Alexander Technique for Back Pain.

Are you struggling with discomfort and pain? You’re not alone. Over 4 million people in Australia or (16% of the population) reported that they experienced back pain. ¹ [see graph below]

A significant percentage of back pain occurs to people in their lower back. The initial injury often relates to the way people bend, carry and lift weight.

Unfortunately, many people have a recurrence of pain incidents whenever their lower back is irritated by bending or carrying.

Out of control

Apart from the pain, which can be debilitating, the condition is exacerbated by not knowing why it is occurring; not having a clear treatment option; not knowing how many activities will have to be cancelled or missed because of the back pain. Lack of good quality information is one of the problems associated with back pain.

Surgery, such as disc fusions, do not have a high efficacy rate and some people can find themselves at the same place or worse post-operation. A woman in her late 40’s, Julie from Canberra * had a L3-L4 disc fusion but was still in a great deal of discomfort. She had trouble walking and was holding herself in a rigid pose. Over just a few lessons, Julie learned how to become aware of her movement, how to re-distribute her weight and, most importantly, how to bend without putting pressure onto her injury site. Although she had been shown how to bend correctly in rehab, her old habit of bending at her injury site had not been addressed.

Alexander Technique addresses how the neural patterns (habits) that we use, directly affect our physical functioning. You can exercise and strengthen as much as you like, however, if you don’t change the neural patterns associated with your injury then you will not get a recovery. Julie will always have a back injury, but she has managed her condition and is pain free. She recently, began working again and is well on the way to a managed condition.

When back pain sufferers apply the Alexander Technique, a large percentage consistently report reduction in pain.2

The low-cost and non-invasive nature of Alexander Technique make it a viable option for people to try before undertaking the cost and invasiveness of major surgical intervention.

If you are struggling to make the bed, tie your shoes, sit and stand-why not find about the Alexander Technique?

Over the years I have worked with many hundreds of back pain sufferers. All of them bend incorrectly. Most have extremely poor information about their spine and their back muscles. Most are over strained in the way they use their legs.

Although addressing these issues takes some time, because habits need to be re-trained through repetition, it can be a highly effective approach to management.

 Ron Thomas from Blaxland had chronic neck pain for many years.

He says, “Once I became aware of my movements and my ability to make conscious decisions on how to move my neck pain eased. I have been pain free for some time now.”

Have a read of some of the material on this web site. Then why not come and have a first Alexander consultation. You might become another person who has been able to manage crippling back pain by applying constructive thoughtfulness to your movement.

*(not her real name)