Rushing from home or work

Some things take longer than you credit – like leaving home or work to go out. Packing up your bag, finding your mobile, keys, putting on shoes and coats.  All this faffing about takes time.  It might mean a few trips into rooms that you’ve already been into to find items.  And then you might need to go back and check if you’ve closed the windows, turned off the iron, locked the door, picked up the paperwork or book that you need ……

Sometimes, if you have plenty of time before you need to leave, you start doing other things or rest for a bit and then suddenly more time has passed than you reckoned and it’s a rush to leave again.

Rushing and panicking, if you’re behind time, can have an impact on the mind and body.  The back and neck can tighten, we can hold our breath, our heart can beat faster, our mind can go a bit manic.

So it’s worth factoring in time to find things, pack things, put things on.  And to pause.  To stop physically for a few moments to come to calm and to be able to think clearly.  Now breathe …..

 

Riders – learn like an Olympian

Deborah Criddle who won a gold and two silver medals at the London 2012 Paralympics has been having Alexander Technique lessons as part of her training schedule.  In an interview after the Paralympics she stated:

“For the last year I have been having regular weekly Alexander Technique lessons both on the ground and on a mechanical horse. It has proven so beneficial that I shall continue with them for the foreseeable future.”

Two colleagues, Claire Rennie and Kamal Thapen, and I are  running a workshop for horse riders on Saturday 2 March 2013 in central London.  We’re using static saddles so that riders can experiment with their posture and seat without the horse taking this as a signal to gallop off!

 

Children’s Posture at the Computer

child at laptop - poor posture as chair too low

I was visiting a friend at the weekend and their 9 year old was using the computer for his homework.  Whilst this looked a lot more fun than homework was in my day, it might not be fun in the long term (or even short term) for his back.

He was sitting at the kitchen table.  His feet didn’t reach the floor.  He was working at a laptop with a small screen so was having to dip his head to read the screen.  He was only using one hand to type and was twisted as he reached over the keyboard.  Because of this, his right shoulder was higher than the left, his back and neck were twisting and he was coming off his right sitting bone a bit.

Kids use computers for homework and computer games, browsing and drawing.  It is a disaster in waiting if we don’t address their posture – backache, neck pain, shoulder pain, tight hips are all waiting to leap at a potentially young age.  There are also implications for eyesight problems too if they stare at a screen for too long, keeping a limited focal distance

So, what can be done to help things?  Here are a few ideas:

  1. Awareness, awareness, awareness.   Parents, carers, teachers and young people all need to know that using our body well is as important as using the computer well.  Think posture first.
  2. Chair Height – shoulders.   The chair seat needs to be high enough so the forearms are parallel to the keyboard without raising the shoulders.  If the forearms are sloping upwards, the chair is too low.  Use books or a cushion to raise the seat height if it’s not an adjustable chair.
  3. Chair Height – legs.   If their feet don’t reach the ground or aren’t flat on the floor, put something under their feet.  Either some books/blocks or a small stool if they are really little.  Their thighs should be parallel to the floor.
  4. Screen Height.   Ideally, the top of the screen should be level with the eyes.  A separate keyboard is helpful for laptops so the laptop or netbook can be propped up on something to raise the screen height.
  5. Watch for twisting or slumping.   There’s a lot more to this than meets the eye which is where a trained Alexander Technique practitioner can advise.  But at least start to look at their posture and notice what is going on.  Also keep an eye on your own posture as children mimic adults.  I find that parents who bring their children to me to look at their posture are often slumped in the chair during our appointment!
  6. Don’t “Sit Up Straight!”   Following the above point, sitting up straight makes people hitch up and be stiff.  They often arch the lower back and push the chin up too far.  Instead, see if they can wriggle onto their sitting bones.  More gentle and may be more effective.

If adults and children are sharing a computer, then these adjustments needed to be made for each person.  It’s tempting to think that we’re only going to use the computer for a bit but we do tend to get a bit sucked in and then find we’re on it for longer than intended.

I’m happy to work with children.  They often only need a few sessions.  I do prefer that the parent/carer also has lessons with me.  It helps the adult have an experience and greater understanding of what we’re working with and will help them with their child as they can share ideas and insights.

Ageing doesn’t need to be a downhill process

Older Woman with back pain - Alexander Technique can improve back pain

Getting older doesn’t mean things inevitably are on a downhill slide.  Getting in and out of the chair can be done without moans and groans and backache isn’t something that has to be accepted as a part of ageing.

It’s about looking at how we do things.  Plonking into a chair is heavy and will round the back, putting pressure on the lower back.  Trying to launch yourself up from the back of a soft low sofa is pretty tricky at any age. Getting up from lying down or sitting is made more difficult if you’re tipping your head back.

Some time back, I worked with an older person who had back and knee problems that were so bad that he was practically having to crawl upstairs by the end of the day.  By our second session, the most important initial change was that he had hope that things could improve.  Hope makes a huge difference.

The arthritis and osteoporosis were still there.  But seeing how he could use his body differently and changing some of his movement habits put less pressure on his joints.

We looked at activities such as sitting, standing and bending and also at getting up and down stairs.  The practical ideas he took on board plus the way he was able to hold his body less tensely changed things enormously.  From crawling up the stairs or grabbing onto the banister, he became able to walk up two flights of stairs holding a mug of tea in each hand!

One of the problems with aches and pains is that one can focus on the problem area too much.  Arthritis and other knee problems can make people dread a movement before they do it – stairs and sitting being two such situations.  The dread or anxiety about triggering knee pain makes people tense.  So here we have a triple whammy:

  • tightening the body
  • focusing on the problem area and ignoring the rest of the body
  • having unhelpful habits such as throwing the head back.

And so there are 3 areas to look at changing:

  • pausing before moving to quieten down the tensing
  • thinking about the whole body and thinking up
  • exploring practical ways of moving which work with rather than against natural balance.

This is what the Alexander Technique is about.  So there are plenty of things to look at and ageing certainly doesn’t need to be a downhill process.

Good posture in bed

Baby sleeping - very relaxed unlike adults who sleep with tension
Baby sleeping - very relaxed unlike adults who sleep with tension


Let’s look at sleeping positions. Do you wake up with neck pain or back pain and feel stiff and achy in the morning? What is a good pillow height? Do you sleep on your back, front or side? Here are some ideas to experiment with.

Pillow Height

The height of the pillow makes a difference. You need to find a height where your neck is in neutral. Your neck needs to be aligned with your spine rather than bent down or up.

If you sleep on your back, you many need a different height pillow than if you sleep on your side or front. Below are ideas for each position:

Sleeping on your back

Have the pillow height so your neck is comfortably aligned. If the pillow is too low, your chin will poke up in the air and the back of your neck will be shortened. If the pillow is too high, your throat may be constricted and your neck may be pushed up at the back.

Some people like their neck to be supported but others prefer just their head on the pillow. See what works best for you.

Experiment with a pillow under your knees and see what effect this has on your lower back pain.

Sleeping on your side

Find a pillow height so the neck is in neutral. It’s not advisable to tuck the chin into the body, as this can cause neck strain.  You may need a slightly more pillow height on your side than when you are on your back.

Try a pillow between your knees. This opens the hips up and doesn’t pull on the back so much.

If you have a longer pillow or a V-shaped pillow, you could also have one end of the pillow between your ankles.

If your arms feel bunched, hug a pillow (or a person!) to open up more in the chest.

Lying on your front

Depending on your body, you may not need a pillow at all – experiment to see how the pillow affects your neck.

Sleeping on your front can cause back strain for some. If it causes low back pain but is the only way you can sleep, try putting a slim pillow under your pelvis and/or lower abdomen.

Pillows – normal, V-shaped and small

Pillows are a personal choice and it is hard to gauge the pillow’s height as they sink and move under the head weight. Some shops have beds that you can lie on to test out pillows so this can help avoid an expensive mistake.

For pillows between the knees, you can use a normal pillow. A smaller pillow or a cushion can be easier to manage, especially when you turn over. Another option is a V-shaped pillow, where the point of the V goes between the knees and the long lines sit between the ankles and thighs. This is very comfortable. Breastfeeding pillows that have a curved shape work well too.