Wearing Glasses

drawing of spectacles

When you put on a pair of glasses or sunglasses do you nod your head down to do so? And do you do the same when taking them off? No need.

Instead, try keeping your head still and lift your spectacles up and over the ears.

Changing these and other daily habits can help prevent neck strain and poor posture. By becoming more aware of these simple activities, the Alexander Technique helps you  look after your body and reduce tensions.

Computer Monitors – Screen Height.

Correct computer monitor height  to avoid neck pain

To avoid neck strain, the top of your computer monitor should be at eye level, about an arm’s length away. Our eyes naturally look about 15 degrees down and so will then naturally look onto the screen.

There are various bits of equipment that you can buy to raise the screen but a cheap and cheerful option is to prop it up on some large books.

For laptops, it’s a different scenario as the screen is invariably too low and may even be a little close. This is fine if only using the laptops for short periods of time. If you are using a laptop a lot and don’t need it to be too portable, you can buy a separate keyboard and mouse. Ideally, the keyboard should be a “low profile” keyboard – one that is fairly flat. You can then prop the laptop up, an arm’s length away, with the top of the monitor at eye level. There are different types of kit available for this including ones that are like cookery book holders and others that are like bean bags. But, once again, you can always prop the laptop up on some large books.

Posturally, it is not good to push your head and neck forward to read the screen. This can cause neck pain, back and shoulder strain. It’s worth getting your eyes tested regularly to ensure you can see clearly.  You can also look at getting a larger screen or adjusting the print size on screen. But also trust your eyes as pushing the head forward may just be an unnecessary habit.

So as well as thinking about your computer set up, think about your body and how you use it.

The Alexander Technique – Who was Alexander?

FM Alexander - founder of the Alexander Technique
photo © 2005 The Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique, London

 

The Alexander Technique was founded by Frederick Matthias Alexander, an Australian actor born in 1869.  He became hoarse and struggled for breath on stage. Doctors did not find anything physically wrong with him and advised him to rest his voice for a few weeks.

His voice came back but his problems returned as soon as he recited again.  He wondered what he was doing wrong and set up a room with mirrors all around. He observed himself closely and discovered that he had a number of habits as soon as he went to talk.  The habits included tipping his head back, sticking his chest out and tightening his legs.

He spent time quietening these habits which were strongly established. He also freed up his body tensions helping his voice to become strong and giving him a lot of breath control  Other actors asked for his advice which led to him sharing his Technique with them.

He became known as the “Breathing Doctor” and medics asked him to help with some of their patients. They were so impressed with his abilities that they urged him to go to England to expand his work. He came over to London in 1904 and set up a training course to train Alexander Teachers in the 1930s. He died in 1955 at the age of 87, teaching the Alexander Technique right up until his end.

My teachers, Walter and Dilys Carrington, trained with Alexander and worked alongside him from the 1930s until he died. Walter was full of wonderful stories about Alexander, or FM as he was known, and I feel very privileged to have trained with him and Dilys.

Posture at the keyboard

Man at typewriter with a long back, not slouching, sitting on low wall

Offices come in all shapes and sizes.  This one was outside the courts in Mumbai, India where men were typing affidavits. I was struck by how upright this man’s back was. Despite him being very tall and sitting on a low wall, he manages to not slouch. His head is a bit down and forward but, given his office environment, his back is in pretty good order.

Let’s contrast him with the man sat next to him:

One man with a long back and good posture typing, one man slouching whilst writing
Here we can see the difference in posture. It’s so easy to curve the back when writing or typing.  The man on the right has brought his head right down, has a rounded back and is collapsed in the front.

Our posture can deteriorate from a very early age. Here’s another typist:
Man slouching and slumping when typing.
This man has a more rounded back when he types and he is slumping a bit. Note how his neck has pulled forward and how his shoulders have come forward.

In fact, considering where he is typing, his posture is not as bad as many westerners would be in similar circumstances. I just haven’t had the opportunity to go into a British office to take photos.  If there are any willing volunteers, I’d love to do so!

The more I look at these photos, the more I am struck by the back length of the first man.   It’s particularly impressive considering his typewriter is on a low box, not even on a table.

Head Balance – Part 2

Drawing of Head Neck Balance for correct posture

Drawing of Head Neck Balance for correct posture

Having found out where the head balances on top of the neck, what next?  Our heads are very heavy – the equivalent weight of 4 to 5 litres of water. With this heavy weight on top of the body, it needs to work with us and not against us. If the head hangs down, it pulls on the neck and back. If we tilt our head back it’s also a strain on the neck, back and shoulders. Pushing our head forward to look at the computer screen also strains the neck and back.

So we want to find a natural balance point that takes the stress and tension away from the body.

We need to free the neck first. This is just a thought rather than something to do. Allow the muscles to undo tension in the neck and to not clamp or fix onto the head. Soften the jaw. And then allow the head to slightly nod forward from the balance point between the ears. Then think to free the neck again.

The head neck balance wants to be free, not fixed in one position. So we need to keep reminding the head and neck of their optimal balance as existing habits will creep back very quickly.

Head Neck Balance Part 3 shows the rockers on the base of the skull in more anatomical detail.

There is quite a bit more to this than meets the eye and this is easy to mistranslate. It really needs the skilled guidance of an Alexander Technique teacher’s hands to help. If you’d like more insight, you can come along for a one to one lesson.