European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 4, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                A Way to shed muscle tension Etter body mechanics by Jane e. Brody new York times a technique to shed muscle tension habits helps people suffering from chronic pain. It would come As no Surprise to teachers of the Alexander technique a method of adjusting body postures to relieve damaging stresses to hear that my neck is plagued by perpetual tension occasional pain and even a crippling spasm. There is hardly a moment that i Don t unconsciously tense the Muscles Between my head and upper Back when i read write drive work at a computer Cook sew Garden play Tennis swim Cycle dance sit stand walk talk on the phone carry my groceries and even sometimes when i sleep. Alexander teachers say the demands of modern life have fostered a virtual epidemic of neck Back and other problems related to misaligned posture and improperly Tensed Muscles. Their technique is finding an Ever widening role among people suffering from chronic pain and tension syndromes. Basically it helps people shed Long established tension producing habits and relearn How to use their bodies with ease and Grace As they once did in childhood. Judith Leibowitz a leading Trainer of Alexander teachers notes that muscle tension habits begin Early often with first graders learning to write Leibowitz is the director of the teaching program at the american Center for the Alexander technique in new York and is the co author with Bill Connington of the Alexander technique Harper amp Row $19.95. While not construed As a therapy the Alexander technique has nonetheless proved therapeutic for countless people most of whom seek help Only after they Are in pain or unable to perform their usual activities properly. Quot by teaching people better body mechanics Quot said or. Jack Stern professor of neurosurgery at the new York medical College a it frequently enables patients to do away with pain a even the pain of a herniated disk a without having to undergo  the technique has Long been appreciated by performing artists a dancers musicians and actors who use it to counter occupationally induced tightness and injuries and to produce More fluid performances. In the last few years the technique has gained the attention of a growing number of Ordinary people Many of whom have failed repeatedly to get permanent Relief from conventional health professionals. Randi Adier for example had been suffering from neck spasms for More than a decade. No one from masseuse to Physia Trist had been Able to relieve for More than a Day the pain that she said began when she worked As a typesetter. Quot i could t sit through a movie could t go out to dinner  play question to what degree is muscle weakness responsible for Low Back pain answer a Good question research tells us that temporarily relieve Back pain. However strengthening is probably Over prescribed As a treatment and oversubscribed As being the source of the pain. The weakness in patients May often be the result of underlying problems and inactivity therefore treating the weakness May not be effective for these patients since the specific problem has not been addressed. Weakness May be cited As the problem because it is usually easier to identify than other deficits. Be wary if your spinal exam is Brief and weakness is the Only or major problem which is  May Only be the a tip of the  by Dan Dyrek is it director of mass. Genera Hospital physical therapy associates source Boston Globe. R. A a cards i was so uncomfortable All the time Quot she recalled. Then a Friend recommended the Alexander technique. In the first session she said she realized it had Promise she began to see How her misuse of her Muscles was contributing to her problem. Gradually through weekly sessions with Carole Crewdson an Alexander teacher in Brooklyn she gained a new awareness of her body and How she moved it. Now 10 months later Adler has shed her old neck crippling habits and replaced them with More balanced and physiologically appropriate postures. She can now move without pain. The Alexander technique helped Kathleen Usadi to undo the hunched posture she had assumed for 42 years until she developed Back pain so disabling that she could not carry a few books or groceries without pain. Within 31/2 months of weekly Alexander training sessions she said she had a healthy Back for the first time in five years. After listening to Alexander students a Krten of graphics Marty Westman critical consumer might be tempted to dismiss the technique As a Panacea promoted by fringe therapists who subject desperate patients to unproved remedies. And not surprisingly the technique which was originated by an actor has been All but ignored although not denounced by the medical profession. Only a relative handful of physicians mostly orthopaedic surgeons refer patients to Alexander teachers. A Hundred years ago f. Matthias Alexander a Young australian actor discovered that unconscious habits of posture and movement can interfere with the performance of Normal activities. It All started because he was losing his ability to speak on stage. Distraught by the failure of medical consultants to restore his voice he took matters into his own hands. Using mirrors he Analysed his body movements As he recited Shakespeare and found that his voice was poorest when he adopted certain postures that seemed right for the part but were not right for his vocal musculature. Gradually he worked out a new stance retraining the action of his Muscles until he had regained control of his voice. Encouraged by a physician familiar with his method and motivated by observations that Many people abuse their Muscles when they stand sit and move Alexander began teaching people How to use their musculature properly. He also wrote extensively about the technique and in Britain and the United states As Well As in Australia he trained others to teach it. Hundreds of therapists in North America have completed Long courses to become certified Alexander teachers and the technique is now part of required coursework in a number of schools for performing artists including the Juilliard school of music in new York and the american conservatory. Alexander teachers Start by observing the students posture movements and muscular tensions while various activities Are undertaken. Through touch and words the student is made aware of muscular habits that can interfere with natural poise and smooth performance. For example Eleanor Rosenthal an Alexander teacher from san Francisco tells of violist whose Eft shoulder kept Locking causing pain numbness in the hand and inability to move her head and Arm. The problem made it nearly impossible for her play. The violist reported Quot after my first lesson i noticed immediate improvement in the left shoulder area. The shoulder never locked again after the second lesson and i have probably increased the number of hours i  the focal Point of Alexander therapy is the positioning of the head 10 to 15 percent of the body a total weight perched atop a slender Rod the spinal column. With two thirds of the Heads weight in front of the spine it tends to fall Forward As it does when you doze off sitting up. The Muscles in the Back of the neck must keep it balanced. Some people adopt a military posture Chest out shoulders Back Chin in. Others tilt their Heads Back and Lead with their chins. Still others Bend their Heads Forward and Hunch their shoulders. All such abnormal postures create undue stress on the spine and its supporting tissues. The Alexander method teaches a More relaxed and natural posture and movement patterns that balance the head while relaxing the neck Muscles. It also strives to free the neck from having to participate in every move the body makes. About sitting Alexander students practice sitting without Back support. Incorrect in a slump Bones Point Forward. Incorrect when Back is arched Bones Are lifted off chair in rear. Correct with head leading up. Lengthening Torso Bones Point straight Down. Page 16 a a a the stars and stripes tuesday september 4,1990