Alexander Technique (AT) is a system of instruction that teaches its student how to hold themselves more naturally and to move with greater efficiency and freedom. It is most effective for people with upper-body musculoskeletal pain, meaning head, neck, shoulder, and upper back problems. The Alexander Technique is extremely gentle, incorporates the benefits of light touch, and is about as low-risk as therapies can get.
American Massage Therapy Association |
North American Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique |
Chiropractic and Osteopathy rely principally upon spinal manipulative therapy (SMT), though osteopaths are fully licensed physicians who can prescribe drugs and perform surgery when it comes to pain treatment. In SMT, a highly trained practitioner uses quick, directed thrusts to move a joint to its anatomical limit. This is the motion that produces the characteristic cracking or popping sound of chiropractic. The action normalizes the microrange of joints, allowing you to move more freely and it resets neurological patterns. Spinal manipulation is at its best when used for stiffness and pain along the body’s central axis (the spine, neck, and head).
When you receive SMT, it’s normal to feel some pain. After all you’re pushing the joint out of its comfort zone. You may even feel some discomfort a few hours or even days afterward, but it should not be a serious problem for you. After the chiropractor finishes SMT, she should give you some stretches and exercises to practice at home. Without exercises, SMT will improve your condition for only a short period of time. A visit to an osteopath will look more like that of a conventional physician since they are full licensed. Osteopath may prescribe medication, look for underlying diseases, and talk to you about other therapies in addition to performing SMT.
For chronic pain along the spine and head, you should be able to tell after six to eight treatments whether SMT is right for you.
American Chiropractic Association |
International Chiropractors Association |
American Osteopathic Association
142 East Ontario St.
Chicago, Illinois 60611
Phone: 800-367-4895
When you don’t exercise, your body reduces its output of serotonin and endorphins, and it’s less able to produce GABA, a neurotransmitter that inhibits pain and lets you sleep. Your muscles and bones become more vulnerable to knots and weakness, and you’re not as able to fight off illness. You become moodier. And if you stop using the painful area completely, the lack of normal sensory input may result in nerves that misfire or become hypersensitive.
Pain can make regular exercise extremely difficult. Click here => Suggested Exercises or navigate to the page through the menu to find gentle stretches and strengthening exercises. They’re appropriate for everyone, and they can get you mobile enough to start a more comprehensive program.
Like the Alexander Technique, the Feldenkrais Method is a series of instructions meant to change improper body alignment and posture. Feldenkrais is a particular favorite of people who have suffered serious physical trauma. People with spinal cord injury, MS, or stroke say that Feldenkrais helps them maximize their ability to move and to make those movements with less pain.
Feldenkrais differs from the Alexander Technique in that it involves relearning primitive movements, such as crawling, in an attempt to re-train your nervous system.
Schneider, Jennifer. Living with Chronic Pain: The Complete Health Guide to the Causes and Treatment of Chronic Pain. Long Island City, NY. Hatherleigh Press, 2004
Dillard, James N. The Chronic Pain Solution: Your Personal Path to Pain Relief. New York, NY:Bantam Book, 2002.
Swanson, David. Mayo Clinic on Chronic Pain. New York, NY: Kensington Publishing, 1999.
This page was first published on May, 15th, 2008 and was last updated on May, 15th, 2008