Noticing Habitual Reactions

Today I want to share with everyone an article published on the website Salon by a wonderful writer, Sarah Hoffman (a pseudonym), called My Son, the Pink Boy.  This isn't about the Alexander Technique, or wellness, or healing.  At least, not specifically.  But it is a great example of what happens when we are not aware of our habits of reaction.


One of the principles of the Alexander Technique is that, for the most part, we live our lives in utter disregard for how we are using ourselves; we are a bundle of unexamined habits of tension, misuse and lack of balance. Until we begin to notice our patterns, we will continue to be subtly (or not so subtly) damaging ourselves unnecessarily.  Once we do begin to see what we are doing in activity, then we have some choices about how we'd like to proceed.  We can respond mindfully rather than react mindlessly.


I believe this is true for the whole human species. The society and culture we create is a reflection of our beliefs and ideas.  As a society, if we remain mindlessly reactive, we will continue to damage ourselves.  If we can begin to look at our assumptions and habitual reactions, maybe we can make some different choices and continue to evolve.


Unfortunately, there is a big barrier to noticing habitual reactive patterns: they feel normal. Whether on an individual or group level, habits become ingrained and normalized, to the point  where we don't question or even notice them.  They just become the sea we swim in, or the background noise of the refrigerator humming that you don't hear until it shuts off.


The situation Sarah Hoffman describes in her article gives many good examples of how people often react mindlessly, from assumption and prejudice, even when their intentions may be "good."  If you also read the comments readers have made that follow the article you will see more reactivity.  They are all based on some notion of what "normal" is.  


Based on years of many repeated experiences, it is my opinion that we do not have an accurate sense of what "normal" is, either individually or as a society.  We think we know what "normal" is, but we are wrong.


If possible, as you read the article, notice your own reactions, both physically (what happens in your body as you read?) and mentally/emotionally (what thoughts and feelings erupt?). Observe yourself without judgment.


I am also sharing this article because I work with a number of people who struggle with how their physical expression of themselves sometimes causes them pain and difficulty.  Ultimately, we all project something of ourselves by the way we walk, talk, and behave.  Alexander Technique helped me become comfortable in my body, after years of being taught, explicitly and implicitly, that I could not trust it and it was not beautiful.  Along with other habits of misuse, this was one of the more fundamental habits I was able to overcome through the patient and loving instruction of my teacher.


So now, enjoy, My Son, the Pink Boy.
I welcome your comments!

A Short Video Introduction to Alexander Technique

Here is an excerpt from a video of Marjorie Barstow in 1982, discussing and demonstrating the basic ideas at the core of the Alexander Technique. Notice the difference between the first way she picks up a book off the table, and the second way. It's an old video, so the quality has deteriorated slightly, but the quality of Marj's use of herself is as fresh as ever.
Perhaps the most important thing she says is that one has a choice about how to move and inhabit one's body.

Bold, Balanced Bodywork

Here is a reprint of an article I wrote for Energy Times (March 2005).  It's a nice general introduction to the Alexander Technique.

Bold, Balanced Bodywork

by Amy Ward Brimmer

     It’s a holistic movement experience that unifies body and mind—but it’s not yoga. It’s a fitness process that strengthens the body’s core support muscles—but it’s not Pilates. It helps you think more clearly and feel better about yourself—but it’s not psychotherapy. The teacher uses his or her hands to eliminate tension—but it’s not massage. What is it? The bodywork method known as Alexander Technique.

     For more than a century, people have been using the Alexander Technique (AT) to change the way they use their bodies to heal a variety of conditions, including neck and back pain, breathing and vocal problems, repetitive stress injuries, even mild depression and panic attacks. Typically taught in one-on-one sessions, AT is a unique hands-on method that solves physical problems at their source, rather than just treating symptoms. Through lessons, students discover how they unknowingly hold patterns of tension that limit movement and needlessly cause pain. AT provides a way to unhook from harmful habits and begin moving through life with more power and freedom.
Technique From an Actor

     The Technique was developed in the late 19th century by Frederick Matthias Alexander (1869-1955), an Australian actor who was plagued by so many vocal problems while performing he eventually lost his voice. After standard medical treatments failed to help him, Alexander began self-observation and found he had excessive muscular tension in his neck while speaking. That led him to an epiphany: When the neck is free of excess tension, the head balances on top of the spine rather than compressing it. Since the spinal column is our core of support and energy, a lengthening spine allows the rest of the body to move freely, and movement becomes less strenuous and more integrated.

     Sounds simple enough, doesn’t it? Alexander thought so, until he tried not to tighten his neck when he spoke. He soon realized that muscular holding patterns are deeply ingrained, and it was necessary to first change how he was thinking before he spoke or moved. In other words, it’s not what we do, but how we do it that makes all the difference.

     We all have unconscious movement habits. Most of us use more force than necessary to perform the simplest tasks, such as opening a door or stirring a pot. We become accustomed to our way of sitting, standing and walking, unaware that these postural patterns are the root cause of much of our deep discomfort and pain. As you read this, are you aware of where your head is in relation to your spine? If you’re sitting, how are you sitting? What are your hands and feet doing? Did you choose this alignment of your body parts, or is it just a habit?

Teachers and Students
     Alexander Technique teachers are trained to shine a light on these unconscious habits by observing a student’s posture and movement patterns. They also gather information by “listening” to a student’s body, placing their hands gently on the body in a noninvasive way. At the same time, the teacher gives the student information with her touch, encouraging the release of restrictive tension and guiding the student into a new experience of freedom and ease in movement. Everyday activities such as standing, sitting and walking are explored, usually combined with deep release while lying on a table.

     Lessons take place in a low-tech environment without any special equipment. Clothing is not removed, nor is any special type of clothing required—although it is easier to move in loose-fitting clothes than, say, a suit and tie or tight jeans.
The Power to Change

     People take AT lessons for many reasons. Herniated disks bothered writer Jean Kuhn, especially after sitting at her computer all day. She tried yoga, acupuncture, physical therapy and chiropractic, all of which provided only temporary relief. She found that, rather than passively receiving treatment, AT lessons gave her the power to change what was happening to her at any given moment.

     “To me,” says Kuhn, “AT is about becoming conscious of how I’m holding—or not holding—tension in my body. It seems like I’ll use a muscle and when I’m done with it, I forget to ‘turn it off.’ Throughout the day I will check in with myself to see how I’m doing. If I feel tension anywhere, I can release it as I picture my body aligned and in balance.”

     Taking responsibility for personal change may seem daunting at first, but Kuhn found it surprisingly easy. “I don’t have to work as hard at good posture as I thought,” she says. “I can get to a point of balance that is practically effortless. In a way, if I’m working at it, chances are I’m still holding too much.”

     Less effort and more efficiency is the heart of AT, one of the reasons it has been embraced by performers and professional training programs throughout the world. Schools such as Julliard, Yale and London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts have a required AT component.

     “An actor needs to be able to fluidly transform into another character through movement, voice and emotional expression,” says Kim Jessor, senior teacher at the American Center for the Alexander Technique and an instructor at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts Graduate Acting Program. “The Technique teaches actors how to work without forcing, preventing strain and injury. They learn to conserve and efficiently use their energy, which prepares them for health and longevity in a demanding and often uncertain career. My experience with actors who have studied AT is that they are more responsive to themselves and their fellow actors, capable of greater subtlety, and give more compelling performances.”

     But one needn’t be an actor, dancer or musician to benefit from AT lessons. We all have daily tasks to “perform” and when we learn to recognize unconscious mental and physical blocks, we can release them. Letting go of excess tension redistributes energy for everything we do—from household chores to sitting at a computer, from giving a speech to giving birth, from performing on stage to playing on a field.

     Proponents of Alexander’s principles can apply them in many ways because AT isn’t a way to augment one’s experience, but instead is a process of elimination. All the harmful habits that interfere with our innate design fall away and movement becomes more efficient, balanced, light and easy. Says Jean Kuhn: “I like to explore and AT lessons allow me to remember what I once knew naturally. It’s as if I were on an archeological dig that uncovers the self I was born with.”

Article in local paper about Way Opens Center

I cannot believe I forgot to post this article here when it came out last month.  If you haven't seen it yet, please enjoy.  It was published in the Newtown Gazette.

I welcome your comments and questions.

Happy Groundhog Day!

New Year, New You?

This is the time of year when many of us begin to think about turning over a new leaf.  We make resolutions to change some bad habit we know is harming our well-being, begin a new program of exercise, or otherwise embark on a program of self-improvement. I'd like to make a radical suggestion: don't bother. It probably won't work (whatever it is).  What's more, it's not necessary.

I don't believe in "self-improvement," because I don't think we need to improve ourselves.  I think we are all just fine the way we are.  If anything needs improvement, it's the way we talk to ourselves about, well, our selves.

Does this mean you shouldn't quit smoking or cut back on your sugar intake?  No.  What I'm saying is that you are sufficient already, have amazing powers of intuition, empathy and creativity. In particular, your body-mind is nothing if not highly resilient.

I have to thank Dodinsky for reminding me of this.  For those of you who aren't familiar with this wonderful soul, Dodinksy has a Facebook page called The Garden of Thoughts, and he posts beautiful photos and little messages of positivity there.  He recently posted:

Do not sell yourself short by promising to be a better person. You have always been amazing. Recognition starts from within.


One of the principles of the Alexander Technique is that when we allow it, our systems operate beautifully, reliably, and dynamically. Alexander lessons provide the means to restore innate balance so that "the right thing does itself," as we like to say. And not even "restore" balance actually, but simply access it.  It's not like it's not there already. One component of the Alexander experience is the process of eliminating interferences -- unnecessary excess tension, misuse of various moveable body parts, application of excess force, dulling of the sense gateways, unconscious automatic thought patterns.  Once you get out of your own way, amazing things can happen, and often do.  


Okay, so that's a form of "improvement," I get that.  But to me, it's not the same as resolving to be a better  person. I find the whole "self-improvement" industry a little insidious, frankly. The underlying message I hear is that I'm not good enough; I'm broken and need fixing. Nope. (I have the same problem with fundamentalist Christian theology too, but that's for another blog.)  I have my flaws, but so does some of the most beautiful artwork ever created, and most of the living creatures on the planet. 


So if we're not improving ourselves when we study Alexander Technique, what are we doing?  Are we learning a new skill?  Well, sort of, but it's a skill we already possess, if only we knew it.  I sometimes describe it as waking up to myself, encountering my whole self in real time (i.e. now) and noticing how highly functional and able I really am. This takes consistent practice, so if we're improving anything it's our ability to recognize this inherent wellness.  


F. M. Alexander recognized it, or at least refused to sell himself short. A professional actor in late 19th-century Australia, he suffered from vocal problems. Doctors could not find a permanent solution to his problem and, as the story goes, finally one of them told F. M. that he just had a "weak" voice and would be better off choosing another profession. Luckily for us, he did not take kindly to this advice and had been raised to be self-determining (he also appears to have been a little arrogant, like me and maybe you), so instead of giving up his art and livelihood, he set about to understand his part in the whole situation. He discovered that his voice was not weak at all, but the way he had been using it masked how powerful it actually was.

I agree with Dodinsky that recognition starts from within.  Give yourself a little recognition, remember how amazing your body-mind is.  Let it do its thing.  Don't resolve to be a better person in 2011; just resolve to be.  Then go about the business of quitting smoking or losing weight or strengthening your core or whatever you think you should be doing more or less of.

Breathing with Comfort and Joy

When F. M. Alexander first began sharing his newfound discoveries about human psycho-physical functioning, he traveled around his native Australia and became known as "the Breathing Man." The core of his work was free and full breathing and its relation to overall wellness. Science is now catching up to what Alexander knew in the 1890s.

NPR recently did a helpful piece on the stress-relieving aspects of healthy breathing. Read and/or listen to it here.

The Alexander Technique remains one of the best ways to understand the anatomy and physiology of your own breathing system, and to begin to reverse some of the unconscious habits that develop in everyone over time, and which  interfere with healthy breathing. Similarly, a Somatic Release session often restores full breathing function, as clients begin to let go of restrictive muscular tension in the thorax and throughout the body.

I recently had an SR session with someone recovering from a day-long outpatient surgery. He told me that one of his post-op instructions was to take a few deep breaths every hour or so for the first several hours once he got home. They explained that this would increase oxygen flow to his bloodstream and speed the healing of his surgical wound. It also must be enormously helpful after being intubated and receiving general anesthesia.

I was encouraged to hear this. Doesn't it seem like deep breathing would be one of the best (and least expensive) things hospitals and clinics could do to put patients at ease during procedures and post-op recoveries? Not to mention, knowing how to breathe deeply and mindfully might help the caregivers themselves. (uh-duh, kind of a no-brainer)

Yet most of us remain largely unaware of how we are breathing and what affects our respiration. Unless you are a full-time professional yogi or you have a disorder like asthma (which continues to proliferate, among children especially), you probably take your breathing for granted. After all, it is a reflexive action, something that happens automatically. We don't have to consciously choose to breath in and out all day long; thank goodness! We'd never accomplish anything.

The cool thing about the breath (one of them anyway) is that it is also a process that can be directed. You can choose to hold your breath until you're blue in the face if you want to (but you probably still won't get your way). You can coordinate your swimming with breathing in and out. You can sing. You can breathe your baby out in childbirth. You can slow your breathing down or speed it up. We do this, consciously and unconsciously, all the time. The more awareness of our breathing apparatus we have, the clearer and more powerful our breathing becomes.

First, you have to know your equipment. While a good anatomy book is a joy forever, the best way to learn is by direct experience. Cool Thing #2 about the breath is that it is always with us and so it can be experienced and experimented with at any time. Hey, how about now?

Try This:

• Assuming you are reading this at your computer, begin by settling into a comfortable upright position. Let your feet be resting flat on the floor, or tuck them under you, Indian-style.
• Feel the support underneath you. What is holding you up? How is the weight of your body making contact with the chair, cushion or floor? Notice the contact of your back against the chair, or if you are not using back support, simply become aware of the space behind you.
• Begin to observe your breath. Notice how it drops in and drops out. Follow the in-breath and the out-breath, allow your breathing to be the focus of your attention.
• Notice what is moving in your body as you breathe. What is happening in your chest? In your belly? Can you feel your shoulders rising and falling as you breathe in and out? Is anything moving in your back? What else do you notice?
• Take in a very full, deep breath. Let it out on a sigh.
• Repeat this two more times.
• What changes do you observe in yourself after taking three big sighs?

Were you surprised at how much is going on in one simple breath? And this is just the really noticeable stuff, like shoulders rising and air moving in and out through nostrils. There's all kinds of chemical exchange going on every time we breathe, and information about our immediate environment being processed by our neuromuscular system. It's interesting to realize that the air we take in and then release out again is our most constant, intimate connection to the world. 

There are so many things in life that are out of our control. Breathing is not one of them. You can learn to breathe with freedom and awareness, decrease the stress in your life, and boost your immune system. (click through to the NPR story above or under Links to see how improving your breathing improves your health.) 

That sounds like a really good way to get through the Winter Holiday Season with comfort and joy!
Come in for a "breathing tune-up" at Way Opens Center. Call me at 917-216-5850.

Way Opens Imagery

Here's a beautiful image of how way opens in autumn:

Way Opens Center  is open for business in its brand new home in the heart of Bucks County in the lovely borough of Newtown.  22 South State St., 2nd floor.
Join me this Wednesday, November 10, from 5:00 - 8:00 pm
Way Opens Wednesday (WOW!) Open House
Good company, refreshments, and a demonstration of Alexander Technique
Hear about Way Opens Center's other bodywork services and learning opportunities.
Call 917-216-5850 for more information.