Well, F. M. Alexander always contended that the Alexander-Technique be a scientific method in the sense that it it uses reasoned-out hypotheses (in "Alexander-speak": the means-whereby with inhibition and direction) and put them to the test in empiric experiments (i.e. in daily life).

Do those hypotheses work reliably or not? Can the results be re-produced? If not, go back, check your hypotheses and make modifications!

More to the point: Learn to make mistakes!

F. M. Alexander even said (I paraphrase):

Don't come to me for lessons unless you're ready to make mistakes and be happy about it!

[ via »sl-lost.com - that's right I'm a LOST-fan! ]

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Video: Why changing is so hard - and how to make it a little easier with the Alexander-Technique

Fresh baked Cookies or radishes? What would you rather have?

Most likely the cookies would be the 'easier' choice for you whereas choosing the radishes might involve more conscious effort. »Recent psychological studies suggest that our brain is a limited resource when it comes to making "right/new" choices as opposed to habitual ones.

So this might help to understand what we all know - and have experienced over and over again: Changing is hard.

I like to contend that there is a way of making those changes of lifestyle and habits less hard: the Alexander-Technique.

Basically, the Alexander-Technique is all about learning how to change habits. Postural habits, habits in movement, thinking habits, habits in communication, habits concerning emotions and your reactions to them, ... You name it....

The Alexander-Technique helps you become aware of what you're doing with yourself while you're doing what you're doing. You learn what "makes you tick", you get to know yourself better. You get to explore your full potential, your talents, your strengths. At the same time you gather information what your real limitations are and what you habitually do to makes things harder for you than they need to be. And with this knowledge you're becoming more sympathetic with yourself and you tend to put less unrealistic demands upon yourself. This alone helps you with making changes!

But there's more. You learn practically, empirically, by experience what does work for you and what does not. Instead of acting and reacting automatically you gradually make informed choices about what like to do. And, more importantly, how you do that and how you can avoid the "bad" choices. Your freedom of movement becomes greater. You expand your range of expression and co-ordination - on a physical, intellectual and emotional level.

You exercise choice and change on a daily basis. Therefore changing becomes more and more familiar; it becomes a new habit - and consequently: a lot easier! You change the way you go about change!

Now, coming back to the aforementioned Cookies vs. Radishes experiment and why changing is hard (if you don't know the Alexander-Technique)...

Overeating, leaving your stuff laying around, getting short with your spouse after work—they're not just weaknesses of character. Dan Heath at Fast Company suggests it has to do with exhausting your self-control reserves, which are more finite than you think.

Heath aims to shoot down the popular sentiment that people who can't change a bad behavior, whether health or work-related, are simply lazy or just resistant to change. He illustrates his point with a study involving cookies, radishes, and impossible geometry problems, explained in the clip above. The gist? After managing to resist the cookies and eat radishes, one group had almost no patience for the impossible problem, while the satiated cookie eaters were happy to work more than twice as long at it.

Watch the video...

[ via »lifehacker.com ]

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How to Relieve Headaches using the Alexander Technique [ http://bit.ly/9GI1Wl ]- RT @BodyLearning

One of the most major problems in modern society - headaches! (Sitting in front of computers all the time won't help either).

Read »this article on how to relieve headaches using the Alexander Technique:

The one thing almost all headaches have in common is muscle tension. Unnecessary tension in the muscles of the neck, scalp, jaw and face can all trigger a headache. One cause of migraine headaches is thought to be a restricted supply of blood and oxygen to the brain, and this is what happens when tense muscles press on the arteries in the neck. (...)

The Alexander Technique is all about releasing unwanted stresses and strains throughout the whole body. There are no exercises or rigid rules to follow. (...)

If you are busy working, or concentrating on something, you normally don't notice that you are frowning, clenching your teeth, or holding your head in a position that is putting undue strain on your neck, until the pain of a headache tells you something is wrong. (...)

Although the Alexander Technique is mostly concerned with physical well-being, many students also find that it can lead to subtle changes in the way they think and deal with emotional stress: another major cause of headaches.

[via »twitter @BodyLearning ]

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Corporate Training With Alexander Technique // RT @JennKennedycom [ http://ow.ly/17wGq9 ]

Professional corporate trainer »Jenn Kennedy recommends the Alexander-Technique! Check it out...

Employers have a responsibility towards their employees and fulfilling these responsibilities has dual advantage, as not only does the employer get improved efficiency, but the employees too feel good about themselves and feel rejuvenated and motivated to work. The employer should consider the Alexander Technique for corporate trainings, as it has proven to be very beneficial to all parties. Let’s see how.

»Read her full blog post here

[ via »Rober Rickover's re-tweet of »Jenn Kennedy's tweet ]

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The Internet. Connectivity. Google. Facebook. Such powerful, yet legal, drugs, must be supervised...

The Internet. Connectivity. Google. Facebook. Such powerful, yet legal, drugs, must be supervised. The only supervisors we have for the task? Ourselves, our own awareness.

Yoav Taler has posted some interesting thoughts (»a 4-part blog post to be precise) on people working in front of computers and the computer age in general.

So we’re getting digitized. Can’t ignore that. I urge you to acknowledge that computers are the new and most powerful drug of our age, saying that as a heavy user. Alongside the immense technological revolution, we pay a serious price. Parts of us are getting shorter while others long. Shortening or shrinking comes to physical form in ways of spinal problems, both along the back and the neck, headaches, eye-sight conditions, joint problems, breathing problems, stress and more. That’s just the problems claimed “physical”.

I do not necessarily agree with everything he writes there BUT: What he's saying about the addictiveness of the Internet and computer work I couldn't agree more!

Very good and insightful tips! A recommended read! Here's »Pt. 4 of the post which I deem the most interesting:

We can sit in front of a machine for 3 hours straight, if not 6, fully collapsed, frozen yet not sleepy, until a point in time in which we zombie-out. That miraculous devil we call “Internet” is so magnetizing that it enables us to forget our physique, leave one brain part running at full speed and hibernate everything else. Doing that, we accumulate emails, knowledge, music, money, facebook friends and one more thing – stress. Caused by a rather new, unhealthy balance, a web-age condition.

The Internet. Connectivity. Google. Facebook. Such powerful, yet legal, drugs, must be supervised. The only supervisors we have for the task? Ourselves, our own awareness.

When we start an awareness training process, usually at an adult age, we want to undo old habits and try to maintain, for example, a new way of sitting at work. We then find out that we forget that new way very quickly; A “collapse-freeze” condition we can maintain for 6 hours straight, while the opposite condition can be maintained for barely 6 seconds. Sad, but true. How can you expect a lifelong habit to just evaporate? New, learnt conditions cannot take over ourselves like a charm. It takes time, a long time, and we need to maintain a refresh-rate for ourselves, reminding and re-channeling the new condition with conscious instructions.

Nothing’s perfect. You cannot “succeed” in conditioning yourself; Don’t be intimidated – just get rid of perfectionism when you deal with consciousness. Why? because yesterday was yesterday and today you can always do better. There’s no end to improvement, and grades are just a result of life-long competition we were held in. But in our case, we don’t compete with anyone. This is personal, internal and private.

For you tip-munching readers I say, don’t zombie-out in front of your favorite screen. When you find out a machine has overpowered you, pushed you into hibernate, get up, take a walk, talk to [real] people, eat something, do Yoga, whatever. Take smaller periods of continuous work, and when you do work, focus on your important goals, and always remember the first tip: keep a part of your attention to your self-awareness, your body, your 6th sense. When you wake up out of hibernation – take a small break. Remind yourself of what’s important.

Acknowledge your abilities and your capabilities: “know thyself”, they said. When you know your limits, you can prevent damage. Zombies don’t know limits. They only know the one thing they’re locked on, until they end up banging their head against a wall. Can you be smarter than that?

Endless amounts and types of information are thrown at us every minute through screens of different sizes and shapes. Are we lucky to be around and witness the revolution? Time will tell, I guess. But that’s reality – our biggest teacher. Facing the flood, a new skill must be acquired and improved: Knowing when to stop.

Know when to say No.

[via http://yoavtaler.com/]

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"When I loved myself enough I gave up perfectionism, that killer of joy" Kim McMillen

Simply. Wonderful.

[via http://twitter.com/AllyTeck/status/14124462885 ]

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Ausgesprochen Stimmig! Wochenend-Intensiv-Workshop mit Andrea Rohac und Andreas Dirscherl

Workshop "Ausgesprochen Stimmig!" – Stimme, Sprechen, Präsentieren Sie beschäftigen sich berufsmäßig oder privat mit Stimme und Sprechen? Oder halten Sie Vorträge und Präsentationen? Vielleicht wollen Sie sich selbst besser präsentieren? Möchten Sie sich dem Thema erstmalig, erneut oder mal ganz anders widmen? Ihre Stimme und die Art, wie Sie sich präsentieren sind das wichtigste Ausdrucksmittel Ihrer Persönlichkeit. Mehr als Ihre äußere Erscheinung, Ihr Kleidungsstil, mehr als Ihr Fachwissen. Man hört eher Menschen mit einer angenehmen, tragfähigen Stimme zu. Wie findet man "seine Stimme" und ein eigenständiges selbstsicheres Auftreten? Wir haben unsere jahrelange Profi-Erfahrung als TV- und Theaterschauspielerin bzw. Rundfunksprecher sowie Alexander-Technik-Coaches zusammengetragen und 2009 erfolgreich die Workshop-Reihe "Ausgesprochen Stimmig" gestartet. Es freut uns sehr, dass die Teilnehmer dieser Workshops begeistert und beeindruckt waren. "Ich bin nicht mehr heiser. Meine Stimme ist seither konstant klar, was ich vorher durch zahllose Logopäden-Sitzungen nicht erreicht habe. " - Eine Teilnehmerin Die meisten bisherigen Teilnehmer haben sich entschlossen, Ihre Erfahrungen in einer Regelmäßigen Gruppe in diesem Jahr zu vertiefen. Paul McCartney, Paul Newman, Sir Henry Irving, Victoria Beckham, John McEnroe, Juliette Binoche und viele andere berühmte Persönlichkeiten profitierten und profitieren von der Alexander-Technik. "Zu den vielen Vorteilen, die die Alexander-Technik uns Schauspielern bietet, gehören minimale Anspannung, ein Agieren aus der Mitte, eine entspannte und unmittelbare Stimme, die Verbindung von Körper und Geist sowie fast 4 cm mehr Körpergröße!" - Kevin Kline, Oscarpreisträger Die Anmeldungen für unseren nächsten Workshop-Termin im Sommer sind bereits in vollem Gange. Wir senden Ihnen heute alle Informationen, so dass Sie sich Ihre Teilnahme rechtzeitig sichern können: Ausgesprochen Stimmig! Stimme – Sprechen – Präsentieren. Offener Wochenend-Intensiv-Workshop Sa, 03. Juli 2010 – 10.00-18.00 Uhr So, 04. Juli 2010 – 10.00-15.30 Uhr 7-12 Teilnehmer Ort: In den Räumen der ESG München, Friedrichstraße 25, 80801 München »Karte Preis: 240,- Euro // // Rabatte für Studenten möglich, bitte »fragen Sie nach. Die Kosten für den Workshop lassen sich von der Steuer absetzen. Wenn Sie möchten, bringen Sie gerne typische Fallbeispiele, Fragen oder eigenes Material (z.B. Texte, Rollen, Präsentationen) mit.   Für weitere Informationen besuchen Sie gerne unsere Internetseite: www.ausgesprochenstimmig.de Gerne beantworten wir auch Ihre Fragen direkt unter: Telefon: 089 - 18 95 98 45 / Mobil: 0178 - 209 43 03 E-Mail: kontakt@ausgesprochenstimmig.de Oder nutzen Sie unser »Kontaktformular. Wir freuen uns auf Sie! Andrea Julia Roháč Schauspielerin und Lehrerin der F. M. Alexander-Technik Andreas Dirscherl Rundfunksprecher und Lehrer der F. M. Alexander-Technik

[ http://ymlp.com/zGqBmH ]

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