Alexander Technique - Freedom In Action

Michael Stenning and Léonie John have taught the Alexander Technique full-time for over fifty years, and are qualified members of the Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique (STAT) and its Australian affiliate, AuSTAT.

Over the course of their careers, Michael and Leonie have assisted thousands of people in overcoming, mitigating, and managing many types of back and neck problems. Their specialties include working with musicians, athletes, and workplace environments.

They have set up The Back School in the ACT and provide rehabilitation services that are Comcare-registered; create and conduct the "Fit for Work - Fit for Life!" corporate training program; and developed the Stenning Active-Balance ergonomic office chair line.

Both Michael and Léonie have conducted post-grad CPD workshops for Alexander teachers in Australia, Denmark, Uruguay, Argentina, and the United States.

They are dedicated to conveying skills that make a real difference in preventing and managing injuries, postural, and ergonomic issues, both short- and long-term.

What is the Alexander Technique (AT)? 

The Alexander Technique reduces the strain we place on our bodies and our minds, optimising our day-to-day performance, as well as special skills.

Today, we are constantly drawn outside of ourselves and into dealing with the outside world. What happens to you as you go about your daily life? How much do you consider and care for the only element in your life which is constant, yourself?

All of us know how important it is to relax, be flexible, maintain good posture, and avoid tension. Yet despite our best intentions, relaxation and fitness classes, and Eastern disciplines, we’re still tense and uncomfortable in our bodies, prone to stress, and frequently experiencing aches and pains.

The Alexander Technique teaches us a way of organising body awareness that is useful for us. The knowledge it provides enables us to carry out our good intentions. This practice is unique in that it combines paying attention to our physical bodies with non-doing intent.

Since 1894, it has helped people with chronic and “intractable” problems. Over the last 50 years, research in the United States, Great Britain, Denmark and Australia has confirmed subjective and empirical evidence that the Alexander Technique helps increase respiratory efficiency, improve posture and reduce the effort in movement.

The method provides:

• Elimination, reduction, and control of pain
• Self-directed, long-term treatment of musculoskeletal conditions
• Movement therapy, re-education of posture and breathing
• Comprehensive assessment of your current movement patterns and an individualised treatment program.
• Continuous improvement that becomes normal to you.
• Foundation for your fitness and therapy goals.
• An opportunity to learn about yourself.

How does the Alexander Technique work?

In time, most of us accumulate tensions and distortions in our habitual way of being, which we are unaware of. The result is ongoing restrictions to our natural postural reflexes.

Essentially, the technique deals directly with assisting the “postural reflexes,” i.e. the mechanisms that permit us to stay balanced and supported against the ever-present pull of gravity while in our daily activities.

Using gentle manual guidance, the Alexander teacher helps unravel distortions and encourages the body’s natural reflexes to flow again. A teacher may also use verbal instruction to help students recognise their own patterns of interference and how to cope with them.

The technique can help with: 

• Back pain
• Balance
• Breathing
• Injury prevention and rehabilitation
• Overuse, recurrent or repetitive strain injuries
• Pain management
• Performance improvement in sports or music
• Postural issues
• Other musculoskeletal and nerve-related disorders

Get in touch to learn more about AT or to schedule a consultation!