Principals of the Technique

The first principle to comprehend has to do with what is known as “the mind- body connection.” Alexander came to accept that there is a direct connection between how we think and then how our body moves. Overcoming the commonly held belief about this connection, Alexander said, “It is impossible to separate ‘mental’ from ‘physical’ process in any form of human activity” (Alexander 1932, 3). Alexander teachers do not just treat a student’s specific ailment. Alexander lessons focus on the mental attitudes, how the student thinks about what he or she is doing, that may be affecting a lower back pain or a hoarse voice; what other areas of tension may be contributing to the pain or ailment; as well as the specific problem the student is most concerned about.

The second basic principle to understand concerns what Alexander considered “sensory awareness” and is often spoken of in conjunction with the opposite form, known as “faulty sensory awareness.”

Our physical actions give us sensory feedback, known as kinesthetic or proprioceptive sense, but that sense is faulty to most of us because habit often dictates how we actually read or understand that feedback.

How he thought about his physical sense was affected by how he thought he had always acted. Our physical actions give us sensory feedback, known as kinesthetic or proprioceptive sense, but that sense is faulty to most of us because habit often dictates how we actually read or understand that feedback. Alexander became concerned about what he called his “debauched kinesthesia,” where his sense of feedback about movement and pos- ture was not the same as what he observed in the mirrors. Heirich says, “What is comfortable and familiar feels right. Conversely, what is different or unfamiliar feels wrong” (Heirich 2005, 8). People develop habits that, over time become so automatic, they do not realize what could be wrong or what could cause harm from that habit. To do something different often causes resistance because it flies against what one is used to doing, what feels comfortable and familiar. The process of learning the Alexander Technique is a process of learning to over- come the habits of what one is used to doing. In this process, what is taught will feel wrong while old habits are relearned. This is one of the primary reasons hands-on lessons must be taken with a certified teacher over a considerable amount of time.

The third basic principle to understand is that changing habits requires “awareness of the habit,” “inhibition,” and “mental directions,” three concepts within a specific Alexander Technique context. Most Alexander Technique teachers will work with students to develop these three components so that they can achieve “conscious control.”